Your Very Best Children’s Books, Compiled (Part One)

August 31, 2009


Monday~August 31st, 2009

The boys and I absolutely love to read picture books. I have a bit of an addiction to them, and love to hear of new authors and titles that I haven’t come across. So thank you all for your recommendations in the comments of this post. We’ve added some new favorites to our library, and we’re not even done working our way through your suggestions quite yet.

I’ve compiled a list of the books we’ve read (or had already read) so far from your comments. I’ll do another post with more after we’ve made more trips to the library to read them. Obviously not all the recommendations were available when we looked for them the first couple of times. So, if you don’t see your recommendation, it will be coming in the next installment (I’ve only added the ones we’ve found so far in this installment.)

The following has been painstakingly alphabetized for your library searching ease. Now all you have to do is print it out and throw it in your bag. You’re welcome. (OK, fine. I love to alphabetize.)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


The Mitten
by Jan Brett
(May be in the folktale section at the library. We absolutely love this book.)

The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle “That night he had a stomach ache!”

Miss Rumphius by Barbara Cooney (What one thing will you do to make the world more beautiful? LOVE this book!)

Diary of a Spider by Cronin/Bliss
Diary of a Worm by Cronin/Bliss
Click, Clack, Moo:Cows That Type by Cronin
Duck for President by Cronin
Giggle Giggle Quack by Cronin

Llama Llama Mad at Mama
Llama Llama Red Pajama
by Anna Dewdney (These are some of our absolute favorites.)

Whoever You Are by Fox/Staub “all over the world there are children just like you. Their skin might be different from yours, and their homes may be different from yours…”
The Magic Hat by Fox/Tusa (magical and rhyming and silly and surprising)

The Island of Skog by Kellogg “The book calls it the Island of the Skog,” said Wooster. “It says: ‘Poplulation: One Skog.’ But it doesn’t say what a Skog is.” (Sometimes our fears make things bigger and scarier than they actually are.) (Love this book.)

If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Numeroff/Bond
If You Give a Pig a Pancake by Numeroff/Bond
If You Give a Moose a Muffin by Numeroff/Bond
If You Take a Mouse to the Movies by Numeroff/Bond

The Skippy Jon Jones series by Judy Schachner – HILARIOSO

Sheep Blast Off
Sheep Out to Eat
Sheep on a Ship
Sheep in a Jeep
Sheep in a Shop
all by Nancy Shaw/Apple (hilarious, rhyming lovely books)

Madam President by Lane Smith (This book gives a hilarious look at what it would be like if a child were President, all the while weaving in lessons on what a President actually does.)

Scaredy Squirrel Makes a Friend by Melanie Watt (Funny book on over-coming fear.)

MO WILLEMS – nuff said.

Silly Sally by Audrey Wood (She walks backwards upside-down, what could be better than that?)

How Do Dinosaurs Say Goodnight?
How Do Dinosaurs Eat Their Food?
How Do Dinosaurs Get Well Soon?
How Do Dinosaurs Clean Their Rooms?
How Do Dinosaurs Count to Ten?
all by Jane Yolen/Mark Teague

This post has been brought to you by my overdue library book fees.

To Be Continued…

{ 32 comments }

Steph @ Diapers and Divinity August 31, 2009 at 9:41 am

I am not kidding you when I say that my overdue library fees probably pay the salary of someone at my local branch. You've got some great ones here. :)

Tiaras August 31, 2009 at 11:16 am

oh this is too weird – i just wrote a draft so similar to this last night!!!

This Heavenly Life August 31, 2009 at 11:43 am

I'm so glad you did this! Sometimes it's fun to wade through the aisles with no object in sight, but MAN is it also nice to go for something specific! Thank you :)

I've been thinking about making lists like this of our favorites for my blog friends to peruse, and I think you've just spurred me on. Although, alphabetically may be more than I can handle. I'm no Heather, after all…

Em August 31, 2009 at 11:48 am

Oh I'm so excited!! Ignorant me did not know that "Sheep in a Jeep" was a series.

Thank you! Thank you! Off to B&N later today to do some discovering. Yippee!

Kori August 31, 2009 at 12:03 pm

I am so sad that the David Shannon books I recommended are not on your list! They are so great, really. I wasn't fond of the dinosaur ones, myself, but have read and loved most of the others. I mean, my KIDS have, ha ha ha.

a Tonggu Momma August 31, 2009 at 12:40 pm

I am too ashamed to return to my library. I lost a book. I have to pay for it. And it's totally humiliating. I feel like I stole something.

Heather of the EO August 31, 2009 at 12:58 pm

Kori,
This is the first installment, ya goof. The David Shannon books will surely be on the next installment. We just at this very moment got done reading one before nap actually :)

And TM,
I've been there. Had to sheepishly stand in front of the grumpy library lady and apologize and pay up. Dang.

The Three 22nds August 31, 2009 at 1:03 pm

We have read a lot of those books on your list! I love rhyming books – looks like you do to :)

We go to a small library and I spend the first couple of months of the year getting books off the first side of one aisle and then move on to the next and so on. Of course we always go to the "series" aisle so we can get the "Where's Waldo" and Franklin favorites.

Susan B. at warmchocmilk August 31, 2009 at 1:06 pm

Oh yes! We are very fond of Skippy Jon Jones in this house too! You have got to read bats at the beach…I know it sounds weird..who wants to read a bedtime story about bats, but seriously it's a good one!

Jen August 31, 2009 at 1:21 pm

this is cool. thanks Heather.

Elizabeth August 31, 2009 at 1:22 pm

All good choices! There's nothing I love more than curling up with my kiddos and reading piles of books.

Debbie August 31, 2009 at 2:12 pm

Ah, Silly Sally went to town, walking backwards, upside down! I miss Silly Sally. And so many of the others you have on this list. Fortunately, most of these books can be found lurking in my house.

Megan @ Hold it Up to the Light August 31, 2009 at 2:44 pm

Oh, I love these….we are really into Mo Willems lately. He gives us the giggles! My husband has a great "Pigeon" voice that makes me love him more than I already do. I know….weird!

Thanks for your sweet prayers for my dad.

Love

MommyJ August 31, 2009 at 2:51 pm

We LOVE children's books! There were quite a few on this list we haven't read yet, so now I have a new list for our next trip to the library!

Eowyn August 31, 2009 at 2:57 pm

LOL. That last line caught me off guard. I just plan on my over due fees adding all sorts of book goodness to my library.

Although, since I'm paying for them, shouldn't I have a say in what they buy?

Roban August 31, 2009 at 3:24 pm

Hannah and I have read so many children's books over the years, and we still (with her at age 13) sometimes read some of our favorites over and over again.

L.T. Elliot August 31, 2009 at 5:36 pm

So many good ones on this list and even more that B&N will be thanking and singing my praises for soon enough. ;)

mama-face August 31, 2009 at 6:08 pm

'Mo Willems-nuff said'.

so true, true, true. :)

My 8 year old still loves to have me read, and he himself read, so many wonderful younger children books. We have a humungous bookshelf crammed with them; I will never let them go.

Jamie August 31, 2009 at 6:26 pm

I have paid some serious library fines in my time!

One of my kids all time favorites was…The Little Mouse, The Red Ripe Strawberry, and THE BIG HUNGRY BEAR by Don and Audrey Wood. Check it out if you haven't already…I think you will like it.

Jenn @ A Country Girl's Ramblings August 31, 2009 at 6:57 pm

What a great list! We have read many of these, but there are some we are going to have to check into. Thanks for taking the time to do this~ you just saved this busy mom from hunting the shelves at the local library!

blueviolet August 31, 2009 at 7:18 pm

I have tons of these in my very own closet! I will NEVER give up my children's books!

Corinne August 31, 2009 at 8:33 pm

We've gone through quite a few – but I'll have to add some to our list! What a great compilation.

happygeek August 31, 2009 at 8:39 pm

I NEVER had fines before I had kids. Now I am personally financing the renovations. Or so it seems.
But yet, off I go. My kids love story time and I love a half hour to sit and cuddle. Can't wait to try some on the list.

That Girl August 31, 2009 at 10:14 pm

"check" to most of them – and thanks for the others!

Haley September 1, 2009 at 2:09 am

Thanks for sharing, I'm always on the hunt for new books to share with J!

susannah September 1, 2009 at 11:38 pm

oh my gosh- you are hilarious with your post sponser! i swear my whole blog could be brought to us by my overdue fees. been rocking them since childhood. ;)

Dave September 2, 2009 at 3:32 am

glad the dinosaur books made the cut.

if there's a good role model out there for our little men, it's a dinosaur :-)

Kristen@nosmallthing September 2, 2009 at 5:20 am

Oh, I LOVE Miss Rumphius. LOVE it! Did I tell you that one? I told someone about it recently…

Glad you're getting your fill of good books lately!!!

Scary Mommy September 2, 2009 at 11:03 am

Miss Rumphius is my favorite book ever. I love your list!

Terresa September 3, 2009 at 12:28 am

Great list. I have a MLIS (a Masters in Library & Information Science, specializing in children's lit and services), or in other words, I like children's books a whole lot.

Your list is a good one. I adore Silly Sally and have shared it enough in 101 early toddler story times to have it memorized. Puppets accompanying the story are even better. Yet the Sheep books by Shaw…can't stand 'em. They make me hurl. But that's just me. ;)

Mo Willems redefined the picture book for a whole new generation…and their parents. Glad to see him on your list.

Can't wait to read future posts on this topic! Great stuff!

PsychMamma September 4, 2009 at 8:44 pm

It's SO hard to pick a favorite with children's books, but J, me AND Hubs all tend to gravitate toward

That Rabbit Belongs to Emily Brown

the most. We LOVE it!

Also check out:

I Took the Moon for a Walk – Curtis
Animalia – Base
Old Turtle
Shopping with Daddy
The Lion & The Mouse – Pinkney
What Do You Do With a Tail Like This
Emily's Tiger – Latimer
Rainy Days With Bear – Hull
Chopsticks – Berkeley

PsychMamma September 4, 2009 at 8:50 pm

Oooh!

I forgot

We Were Tired of Living In A House – Skorpen

Do Unto Otters – Keller

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