Yesterday as a consequence for disobedience and lying, Elizabeth went to bed early. I found her in her room crying over missing evening story hour. I was quite teary myself by that point.
Story hour is the most blissful time of day here in upstate New York. Elizabeth and Noah soak our bed pillows with their dripping-from-bathtime tresses. We are all serene, laden in our most comfy pajamas. Our bed is mounded with stuffed animals. Mom and Dad's handwarmers are a pair of mugs with our children's pictures on them filled with a delightfully steamy cup of our current favorite tea.
Its hard to narrow down top picture books, so this will likely end up as a series spotlighting some of our favorites.
The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf is 2-year-old Noah's current favorite. Warning: This story is not for the faint of heart. My husband and I vaguely remembered this book from childhood but chuckles ensued when Noah recently received this book from his grandparents. My 2-year-old son who has removed the curtain rod and used it as a sword to chase his sister probably loves it for this very reason. There is no violence, but there is threatened violence in this tale of a peaceful bull whose favorite hobby is sniffing the flowers.
Elizabeth and I have long been fans of the entire If You Give a... series by Laura Numeroff. These books are delightfully illustrated by Felicia Bond. Our favorite is If You Give a Pig a Pancake. There is a delightful version of this book on audiocassette read by David Hyde Pierce, however it has gone out-of-print. We read the whole series on a weekly basis.
This is another book we read almost nightly. I think the Frog and Toad books are excellent at illustrating for children what it means to be a friend. I'm pleased to see that Elizabeth really picks up on the values of the books we read. She noticed Frog is dishonest in the first story in Frog and Toad Are Friends and it troubled her. I guess the parent has to use discernment, but I also think sometimes a story like this can create opportunity for values discussions.
The Wemmick books by Max Lucado still make me tear up. You Are Mine and You are Special are my favorites in this series. The lessons in where self-worth truly comes from are valuable for all ages.
How could I fail to include the charming Beatrix Potter in my list of favorite children's books? We are in fact currently doing a unit study on gardens in our homeschool, based around The Tale of Peter Rabbit. The kids like Peter Rabbit, but I think my personal favorite is The Tale of Squirrel Nutkin.
What about you? What are your favorite children's books?
8 comments:
I'm so glad you do this with and for your children! Reading together is a beautiful thing and probably will pass down to their children and even your great-grands:) You show some of the books I love here. My favorites include the Little Bear series and anything Beatrix Potter, too. My boys are now 10 and 13 and have gone on to much less endearing things like Diary of a Wimpy Kid and comic books and the Hardy Boys. If I'd had to miss storytime at your house I think I'd cry, too:)
Oh wow--I hadn't heard about Ferninand the Bull in YEARS! I'll have to pick that one up if I can find it. One of my favorites is The Giving Tree, by Shel Siverstein.
Laura,
I sure hope it passes down the line :). I forgot about The Little Bear series. I remember my mom reading them to me and I don't even think I have read them to my kids yet. I will just have to remedy that next time we hit the library.
Georgiana,
Thanks for commenting. I don't think I've read them The Giving Tree. Anything by Shel Silverstein is a winner...I think Elizabeth should be about ready for those books now.
Blessings
Harold and the Purple Crayon, anything by Dr. Seuss, esp. Cat in the Hat and Green Eggs and Ham, Are You My Mother?, Winnie the Pooh
Grandpa
Those are a few favorites in our collection...hmmmm....I think most were from Grandma & Grandpa too.
I am new follower. I love reading posts about picture books!
Thanks. I like your blog concept. What a good idea!
Super interesting!!!! Thank you for sharing such an honest review!!!!
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