I have always had a fondness for Mister Rogers and his show, ever since I was a kid. So, when I saw this on the Amazon clearance page, I had to order it for the library.

This book is a series of quick-hit quotes and stories, very rarely over one page long, that capture the essence of who Fred Rogers was. And, as many people know, he was exactly the person off-camera as he appeared to be on-camera.

I loved a lot of the things Mister Rogers (I just can't not call him Mister Rogers!) said in this book. Although he devoted his life to teaching and serving children, this really isn't so much a children's book as it is a book for the adults who remember Mister Rogers and his show from their childhoods. I could hear him saying a lot of the things, and, whenever there was a song quoted, I could hear his softly lilting voice. It brought back some great memories.

Here are some of my favorite quotes from this book:

I'm proud of you for the times you came in second, or third, or fourth, but what you did was the best you had ever done.

Love isn't a state of perfect caring. It is an active noun like struggle. To love someone is to strive to accept that person exactly the way he or she is, right here and now.

I do love being a grandfather, and I wonder if it wasn't because my grandfather McFeely loved me so much, and I had such a good time with him.

I hope you're proud of yourself for the times you've said "yes," when all it meant was extra work for you and was seemingly helpful only to somebody else.

This is one of those books that I would like to purchase eventually, to come back to over and over again when I'm in need of a little help through the day. It's always good to know that you've got a friend in Mister Rogers.

My rating: 10/10 ( )

Favorite Quote: "What matters isn't how a person's innerlife finally puts together the alphabet and numbers of his outerlife. What really matters is whether he uses the alphabet for thedeclaration of a war or the description of a sunrise---his numbersfor the final count at Buchenwald or the specifics of a brand-newbridge.""Love is like infinity. You can't have more or less infinity, and youcan't compare two things to see if they're 'equally infinite.'Infinity just is, and that's the way I think love is, too.""I hope you're proud of yourself for the times you've said 'yes,'when all it meant was extra work for you and was seemingly helpfulonly to somebody else.""A high school student wrote to ask" 'What wasthe greatest event in American history?' I can't say. However, Isuspect that like so many 'great' events, it was something verysimple and very quiet with little or no fanfare....""One of my wise teachers, Dr. William F. Orr, told me, 'There is onlyone thing evil cannot stand and that is forgiveness.'" ( )

Beautiful ! Wonderful reminders from a lifetime friend on life. "Important Things to Remember" for anyone of any age. ( )

There is more to this man than many people know; I invite you to investigate. He has a way of saying things that you might take for granted, but that in many ways go against the dogma of our modern American society: it isn’t a good idea to maintain a cheerful facade all the time; people feel freer to be themselves when they are assured of rules and boundaries than when they are allowed to do anything with no responsibility; every now and again you need to stop and recharge and rethink- you can’t keep going 100% all the time.

There are many things to stop and think about from a man who dedicated his life to helping future generations develop their potential to the fullest and recognize the connection between all human beings. ( )

A lot of quotes with nothing really tying them together. I loved the show as a kid and was more interested in the 5 page biography of Rogers than the 200 pp. worth of quotes. ( )