"Anthony And The Magic Picture Frame, by Michael S. Class, is a terrific new book that makes history (and the moral lessons it teaches us) fascinating for kids. Homefires highly recommends it for homeschoolers."
Homefires "Editor's Pick"
The Journal of Homeschooling Online
www.homefires.com
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"Anthony and the Magic Picture Frame is an innovative book that will stimulate your child's interest in history. Although written for ages 12 and up, this can easily be used as a family read-aloud for younger children.
Your child will be transported back to the time of important historical events using real photographs of "Anthony" superimposed on historical photos of the people he visits including Charles Lindbergh, Lou Gehrig, Thomas Edison, and Dr. Jonas Salk. While on these "visits," Anthony learns about the Apollo Moon Mission, The Great Depression, Immigration, Polio Vaccine, WWII, the Holocaust, and more. Real quotes from real people make the story come so alive that you almost believe Anthony is there!
Included in the book is a list of books, movies, museums, and music related to each topic as well as footnotes that are lessons in themselves. I also like that the author chose to include references to God and Bible scripture rather than make this "politically" correct.
The author, Michael Class, wrote the book to encourage "young people to become productive, honest, thoughtful, moral citizens-and to contribute in a positive way to American society and the world." He has done an excellent job of fulfilling this mission. I highly recommend this book for everyone, even adults."
Cindy Downes
Teacher and Homeschool Consultant
www.oklahomahomeschool.com
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"This book is an amazing resource for US history from the past 125 years. Each chapter is its own story with Anthony visiting real people and taking part in real events from US history. Anthony tells the events from a first person point of view and suddenly boring old history is tranformed into an exciting adventure story and yet - the story is not fiction it is real.
Each chapter has incredible photographs. Many of the photos are familiar or famous photos with Anthony in the picture. Several of the photos were extremely powerful and moving. My kids found some fun "hidden" treasures in a lot of the pictures - but they are still looking for more.
The chapters are filled with direct quotes from the historical individuals and the author has reference notes to the original sources for each quote. When I went back to look at the notes, I found so much more than just footnotes referencing sources. What I found was almost a second book following the adventure story. The hundreds of references explain tidbits of history, context for the quoted material and hidden recommendations for additional resources in order to delve more deeply into a particular topic.
Some recommendatons are hidden in the notes section, but there is a third section to the book called "Anthony Recommends". In this section, there are hundreds of books, movies, music and places recommended for the person interested in a deeper look at any of the topics.
I am using this book as a spine for a homeschool history course targeted for high schoolers. For each chapter, they read the story and discuss the photographs and then they each get to pick some additional resources from the recommended materials to extend the study. With so many book and movie recommendations, each student can extend the topic in a more personal way that keeps his or her interest and appeals to his or her learning style. I printed the final exam from the author's website and the students have used the test as a pre-test to see how little they know now and they will use it at the end of their journey through the book as a post test to see how much they have learned.
This book is a real treasure. The reading level is late middle school through high school and beyond, but younger kids would definitely enjoy the chapters and photos as a read-aloud story.
Susan M.
"Eclectic Homeschool Mom," Seattle, WA
Posted on: www.homeschoolreviews.com
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"Turns American history into a grand time-travel adventure. Gorgeous hardcover with phenomenal illustrations."
Carolyn K.
Hoagies Gifted Education Page
Gifts for the Gifted: The Best of Hoagies Shopping Guide
www.hoagiesgifted.org
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"Anthony and the Magic Picture Frame gives us a fresh and entertaining look into some of history’s most famous and interesting people. ... This hardbound book has a professional quality that only most collectors’ editions possess.
Chapter 3, “To America I Will Go,” decidedly immersed me into the story, when Anthony meets his own grandfather on his trip to America from Italy. There we see an inside view of the hardship and troubles of the many families who immigrated through Ellis Island in the early 1900’s. This story is written from Anthony’s perspective, which inescapably draws the reader into the experience and provides a viewpoint that is designed to reach the child on an emotional level and provoke the reader to thoughtfully contemplate the circumstance of those he interacts with. I found myself curious about this time period, searching for more information on Ellis Island and immigration statistics.
I admit to not being very familiar with Lou Gehrig prior to reading Chapter 7, “The Luckiest Man.” After reading about Anthony’s account of his life and experiences, I feel like I not only know him but that we are old friends. The author really made Lou Gehrig seem larger than life and gave us a glimpse of a man who is someone we can all look up to and respect. The adoration Anthony has for Lou shines through perfectly and helps the child understand just how important Lou Gehrig was to those who knew him and those who loved to watch him play.
The book doesn’t leave you hanging at the end of the “story.” The author has provided a tremendous resource of books, videos, historical places and more, to encourage a deeper understanding of the subjects being studied. This is a terrific aid for the teacher or homeschooling parent committed to presenting an accurate view of history that will entertain and educate the student, without putting them to sleep, something most children will appreciate.
If you only purchase one history book this year for your middle-school-aged child, make this be the one. ... With so many books written today that are morally bankrupt and leave a child looking for a strong moral foundation upon which to build, this book is a breath of fresh air."
Annette Hall
Excerpts from Book Review
www.ReliableAnswers.com
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Anthony and the Magic Picture Frame is replete with historical fact woven into an entertaining story, but it is more than just history offered with a spoonful of sugar. Class has in mind more than helping children learn historical facts. Throughout the book, he emphasizes the idea that "the purpose of life is to live a life of purpose, and that doing the right thing always matters." The last chapter brings Anthony back to his time. As Anthony listens to the news about the war in Iraq and other current events, he realizes that his own time is just as jumbled to him as the past was to those who lived then. He also realizes that the historical figures he has come to admire, Neil Armstrong, Thomas Edison, and Audie Murphy would have lived their lives much as they did in the past. Edison would invent other things. Armstrong would be part of today's space program; Audie Murphy would defend his country against today's enemies. Anthony concludes, "No matter how many trips I take into the past, the lesson of history never seems to change. Time is precious. It is given to you only once, and you never know how much you have. If you use your time to achieve, to contribute, and to do what is right, then you will be using your time wisely. And if you try to do all the good that you can, for all the people that you can, for as long as you can - and you trust in God to guide you - then you will be happy."
Extensive footnotes, also written in the same engaging style as the text, offer additional information and explanation of what Anthony experiences: like Newton's First Law of Motion on the moon. And, Anthony recommends books for further reading, movies to watch, music to listen to, and places to visit. The "Anthony Recommends" lists are compiled at the end of the book. Where available, Class has included website links for further reading.
Class offers a more intimate story of specific life changing and history changing events...that will rivet young readers.
Beverly Krueger
Eclectic Homschool Online
The Magazine for Creative Homeschoolers
www.EclecticHomeschool.org
You will never see anything like this book if you aren't looking for it! Anthony and the Magic Picture Frame is an adventurous history book written using a time travelling theme. Travel with 12-year old Anthony as he steps through the Magic Picture Frame and witnesses some of the most important events in America's 20th century history.
Here is how the book is laid out: The author has used digital technology to insert Anthony’s picture into some of the most famous historical photographs ever. Anthony is there at the raising of the flag on Iwo Jima; he flies in the Spirit of St. Louis with Charles Lindergh; he stands in the immigration line on Ellis Island; and he receives a polio vaccine in 1955. The digital enhancement of each photograph is incredible and more than just a "copy and paste" type of photo. It is obvious that the author has spent a lot of time painstakingly adding shadows, appropriate clothing for the time period, etc., so that the authenticity of the photograph is preserved. You feel as if you are right there with Anthony!
The author also set out to share the moral lessons of American History. From the inside front cover, "Anthony challenges the reader to think critically - to see the modern world in the light of the lessons of the past." Each chapter is not a brief overview of the event, but about 20 pages FULL of historically accurate information written in a story-like format. This makes it a very interesting read for the child (and the parent!). The footnotes in the story are numerous and give even more information about the event. This book was written for ages 12+, but I do believe that it could be read with younger children because the pictures are so captivating. The parent might just want to shorten the amount of text shared with those a bit younger.
The inclusion of all of the additional resources to check out - the lists of movies, books, music, and places - really add to the value of this book. A family can read about an event together and, if so led, can proceed to study it even more through the recommended items. My 12-year old finds it fascinating and just picks it up to read. A 16-year old I loaned it to enjoyed it tremendously saying that he found it to be "a great book." Anthony and the Magic Picture Frame does not cover every event of the 20th century, but it will get children interested in learning more about their past.
And, when they are done reading the book, they can even take an online quiz to test what they have learned!
To sum it up, "It's a history book with a lesson for the present day," says Class. "So don't be surprised because the book contains references to modern-day issues like the War on Terror, affirmative action, God in America, drug use in sports, illegal immigration, vaccines, abortion, the future of America's space program, capitalism, and the definition of marriage. It has to. I wrote the book to prepare young people for the challenges of their time - and their future."
Kris Price
The Old Schoolhouse Magazine
The Magazine for Homeschool Families
www.thehomeschoolmagazine.com
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