If you are looking for a toy that your kids can use to create just about anything they can imagine--and you don't mind that it comes in a set of 104 pieces that you'll probably find all over your house all the time--then check out the Fiddlestix set from Toys and Games Online.

I'd been expecting the set since a representative from CSN stores contacted me about doing a review for them, and when Beth eagerly ripped open the box they came in, the first thing she said was, "Tinkertoys! Just what I've always wanted!"

That's because the Fiddlestix are clearly, umm...inspired by the classic wooden toys that have been around since 1914. I'm sure that there are differences, but they are similar enough that everyone who sees them (myself included) can't help but call them Tinkertoys, even though they are supposedly called Fiddlestix. 'Nuff said.

Within minutes of opening the box, 104 little wooden dowels and circles were dumped out all over the living room and the girls were sticking them together in all kinds of combinations. I think the first thing they made was drumsticks--and then up-ended the cylindrical container and used its metal bottom for a drum. We also had little sets of wheels rolling all over and underfoot everywhere, and very soon one or the other of them attached a triangle to the end of a stick, christened it a spear, and began attacking people with it.

So obviously, a good time was had by all.

You may think I'm being sarcastic, but actually I put all of the above activities--drum-banging, spear-poking, wheel-rolling--into the categories of "good old-fashioned fun" and "just kids being kids." They were having a ball, making a big mess and lots of noise, and no one was actually being seriously injured. They were engaging their minds creatively, using the simple shapes to represent other objects. I think all of that is great. Oh, and also it came wrapped in bubble wrap, and they had a ball playing with that too.




One of the sticks broke soon after they started playing. I'm not sure what happened--an especially vigorous spear attack, perhaps. But Eric thinks he can fix it with wood glue, and I have stepped on the toys multiple times since then and none of the other ones have broken, so I'd call that a fluke. They seem fairly sturdy.

The set comes with a big fold-out page full of pictures of different complicated creations you can make out of the Fiddlestix. Helicopters, windmills, that kind of thing. Beth wanted me to help her build a swingset. Which I did, following the pictures with decent success I think. Although it was a little more crooked than the one in the picture, and at one point Beth said, "I wish Daddy was helping me build this." What, like an engineer is going to be better at building things than a writer? What is she thinking? But in the end, we had a swingset, and it didn't even fall apart when she picked it up and carried it across the room to play with. Soon she had enlisted more adult help and had a toy slide and a toy teeter-totter for her Fiddlestix playground as well. The whole family got involved and it was a lot of fun.




Now, building any of the more complicated creations without adult help is pretty much beyond the skill set of my 5-year-old, 3-year-old and 1-year-old at this point. The big, multi-piece construction is just a little more than they've figured out yet. Plus, you actually have to push pretty hard to get some of the pegs to fit in the little holes. Since I haven't sat down with them to help them make anything else since then, their Fiddlestix playtime has been limited to weapon-creating and drumming. Also to stuffing the container full of whatever random toys they can fit in it, and then dumping it out all over the house.



So all-in-all they are having a grand time with the Fiddlestix, and I think they're the kind of toy that will grow with my children. Even my 1-year-old can bang with drumsticks, but as the kids get older they can figure out how to build more complex things with them. I love that it's a simple toy, no electronic bells and whistles that makes playtime into a spectator sport. It engages their brains as they figure out how to fit different pieces together and as they imagine what kinds of things they can make.

Toys and Games Online sells this set for $21.99. If you have kids who like to build things, or if you are looking for a simple, creative toy with a lot of possibilities for innovation, I think these would be a worthy buy. I don't think the giveaway winner has received her set of Fiddlestix yet, but when she does, if she has any feedback on them I'll share it here as well.