Go, Go America

Wouldn’t you know it? As soon as I turn in my handbook to BER for printing, I find another wonderful book for boys! I just finished Go, Go America by Dan Yaccarino. It has been on my “to do” list for awhile, but as I was trying to round out my recommended list for SDUSD, I discovered a need for books for grades 3-6. There it was with a red dot, waiting to be savored.

Go, Go is full of interesting tidbits about all 50 states. Following the Fabulous Farley Family, readers travel across the US discovering all kinds of wacky facts. Some are laws that are still on the books. For example on Market Street in San Francisco, elephants must be kept on a leash. In Atlanta, it is illegal to tie a giraffe to a telephone pole or a streetlight. That means that someone actually did it!

Fairbanks, Alaska hosts the Ice Art Championships of the world. I know, because I saw it last March with my own two eyes! (That's me on the left, hiding in Mary/Barbara's wonderful coat.) It’s also against the law to wake a sleeping bear in order to photograph it- at least in Alaska.

Items like these gems are just the tip of the iceberg. Rounding out the book, Yaccarino includes an alphabetical listing of the standard facts about states. Go, Go America is a book that upper elementary students- and probably a few adults- will turn to again and again.