You Pinspire Me
I confess: I’m a bookworm.
I have no clue how old I was when I started to read, but I do know that I read a lot in Grade 1. We had a reading journal in which we (or our parents?) had to record the titles of books that we read and our teacher awarded us with mini pocket books as prizes for every 25 books that we read. I still have those books, and the inscription in one of them says, “Wow! Congratulations on reading 250 books!”
Now that I’m reading to my own kids, I’m picky about the books that I read to them – not because I’m screening for behaviours, attitudes, inappropriate situations, or bad words, – but because the rhythm of words in a book is just as important to me as the texture of food on my tongue. I appreciate writing that is pleasing to read aloud. Here are my favourite read-aloud picture books:
The Little Blue Truck by Alice Schertle
The book is charming, but more importantly every page of text fits into the same rhythm. Schertle doesn’t cheat with beats or try to sneak in near-rhymes, which makes it my number one choice for reading aloud.
The Going to Bed Book (and most others) by Sandra Boynton
Her illustrations are precious and her words are carefully chosen. These are short books so we often read three or four at a time. Don’t be fooled by the fact that they’re board books: the easy rhymes and rhythmic phrases are great early reading practice for the kindergarten kids.
What the Ladybird Heard by Julia Donaldson
Once upon a farm lived a fat red hen, a duck in a pond and a goose in a pen, a woolly sheep, a hairy hog,
A handsome horse and a dainty dog,
A cat that miaowed and a cat that purred,
a fine prize cow… and a ladybird.
There’s nothing better than a rhythmic tale about a barnyard full of clever animals. My only qualm is that – at the end of the book – the author ignores the most recent rhyme and rhythm for a line of text, but that can be forgiven as the rest of the book is quite endearing.
This Little Chick by John Lawrence
The text in This Little Chick is so lyrical that it could be sung instead of read, and the hand carved vinyl print illustrations are gorgeous!
Mrs McNosh Hangs Up Her Socks & Mrs McNosh and the Great Big Squash by Sarah Weeks
These two books conjure up all sorts of silliness for the kiddos without compromising rhythm or rhyme. Good fun!
Time for Bed by Mem Fox
It’s time for bed, little mouse, little mouse, darkness is falling all over the house!
This was the first – and perhaps only? – book that I bought new for the kids. Well, to be precise, I bought it at Chapters while 8 months pregnant because it made me weep when I read it in the store. Pregnancy hormones aside, it’s a lovely, calming book to read before bedtime.
“Stand Back,” said the Elephant, “I’m Going to Sneeze!” by Patricia Thomas
“Stand back,” said the elephant,
“I’m going to sneeze!
I hate to alarm you,
But I don’t wish to harm you.
My friends, I fear
It’s clear ….
Oh, dear,
You’d better stand back, I’m going to sneeze.”
In spite of a few rhythmic shortcomings, the text & story make this book fun – even for me – to read aloud.
Jillian Jiggs by Phoebe Gilman
One of my childhood favourites. All of the Jillian Jiggs books are worth picking up for your permanent library, but the original is the best. Phoebe Gilman has also written many other books (not so much with the rhyming) that are well worth reading, including The Balloon Tree.
The Light of Christmas by Dandi Daley Mackall
Let’s face it: most children’s Christmas books seem to be Christmas and winter-themed words and pictures thrown randomly onto pages with hardly a semblance of a story, let alone meaning or style. The Light of Christmas takes the story of Creation->Fall->Redemption and uses it as a frame for the Baby Jesus Christmas story. The story has substance and the text has good rhythm & rhymes.
Marvin K. Mooney Will You Please Go Now! by Dr Seuss
There are many, many Dr Seuss books that could go on this list, but my principle complaint with most of them is their length. Marvin K. Mooney is a short, easy read that eerily reminiscent of conversations that I have with my kiddos on a daily basis.
Jenn vanOosten
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I have a soft spot for “Time for Bed” too. I read it with my babies. We called it “The kissing book” because my baby girl would kiss all the baby animals to bed as we read. Thanks for the memory lane trip! A great list. 🙂
It’s always fun to have new ideas for reading. Thanks! I love the “Bear” books by Karma Wilson (Bear’s New Friend, Bear Feels Sick, etc).
My favourite kids books are by Margret Wise Brown. Another favourite is “Are you the monster at the end of this book?” The kids love it when R reads to them because he can do Grover’s voice.