Building a library for your child, Part 3 – For the very young

Part 1 HERE
Part 2 HERE

We are a reading family.

From the time our babies can sit up on their own, you will find them poring over board books. They see Daddy read. They see Mommy read. They hear stories being read aloud each evening and want to join in on the “fun”, even though they aren’t sure yet what is so interesting to everyone about those rectangular things with marks and pictures inside.

Board books

Board books have become very popular in the last decade as the idea that giving your child an “early start” on their education has gained more attention. I personally love board books for several reasons. First, because our little ones want to imitate us in our reading, the board books help to keep our “real” books safe from little hands not quite capable of turning paper pages. Second, they are wonderful for occupying the time during church services or in any kind of waiting room. Third, they give a sense of ownership to the children over the books. They are their stories and because of that, they develop more of a connection to them.

However, merely handing your child a board book will not instill a love of reading. Reading to them will! So, while our babies enjoy perusing their books on their own, we are sure to frequently read a wide range of “real” picture books to them as well.

You can read my list of our top 10 board books in a post I wrote back in 2007 – Favorite Board Books for Baby

Now, 5 years later, I can add to that list:

Jamberry – Bruce Degen

Babies – Gyo Fujikawa

I am a Bunny – Ole Risom/Richard Scarry

The Very Hungry Caterpillar – Eric Carle

Carl’s Afternoon at the Park – Alexandra Day

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Picture books

A good picture book is worth it’s weight in gold. Picture books help draw a child into the world of words. As they are captivated by the pictures in the story, they notice our fingers running along the marks at the bottom of the page. They begin to connect the picture with the marks and realize that we are deciphering what the picture means from those marks. It is the beginning of a love of reading.

A good picture book is one that tells an interesting story and entices the child to guess what the ending will be long before the last page.  It can be funny, poignant or mysterious, but it will encourage them to think.

If we had limited space and/or resources, these are the picture books that I would want to own above all others. Every one of the following books is a well-loved treasure in our family. Of course this is not an exhaustive list, but just a place to start if you are just starting to build your library. Please feel free to add your family’s favorites in the comments section so we can check them out!

Angus Lost  - Marjorie Flack

Anno’s Counting Book - Mitsumasa Anno

Bedtime forFrances – Russell Hoban

Benjamin Franklin – Edgar and Ingri D’Aulaire

Blueberries for Sal – Robert McCloskey

Brambly Hedge books – Jill Barklem

Caps for Sale - Esphyr Slobodkina

Cars and Trucks and Things That Go – Richard Scarry

Corduroy – Don Freeman

Doctor DeSoto – William Steig

Ferdinand – Munro Leaf

George Washintgon – Edgar and Ingri D’Aulaire

If I Ran the Circus – Dr. Seuss

Jesse Bear, What Will You Wear? – Nancy White Carlstrom

Johnny the Clockmaker – Edward Ardizzone

Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel – Virginia Lee Burton

Owl Babies – Martin Waddell

Owl Moon – Jane Yolen

Ox-Cart Man – Donald Hall

Paddle to the Sea  - Holling C. Holling

Rain – Peter Spier

So Many Bunnies – Rick Walton

Stone Soup – retold by Marcia Brown

The Carrot Seed – Ruth Krauss

The Little House – Virginia Lee Burton

The Mitten – Jan Brett

The Monster at the End of This Book – Jon Stone

The Napping House – Don and Audrey Wood

The Quiltmaker’s Gift – Jeff Brumbeau

The Story About Ping – Marjorie Flack

Thunder Cake – Patricia Polacco

We’re Going on a Bear Hunt – Michael Rosen

Who Put the Pepper in the Pot? – Joanna Cole

Yellow and Pink – William Steig

Yonie Wondernose – Marguerite de Angeli

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Collections/Anthologies

Anthologies are an excellent way to build your home library quickly and more frugally. The following collections are some of the most raggedy and taped-up books in our library because they are pored over again and again. When we travel, these are the books that go in our bags.

Aesop’s Fables – illustrated by Milo Winter

Eloise Wilkin Stories (A Little Golden Book Treasury)

Farm Tales (A Little Golden Book Treasury)

Fifty Famous Stories Retold – James Baldwin

James Herriot’s Treasury for Children

Richard Scarry’s Best Storybook Ever!

The Great Big Treasury of Beatrix Potter

Uncle Arthur’s Bedtime Stories Vol. 1-5

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Chapter books to read aloud to pre-readers

Please don’t make the mistake of thinking that young children can’t enjoy a well-written chapter book. Reading aloud a small portion of a book each day gives the child the opportunity to dwell on the story in-between readings. It also gives you the opportunity to ask them “Where did we leave off last time?” before you start the day’s reading. This greatly increases their powers of retention.

All-of-a-Kind Family – Sydney Taylor

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – Roald Dahl

Charlotte’s Web – E.B. White

Little House on the Prairie – Laura Ingalls Wilder

Mr. Popper’s Penguins – Richard Atwater

The House at Pooh Corner – A.A. Milne

The Trumpet of the Swan – E. B. White

Winnie the Pooh – A.A. Milne (the original, not the Disney)

Wisdom and the Millers – Mildred A. Martin

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If you only have one shelf for children’s books in your home, I highly recommend either of these series. Each set is an entire library in and of itself!

Childcraft
(read about which editions are the best  HERE)

My Book House

I sure hope that this series is helpful for someone! The reason I’m spending so much time on it is because I wish that someone would have given me some good suggestions when I first became a parent before I had to spend hours and hours researching them myself.

Next in the series: Part 4 – Books for beginning readers