Sunday, May 24

Your Favorite Children's Books

Among the many children's books we checked out yesterday at the library for our toddler was Bud and Gabby. I was thinking, "great, two cats, nice artwork, what could go wrong? It was all downhill from there. The idea for the story was decent--the cats are friends, one gets sick and has to go to the vet. Eventually it returns and they are reunited. Almost Zen-like in simplicity.

However, the writing is awful, which is quite unfortunate because my son really likes the book. Again it seemed the author was going for simplicity, but it's quite disjointed and almost painful to get through. I almost wanted to send a note to the illustrator that she should find a new writer, but it's the same person... Even more inexplicable is it received some kind of "Teacher's Pick" award. Has anyone else read this book? Perhaps we are missing something.

There are many great children's books, however. Goodnight Moon won me over with the existential "Goodnight nobody" page. I also like Moo Baa La La La. What are some that you grew up with, or like(d) reading to your kids?
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11 comments:

  1. GeorgeMay 24, 2009 at 8:11 AM

    "Bill and Pete's Adventure" is about at the top of my favorite books. I keep it under wraps. When LG and CP are both in arm's reach this June I will unwrap it. The simple joys of friendship and loyalty inspite of obvious differences is a much needed message for all us.

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  2. THEM RUSSELLSMay 24, 2009 at 9:07 AM

    This comment has been removed by the author.

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  3. wordsfromhomeMay 24, 2009 at 10:06 AM

    Your toddler enjoys the artwork, the color, and the sound of your voice. So ad lib, add to the story and make it interesting to both of you.

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  4. adamfMay 24, 2009 at 2:31 PM

    George - Thanks for the reminder about Bill and Pete! I loved that one growing up.

    The second commenter (Hill) mentioned Where the Wild Things Are, but then deleted their comment, I am not sure why. Either way, that's a great one as well! A friend of mine actually had a whole lecture in a college class about that book.

    wordsfromhome, we will work on that ad lib. :)

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  5. AliceMay 24, 2009 at 2:53 PM

    I love Bill and Pete.

    I also really like Stand Back Said the Elephant, I'm going to Sneeze.

    The pictures aren't brightly illustrated, so it might be better for when LG gets a little older. We somehow ended up with two copies, so we'll give you one when you're here next.

    Our boys have all loved A Fly Went By, A Fish Out of Water, Hop on Pop, Go Dog Go- any of the books in the Dr. Suess Beginner Books series are good (not all of them are by Dr. Suess).

    CP really likes Mr. Brown can Moo, can you? (that may not be the actual name....)

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  6. galen dara May 24, 2009 at 3:58 PM

    My son enjoys the nursery-rhyme spoof "Dumb Bunnies" (with a delightful nod to Goodnight moon on the cover.)

    I have a proclivity for Dr Seuss with his quirky illustrations and off the wall storytelling.

    And nothing drives me more nuts that a poorly written children book. Especially when, for whatever reason, my son likes it and wants it read over and over again.

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  7. EmilyMay 24, 2009 at 5:21 PM

    I liked The Pokey Little Puppy. Later I liked Bill and Pete a lot too. I was also a big fan of Flat Stanley. I loved Dr. Seuss but there was one story in particular that always scared me (though I kept wanting to hear it) -- about the green pair of pants with nobody inside them. The empty green pants float in the air and follow the boy around and it's very scary until the end when he realizes the pants are just lonely and want to be his friend.

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  8. CathleenMay 30, 2009 at 4:28 AM

    A favorite of mine (it's a total Mom book) is Love You Forever by Robert Munsch. My mother-in-law gave it to me when my oldest son was born 20 years ago. It chokes me up every time, and the kids always think it is funny.
    Dr. Suess is always great too. I enjoyed them when I was young and the kids still love them....classic!

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  9. adamfMay 30, 2009 at 8:09 AM

    Thanks for the recommendations! Some of these I had heard of (Flat Stanely, Dr. Seuss of course) but others are new to me, so great!

    My son still requests the "Bud and Gabby" book. Maybe the author knows something I don't!

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  10. Deanne HillJune 1, 2009 at 8:06 AM

    I'm a little late, but I wanted to make a comment, since this is one of my favorite subjects. :) I have too many to name, but the author of Moo Baa La La La, Sandra Boynton (love her!), wrote the music and lyrics to Dog Train, which is my kids favorite thing on earth. Weird Al and Kate Winslet do a duet on the CD called "I Need a Nap" that I think is cute. llama llama red pajamas and llama llama mad at mama by Anna Dewdney are WONDERFUL! I also love Robert Munsch (mentioned above), and he has so many that are great. My favorite is the Paper Bag Princess.
    My kids all loved Bark, George by Jules Feiffer, even though they didn't get the implications of the ending until they were older. :)
    Both my boys loved Tumble Bumble by Felicia Bond and Moosetache by Margie Palaltini.

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  11. adamfJune 1, 2009 at 9:18 AM

    Wow great! Those Anna Dewdney books sound great (just by the titles)!

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