A Letter to Amy

A quick word on book clubs. I think they are a really great thing. A number of my kid's books are from the Children's Choice Book Club by . Now this means that they have ugly, if durable binding. But it also means that I was exposed to a number of authors that I probably wouldn't have picked out on my own. I had a bit of a penchant for really girly stuff like Angelina Ballerina. Anyway, I have always been a voracious reader and I think the fact that my parents signed me up for a book club was a [...]

An endearing story with stunning collage and paint illustrations of a vibrant and gritty urban landscape on a stormy day:

I would venture a guess that few adults can recall one of the first books they checked out from the library as a child. I am probably a rare breed as I can recall the book quite easily. It was "A Letter to Amy" by Keats. As a 4 yr old child discovering picture books in the early 70s, I adored the artwork of Keats and loved to trace the watercolor images with my little fingers. What made his book even more important to me was the fact that my own name was in the title! I notice that my students l [...]

My friend introduced me to Ezra Jack Keats, a white guy who writes stories about african people in urban settings, and I thought, "I could really like his work." So I read the book she had on hand, "A Letter for Amy". I was intrigued with how the unique art style captured a cityscape setting. The story was engaging, told in an appropriate manner, yet alluding to older themes by illustrating the challenges children face (in this case, how does a boy ask a pretty girl to his birthday party?). Not [...]

Keats's book is about a boy that invites a girl to his birthday party. On his way to mail his letter his accidentally bumps into her knocking her to the ground. Terrified that she would see the letter and spoil the surprise he quickly mails it, but before he knew she had ran off crying. The party was a success however the girl had not come. Get the book to find out if she arrives. This book has excellently expressive illustrations. It can be used to help students practice their writings by inter [...]

Well, I liked Peter very much, and Amy, and the story (though I wish there had been some sort of rebuttal response to the “A girl, ugh!” comment). But my very favorite parts of this book are the wonderful collage illustrations and the character of Willie the dog. I love Willie the dog!!! The parrot is kind of cute too, and definitely pretty. This is a very sweet story. But it’s the pictures and Willie that have me really liking this book. 3 ½ stars, 4 if the ugh girl comment had been prop [...]

This book is especially great to use with older kids who are beginning to deal with the dynamic of male/female relationships. They can relate to young Peter who wants more than anything for Amy to come to his birthday party. As always, Keats' illustrations are wonderful. Art teachers could use any of Keats' books along with Martin's Big Words to teach collage.

This book brings in the beauty of friendship and making choices. This book also opens up a wonderful way to expose children to connect reading to writing. Children can also get creative ideas on how to make their own invitation to their birthday or other special parties. When I've read the book in my classroom, that's exactly what we did. We wrote letters and then "sent" them to friends.

This book can be useful for introducing the topic of parties. Children can write their own invitations to the classroom party and then deliver the letter to their parents.

Amy gets a mailed invitation to Peter's party. Will she show?

This book has not won any awards. "A Letter to Amy" is appropriate for kindergarten to second grade.This book is about Peter, who is having a birthday party. He wants to invite Amy, who is a girl, and Peter believes she deserves a special invitation by letter. He goes out to deliver it in a thunderstorm, and bumps right into Amy. She runs away, and Peter is afraid that she won't come to her party. Amy shows up late, but ultimately attends the party, making Peter very happy. I love the illustrati [...]

Awards the book has received (if any): noneAppropriate grade level(s): Kindergarten- secondOriginal 3-line summary: A boy named Peter is throwing a birthday and wants to invite one of his friends Amy. However she needs a special invitation according to Peter so he goes through a thunderstorm to give her the invitation. While out he scares her away and Peter becomes sad that she won't come. In the end, she comes to the party.Original 3-line review: I really like the author of this book and the il [...]

This book is about a little boy who wants to invite a girl to his birthday party but he insisted on mailing her invitation because she is special. While he is trying to mail it to her, he sees her and they run into each other and she runs away crying so he is worried that when he mails the letter she might not come.I liked this book but I did not like the end. The story just seemed to stop abruptly. I think it should have continued to tell why Amy was so special to him and if his birthday wish c [...]

Ezra Jack Keats is one of my seven-year-old and my favorite authors. Simple things become more detailed and worrisome topics (like inviting a girl to a party of boys) become simple and non-threatening. The artwork is beautiful as always and adds emotion to the story beyond the words. A new favorite for encouraging my children to choose what is right and brings them happiness, no matter what worries over crowd-thought may arise.

Peter was having a birthday party. He invited his friends, and especially wants Amy to come. To make it special he writes her a letter of invitation but when he goes outside to mail it the wind snatches it out of his hand. He runs into Amy, literally, and she runs home crying. Now Peter waits to see if she will show up at his party.

Alissa is really into letter writing these days. She wrote a letter on a piece of paper, stuffed it into an envelope and sealed it. Then she addressed it to herself. When she asked Mom for a stamp, what could Mom do but write an accompanying letter and put it in a larger envelope to Gram. Alissa wasn't happy til she and Dad took it to the mailbox right then.

Peter wants to mail a letter to invite Amy to his birthday, but the surprise is almost ruined when Amy almost sees the letter before it is mailed. Peter worries that Amy won't show. At the end, readers must infer what Peter wishes for at his birthday party.

very realistic book from the urban lifestyle

February 2017 - all about navigating friendships and the joy of letter writing (I need to introduce Ben to this pleasure).

That Peter. It's always something. Will he get the girl??? Read to find out!

I love EJK's vibrant illustrations and realistic depictions of urban family life.

Sweet book-a little romantic, hinting at a crush between Peter and Amy. Good story to have in the classroom and to be a resource when discussing the mail service.

Peter series #3. I was more enthralled by Keats' illustrations in this book than his storyline. While other stories in this series seemed more timeless, perhaps this birthday party felt more dated and culturally dated.

This classic title by Ezra Jack Keats is from 1968 and tells a story from the life of Peter, the memorable protagonist of other Keats books like 'The Snowy Day' and 'Whistle for Willie'. Keats' work was notable for this African-American protagonist, something seldom seen in mainstream/mass market children's picture books before or after Keats' prominence in the 1970s.In this tale, Peter wants to invite a special friend named Amy to his upcoming birthday party but the challenges of writing and de [...]

• Interest Level: Lower Grades• Reading Level: 2.4• Guided Reading Level: K• Genre: Multicultural Literature• Support for the genre: This story has an urban setting and stars all African American children; it also describes a social issue of gender.• Additional Genres: Contemporary Realist Fiction, Picture BooksSummary: A young boy named Peter writes a letter to formal invite a girl to his party. The storm outside causes his letter to fly all over the place, even right passed the gir [...]

This is another good book by Ezra Jack Keats. I usually read this book during community helpers week when we are talking about postal workers and thier jobs. This is good book to dicuss how letters get to their destinations. This is a really sweet book with the character Peter from the other Ezra Jack Keats books. This time Peter is a little more grown up and wants to envite a girl to his birthday party. This can show children that you should'nt worry about what other people think all of the tim [...]

I am a big fan of Ezra Jack Keats. This story is about a boy, Peter, who wants to write a letter to Amy to invite her to his birthday party. He tries to send the letter during a rain storm, but things go run during his attempt to mail the letter. In the end, the letter makes it to Amy and she arrives at his party just in time for cake. The pictures in this book are extraordinary. I used this book with my Kindergartners when teaching about the setting. There are 2 settings in this book- outside i [...]

Peter’s having a birthday party and he wants to invite his friend, Amy. But he wants it to be a surprise, so he writes her a special letter and runs outside to put it in the mail box. It’s stormy and as Peter walks down the street the wind tugs the letter out of his hand. He chases it this way and that way. Just as rain begins to fall Peter sees Amy on the street. She tries to help him catch the letter, but Peter doesn’t want to spoil the surprise. He manages to snatch the letter away, but [...]

Summary:Peter is having a birthday party. He has asked all his friends to come. But his friend Amy is special. So Peter is writing to Amy, a girl he likes a special invitation. “It’s sort of special,” he tells his mother. He’s concerned about what his friends will say so he wants to mail the letter. In this book we look at sexism in a way children deal with. It also deals with realizations that perception is not what it always is thought to be and how friends can be friends no matter the [...]

Ezra Jack Keats writes this book. It appears that Peter is beginning to learn how to write letters. Peter’s letter inviting Amy to his birthday party is initially one sentence long. However, his mother assists him with added very important information (day and time). Peter’s mother did not understand why Peter wanted to write Amy a letter but none of his other friends. She was unaware of the fact that Peter was unsure about inviting Amy because she was a girl. Peter runs into bad weather whi [...]