Rating: 
Summary: A Timeless Classic.....
Review: "Once upon a time a little lighthouse was built on a sharp point of the shore by the Hudson River. It was round and fat and red. It was fat and red and jolly. And it was VERY, VERY PROUD. Behind it lay New York City where the people lived..." The little red lighthouse was very quiet by day, watching all the ships and people traveling up and down the river. But by night, it was very busy flashing its lights and ringing its bell to keep the ships away from the rocks and danger. "It felt big and useful and important. What would the boats do without me? it thought." Then one day, everything began to change. Workmen came and dug and dug. Enormous steel girders began to rise over the little lighthouse, and huge, heavy cables were strung between the girders. A great gray bridge grew overhead, spanning the river from shore to shore. It made the little lighthouse feel very small and unimportant..... Originally published in 1942, award winning author Hildegarde Swift's, The Little Red Lighthouse And The Great Gray Bridge is as heartwarming and entertaining today, as it was over sixty years ago. Her engaging text, with its happily-ever-after ending, is complemented by Lynd Ward's charming, playful, and expressive illustrations, and together word and art send a simple message that won't be lost on young children...size doesn't equal importance. Perfect for youngsters 3-7, The Little Red Lighthouse And The Great Gray Bridge includes a fascinating afterword on the back cover about the history of the real lighthouse and bridge, portrayed in this story, to further enlighten. This is a timeless classic, to read and share now with friends and family, and future generations in the years to come. "And now beside the great beacon of the bridge the small beam of the lighthouse still flashes. Beside the towering gray bridge the lighthouse still bravely stands. Though it knows now that it is little, it is still VERY, VERY PROUD. And every day the people who go up Riverside Drive in New York City turn to look at it. For there they both are-the great gray bridge and the little red lighthouse. If you don't believe it, go see for yourselves!"
Rating:
Summary: A Timeless Classic.....
Review: "Once upon a time a little lighthouse was built on a sharp point of the shore by the Hudson River. It was round and fat and red. It was fat and red and jolly. And it was VERY, VERY PROUD. Behind it lay New York City where the people lived..." The little red lighthouse was very quiet by day, watching all the ships and people traveling up and down the river. But by night, it was very busy flashing its lights and ringing its bell to keep the ships away from the rocks and danger. "It felt big and useful and important. What would the boats do without me? it thought." Then one day, everything began to change. Workmen came and dug and dug. Enormous steel girders began to rise over the little lighthouse, and huge, heavy cables were strung between the girders. A great gray bridge grew overhead, spanning the river from shore to shore. It made the little lighthouse feel very small and unimportant..... Originally published in 1942, award winning author Hildegarde Swift's, The Little Red Lighthouse And The Great Gray Bridge is as heartwarming and entertaining today, as it was over sixty years ago. Her engaging text, with its happily-ever-after ending, is complemented by Lynd Ward's charming, playful, and expressive illustrations, and together word and art send a simple message that won't be lost on young children...size doesn't equal importance. Perfect for youngsters 3-7, The Little Red Lighthouse And The Great Gray Bridge includes a fascinating afterword on the back cover about the history of the real lighthouse and bridge, portrayed in this story, to further enlighten. This is a timeless classic, to read and share now with friends and family, and future generations in the years to come. "And now beside the great beacon of the bridge the small beam of the lighthouse still flashes. Beside the towering gray bridge the lighthouse still bravely stands. Though it knows now that it is little, it is still VERY, VERY PROUD. And every day the people who go up Riverside Drive in New York City turn to look at it. For there they both are-the great gray bridge and the little red lighthouse. If you don't believe it, go see for yourselves!"
Rating:
Summary: Even more wonderful now - 9/18/02 the lighthouse shone...
Review: again. That's right. For all of you, like me, who loved this book as a child, the story you can share with your children is now even more wonderful. It was this book that saved the LRL from destruction half a century ago, and in september of 2002, for the first time in 55 years, the LRL is a working beacon again. See the web for news stories - the USCG moved some priorities and spare parts around, and now she shines again.Better than ever....
Rating:
Summary: fond memories of the city I grew up in
Review: As a child in The Bronx, we visited the Little Red Lighthouse and this story paints a great picture of progress and the way it affects our lives. We may not think we are in with the times but as the lighthouse finds out, there is a place for all of us and people for us to take care of. I first read this book when my son was in 1st grade and now I'm ordering it for his 34th birthday. We've both visited the lighthouse and of course crossed the Great Gray Bridge on our way from the city to the south where we live now.
Rating:
Summary: A sweet story for all children and children at heart.
Review: As a kid growing up in Brooklyn, I remember driving over the George Washington bridge and seeing the "Little Red Lighthouse". I remember one of my teachers Miss Foley (a tuff WW II WAC) reading us the story in her class. I took my own boys over the GW bridge and we went the lighthouse; telling them the story. It's stories like this that we adults remember; and need to pass on to our children along with the love of reading an d learning.
Rating:
Summary: The most important story Captain Kangaroo ever read us
Review: Bob Keeshan died yesterday and those of us trying to salve the ache of having a key pillar of our youth pass away having been thinking back on and talking about what made "Captain Kangaroo" the "Sesame Street" of its day. In addition to Mr. Greenjeans and Bunny Rabbit, there were the classic children's books that were read to us by the Captain. On a list of beloved books that includes "Make Way for Ducklings," "Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel," and "Ping," there is also "The Little Red Lighthouse and Great Gray Bridge." So far everybody I have been talking to about Captain Kangaroo has remembered the book and every one of them has driven under the George Washington Bridge in New York City and seen the Little Red Lighthouse that stands watching over the Hudson River. I think "The Little Red Lighthouse and the Gray Bridge," written by Hildegard Hoyt Swift and illustrated by Lynd Ward, is arguably the most significant of the books we first "read" on "Captain Kangaroo." I have two reasons for this. The first is the powerful metaphor for young children that something little can still be important in a world where some things are much bigger. The second is that the story is "true," in the very real sense that you can see the great gray bridge and see the little red lighthouse, which is never ever going to be torn down just because of this book. The idea that stories can be true is a very important idea for young readers to absorb. I would add the idea that just because something is bigger and newer it is not better, but that certainly would be showing my age, would it not? Even though this book was originally published in 1942, I feel safe in saying that most of the children who have ever read "The Little Red Lighthouse and the Great Gray Bridge" did so directly or indirectly because of Bob Keeshan. This is true even if they have never held a copy of the actual book in their own hands. I wonder if young kids today, who are just learning how to read, still have the opportunity to have stories read to them like we did on "Captain Kangaroo." It has been sixty years since this book was first published and tonight even with Captain Kangaroo gone, there is some comfort in knowing that the littel red lighthouse still proudly stands beneath the George Washington Bridge.
Rating:
Summary: The most important story Captain Kangaroo ever read us
Review: Bob Keeshan died yesterday and those of us trying to salve the ache of having a key pillar of our youth pass away having been thinking back on and talking about what made "Captain Kangaroo" the "Sesame Street" of its day. In addition to Mr. Greenjeans and Bunny Rabbit, there were the classic children's books that were read to us by the Captain. On a list of beloved books that includes "Make Way for Ducklings," "Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel," and "Ping," there is also "The Little Red Lighthouse and Great Gray Bridge." So far everybody I have been talking to about Captain Kangaroo has remembered the book and every one of them has driven under the George Washington Bridge in New York City and seen the Little Red Lighthouse that stands watching over the Hudson River. I think "The Little Red Lighthouse and the Gray Bridge," written by Hildegard Hoyt Swift and illustrated by Lynd Ward, is arguably the most significant of the books we first "read" on "Captain Kangaroo." I have two reasons for this. The first is the powerful metaphor for young children that something little can still be important in a world where some things are much bigger. The second is that the story is "true," in the very real sense that you can see the great gray bridge and see the little red lighthouse, which is never ever going to be torn down just because of this book. The idea that stories can be true is a very important idea for young readers to absorb. I would add the idea that just because something is bigger and newer it is not better, but that certainly would be showing my age, would it not? Even though this book was originally published in 1942, I feel safe in saying that most of the children who have ever read "The Little Red Lighthouse and the Great Gray Bridge" did so directly or indirectly because of Bob Keeshan. This is true even if they have never held a copy of the actual book in their own hands. I wonder if young kids today, who are just learning how to read, still have the opportunity to have stories read to them like we did on "Captain Kangaroo." It has been sixty years since this book was first published and tonight even with Captain Kangaroo gone, there is some comfort in knowing that the littel red lighthouse still proudly stands beneath the George Washington Bridge.
Rating:
Summary: A Childhood Favorite
Review: I wrote my original review of this book on October 2, 1997 (I'm listed as "A reader from the Bronx"). My review still stands, of course (Why should it change? The book's magnificent). As I'd fervently wished for, the copy of this book that my parents gave me when I was 5 is now my four-year-old son's favorite book. He sleeps with it, in fact. When I was 6, my parents took me to the famous lighthouse, and took a series of pictures that still hangs on my wall. My parents and I are planning soon to recreate that trip, take the same pictures... only with my own son in them now. All of this inspired by a wonderful book that still lives on as a classic childrens' fable.
Rating:
Summary: From generation to generation... a classic...
Review: I wrote my original review of this book on October 2, 1997 (I'm listed as "A reader from the Bronx"). My review still stands, of course (Why should it change? The book's magnificent). As I'd fervently wished for, the copy of this book that my parents gave me when I was 5 is now my four-year-old son's favorite book. He sleeps with it, in fact. When I was 6, my parents took me to the famous lighthouse, and took a series of pictures that still hangs on my wall. My parents and I are planning soon to recreate that trip, take the same pictures... only with my own son in them now. All of this inspired by a wonderful book that still lives on as a classic childrens' fable.
Rating:
Summary: Classic memories from my childhood...
Review: In my youth, I borrowed this book from the library so many times that my parents finally bought it for me. They also took me to see the legendary lighthouse (which still stands, proudly, under the GW Bridge, not far from where I grew up). Now, as an adult, I have had the great pleasure of enriching my nephews' lives with this simple fable of pride and perserverance. I still treasure this book, and hope to share it with my own children one day.
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