Customer Reviews
Good job, seller! 
2008-07-30
I was pleased with the delivery time and with the quality of the product. I cannot wait to give these 3 books as gifts: one to each of my adult children.
I question the message 
2008-07-11
This is a really cute book. But I have an issue with the idea that the most important person is whomever you happen to be with at the time. I think we need to foster in our children an ability to consider loved ones who aren't standing right next to us.
Beautiful Book - Good for any age 2008-06-23
This would make a great present for any age. If we all followed the advice in this book, the world would be a much better place. So simple, yet so complex at the same time. We loved it, and I will read it to my children once a week so they remember always.
Excellent learning experience. 2008-06-21
This book is a beautifully illustrated journey that explores life questions in a way that is magic for the reader of any age.
Wonderful story 2008-05-28
My husband has recently started reading on the topic of Zen and Buddhism and wanted to expose our children to the practices as well. This is a wonderful story. Perhaps a little more than they can comprehend yet (ages 4 and 2) but a wonderful, beautiful story.
fantastic 2008-05-08
What is the best time to do things? Who is the most important one? What is the right thing to do? Nikolai knows that he wants to be the best person he can be, but often he is unsure if he is doing the right thing. So he goes to ask Leo, the wise turtle. When he arrives, the turtle is struggling to dig in his garden, and Nikolai rushes to help him. As he finishes work, a violent storm rolls in. Nikolai runs for Leo's cottage, but on his way, he hears cries for help from an injured panda. Nikolai brings her in from the cold, and then rushes back outside to rescue her baby too.
beautiful book!!! 2008-04-28
So beautiful! I bought it for my three year old son. He's a bit too young for it but, still asks me to read it for him almost every night. I love both the story and the illustrations. We have other books from Jon J. Muth and they're all excellent.
Mom from the Garden State 2008-04-01
This is an excellent book. I loved reading it to my children. It reminds me of Aesop's Fables from when I was a child. There is a lesson to be learned, but the learning is very gently presented. I will be purchasing more books by Jon Muth.
Good things come in three's 2008-02-06
Nikolai wants to be a good person, but he tells his friends, "I do not always know the best way to do that." Nikolai believes that if he has the answer to just three questions, he would always know what to do.
Nikolai poses his questions to his three friends, a heron whose name is Sonya, a monkey, Gogol, and a dog, Pushkin. First he asks, "What is the best time to do things?" Then, "Who is the most important one?" Finally, "What is the right thing to do?" The responses he receives from his friends, each of whom is absorbed in his or her own reality, leave something to be desired. So, Nikolai decides to ask the wise turtle, Leo, who lives high in the mountains.
When Nikolai finds old and judicious Leo, the turtle is struggling to dig a garden. Nikolai, who is more fit, decides to help. Not long after Nikolai finishes digging Leo's garden, it begins to rain and the two hear a cry for help from an injured panda. Nikolai helps the panda to safety and treats her injury. When the panda awakes, she asks Nikolai about her baby, so Nikolai immediately goes to find her, too.
The next day, all is well again. However, Nikolai laments being unable to learn the answers to his question. Leo then explains that Nikolai has found his answers through his actions: There "is one important time, and that is now...(the) most important one is always the on is always the one you are with... (and the) most important thing is to do good for the one who is standing at your side."
`The Three Questions' is a very lovely parable written and illustrated by Jon J. Muth. According to Muth in his author's note, the story is based on a Leo Tolstoy's short story. Muth obviously adapts the story for a younger audience, and models and renames the characters after Russian writers, Tolstoy's wife, and Muth's own son and daughter. Tolstoy himself, "Leo," is the turtle.
Muth is quite talented as this book indicates; he not only gently and skillfully adapts the story, but he also created the illustrations that bring the story to life. The illustrations are done in watercolor, a medium with which Muth clearly has had a great deal of experience. The paintings are wistful and tender and convey to the reader a certain warmth. In the depictions of Nikolai's three friends, the reader can clearly sense Sonya's pride, Gogol's playfulness, and Pushkin's sense of responsibility. Nikolai himself represents the sort of boy, playful, honest, and intelligent, with whom anyone would want to be a friend and who anyone would also want to be.
In short, good things, including questions and friends, come in three's, and `The Three Questions' is just about as perfect a book as one will find.
Lovely, lovely book 2008-02-05
This book is gorgeous and accessible. In our family it has helped us talk about appropriate behavior and generosity, about valuing differences in our friends, and developing a moral code. Like Muth's other books, some of the phrases have entered into our daily lives: "What is the most important time?" "Who is the most important person?" "What is the right thing to do?" I'm convinced that the answers in this gentle and beautiful book help my pre-k only child navigate her complex social world with assurance. Sure, life gets complex and so do situations, but to make sense of ourselves and our function in the world, the three questions can be very helpful.
