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The Top Job
Every kid loves to go with his or her parents to work, no matter what they do for a living. But imagine how cool it would be if your dad was responsible for changing the lightbulbs at the tippy-top of the Empire State Building! Readers will be amazed by the little-known details this book provides about one of the most recognizable buildings in the world (how does a person get all the way up there, anyway?). At the same time, they will relate to one girl?s pride when she brags to her classmates about her dad?s very high position.
32 pages, Hardcover
First published July 5, 2007
26 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
November 19, 2017
Sometimes, you really can't judge a book by its cover. While I am not a huge fan of the illustrations, I am SO glad my 6 year old son picked this book out at the library. After the first few pages, we were both holding our breaths, with goose bumps! Please do yourselves a favor and give this book a try. 💖
July 22, 2017
Charming story with a lovely twist. Great read-a-loud or independent read. Wonderful illustrations with surprises (can you find the spaceship on the cover?)
April 19, 2022
This is a comical book that has a lesson about not judging someone too quickly. It is very cute and the illustrations are great!
May 2, 2025
This book has a cool premise but easily could have skipped the snarky dialogue between students and to the teacher
October 31, 2012
This book focuses on students discussing their parent’s jobs on career day. The author did a great job of giving examples of non-traditional jobs such as an African American mom being a NASCAR driver. The book also addressed how every job is special in its own way. The story line was mainly about a girl whose dad’s job is under appreciated. As she shares with her class that her father’s occupation involves changing light bulbs her peers and her teacher act disinterested. She attempts to excite them by telling them about the time she had accompanied him to work. Her classmates tried to stay tuned and listened to her as she described in detail how her father changed the light bulb of the Empire State Building. At the end of her presentation all of her classmates were fascinated! They were eager to know more. This book can be used when encouraging students to share how jobs can positively and negatively affect their families. It can also be utilized to help create an accepting environment in the classroom. The illustrations of this book are big, colorful and very eye catching. This book relates to my text set topic because it gives plenty of different non traditional families who have out of the ordinary jobs.
October 25, 2012
This fiction story is charming and it tells multiple mini stories in one. The students in Mrs.Feeny's class during Career Day had the opportunity to share all of the exciting jobs that their parents had. They had jobs like; UFO hunter, Nascar Drivers, and Jewelers all jobs that they all found very exciting. However, when one young lady got up to share at first most students were not impressed but once she explained how exciting her dad's job really was every student was fascinating. I would use this text in the classroom to show proper paragraph formation. The students can use this text to create their own short stories about a career they would like to have. Being an author and an illustrator is a very interesting job so their backgrounds can relate because if they have children I'm sure that they love telling their friends what their parents do. The author does a very good job in making the jobs mentioned in the stories jobs not stereotypical. For instance, the Nascar driver was a woman, which we don't see very often. This relates to my text set because it shows different families and the many interesting jobs that they can have.
October 26, 2012
The Top Job tells multiple mini stories about children and their families having different jobs. Jobs that can be seen in this story are, NASCAR drivers, lightbulb changer, and a UFO "watcher.' I would use this story to have my students write about what they want to be when they get older, or to write about one of the jobs they heard in the story. Also, I can invite some of the parents or local community members in the classroom to tell about their jobs. This story is really great because it explains jobs that many may have not heard about, but they are all very important. And the fact that there are jobs about a female NASCAR driver is great, it can show the students that no matter what gender you are, you can be anything you put your mind too. The illustrations are a great and the students can replicate, they are very descriptive and colorful. This story can teach a lot, and it is something that students, no matter what background they may have can be interested in. It shows very diverse characters and their diverse jobs.
November 9, 2011
"The Top Job" is a book about career day in class, and the children tells a lot of fantastic stories about what their parents are doing for a daily living. This one girl tells that her dad changes light bulbs, and everyone laughs. But then she explains where and how high he had to go to change one light bulb, and that she had to help out with it.
This is a good thing to do in class, to talk about what the children wants to become when they grow up, and what their parents are doing for a living. I would take this book and use it with 5th graders and make them read and make an understanding of it. Talks about what they read, and make them draw things they remember, and what jobs they might have liked the best. I like that it shows how different jobs people can have, and what the future might bring if you want to and set your mind to it.
This is a good thing to do in class, to talk about what the children wants to become when they grow up, and what their parents are doing for a living. I would take this book and use it with 5th graders and make them read and make an understanding of it. Talks about what they read, and make them draw things they remember, and what jobs they might have liked the best. I like that it shows how different jobs people can have, and what the future might bring if you want to and set your mind to it.
March 7, 2012
This is a book about students talking about their parents jobs. At first, a young girl says her dad changes light bulbs and everyone is not excited about that. But then the story of her dad changing a light bulb on top of the Empire State Building the story gets very exciting! Everyone wants to come with her and her dad the next time he goes to his job. There are also mathematical calculations incorporated into the story making the story more integrated into other academic areas. I loved this book and how it made a little girl so excited to share about what her dad does. This could be a good book when introducing the topic of careers. I think this book is fun and could be very useful in a classroom of any type. This is a book that makes ordinary everyday common jobs seems very important. SO students who have parents with those types of jobs will very special!
July 6, 2010
On Career Day, a young girl entertains the class with a description of her father's exciting job as light bulb changer at the top of the Empire State Building. Every kid loves to go with his or her parents to work, no matter what they do for a living. But imagine how cool it would be if your dad was responsible for changing the lightbulbs at the tippy-top of the Empire State Building! Readers will be amazed by the little-known details this book provides about one of the most recognizable buildings in the world (how does a person get all the way up there, anyway?). At the same time, they will relate to one girl's pride when she brags to her classmates about her dad's very high position. www.hcpl.net
July 7, 2008
Amidst speeches about NASCAR-driving, jewelry-making, and UFO-watching parents on Career Day, a little girl shares with the class how her father changes light bulbs--at the very top of the Empire State Building. With watercolor strokes as bold as the girl's father, Neubecker paints the girl's monologue to her classroom, which is packed with facts about landmark building and details about the dangerous bulb-changing process. Readers will be fascinated by Dad's climb to the top; use this to spark classroom discussion on unusual jobs during unit on community helpers.
August 29, 2009
I must confess that I took this book out of the library with ulterior motives since Robert Neubecker will be illustrating my next picture book, and I wanted to see more of his children's-book work. It's excellent, and I'm looking forward to seeing how he expands and enhances my own text. But I also enjoyed this book for its own sake; it was amazing to think that someone actually has the job of changing a high-altitude lightbulb (the "top job" is literally true). It's a fun idea and cleverly developed.
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August 2, 2010This is a very fun book in which the students in a class share what their parents do at their jobs. All the children tell tall tales about their parents job, but one little girl's father has a "boring" job, until she explains to her class what it really is. I like the juxtaposition of her explanation of her father's job and the other children. It is a great book to teach hyperbole and exaggeration. There is so much new vocabulary in the book as well for teachers to pick out and start discussions with.
December 18, 2018
It's Career Day at school, and the kids are happy to share stories about their parents jobs. One little girl is especially excited to tell about her dad's job changing light bulbs. A fun and sweet story. Cute artwork.
February 7, 2008
Rollicking good fun about a girl whose dad changes the lightbulb at the top of the Empire State Building. Humorous and the illustrations are good.
March 19, 2008
A cute book about a different sort of career-the dad changes the lightbulb at the top of the Empire State Building. If we lived in New York, this would be a possible award winner.
April 29, 2009
cute kid's book by an author who's older kids books I enjoy reading.
March 23, 2011
This little girl is very proud of her father's job.
September 17, 2011
This book can be read on career day to discuss the different types of jobs. The book is vibrant and very animated.
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews