Where Is Walt Disney World?

Where is/are...?

by Joan Holub, Who H.Q., Gregory Copeland (Illustrator)

Building the most magical place on earth was no fairy tale. Learn the story behind the creation of Walt Disney World.

In 1964, when Walt Disney and his brother Roy decided to build a second theme park in the Florida swamplands, they kept it super hush-hush. Why? Well, if word got out that they planned to buy up lots of land, the price would have skyrocketed. So the Disneys cleverly covered up their trail, avoiding the Orlando airport and even using made-up names, like Walt and Roy Davis, for their flights. The deception worked. In covering the history of the "Most Magical Place On Earth," Joan Holub takes readers both behind the scenes and underneath the park (there are secret employee-only tunnels that form one big circle under the Magic Kingdom). Loaded with fun facts, this book is a great companion to Who Was Walt Disney?

Genres: Nonfiction, Childrens, History, Travel, Juvenile, Middle Grade, Chapter Books

112 pages, Paperback

Published May 22, 2018

About the author

NY Times bestselling children's book author:
GODDESS GIRLS series + HEROES IN TRAINING series (w Suzanne Williams); THIS LITTLE TRAILBLAZER a Girl Power Primer; ZERO THE HERO; I AM THE SHARK. Lucky to be doing what I love!

Reviews

[Sheri · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic introduction to Disney World! Begins with Walt Disney’s idea of a fun and entertaining park for the young and the young-at-heart, and then continues on to Roy Disney’s execution and construction of the theme park Walt had imagined. Readers learn a fair amount about each of the four parks within Disney World and even some insider knowledge about the inner workings of this large scale operation. A good way to learn about the history of the theme park and how one man’s dream led to the popular and iconic destination we know today: Walt Disney World: Where Dreams Come True.

[Sophie Crane · Rating 5 out of 5]

I Was Excited to Read this Book & I Was Not Disappointed, It Has Beautiful illustrations, A Truly Phenomenal book!

[Wendy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting! A lot of information packed in that little book.

[Jessica Ambler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading this with Sam brought back so many happy memories of our visit a couple of years ago. Loved reading how it all got started. Can't wait to go back.

[Catherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Having never been to Walt Disney World, it was interesting to learn about the different parks and how/when they began. I am a great admirer of Walt Disney and enjoy learning more about his life. I hope to make it to one of the Disney parks one day.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A perfect primer of “the happiest place on earth.” A informative read for those who love WDW and those who have yet to discover it.

[Culleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many interesting facts I never knew about Disney World

[Madi ~☆TheBookNerdDiaries☆~ · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this was a decently interesting read as a huge Disney fan, but I could not get past the fact that this book makes it seem like Walt created Walt Disney World and lacks emphasis on how EPCOT was the original plan until after Walt’s death.

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very, very interesting! I learned things I never knew about Disney World, and I've been there!

[Our Weekend Is Booked · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love the who and where series. We are big Disney World fans so it was fun to read a book all about our favorite amusement park.

[Nikkie Richter · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great book to get some background on Disney World. Also, it was a great book to read with my 8 year old as we count down days for our first family WDW trip!

[Joan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was hagiographic, it was so laudatory! Just because it is addressed to kids, doesn't mean it can't present the negatives as well as the positives of an organization! I grew up in Southern California and it was an open secret that the pay and worker conditions at Disneyland were not really good. Luckily that is in the past since Bernie Sanders helped the workers achieve $15 per hour in salary yesterday!

The description of the place and the story about how the Disney brothers tried to buy up land on the q.t. to avoid the price being raised for him was good. So was the description of the underground tunnels the employees use. There were a lot of interesting sections such as the description of how they made the towers look taller than they really are. I also found it interesting that there is a note across the cover: "This book is not authorized, licensed, or endorsed by the Walt Disney Company or any affiliate." Good grief it is a kid's book and will be free PR for the park. I'm surprised the company didn't endorse it! It shows you what a fright the company can give legally. Hmmm, wonder if I'll be forced to redo this review or not?! It is a good book to buy for libraries so the kids get nonfiction they find interesting.

[AMY · Rating 3 out of 5]

108 pages. This is an interesting book that explains the history of the theme park and beyond. I learned a lot about Disney World and it was a bit nostalgic. I was sad to learn many rides I enjoyed as a youngster are no longer there. So much has been added to the area that I cannot image what it is like today. I think some kids might enjoy learning about the park, etc. I am not sure the details would stick with many kids though. So I think it is one of those books that would be good based on the interest. It is definitely well-written, just a lot of detail for youngsters to take in. Recommended for Grades 5 and up.

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

EPCOT was too big for me: I hated just driving around the thing. This book describes a lot more than I ever saw . . . I think I would have liked to try the tunnels. Tunnels? Didn't even know this stuff existed, so now I think this book was very informative.

[Mark Stockslager · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is my first foray into the Who/What/Where series for kids (I am not a kid anymore!) and what better place to start? Where is Walt Disney World? is a kid-friendly tour around the Walt Disney World Resort, providing bite-sized histories of the world and its visionary creator Walt Disney.

[Audge Podge 🦄 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty good! Liked the timelines and great descriptions! 9/10! Would recommend!

[Nicole Wrightson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Again another great book in this set. But this one spins off of where Who Was Walt Disney? Because when the other book ends, Walt dies and he is in the mists of working on Disney World.

This book opens with a bit of information on how they had to go buy the land they needed to make Disney World Resort. They had to buy in secret and they needed a lot of land. They teamed up with someone they trusted. When they made a trip, Disney and Roy would go by different names to cover up who they were. But people started talking when a lot of land got bought up. Before they were ready to announce their plans, they were discovered. But it was fine, they had gotten most if not all the land that they wanted.

They announced their plans for a new Disney park, but this one was going to be named Disney World Resort. Now you might be thinking wait a minute, I thought it was Walt Disney World. Well it is. Walt died of cancer before the park was too far into being built. Roy decided to not retire and take over it being built to make sure it lived up to what his brother wanted.

One of the first things he did was change the name to honor his brother and his dream.

What I do love about this book is that it doesn't stop on opening day. It takes you behind the curtain and shows you some of the things you don't know about the park. It also brings you more into the present. I say more into the present because one of Disney's dreams was for the parks to never stop growing, changing and being inspired by dreamers. But this book includes things that are coming up on opening. Some of which hasn't opened yet. One of them has.

One thing I really love about Disney parks. You never have a lost child, you have a lost parent. This way the child doesn't get more scared. Always thinking of their guesses first.

[Charlotte · Rating 3 out of 5]

I haven't been here yet, but it's on our list of places to go, so it's fun to read about it. I like to know the ins and outs and behind the scenes. We also watched a few videos that related and that was fun too.

3/2021 - Now we're closer to going to Disney World, so it was fun to read this again and get all the back story - in a simple way. I'm covered in guide books right now and there's so much information to take in. I liked the overall story in this book.

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Not a lot of history about Walt Disney World but gets the info across. Most of the book is spent describing what Walt Disney World is like now.

I did the College Program at Walt Disney World and it was one of the best times of my life. I got a little teary-eyed just reading this book and remembering all the good times.

[Kat Ice · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super cute read!! I love Disney and anything about it. Most of this I knew since it was a kids book but there were a couple secrets that got me! Great for kids!! Very well written, great artwork and it flows very nicely!

[Kristi Clemow · Rating 5 out of 5]

I could read about Disney all day - nothing new in this particular book but always enjoy reading about how it all started with a mouse

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book even better than Walt Disney's biography. This book included the basics of Walt's life for kids to understand how he created this huge franchise and company. I would recommend this entire series to kids since it covers the basics of important historical events and people, and they include drawings, timelines of the event/person in relation to the world, and sometimes real pictures. Adults can learn things as well.

Here are a few items I learned-
-Disney bought the land at $180 per acre.
-Disney had to hide he was buying the land. Once people heard it was him, the land prices rocketed to $1,000 an acre.
-Technically, it is located in Bay Lake, Florida.
-Roy wanted to retire but postponed retirement to help realize Walt's dream of opening Disney World (Walt passed away in 1966).
-Two military men helped design and build Walt Disney World.
-In 1971, a ticket was $1 compared to today's prices of $99 or more.
-The underground tunnels used by cast members are called utilidors.
-From 1971-1994, there was a partly underwater ride called 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, but it was later closed due to high maintenance costs.
-Disney Springs will eventually comprise of four neighborhoods with over 150 stores/shops/dining areas.

Even as an adult, I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and I feel ready to hop on a plane to Disney World! Before I go, I would like to continue reading other guides on the park since it's so massive, and I know this children's book just scratches the surface as to all Disney World has to offer. Still for kids, I think this is a great start and the illustrations, while not in color, still capture the magic and fun of Walt Disney World.

[Emma Cabral · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall this book was good for children in displaying what the Walt Disney World Resort has to offer. I think this is a perfect book for children who love Disney World or are excited about going to Disney World. But there were some minor inaccuracies in this book that a young child won’t notice but as a super fan I have noticed. I know this isn’t affiliated with the Disney company but, the inaccuracies were not ones of such minor detail either. I also think the information lacked attention to detail and was more of list at some points which made it dull to read. Some of the inaccuracies could have been corrected with a google search and simple documentary watch but overall it was good.

[Kelsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book will go down in my history as...
THE FIRST BOOK I FINISHED WITH MY DAUGHTER!

My four-year-old daughter and I had made it over halfway in two chapter books - The Wild Robot and The Little Prince - but we hadn't finished one yet. This was a last minute decision that came at the perfect time. I was getting ready to fly to Florida for a Disney World vacation, and there it sat in my office on a stack of new books.

We read the book from cover to cover on the airplane ride to Florida. We learned a few interesting facts that I didn't know before, and it got both of us even more excited about our trip. Great read for Disney fans or anyone on the way to Disney World!

Now I just need to find us our next book (or finish our other ones)!

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fairly quick read. The book is broken down into a history of how Walt and Roy Disney began the company and how they developed both of the parks. The remainder of the book is dedicated to explaining each of the kingdoms or theme parks that have been built highlighting the specific feature of each theme. It also goes into detail of how the entire park operates via the use of tunnels and artistic camouflage doors and hidden passages. It shows the reader what was planned in the past and what is to come in the future.

[Grace · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars!

I read this book like 3 months ago but forgot to mark it as read. I worked at a daycare and one of the kids at my work brought this book to work and of course I had to read it. I really liked it and I thought it was a really informative book for younger kids. I know a good bit about Walt Disney and the Disney Parks and even I learned some new things.

[Stacey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoy these quick nonfiction reads. I always end the book learning a new fact or two and it helps me reconnect with why kids love them so much. This one was no different, I enjoyed learning about the tunnels underneath Disney World, Disney University, and the demise of Mr. Toad's Wild Ride!

[Nathaniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked it.

[Caleb · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked it.

[Tiffany · Rating 3 out of 5]

I learned some things I didn't know but there were a few parts that weren't clear and seemed a bit forced.