Every single day for six years, author, educator and father Don Sawyer scribbled stories, jotted jokes and penciled pictures on his daughters' lunchbags. Part joke book, part journal and all good fun, The Lunch Bag Chronicles is a heart-warming journey of a dad keeping in touch with his two little girls. Meet a cast of delightful characters including valiant vampires, silly snakes, dozy dragons and funny food. Reconnect with your own family through The Lunch Bag Chronicles. The jokes will make you giggle and stories will remind you that being connected with the people you love is the most important bond of all.

Don and Jan lived all over the United States and Canada before settling in Salmon Arm, British Columbia, in 1980. Melissa had shown up three years earlier and was immediately the cutest and smartest baby ever born. Farish came along in 1982. Melissa wasn't initially convinced that having a little sister would be fun, but eventually came around. Melissa now lives in New Orleans, where she is the Executive Director of the Youth Empowerment Project. Farish resides in Philadelphia, where she also works with inner-city kids. Both Jan and Don have sort of retired, but not really. Don writes books and articles and gives workshops. He still does development work in Africa. Jan is active in about a zillion volunteer groups and is a literacy consultant. When they find spare time, they enjoy travelling and visiting their daughters and sharing the girls' exciting lives.

Don Sawyer's profile page

I'm tempted to fill this entire review with examples of the jokes and rhymes, but you'll enjoy them more while looking at the colourful pencil crayon drawings that illustrated each lunch bag.The pages appear to be copies of the actual lunch bags, complete with illustrations, jokes, rhymes and the occasional error and correction (great modeling for would-be writers). Often, the joke is on one page, and you have to turn the page to see the back of the lunch bag with the answer.In addition, many pages include a brightly coloured section at the bottom with information that explains some of the context of the jokes. For example, the page that asks, "Why do mother kangaroos hate rainy days?" includes the information that "one year Farish had a great exchange teacher from Australia."The book is loosely organized into themed sections, such as "animal adventures" and "vampires, cannibals, witches and monsters" - surefire topics for junior jokesters.Share this with a class, or better still with your own children, and you are sure to hear moans and groans for the puns and tons of laughter for the humour. - Suzanne Pierson

Even if you don't pack lunches in brown paper bags anymore, this wonderful book may inspire you to go looking for some the next time you are shopping. In this combination joke book and family chronicle, author and illustrator Don Sawyer shares some of the special lunch bag messages that he wrote over the years to his two young daughters. The introduction explains that Sawyer wrote and illustrated a message or rhyme each day until his daughters finished Grade 6 - over 1000 lunch bag messages. - CM Magazine, Canadian Reviews of Materials at the University of Manitoba

One of the most charming, inspired and inspiring books I've ever come across. Such things are a rare find in this hurried and harried world of twittering, facebook and other silly distractions. It is not only an example of devoted parenting, but a refreshing look at learning as play, and just good fun. It's the kind of book your kids will cherish once they're all grown up with kids of their own. - Chris Schon