There is a bevy of board books on the market. How do you find the good ones? Ask a children's librarian. Google "ten best baby books." Ask a friend.
If you are lucky, a list of good books will land in your mailbox as it did in mine. Part way through this entry, the latest copy of The Horn Book Magazine arrived and with it an article by children's librarian Viki Ash titled "What Makes a Good Board Book?" Talk about timing! Here are some of her favorites: Dinosaurs, Dinosaurs (1994) by Byron Barton, Colors (2009) by Emily Bolam, Barnyard Dance! (1993) by Sandra Boynton, Time for Bed (1997) by Mem Fox, Kiss Good Night (2004) by Amy Hest, White on Black (1993) by Tana Hoban, Where is Baby's Belly Button? (2000) by Karen Katz, Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? (1996) by Bill Martin, Jr., I like it When... (2005) by Mary Murphy, and Clap Hands (1999) by Helen Oxenbury.
In the end, the best baby book is the book your baby likes best!
If you are lucky, a list of good books will land in your mailbox as it did in mine. Part way through this entry, the latest copy of The Horn Book Magazine arrived and with it an article by children's librarian Viki Ash titled "What Makes a Good Board Book?" Talk about timing! Here are some of her favorites: Dinosaurs, Dinosaurs (1994) by Byron Barton, Colors (2009) by Emily Bolam, Barnyard Dance! (1993) by Sandra Boynton, Time for Bed (1997) by Mem Fox, Kiss Good Night (2004) by Amy Hest, White on Black (1993) by Tana Hoban, Where is Baby's Belly Button? (2000) by Karen Katz, Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? (1996) by Bill Martin, Jr., I like it When... (2005) by Mary Murphy, and Clap Hands (1999) by Helen Oxenbury.
In the end, the best baby book is the book your baby likes best!
I love Clap Hands by Helen Oxenbury. One reason it is so appealing for toddlers is the themes it engages. Young children relate happily to the familiar activities of clapping, dancing, eating, making noise (music!), waving, and looking to mom and dad for affirmation; these are highlights in a toddler’s everyday experience. The book often functioned for my kids as a call to joyful imitation of the activities.
ReplyDeleteAlso, the illustrations are just plain funny. The disheveled hair, the drooping diapers, the missing shoes, the undone buttons, the sheer delight in noise-making, the oblivious mess-making, and the comically accurate expressions on the children’s faces all testify to the everyday hilarity of life with a toddler. While this implicit humor will mostly be a reward for adults reading the book to children, older toddlers may also pick up on it, and enjoy it.
Finally, the book subtly reinforces the toddler’s primary relational connection with mom and dad: after their joyful activity, the children portrayed in the book turn to mom and dad for approval; seeing this in the book has the effect of settling the young reader in these developmentally crucial relationships. Put another way, the book gently affirms to the child the beneficial truth that her connection with her parents is important and good.
Great comment! Helen Oxenbury is my all-time favorite baby book writer and illustrator. Check out Mr. Gumpy's Outing, written and drawn by John Burningham, her husband!
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