All by Myself

Little Critter is just like my toddler daughter in thought and action. He captures the whims and imaginations of a toddler so completely, that every book that I read to her from this series is perfect for her two year old mind because it rings true. In this book, we tackle the subject of independence. Little Critter can do everything by himself - brush his fur, get his food ready, get dressed. The sentences are a repetitive pattern of "I can (various actions) all by myself." How well he can do these things by himself, well, that's another matter, and the illustrations humorously point out that his attempts aren't perfect. The ending is especially sweet, as Little Critter realizes that he can't do one thing by himself; he can't read a show more bed time story to himself. He needs his parents after all. The last picture show him cuddling in their arms and falling asleep. In this simple story we see the toddler's growing sense of independence that is often in conflict with their need for and dependence on their parents. I smile every time I see just how well Little Critter can do these things all by himself, and the triumphant pride on his face. Another sweet dose of childhood with lots of funny bits for parents and children. show less

In All by Myself by Mercer Mayer, the theme of independence is shown throughout the entire book. It shows a boy doing his day-to-day activities all by himself. It does show him spilling the drink or not tying his shoes properly, but those are challenges that come with independence. I think the author adds that in appropriately and is good for children to see that they can make mistakes.
This book is relevant to children because it can help them spark a desire to want to do more things independently. The book shows age-appropriate milestones that they can do independently without feeling overwhelmed from the pressure of making mistakes or not getting it right the first time. It also shows activities that the children reading it have also show more probably done before so it relates more to them as well. show less

All by Myself by Mercer Mayer was a good book about understanding how to do things on your own. Little Critter, the main character, wakes up and does everything on his own from getting dressed, eating breakfast, and helping with chores. Things don’t always seem to go the right way for him and he realizes very quickly that even though there are things that he can do on his own, he still may need help doing them so they are done correctly without breaking anything or making a mess. I like the illustrations in the book because during every task you can see in little critter’s face whether he is struggling, accomplishing a task correctly, or knows he is being mischievous with what he is doing. I think this is a good book for young show more children to understand that even though they think they know how to do something, it is okay to still ask for help so they don’t make a mess or break anything in the process. show less

A book to read to a three-year-old in my opinion. This is not one that has much meaning behind it. To me, it is boring other than the fact that the illustrations are pretty. Its all about what this boy can do by himself, like tie his shoes. In the illustrations on the page with the tieing shoes, he isn't actually able to tie his shoes correctly.

Edit: I read it to a close friend of mine and he asked me, "so is the book encouraging kids? Is it telling them its okay to not know how to do some things? because things are learned at people's own individual rate. It's not a race when you're a kiddo."
I can not believe I could not see that, I do now. Also, that is is okay to seek others help when stuck, even when you don't think you are.

I like this book a lot because the words and pictures are straight to the point. For example, the author writes, "I can put on my socks and tie my shoes" and shows Little Critter doing just that. This is exactly what my students need in their daly routines as they become off task when things are too wordy or too much for them to comprehend. Of couse we can reduce the wording on our own, but it is nice to have a book you don't have to do that for.

I've bought a number of Little Critter books for my nieces, because they really like them.

And anyway, they're short, they're funny, they're topical, and they're cheap.

In this one, Little Critter details all the things he can do "by himself". Of course, the illustrations give the lie to his words - sure he can pour his own juice, but he doesn't say that he spills, that sort of thing.

Anyway, he very cutely does a lot of things "by himself" before reading that he can't tuck himself into bed - he needs a story.

Aw.

I liked this book because of the writing. I think the writing was simplistic and would be perfect for an early reader. Each page includes just one sentence of text. For example, “I can button my overalls,” and “I can brush my fur.” This book would be ideal for a beginning reader as well as many other Mercer Mayer books. I do not think there was a strong central message of the book. I think the point of the book was to show ownership and that the character can do many things on his own without any help. It shows students (who are mainly at transition ages) that they do not need help with everything and there are many things they can do on their own. Overall, I thought it was a good book and I really did enjoy the simplicity of show more the text. show less