With that being said, here are some of my favorites.
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| A selection of some of our favorites, art-directed by Jonah |
Books for Babies/Young Toddlers
Everywhere Babies by Susan Meyers - As Lisa notes in her post, I gave her this board book when my niece was born, and it became really special to them. And the reason I gave it to them - and to many people who have received a new baby gift from me - is that this book is probably the most special board book for me and my kids too - so special that both my kids - who are now 14 and almost 10 - have their own copies still in their rooms which are otherwise filled with chapter books. There's just something so sweet and special about this book, with the text and illustrations capturing babies' milestones from birth to a year or so - in a way that also non-preachily shows diversity and that no matter how you're doing the parenting thing, it's ok. I remember reading this book to a newborn Allison and marveling at the thought that at some future point she'd be doing things like eating food and walking - and then later reading it after she hit all those milestones and marveling at how she'd grown. And then I did it all again with Jonah. Even now all these years later, just thinking about this book fills me with the warmest feelings.
Moo Baa La La La by Sandra Boynton- Pretty much all Sandra Boynton books are terrific for reading to babies, but I have a particular soft spot for "Moo Baa La La La," probably because it was the first of her books that I owned. Her books just have the cutest simple cartoon illustrations to go along with the delightful rhymes, and lots of silliness. I can still recite this one by heart. We also loved "Pajama Time," "The Birthday Monsters," and "The Bellybutton Book" among others.
Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown - A classic for the ages. I'm sure everyone reading this was read this book by their parents when they were little in addition to reading it to their own kids. I bet I'm not the only one who can recite this one by heart too! But what is a bowl full of mush and why is it sitting in the room at bedtime? Ha ha ha.
Dr. Seuss's ABCs - Again, there are lots of great Dr. Seuss books - but for some reason this was just my favorite of them to read to my kids, even though it didn't have a story but was just a bunch of weird made up things beginning with each letter of the alphabet. Another one I can recite by heart almost in its entirety.
This is My Hair - Todd Parr - So silly and weird, I just loved reading this book to Allison when she was little - especially because she was born with crazy hair!
Picture Books for toddlers
Goodnight Gorilla by Peggy Rathman - This is a funny little picture book because it doesn't really have words, which is why even though my copy was a board book, you're not really going to read it to a baby. But it's a lot of fun to look at the pictures with a little kid.
Corduroy by Don Freeman - A childhood favorite that I loved reading to my kids as well. Imagined a toy coming to life decades before Toy Story, and Corduroy the bear is just the sweetest as well as the story of how he finds a home.
The Maggie B by Irene Haas - This one is perhaps a little obscure, but this was my absolute childhood favorite picture book and I was thrilled to read it to my kids, even if they perhaps didn't love it quite as much as I did. The illustrations of this book are just so beautiful too.
The Knuffle Bunny books by Mo Willems- Mo Willems is terrific generally, but these are definitely my favorite of his books. Lovable stories of a girl's favorite stuffed animal. And I dare you to read the third one, "Knuffle Bunny Free," without crying. We saw a musical adaptation of this in Cape Cod one summer which was adorable too. Also love Mo Willems' "Don't Let the Pigeon..." and Elephant and Piggie books, but they just don't have the emotional impact that the Knuffle Bunny books do.
Kevin Henkes - I just adore Kevin Henkes' picture books about various mouse characters, especially the Lilly books. Adorable illustrations and funny stories. "Julius, Baby of the World" is what I usually gave as a big sibling gift when someone I knew had a baby; it so perfectly captures the dueling feelings of jealousy and pride that a new big sibling feels.
The Kissing Hand by Audrey Penn - This is Jonah's favorite picture book of all time. A sweet story about a young raccoon worried about going to school for the first time. As a kid who was a little anxious around transitions, Jonah really related to this book and found a lot of comfort in it.
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There are soooooo many other books I loved reading to my kids too, but these were some of the ones that most jumped out at me with memories of reading them. As I said above, my kids are getting older, so there are probably newer picture books which are wonderful too. Though many of these books above
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