Stop That Ball! A Book For Toddlers.

Mike McClintock wrote and Fritz Siebel illustrated my daughter's all-time favourite book, Stop That Ball! Originally published long ago but still available to purchase (see below), this timeless story of a kid's never-ending adventure through every dangerous part of his town as he follows the misadventures of his broken-free, run-away tether ball, is a favourite in our house.

Filled with fun rhyming prose, every little adventure captures a child's imagination. Children excitedly giggle all the way through as you emote the excitement, fear, determination, and sense of danger involved in each adventure.

Oh yes, this is a big time favourite in our house.

Imagine, "Again! Again! Again!" your child will chant at bedtime when you read this crazy, imagination driving story.

All writing is copyright by me - Teapixie! :)

Illustrated by Fritz Siebel, the images in this book are filled with M-O-T-I-O-N.

Zippy lines are on every page, showing how fast that ball is moving and how fast the boy is running to get his ball.

In our copy of the book, the black line drawings are colourized with red and green, while the hard cover is a full colour Fritz Siebel illustration. The young boy depicted has that Dennis the Menace/Freshie kid (a cartooned kid on the front of a Canadian drink mix for kids in the 1970s) look.

Adults are depicted in jobs like

sewer workers,

constructions workers,

firemen, and

baseball players.

Unfortunately, all of the adults are males, but our daughter doesn't seem to care.

Fritz makes the story come to life in his drawings that transform childhood rhymes into a world of adventure through idealized jobs.

This book will excite your child about reading.

This book will excite your child about listening.

This book will excite your child about adventure.

It's worth the cost.

In 1959 Fritz Siebel illustrated STOP THAT BALL! and in 1958 he co-authored A Fly Went By. Siebel is most known for his illustration work on the series of Amelia Bedelia books, the most recent of which was published in 2009.

Author of STOP THAT BALL! is Mike McClintock. It appears that McClintock and Siebel began their publishing adventures together as authors of A Fly Went By. McClintock's publishing history is intricately linked to beginner books. His most recent publication was Follow That Fly! in 2005.

These two artists know kids and their long histories of producing kids books attests to their expertise.

STOP THAT BALL! is one of those books that kids never, ever forget. Why? Because they will ask you to read it to them again and again.

I remember having a book called, The Santa Mouse, that I read and read and read. When I moved out of my parents' house, I looked for that book to take it with me. I was so sad to find that it had been damaged by a basement flood.

STOP THAT BALL! will be the book that my daughter wants to take with her when she moves out (Ohhhh - those are terrible words to write!). Yes - kids do run away from their parents, in the beginning, but it is books like this that evoke memories of the beautiful times in childhood. Just seeing the cover of this book will your child of the times when they were cared for by you and connected to you in a way that they will never be connected to anyone, again.

Because we love Mike McClintock's first book, I want to recommend his second. See how influential good writing is? This book is filled with same, lively illustrations and insightful storytelling.

Did you have a favourite book that you had to have under your arm when you left home? Tell us about it!

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