Away Go the Boats

by Margaret Hillert, Robert Masheris (Illustrator)

A young girl's vivid imagination turns an uneventful bath with a toy boat into a fantastic ocean voyage during which she visits and explores a beautiful, unknown island.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens

31 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1950

About the author

Margaret Hillert has written over 80 books for children who are just learning to read. Her books have been translated into many languages and have helped children throughout the world learn to read. She first started writing poetry as a child and has continued to write for children and adults throughout her life. As a first grade teacher, Margaret realized that the books available for students just learning to read were beyond their comprehension. She then began to write her easy readers and poetry for children. Her first collection of poetry Farther Than Far was published in 1969. Her many awards include the Chicago Children's Reading Round Table Annual Award for outstanding contributions to the field of children's literature. Other honors include the David W. Longe Prize and the Michigan Bookwoman of the Year Award. A teacher for 34 years, she is now retired and lives in Michigan where she continues to write stories and poetry.

Reviews

[Toni · Rating 4 out of 5]

A lovely story about a girl who is having a bath and is imagining a trip to a tropical island. The book is specially written to help children who are just beginning to read, so there is a lot of repetition of sight words. I also liked notes on phonological awareness and language exercises designed to help the teacher, parent or caregiver use the book more efficiently. The illustrations look fresh and lovely, although the girl looks a bit older than the target age of beginning readers.
Thank you to NetGalley and Norwood House Press for the ARC provided in exchange for an honest opinion.

[Etienne · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the perfect learning to read book. The story is interesting enough, there are a lot of repetitive sentences, so that will help kids remember and learn words and structures. There is also a part at the end to help with phonology, fluency, vocabulary, etc. So parents can help their kids even more to develop their reading skills. My only two very little minus here are, first the young girl look old to me, I don’t think she look likes a child at all, and the mother was so annoying always wanting to go faster, quickly, and I have work to do. But maybe that’s all me and anyway it didn’t diminish the quality of the book. Good job!

[Rose Rosetree · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bathtime can become a chance for high adventure, provided that the young bather brings along plenty of imagination. A toy boat helps too.

This story stars a girl who's reluctant to take a bath. But soon, imaginatively, she's aboard her toy boat, where her adventures turn thrilling and vivid:

Look, look.
I see the sun.
I see thre boats too.
One, two, three boats.
Away go the boats.

Definitely a poet, that author Margaret Hillert: She's ingenious too, as she tells such a vivid story in just 73 words.

Pedagogically and linguistically, what's the special excellence of this tale? The main character is a girl for a change?

No, that's just my feminist joke. Haha.

Pedagogically and linguistically, thanks to this book, young readers learn the so-useful skill of oral blending. For instance, it's a huge leap of discovery to go from P + AY to PAY.

HOORAY! And FIVE STARS once again!

[Carolyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy of this book. I received this in exchange for my honest review.

This was a fun one for beginner readers. Love the tips and tricks as a mom and a daycare provider. I was a little concerned, how old is the girl in the story. The way she is talking seems young and in that case maybe shouldn't have been left in the bath by herself. If she is supposed to be older then the way she is talking is a little off. Again, great as a "learn to read" not one for the nightstand.

Illustrations are good. very clean and basic. Done in a great engaging way for beginners without being a distraction too.

[Christi M · Rating 3 out of 5]

Away Go the Boats is a bath time adventure that teaches young children to use their imagination to go places they wouldn’t typically be able to go. The pictures are bright and colorful and bring a level of cheerfulness that is pleasant to look at. When reading I did have two concerns. The first concerns was that I, like other reviewers, did find the child in the pictures to be a little old. The next concern was that I also found the text the mother says to the child to be a bit awkward, since it is not how someone typically will talk to their child. After reading, I lean toward believing that this might be more suited toward the younger side of the picture-book age range rather the older.

[Cat · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like Margaret Hillert's early reader books and have recommended them to children and parents for many years. I couldn't download this book correctly, but was able to find a hard copy at my library so I could read and review it. It's another winner! I think that beginning readers will enjoy, and likely relate to, this story. It's a simple tale of young child being told to take a bath and the child wanting to play. The mother gives them a boat to play with and the child is allowed to play and imagine sailing away on the boat to a tropical adventure. Simple text is easily managed by a new reader. The illustrations were very nice.

[Mary Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a cute book for young children. I read this book with the 3 year old and 5 year old boys that I nanny. The 3 year old stayed engaged with the story but the 5 year old was not as interested. Although when I asked them if they wanted to read it again the next day they were both excited to listen again and we have read it multiple times since. The illustrations were colorful and fun. I would recommend this book for 2 to 5 year olds. I am grateful to Netgalley and the publishers for the opportunity to read an ARC of this fun book.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

A cute story about a little girl pretending to be on a boat while taking a bath. A good beginning reader.

[The Literacy Advocate · Rating 3 out of 5]

USED 5/31/16

[Andréa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Note: I received a digital review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.

[Walker Walker · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pros: This little book is about adventure. With the help of my niece, we were able to scan this book. She liked the experience and wanted to imagine going to places like the ones mentioned in the book as well. There are no rhymes in here, but a lot of word usage and reinforcement nonetheless.

Cons: The child looks a little old, and my niece wondered why she was left alone in the bathtub. She states that her mom would never do that to her, and this little girl's mom shouldn't leave her alone either — otherwise, a cute little book for young readers.