Book ‘Em!
Child's Play x2 | February 27
I’ve been to a place where the Wild Things are (and no, I’m not talking about my kids’ bedroom), I’ve eaten Green Eggs and Ham, I’ve given a pig a pancake (or did I give a mouse a cookie? No, maybe I gave a moose a muffin. It’s hard to keep track), I’ve had terrible, horrible, no good, very bad days and every night I say goodnight to the moon along with the little old lady who says “hush.”
But that’s not all. I’ve also played with a cat with a hat. I’ve told my kids that I love them to the moon and back. And I’ve worried that all the animals do things together - but not the hippopotamus. I’ve seen a very hungry caterpiller get a tummy ache and I’ve helped a little bird find his mother.
Lately, I’ve found that I can’t stop hanging out with Finklehopper Frog and his hippy hoppy suit. I’m also quite taken by the wardrobe of the Man With The Yellow Hat. While I don’t have a yellow hat, I’ve found wockets in my pockets and while I don’t have a monkey, I have spotted a red fish and a blue fish (or was it one fish or two fish?) and a really, really big red dog. I’ve often pondered just where the sidewalk ends and someday I hope to travel through a wrinkle in time.
But now my 8-month-old twins and I are looking for more adventure. We’re not quite ready to hang out with Fudge or even visit Hogwarts but we’d like some more variety at bed time. What trips through the pages of the imagination do you and your kids like to take? List your favorite books and help out a dad who’s trying to increase the quality and quantity of his kid’s library.
Oh! The places We’ll Go! I can’t wait to Let the Wild Rumpus Begin!
We like this one, which we bought because our son’s name is Jubal:http://www.audreywood.com/mac_site/jubal/jubal.html
Goodnight Gorilla is a big hit with our toddler sector:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0399230033/102-9757381-9208140?v=glance&n=283155
And…we cannot forget Love You Forever:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0920668372/103-2131807-5583031?v=glance&n=283155
We (myself and my 17 month old) enjoy these:
The World of Pooh
Miss Hunnicut’s Hat
The Quiltmaker’s Gift (and it’s prequel The Quiltmaker’s Journey)
Runaway Bunny
Peek a Who
The Giving Tree
Runny Babbit
Food for Thought
Hand Hand Fingers Thumb (also known as the Monkey book at our place)
Miss Spider’s ABC
Miss Spider’s Tea Party
we also love those you’ve (not)named in your entry
My 2 year old loves to read! His favorites are Sandra Boynton’s All the Hippos go Beserk and Dinosaur’s Binkit. We just got some new books that are winners - Carl’s Lazy Afternoon (there’s an entire series of Carl books), Alphabeep, Chicka Chicka Boom Boom and Knuffle Bunny. He’s also partial to any Eric Carle books like The Very Busy Spider and From Head to Toe. Everywhere Babies is another one he loves - he likes pointing out the babies that are crying or laughing. Happy reading!
Window Music ~ Anastasia Suen
We’re Going on a Bear Hunt ~ Michael Rosen
No, David! ~ David Shannon
Rolie Polie Olie ~ William Joyce
George Shrinks ~ William Joyce
Guji Guji ~ Chih-Yuan Chen
Cars and Trucks and Things That Go ~ Richard Scarry
What Do People Do All Day? ~ Richard Scarry
I Stink! ~ Kate and Jim McMullan
Sector 7 ~ David Wiesner
How I Became a Pirate ~ Melinda Long
Crictor ~ Tomi Ungerer
Ferdinand ~ Munro Leaf
Pete’s A Pizza ~ William Steig
Bear on a Bike ~ Stella Blackstone
Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences ~ John Allen Paulos
At a young age Luke especially liked Window Music. Around age 3 a top favorite was How I Became a Pirate and also Crictor. These days he loves Richard Scarry and anything new. Kajsa’s top favorite is currently Bear on a Bike but she really just likes turning the pages in almost anything. (When Luke was very young we had to have some soft books on hand because he insisted on tasting books.) Also some Sarah Boynton board books have been popular.
There is a whole series of books that I found last summer, and while I don’t actually have any kids, my little cousins love them. the pictures are fantastic.
When I was a Girl I Dreamed
When I was a Boy I Dreamed
The FLower Man
THe Farmer
THe Grump
All by Mark Ludy.
Lately we are enjoying “Goodnight Opus” and “A wish for wings that work: an Opus Christmas Story” both by Berkeley Breathed.
The Bean’s Dad
When my children were little, I read them Time Magazine. I read them Time because it was entertaining for me to read about Clinton with my scary voice. When my daughter was three, my mother came over and suggested we order Chinese food for dinner. My daughter sighed and replied, “I don’t think they will give it to us Grandma, I think they are still mad that we bombed their embassy.” It could be said that I did my daughter a dis-service by allowing her access to world news–but it could also be said that a three year old that is up on current events is great at parties.
Amos & Boris by William Steig is a great favorite.
A new favorite is Goodnight Gorilla, all the soothing hush of Goodnight Moon but way more fun. Blueberries for Sal and Make Way for Ducklings and anything by that author are must-haves for anyone who is from New England, like me.
For a New York City kid and anyone who has a dog there’s a book by Madeleine L’Engle called The Other Dog.
Also Harry the Dirty Dog is fun and if you want to take that to the extreme all the Walter the Farting Dog books are good for a laugh with the gassy set.
The first five times I read this to my daughter, I was laughing uncontrollably out loud:
Rough Weather Ahead for Walter the Farting Dog
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0525472185/ref=nosim/keeganorg-20
These are on the Munchkin’s (age 2) shelf of “favorites” at the moment:
The Runaway Bunny by Margaret Wise Brown
Bedtime for Frances by Russell Hoban (and all the other Frances books)
Corduroy by Don Freeman
A Pocket for Corduroy by Don Freeman (possibly her all-time favorite)
The Story About Ping by Marjorie Flack
Elmer and the Lost Teddy by David McKee
Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! by Mo Willems
Does a Kangaroo Have a Mother, Too? by Eric Carle
Sylvester and the Magic Pebble by William Steig
I can’t wait until she is older and I can get into longer classics like The Wizard of Oz, The Secret Garden, and The Little House on the Prairie series. I actually keep a list of books that I want to read to her as she gets older!
Where to begin?
Toot & Puddle — best art in almost any children’s book I’ve seen. Watercolors that are absolutely beautiful. My four year old loves these books.
The Napping House
Duck For President
Guess How Much I Love You
Kiss Good Night
Olivia
Bushel and A Peck — there’s a nice book version, and we end up all singing along
Matthew, this is my favorite topic in the world. I love books and my girls do to. Here are a few that are big hits at my house.
The Olivia books
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See
Guess How Much I Love You
Love You Forever
The Napping House
Blueberries for Sal
Are You My Mother
The Monster at the End of This Book (Sesame Street)
Silly Sally
I Am Not Sleepy and I Will Not Go to Bed
Papa Please Get The Moon For Me
And all of the Berenstain Bears & Magic School Bus books. Even though they are sooooo long, Maya loves them.
Skippy Jon Jones
The Day Jimmy’s Boa Constrictor Ate the Wash
Any and all Toot and Puddle
10 Minutes til Bedtime
All the Little Bear stories
I love you, Stinky Face
Little Quack
Commotion in the Ocean
Found you, Little Wombat
Love you Forever (I cry everytime I read it)
Albert the Bear
Going to Sleep on the Farm
Pigs Can’t Fly
I have to second the vote for “10 MInutes Till Bedtime.” It’s become an instant favorite (it’s by the same author as Goodnight Gorilla). There are so many details you can find on each page (such as the profiles of the animals from Goodnight Gorilla in the background of one page).
Other bedtime books:
*Sheep in a Jeep
*Winnie-the-Pooh
*I Love You, Little One
*Pajama Time
*Hungry Caterpillar
*Goodnight Moon (as required by law)
We’ve got a few of these books (I love “The Monster at the End of This Book”) but our daughter gets more out of reading People Magazine. And by read, I mean grab the pages and rip it apart, which is really what we should all be doing.
My personal favorite, Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain . It has a great rythym to it when you read it, and plus? It’s about Africa… and ever since I was little, I’ve been fascinated with Africa… I’m just giving you that one, because you have a million other ones (but my suggestion is the best… *wink*).
Walter the Farting Dog
Olivia books
Click Clack Moo ( or any thing by that author…I think it’s Cronin)
my boys love those books that show pictures of bulldozers and stuff
Alfred lobel
“When my children were little, I read them Time Magazine. I read them Time because it was entertaining for me to read about Clinton with my scary voice…”
On the other hand, if your kids love Dr. Seuss, they’ll love Bushisms! No scary voice required!