We have discovered the Hoover Library...Finally!
I'm not much of a reader when it comes to me and my free time. But when it comes to children's books, I think I may be addicted. I love everything about them from the illustrations, the stories, the rhymes, alliteration, and even the smells of the pages.
For the past couple months, the little ones and I have been checking out anywhere from 10-25 children's books each month. I haven't found a good system for checking books out yet. I'm usually only half focused on picking books and more focused on making sure my little ones are in eye sight. (They usually bolt in all different directions as soon as we step in the kids' area of the library.) I've found that if I choose titles that have multiple copies available, they are probably more popular and thus we would probably enjoy them. This theory has been working so far. I've also noticed our library has markings on some more popular titles that say "favorite," which help them stand out. I've also taken some recommendations from some of my more literary versed friends (like my librarian friends, preschool teaching sisters, friends, etc). Discovering books by myself and then seeing how the little ones like them has been really fun so far. They pick them out as they can, but for now, I like seeing how they react to the ones I pick.
Just for fun, I've decided to document which ones my little ones like the most based on how often they ask me to read them. As my little ones love reading and are getting interested in different themes, I think this will be fun to look back on some day.
For the end of August and September, here are their favorites and why.
Both Gianna and Gabriel loved this one I think because of the pictures and metaphores. For example, a line from the book goes something like, "If waffles were like boys, then breakfast would be a battlefield," and the picture showed the breakfast food and condiments fighting.
I got this one in August and ironically, Gianna started getting the hang of potty training around that time. I think it may be a coincidence, but nevertheless, this book was really fun for the kids. I have to admit, when I first read it to them, I had to do a double take at one of the pictures when it talked about "duck missing the potty chair" and then shows a picture of duck's turd by the potty chair. The kids (and we parents) found it pretty hilarious. 
Gianna especially liked this one I think because she's been afraid of a "big bad wolf" lately (blame the pbs show SUPER WHY). I actually enjoyed reading it and I think most adults would find it more humorous than the kids. It's a twist on the ol' "The Boy Who Cried Wolf" stories. This boy wolf hates everything his mommy wolf makes for dinner and really wants to eat a boy. His parents tell him that if he sees a boy in the woods, they would capture and cook it for him. He lies and in turn ruins dinner since the parents run out looking for the said boy. When he actually sees a troop of boy scouts, his parents don't believe him and he learns his lesson.
This one was another favorite for both children. It is sing-songy and easy to read. The kids laughed almost every time we read it. And I love the illustrations and the colors.
Hands down, my children love the llama llama series. We check out whichever one might be available at any given library trip. This one was coincidentally perfect since Gabriel started school a couple weeks after we checked this out. I actually referenced this book when preparing him for school and telling him about how it's okay to be shy at first, to miss your mommy, to not know anyone, etc. The rhyming, sing-songy rhythm of these books makes them a family favorite for us all.
Another favorite for both of them and also by Anna Dewdney (like the llama llama series). This one inspired me to do a Youtube search for what a pangolin actually looks like in real life. They are pretty cool mammals. 
Of course, we stumbled upon this one and Gabriel couldn't pass it up. I learned about some cool dinosaurs in here, though. Apparently, there is a carnivorous dinosaur bigger than T-Rex found in Germany that is very rare and it's remains were nearly destroyed during WWII bombings. Luckily, they found another set of fossils later on, but the book said that it was almost extinct twice. 
This one has been Gianna's favorite since we found it in the library I think because it has buttons that make noise! It has also been good for her to learn her colors with.
Gabriel is into dinosaurs lately. He's REALLY interested in them and seems to be retaining random facts about them and remembering them like nobody's business. He really likes this book I think because it shows a dinosaur dig, skeletons/fossils, and then the bears playing with toy dinosaurs at their home at the end.
Gabriel and I really like this one (for differing reasons). Gabriel likes the part where the trio of triceratops are teasing the tyrannosaurus. If you didn't catch that alliteration, that's why I enjoy reading it so much!
This was another fun story for the kids and for us to read to them. I think Gianna liked this one in particular. Besides the adorable illustrations, the story is about how the animals see a "pond monster" which really turns out to be their shadows. It has been a great way for us to emphasize to Gianna how monsters are not real and to make it light and funny. 
This one was a favorite for Gianna, obviously, but Gabriel enjoyed it too. Baby is getting all her animals ready for bed and falls asleep in the process. It's a perfect bedtime story book.
This one is a favorite for Gabriel and Gianna, too. The dinosaur tries to eat Hal and his family, but after Hal defends them, he goes after Hal's little dog, Billy. Hal's mom makes him a huge spaghetti meal and Hal makes him promise never to eat dogs or people ever again. The author and illustrator are from Europe and the kids really enjoy the pictures. Gabriel even had to draw a huge recreation of his favorite page. 
This one has been really fun for both children. It's the first time-telling book or time-telling exposure in general that they have had and we love Eric Carle (at least I do, and the kids have enjoyed every book I read to them of his). Each page has a time with each animal talking to the spider, who is too busy to talk because she's building her web. After explaining a simplified basic way to tell 1:00, 2:00, 3:00, etc., Gabriel was able to set the clock to each page's time-I was impressed! I had to have each child take a turn with each page because they were both loving it so much. I had to help Gianna a little more, but even she could find the same number on the page and on the clock and move the hand to the right number. It's also fun for Gianna to make the appropriate animal noises with each farm animal.
This has been our first Rosemary Wells series book and the kids both ask for it over and over. I have a person respect for authors who both author AND illustrate their books. Sort of how I have more respect for a singer when I find out they wrote their own music. I guess it's the old writing lover and band player/music lover inside me! Ruby is trying to bake a cake for their grandma and her little brother Max is making a mess and she keeps having to send him to the store to replace the items he is ruining. Every time he goes to the store, he is trying to add some candy to the grocery list his sister made, but he can't write, so the grocer cannot read his scribbles. He finally figures out how to get his candy in the end by drawing a picture of what he wanted. 
One of my personal favorites this past month. I just love Margaret Wise Brown and I was surprised to discover the illustrator, Felicia Bond, was the same illustrator for the "If You Give a Pig a Pancake" and other "If You Give..." series, which my children ADORE! I love the sing song-y rhythm of her stories and I also love the pictures with the mommas and their babies. It's a great bed time story as it ends with them all snuggled up sleeping together in the barn with their mommies.
I LOVE LOVE LOVE Mo Willems...and subsequently, so do my children since I keep exposing them to his stuff! This guy was a writer and animator for Sesame Street, winning 6 Emmy Awards for writing during his almost 10 year gig with them. He also produced some cartoons for Nickelodeon and won a Caldecott Honor medal for his book, "Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus". Check out this quick wikipedia search on him for more...I could go on and on. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mo_Willems We were introduced to Mo Willems when we lived in Spokane, WA for one year during Christopher's intern year of residency a couple years ago. We literally had the cutest little library right behind our apartment complex. It being the first year I was able to be a stay at home mom, we frequently visited the library (bi-weekly) and got acquainted with their children's programs, where one librarian (a guitar playing, long hair-ed, single guy who loved getting the kids excited with his songs and silly stories) always had at least one Mo Willems book during his story telling time. This is one of a series of "Elephant and Piggie" books. Elephant is torn between sharing his ice cream with his best friend Piggie or eating it all for himself. He deliberates so intensely that his ice cream melts, but his best friend saves the day by sharing her ice cream with him!
This is another Mo Willems book from earlier this summer. He didn't illustrate it like he usually does his other books. But this is also a different type of Mo Willems book. Usually his books are silly with quirky characters and cartoon-y characters. I think the watercolor pictures are beautiful and the story is also very sweet. These two friends, each from very different worlds, meet each season in the country to play together. 
Okay, now I've got Mo on the mind...I own the first two books shown, but not the last one, "Knuffle Bunny Free," which is currently a library favorite this month. Definitely check out these books! My children love them-I love them-Chris loves them. As a side note, I like how Mo incorporates the pigeon from his pigeon series ("Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus", and other pigeon books) in the background like on some random person's shirt, a drawing hanging on the wall, etc. I like to search for them in his books. I've also found random pigeons in the Elephant and Piggie series (see above). Anyway, I also like how these series follow this girl, Trixie, and her beloved lovey, Knuffle Bunny, through her childhood with loving, sweet, and silly stories. The first book, her bunny gets left at the laundry mat and the entire family has to frantically find him and when they do, Trixie says her first words "Knuffle Bunny"! In the second story, Trixie is going to Pre-K and brings her bunny for show and tell, but is surprised to find another girl has the almost exact same bunny that day! The teacher mixes up the bunnies and the girls both demand a switch in the middle of the night, which bonds them and makes Trixie's first best friend. In the last story, Trixie takes her first plane ride and accidently leaves bunny on the plane. She's lonely at first, but on her vacation, she realizes she is growing up and is eventually okay. On the flight back home, they ironically find the bunny in her seat but instead of keeping it, she gives it to a fussy baby sitting behind her. The ending makes me tear up where there's a "letter from Trixie's daddy" telling/illustrating how he hopes one day when she grows up, meets/marries and haves a family of her own, she will receive a package in the mail from an old penpal (shows a grown up Trixie opening a package with her old bunny inside with her new baby on the floor.). It was a perfect way to end the series. 
One last Mo Willems book will finish the list for this month. We checked this one out in August, but it was ready multiple times a day for days on end, so it deserves a spot on here. Gianna found it last week and we almost checked it out again! In this story, Leonardo stinks at his job; he just isn't scary, no matter how hard he tries. He researches and finds the saddest, loneliest little boy to scare and tries to scare him until the little boy cries. But it turns out the little boy is crying because a HUGE laundry list of things. Then, Leonardo makes a huge decision; instead of being a terrible monster, he can be a great friend, so he gives the boy a huge hug and they become friends! It is an adorable story that entertains the parents and kids alike!
