My nephew is much older now, but when he was younger he loved The Magic Tree House books, by Mary Pope Osborne.  So, the last time I was at his house, I noticed that he had A LOT of them in his bookshelf.  Guess what?  We are now the proud owners of almost every single Magic Tree House book (to be donated to our library once we grow out of them!).  My son was hesitant about starting them, he didnt think he would like them as much as Dinosaur Cove or Jack Stalwart (see my posts “Adventures” and “The Boy Books Begin”, on February 18th).  But, since we got them…

The New York Times Book Review – March 13, 2011 http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/13/books/review/picture-books-for-little-princesses.html?ref=review

I remember Little Bear as a child.  It wasn’t the stories that I remember, it was the pictures;  Little Bear and his friends, Cat, Duck and Hen sitting at the table eating birthday soup, Little Bear trying to fly with his homemade astronaut hat on so that he can go to the moon.  It’s amazing what you remember.  What triggers it?  What do you think your children will remember from their youth?  What books do you think will make an impression with them? Little Bear by Else Holmelund Minarik, pictures by Maurice Sendak, is another book that I read to my daughter when she was about 4.  She loved having chapters,…

Share a Story, Shape a Future 2011: The Power of a Book.

As your child progresses from the Easy Readers, try the Frog and Toad series by Arnold Lobel.  I read these aloud to my daughter, and a few months later she read them to me.  She always has a pencil when she is reading and underlines the words she has problems with (FYI – if there are too many words underlined, the book is too hard – give it some time and come back to it.).  This book was just right for her, and she loved that she was reading a chapter book, with a table of contents, too! Frog and Toad are best friends who do everything together.  Each chapter/story…

I have been hesitant to write about what I had heard about Junie B. Jones until I had actually read one.  So, I picked one up at the library.  I read with open eyes and tried to be as objective as possible.  But, I have to say, all the moms that had told me that they did not like Junie B. Jones were right.  Do we really want our children emulating someone like Junie B.?  I will admit, there were parts that were funny, but NEVER would I want my child to act like that.  The book I picked was Junie B. Jones and the Stupid Smelly Bus.  Even the title contains…

Yesterday I took my children to the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, MA.  I had been there before when my daughter was 2 months old.  What a different experience to go with an eight and a five year old.  We got there and the first thing we did was head to the bathroom (necessities come first after a 2 hour drive).  This bathroom is perhaps my most favorite public bathroom in the world!  The tiles are different Eric Carle animals from his books!  Perfect! Next was to pay for admission and find out what was going on at the museum.  There are three galleries, an art…

I just finished reading this (The Witchy Worries of Abbie Adams, by Rhonda Hayter).  I try to pre-read before reading them to my children.  (I was reading one of  the American Girl books to my daughter when she was 4 and on the voyage from England one of the little girls got sick and died – yeah, I wish I had pre-read that one.  Not really a subject you want to discuss with a 4 year old.)  My friend, Debbie, suggested this book to me (via Facebook, we went to college together and found each other again, our kids are about the same age, so its like being back at…

All I seem to think of these days is a new house, getting my stuff (that has been in storage for almost 2 years!), and of course, snow!!  Tonight we read Gingerbread Baby by Jan Brett.  Of course, any Jan Brett book will be good, so it goes without saying that this one does not disappoint.  It’s the typical “catch me if you can” story, but Jan Brett’s illustrations bring such life to the story it is hard to not smile at each page.  My kids have learned with all Jan Brett books to look for clues (foreshadowing for the older years – tests and essays) as to what will…

My son and I found this series at the bookstore (Secret Agent Jack Stalwart, by Elizabeth Singer Hunt).  The first  in the series is about dinsoaurs, so he agreed to try it.  The first (The Escape of the Deadly Dinosaur) also takes place in New York City and parts are in the Museum of Natural History.  My nephew lives in NYC and since my son idolizes him and all his toys, this was a perfect start!  Jack Stalwart is a nine year old boy who is part of the GPF (Global Protection Force).  He was originally recruited so he could find out what happened to his older brother, Max, who is…