Hellobee

Reading (or at least the telling of stories and looking at pictures in a book) takes up a big portion of our day here in the Grizzly Bear household. I’m not surprised to walk into the children’s room first thing in the morning to be met by Patrick holding out a book out to me. It doesn’t always mean ‘read this right now’ since both my cubs usually have ferocious appetites in the morning that need to be fed right. this. instant. But I love that it shows his interest to learn. Olivia has even gotten in on the ‘bring-mom-a-book-and-plop-down-in-her-lap’ action. She may not sit still long enough to actually read the book, but she does enjoy flipping the pages and pointing arbitrarily at things.

Both cubs seem to share a very big love for books involving animals or with animals as the main character. I would say that eight times out of ten I’m handed a book full of animals, and not just one animal but several different kinds of animals! So I thought I might compile a list of our favorite animal books for younger and older toddlers:

Top Five Young Toddler Books

Peek-A Who? – This one is great for those little ones that want just one more bedtime story. Patrick’s at an age that he can answer most of the questions just by what little of the picture is peeking through, but both kids get really excited when I pull this one off the shelves. And Olivia loves flipping through the pages to get to the end where there’s a – surprise! – mirror.

Say Moo? – This is another one of those books that I have a deep fondness for. Done in a style similar to the It’s A Small World: Furry Friends, the graphics are nice and clean with a bit of nostalgia to them. It reminds me fondly of my old Fisher Price toys and I love the rhymes and various animals you meet along this tale. It also has a handy review page to remind your little one of all the animals and the sounds they make! What I love best about this book is that this is the first book where Patrick really started responding. He loved nothing more than to say ‘moooooo.’

It’s A Small World: Furry Friends – This was actually one of the first board books that I ever bought for Patrick after he was born. I loved the simple, vintage vibe of the artwork, the simple sentences about what’s going on in each of the countries, and especially the textures. I’m sure if my cubs could articulate it that’s what they love best about this book too. It’s survived two very destructive toddlers and they still love playing with it by themselves or having me read it to them!

Baby Animals: Touch and Feel – We have two copies of this book and I couldn’t be more glad that we do. This is one of those books that’s perfect for little hands, has something to touch or notice on every page (like the sparkly snowflakes around the adorable baby penguin) and is often fought over. Now I can give one to each toddler or take one with us on trips and not have to worry about losing it.

Where’s Spot? – I must admit that this one was actually more of a hit with Patrick than it is with Olivia. Patrick likes to look at the pictures underneath the flaps and point to them, then try to mimic my terrible imitation of the animal sounds. How exactly does one imitate a hippo? Olivia is more interested in lifting and closing the flaps but has no patience for me trying to read the story to her. Hopefully this will come with age or with Patrick reading the book to her.

Top Five Toddler Older Toddler Books

Little Loon and Papa – I noticed with Patrick that just about any book that has noises included in the story were the ones that he gravitated toward. While Patrick wouldn’t talk until some time after the two year mark, he did really enjoy imitating the sounds of things (objects, people, animals, etc). In this case, there’s the sound of a loon, a moose, a beaver, and a bear as the Little Loon gets farther and farther from his Papa. Little Loon keeps practicing and when the time came he was able to dive – just like Papa. And isn’t that what every kid dreams of doing? Something just like their parent?

Good Night, Gorilla – I know this book has been written about before (like here, here, and here), but it really is that good of a book. Most people like that it’s a book of few words that allows you and your child to make up your own story. But I also love the continuity throughout the book. Your little one will love pointing out the different animals – “Where’s the elephant? Where’s the mouse?” – and love hunting for different aspects that travel throughout the book on nearly every page– “Where’s the banana? Where’s the pink balloon?” It’s really magical to watch them realize that something not obvious is hidden there.

Steam Train, Dream Train – This combines my son’s two loves – trains and animals. When Patrick first received the book for his birthday, he had me read it to him no less than five times, and it’s usually one of the first books he reaches for when given a choice. For him it isn’t just the different kinds of animals — it’s also how each animal does their job and how they’re all tucked in bed by the end of the story. Plus since the book names all the cars of the trains, it’s a great refresher for any parent who has a budding engine driver on their hands!

Nobunny’s Perfect – Since we have two bunny rabbits, Hansel and Gretal, I knew this one would likely grab Patrick’s attention right away. It’s also a book that’s growing with us. From the popular author of Llama Llama Red Pajama, this story shows your child the difference between good and bad behavior in a toddler giggle-inducing kind of way. It wasn’t until recently that he started noticing the difference between bad and good in the story but until he did, the pictures by themselves are highly entertaining. Bad topics covered are spitting out food, kicking and hitting, biting, and not sharing.

Red Wagon – I wasn’t sure I would like this book at all when it initially arrived. I’m a stickler for aesthetics and the artwork is a little less pleasing than some of our otherbooks. But there are some things that won me over pretty instantly: the main character is a girl, the story line is simple (just a few lines per set of pages, not a lot of descriptors), and the bulk of the story is for the eyes as opposed to the ears. Each illustration lovingly details the different things Lucy and her friends are pretending to do with her red wagon while they run an errand for Lucy’s mother. It was surprising and covers a lot of different pretend worlds – from the circus to the wild west to outerspace! It just goes to show that you can’t always judge a book by its cover artwork!

These books have really fired up the imaginations of my little cubs. What books inspire your little one(s)? What are their favorite subjects?