A Travel Guidebook For Children
Teddy's Travels, America's National Parks, by Tedrick De Bear and Trefoni Michael Rizzi (TdB Press, Altadena, CA, 2006, ISBN-13: 978-0-9740494-0-3, ISBN-10: 0-9740494-0-9). Cover price $19.95.
Tedrick De Bear is a classic brown teddy bear. His co-author Trefoni Rizzi, also known as Tony, is a visual artist and designer. They have produced a unique, beautiful kids' travel journal and American National Parks guidebook in one.
Friendly little Teddy takes Tony to many National Parks in the United States, one region at a time. There are clear, appealing pictures on every page showing Teddy in all the great places - the Grand Canyon, Yosemite, the Everglades, just to name a few.
The text is printed in a child-friendly font (similar to the Comic font available on Microsoft Word). Teddy speaks directly to the reader and writes like an intelligent child. For example, at Gettysbury National Military Park, Teddy reflects, "It's so quiet here. It made me think about the Civil War and all the things that led to this battle and it made me very sad". For a happier moment, at the Washington Monument, he writes, "Now, I think the BEST part of the Washington Monument is that you can go up INSIDE, all the way to the TOP!" Surely that will inspire at least some young travellers.
Maps of the Regions of America
Each section of this national parks guidebook opens with a description, "The Lay of the Land", featuring a map of the states in that region. The uncluttered maps have just a few major features - the state boundaries, major roads, key points of interest. One built-in challenge is for the reader to identify the states by shape and location, as the state names are not shown.
Lists of the National Parks and Historic Sites in the States
Opposite the regional map is a checklist, by state, of the region's National Parks and Historic Sites, with room to write in the date of the visit to each.
Teddy's put his paw print beside the name of the places featured in the book. Each is a described and illustrated in a page or two of text, explaining why the place is significant. Readers will quickly become experts on the history and relevance of some of America's legendary events and places.
A Guidebook, Journal and Scrapbook
Pages 107 through 125 are left for the reader to fill up with park stamps, pictures, postcards, journal entries and other memorabilia. Each of the scrapbook pages shows Teddy doing something interesting and cute.
This book is durable enough to last for years, and to go on many trips. The pictures should hold the interest of children who cannot read or prefer pictures over words.
Children who don't like teddy bears will not be keen on Teddy's Travels, but everyone else should find it pleasant and fun. There is enough depth to the content to be stimulating and informative, depending upon the individual child's reading skills. This looks like a book that will help children to plan and appreciate the educational and "good for you" trips their parents take them on.
The author reports that many grandparents have found Teddy's Travels a good book to share with their grandchildren. The book is also finding its way into ESL (English as a Second Language) groups. The language level and the information in the book are stimulating enough to provide a good learning experience for both children and adults.
Teddy's Travels is coil-bound and easily lies flat for reading and writing. The 128 pages measure 7 by 9 inches, big enough to paste mementoes into or to write notes.
