Cynthia RylantWhen I Was Young in the Mountains (Reading Rainbow Books)

A sweet family story of times gone by. This book encourages the bond between a child and her grandmother. I read it to my grandchildren, as it has nice pictures for younger children who cannot read well, yet.

Years ago there was an amazing mail order company called 'Chinaberry Books' that suggested books based on the art, the writing, etc. I was never disappointed. This was one of their suggestions and I read this often to my children. They learned about life in a different place in a different time, with a simple sweetness. Bedtime stories are a magical way to end the day. This one I bought for my grandchildren.

This was one of my favorite books growing up, and now my daughter loves it, too! She is only 16 months old, but loves the drawings and knows what is going on. This is a beautiful story well-illustrated about a rural childhood. I like that the story doesn't seem juvenile in tone - it doesn't "talk down" to its audience, yet it is simple and easy to understand. I also appreciate that the main character is a girl (she has a brother, too, and I know boys who have liked the story as well). Mostly I appreciate the simple yet effective and heart-warming story and the great illustrations - my daughter enjoys the chickens, dogs, and snakes.

Since I moved out of state, I have really missed the culture and people of West Virginia. When reading this book by Cynthia Rylant, I felt like I was back there, almost able to smell the forest and grandma cooking dinner. Obviously, life in West Virginia is much different today than the time period depicted in this book, but the coal mines, family, and mountains are still essential to being a West Virginian. The rustic illustrations fit the story perfectly and really highlight the natural beauty of the state’s landscape. The story is a beautiful way to introduce outsiders to what life is like in the mountains, and to pass the history on to your children. It helped me picture what life for my ancestors was like, and I hope to pass the story down for generations. Rylant’s children’s books are timeless and deserving of their many awards.

My grandaughter read this book at school last week. She's in kindergarten. When I came over, she kept asking me about it, because she remembered the name of the author. I Googled the name and found the book on Amazon. I ordered it for her to keep. She got it the next day and read me the whole book. She is full of curiosity and I explained that I knew about the story only from stories from my own grandmother, who had a well, a black stove and other things that were in the story. The younger generation is excited to know about past lives and how people used to live.

This is one of my favorite books of all time. It is simply written with lovely illustrations. It tells about the author’s childhood in the Southern mountains.I used to read it to my students, when we were discussing poverty in the US.This is a very uplifting story about a hard scrabble area.

Good for kids.

Beautiful book, some inaccuracies. A black snake is killed in the book and I really doubt the cultural or historic accuracy of that occurrence. Black snakes are very beneficial and there is an understanding of that in “the mountains”.