Yakov and the Seven Thieves first two releases were "The English Roses" (September 2003), and "Mr. Peabody's Apples" (November 2003). Both debuted at number one on "The New York Times" Best Seller list. Joe D'Angelo from MTV News confirmed that the third book would be titled "Yakov and the Seven Thieves". Madonna was again inspired by a 300 year-old story by rabbi Baal Shem Tov that she had heard from her Kabbalah teacher, and wanted to share the "essence" of it. "We must never forget that hidden behind a large amount of darkness is a large amount of light," the singer wrote in the preface.
The Way-Out Record for Children young children to encourage their children's "spontaneous movement" and for "listening to in a variety of environments." In her 1975 book on dance in elementary education, Ruth Lovell Murray wrote that, compared to earlier volumes in Dimension 5's children's music series, "The Way-Out Record for Children" and "The Electronic Record for Children" both "offer particularly good possibilities for exploration and improvisation." She suggested "School for Robots," "Accents," "Rubber- bands," "The Saucer's Apprentice", "Four Seasons" and "Tools" for tutors. In her 1976 book "Talkabout: An Early Childhood Language Development Resource, Volume 2", Judith Pasamanick included the album in a list of