Tag Archives: series

Diary of a Wombat

Posted on January 22, 2014 | Comments Off on Diary of a Wombat

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This funny story is entirely narrated by a deadpan wombat (an Australian marsupial that look like a brown bear cub that somehow got mixed up with a koala and groundhog).  Initially, her days are unvaried; she spends her time sleeping, eating grass, and scratching. But when some new neighbors move in, her life (and theirs!) starts to change. After some consideration (and a lot of carrots) she decides “that humans are easily trained and make quite good pets.”  (One suspects the humans have reached a rather different conclusion about wombats.)

This story, with its brevity and constant sleeping, is perfect for bedtime.

Author:  Jackie French
Illustrator:  Bruce Whatley

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Posted in Picture Books

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Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale

Posted on January 12, 2014 | Comments Off on Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale

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This book was our introduction to Mo Willems, a man who probably needs no introduction if you’ve had kids in the ten years or so.  (If you haven’t, the quick version is he is brilliant.)  Like his other books, Knuffle Bunny has a straightforward story:  a favorite toy is left behind in a laundromat, communication issues ensue between a (barely) pre-verbal toddler and her father, and a happy ending is ultimately achieved.  Like his other books, the art is cartoonish.  And, like his other books, it absolutely connects with kids.  This is an especially fun story for reading aloud–lots of voices and sounds and the kids love to hear how Knuffle Bunny is beloved, lost, and found and how the heroine finds her words.

Author: Mo Willems
Illustrator: Mo Willems

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Zoom at Sea

Posted on December 28, 2013 | Comments Off on Zoom at Sea

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Zoom (a cat who loves water) finds an address and a map left by his uncle (who has gone off adventuring) labeled “The Sea and how to get there.”  But following the map does not help Zoom find what he expected–at least not at first.  This is a deeply imaginative book that intrigues the boys–it reminds me of The Maggie B. with its beauty, coziness, and themes of sailing, adventure, and family.  It is the first of three books about Zoom and it may be our favorite.  

Author:  Tim Wynne-Jones
Illustrator:  Eric Beddows

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If I Built a Car

Posted on December 3, 2013 | Comments Off on If I Built a Car

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Jack, from the backseat, said to his dad,
This car is OK.  This car is not bad.
But it’s just a car.  Nothing great.  Nothing grand.
It’s nothing at all like the car I have planned.

This may be the perfect picture book.  The rhymes, cadence, and illustrations are irresistible (not for nothing did this book win the E.B. White Read Aloud Award).  Also, we all really, REALLY want Jack’s car.  (An instant snack bar?  A pool?  An impeccable safety record?  A built-in robot chauffeur?  The ability to sail, submerge, and fly?  SIGN US UP.)  This is the first book my oldest learned by heart; it is simply addictive.

Author:  Chris Van Dusen
Illustrator:  Chris Van Dusen

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The Berenstain Bears’ Big Book of Science and Nature

Posted on November 28, 2013 | Comments Off on The Berenstain Bears’ Big Book of Science and Nature

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This book combines two of my not-so-favorite things (non-fiction kids books and the Berenstain bears) to make something that is actually… good.  Quite good.  A nearly 200-page monster that contains three books from the 1970s–The Berenstain Bears’ Almanac, The Berenstain Bears’ Nature Guide, and The Berenstain Bears’ Science Fair—The Berenstain Bears’ Big Book of Science and Nature is informative, funny, and truly interesting for everyone.  Which makes me quite thankful.  Happy American Thanksgiving!

Author:  Stan & Jan Berenstain
Illustrator:  Stan & Jan Berenstain

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Posted in Non-fiction, Picture Books

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Mrs. Armitage and the Big Wave

Posted on November 24, 2013 | Comments Off on Mrs. Armitage and the Big Wave

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I’ve always associated Quentin Blake with his illustrations for Roald Dahl’s books, but Blake has both written and illustrated over thirty books of his own.  In his three-book Armitage series, a quirky character reacts to seemingly mundane situations in increasingly unusual ways.

In the Big Wave, the second Armitage book, the title character triumphantly turns a simple surfboard into something more akin to a flotilla, based on repeated discoveries of “what we need here” while waiting for the Big Wave with her faithful dog.  In the other Armitage books, Mrs. Armitage seems a bit scattered and disaster prone.  But the Big Wave shows Mrs. Armitage at her most creative, competent, and engaging.  (Mrs. Armitage, Queen of the Road is also popular in our house; Mrs. Armitage on Wheels is not.)

Author:  Quentin Blake
Illustrator:  Quentin Blake

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First Discovery Books series

Posted on November 15, 2013 | Comments Off on First Discovery Books series

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I began hunting down these books well before the boys were born.  I stumbled on one (Fruit?  Colors?  I really don’t remember) and completely fell for their simple yet brilliant design–regular page, transparent page, regular page.  For example, in The Rain Forest when you first open the book you see only lush, green plants.  Turn the transparent page and suddenly the animals and birds that have been hiding behind the plants burst into view.

The boys really enjoy non-fiction books and I gravitate to fiction, so these have been a great way to balance the scales a bit.  They are great for nap time and for paging through alone because their spiral bindings and very strong pages mean they are about as durable as board books.  Plus, their constant surprises help non-readers fully engage in what is going on.  We currently have (gulp) at least 35 books in the series  (I can’t be certain I found all of them for the photo shoot) yet I still pick up more whenever I can.  Many of the books in the series are out of print in English, but they are fairly easy to find online.  Both my boys consistently prefer the Airplanes and Flying Machines  and Castles books above all the others, although Boats has been a recent favorite. 

Author: varies
Illustrator:  varies

 

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Mr. Putter & Tabby series

Posted on November 11, 2013 | Comments Off on Mr. Putter & Tabby series

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The first Mr. Putter & Tabby book I picked up was Mr. Putter & Tabby Pick the Pears.  I loved it.  The relationships between Mr. Putter, his fine cat Tabby, their outgoing neighbor Ms. Teaberry, and her good dog Zeke are the heart of the series and the the soft, bittersweet tone and pictures grabbed me immediately.  Much to my delight, my boys loved it too.  So we’ve slowly been adding to our Mr. Putter & Tabby collection.  Like any series, we’ve connected with some of the books more than others.  But we’ve read most of the following over and over again (sometimes we’ll read the whole book at a go, other times we’ll read a chapter before bed for several nights running).  We also have several others in the series on our wishlist for “someday.”  Here is our current collection in the order the books were published:

  • 1994 Mr. Putter & Tabby Pour the Tea (a great place to begin–the origin story of Mr. Putter and Tabby’s friendship)
  • 1994 Mr. Putter & Tabby Walk the Dog (introduces Ms. Teaberry and her chaos-causing dog Zeke–the boys love Zeke)
  • 1994 Mr. Putter & Tabby Bake the Cake (a nice Christmas story that we just take out for a short time each year)
  • 1995 Mr. Putter & Tabby Pick the Pears (as mentioned above, my personal favorite)
  • 1997 Mr. Putter & Tabby Fly the Plane (a particularly bittersweet entry)
  • 1997 Mr. Putter & Tabby Row the Boat (great for a hot day)
  • 2000 Mr. Putter & Tabby Paint the Porch (the illustrations here are priceless)
  • 2001 Mr. Putter & Tabby Feed the Fish (Tabby’s “fish problem” is presented with both sympathy and humor)
  • 2003 Mr. Putter & Tabby Stir the Soup (Zeke gets lots of giggles here)
  • 2008 Mr. Putter & Tabby Run the Race (the boys are in complete agreement with Mr. Putter’s motivation for running the race–a second-place prize of a model train set)

Author:  Cynthia Rylant
Illustrator:  Arthur Howard

 

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Posted in Early Readers

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