Best Books, Part I
I've been a parent for over nine years now, and I long ago determined that my favorite part of parenting is reading aloud. I think this is because (a) I love to read, (b) I truly enjoy children's literature, (c) I love sharing my own childhood favorite books with my children, (d) reading to a child is cuddle time, and (e) I don't mind the sound of my own voice.
So I read aloud to my children quite a bit. I am lucky in that both my children enjoy being read to. I continue to read, almost every night, to my nine-year-old, who is an accomplished and avid reader in his own right. I spend a lot of time trying to find good books to read to my kids, pouring over guidebooks like The New York Times Guide to Children's Literature and Esme Raji Codell's How to Get Your Child to Love Reading. We visit the library frequently, and I spend way too much money on books. Our house is absolutely blanketed in books; books are the common decorating scheme here. We have books (and magazines, but that's fodder for another post) in absolutely every room of the house.
Through several years of trial and error, I've compiled the following list of favorite picture books. I find that we return to these favorites again and again. I love to read them and my children love to hear them. My nine-year-old still occasionally will pick some of these up and read them to himself. (Disclaimer: I don't have any daughters; perhaps having only boys has helped to shape this list.)Enjoy.
Favorite Picture Books
The Ant and the Elephant by Bill Peet
Benny's Had Enough by Barbro Lindgren, ill. by Olof Landstrom
The Big
Big Red Barn by Margaret Wise Brown, ill. by Felicia Bond
Bored, Nothing to Do by Peter Spier
Brave Irene by William Steig
Caps for
The Caboose Who Got Loose by Bill Peet
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett, ill. by Ron Barrett
D’Aulaire’s Greek Myths by Ingri & Edgar Parin d’Aulaire
Dinosaur Roar by Paul & Henrietta Strickland
Doctor De Soto by William Steig
Fortunately by Remy Charlip
Frederick by Leo Lionni
Freight Train by Donald Crews
Gabriella's Song by Candace Fleming, ill. by Giselle Potter
the George and Martha books by James Marshall
Good Night, Gorilla by Peggy Rathman
Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss
The Hello, Goodbye Window by Norton Juster, ill. by Chris Raschka
How the Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr. Seuss
In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak
June 29, 1999 by David WeisnerKaty and the Big Snow by Virginia Lee Burton
The Little Fireman by Margaret Wise Brown, ill by Esphyr Slobodkina
The Little Fur Family by Margaret Wise Brown, ill. by Garth Williams
The Little Red Lighthouse and the
Madeline by Ludwig Bemelmans
The Maggie B by Irene Haas
Max's Bath by Rosemary Wells
Mice Twice by Joseph Low
Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel by Virginia Lee Burton
Millions of Cats by Wanda Gag
A Mother for Choco by Keiko Kasza
My Very First Mother Goose by Iona Opie, ill. by Rosemary Wells
Nothing Ever Happens on My Block by Ellen Raskin
Owl Moon by Jane Yolen, ill. by John Schoenherr
Pamela Camel by Bill Peet
Peek a Boo by Janet & Allan Ahlberg
People by Peter Spier
The Philharmonic Gets Dressed by Karla Kuskin, ill. by Marc Simont
Rotten
Row, Row, Row Your Boat by Pippa Goodhart, ill. by Stephen Lambert
Sector 7 by David Weisner
The Seven Silly Eaters by Mary Ann Hoberman, ill. by Marla Frazee
Shrek by William Steig
The Shrinking of Treehorn by Florence Parry Heide, ill. by Edward Gorey
The Sneetches by Dr. Seuss
Snowflake Bentley by Jacqueline Briggs Martin, ill. by Mary Azarian
The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats
The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf, ill. by Robert Lawson
Sylvester and the Magic Pebble by William Steig
The Tale of Custard the Dragon by Ogden Nash, ill. by Lynn Munsinger
Tasty Baby Belly Buttons by Judy Sierra, ill. by Meilo So
Tickle, Tickle by Helen Oxenbury
Tikki Tikki Tembo by Arlene
Labels: children's lit
posted by dkk at 11:39 PM
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