If you’ve been
following this blog for very long, you’ll realize that my taste in books is
broad and multi-faceted. I love to read all sorts of things, but this week, I’m
going to focus on somewhat of a “specialty” area – children’s books!
1.
The
Lorax, Dr. Seuss
You knew this was going to be #1, right? I
love, love, love The Lorax! So much
so, in fact, that I’m going to be the Lorax for Halloween. While this was
definitely one of my favorite books growing up, my deep and unending love for The Lorax only really developed once I
became a zoo educator. This book is so amazing for showing kids the
environmental consequences of our actions, and that one person’s drive for
change really can make a difference. I also love talking with kids about the
Once-ler – how he wasn’t really a bad person, just someone who made bad
decisions (and his remorse is his redeeming quality, of course). And there’s
the part where I have the entire book memorized (don’t tempt me or I’ll tell
you the whole story). Besides, how could you not love a book that has this
message: “unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to
get better – it’s not.”
2.
The Serendipity
Series, Stephen Cosgrove
This was my favorite book series when I was
a kid, and I still have all of them in my parents’ basement. Each book (like
most children’s books) contains a positive message for kids wrapped in an easy
to read story about an animal or other creature. More than anything else, I
love the illustrations – they’re just so cute and mostly realistic (except for
the mythical creatures, of course). My personal favorite books in the series
are Muffin Muncher (about a poor town
famous for muffin making visited by a muffin-hungry dragon), Fanny (about a 3-legged farm cat who
befriends a puppy named Ruby), Banglee
(in which the titular character tries to convince his fellow kritters to
abandon their messy ways before the dreaded Grunk arrives to punish them), and Rhubarb (a puppy who gets tuckered out
when all of her friends want to play with her at the same time).
3.
Are
You My Mother?, PD Eastman
This is another of my favorites from when I
was a little girl. Mostly, I just loved the way my mom read it to me, complete
with giggle-scream inducing “SNORT” noises. As an adult, though, I actually use
this book for education programs for preschoolers. It’s a great way to talk
about how animal moms take care of their babies and to open up dialogues about
how you know your mom is your mom. Plus, reading it to kids is super fun,
especially when they answer the oft repeated “are you my mother?” or when they
laugh hysterically at the baby bird thinking a plane or boat could be his
mother. I also love that Serenity looks almost exactly like the kitten in the
book, so sometimes when she’s being quiet, I describe her as “the kitten who
looked and looked but did not say a thing.”
4.
The Little
Bear series, Else Holmelund Minarik
This book series was one read to me by my
grandparents. My favorite is definitely Little
Bear’s Visit, in which Little Bear goes to visit Grandmother and
Grandfather Bear. Little Bear’s grandparents reminded me a lot of my own (my
grandparents were my childcare when I was little because both of my parents
worked). I love the story of “Mother Bear’s Robin”, where she finds a lost baby
robin, raises it, and has to let it go when it years to fly free as an adult.
However, the part that is most memorable for me is Grandfather Bear’s “Goblin
Story” about a scaredy-cat goblin who jumps out of his own shoes that chase
him.
5.
Hairy
Maclary from Donaldson’s Dairy, Lynley Dodd
This is another book that I had at my
grandparents’ house that they read me quite often. It’s a pretty simple story
about a scruffy little dog named Hairy Maclary and his other canine friends as
they encounter Hairy’s arch-nemesis, Scarface Claw the cat. The story is told
in rhyming verse, which lends itself to easy memorization, which is exactly
what I did when I was little. This was one of the first books I can remember
memorizing (though my parents tell me that I learned to read by memorizing my
bedtime stories), and I think it is super cute.
Well, there you
have it! If you have a Top 5 suggestion, leave it in the comments!
Mischief Managed,
Slim Pearl
Silver-Feather
Currently Reading:
Nothing – catching up on blogs and other life stuff
Books Read in 2012:
23
No comments:
Post a Comment