When you have more than one child, it can be hard to find the perfect
book that will attract your complete audience. In my own home, I felt that it
was a constant struggle to satisfy an 18 month old and a 3 year old at bedtime,
as some books were too long and some books were “for babies”. While the older
my children get this seems to become easier, I found a really good answer to
this dilemma with the new book Hey Baby,
Look! by Kate Shannon.
Hey Baby, Look! is an interactive
board book sturdy enough for a curious 3 month old with questions and
instructions to entertain a 3 year old. Each two-page spread is formatted the
same; text on the left and four pictures on the right. Each line in the text
correlates to at least one picture on the right. It is a game, it builds
vocabulary and it promotes concentration and excitement when a child points to
the correct answer on each page. It is simply and brightly illustrated and is
sure to be a new staple in my Mother
Goose Story Hour. It is definitely long, which is great for a toddler, but
one can always stop and start again from any point if you find your child getting restless. It touches upon clothing,
animals, food, things that go, the alphabet and other basic pictures children
learn to recognize from the youngest age. If you are looking to expand your
child’s library, this is definitely worth adding to your collection!
Some great new board books from Orca Publishing are coming your way soon! You don't want to miss these titles!
Up Hamster, Down Hamster –
Kass Reich
If you haven’t read Kass Reich’s Hamsters
Holding Hands it is time to do so (it is an adorable counting book). Reich
brings to life typical opposites using adorable hamsters to illustrate each one. This book
is sure to be a staple when teaching the concept of opposites to the youngest children. It is absolutely adorable and you will have no problem reading it over and over again.
So Many Babies – Lorna Crozier
I have never met a baby or toddler that did not love looking at
pictures of animals. The only thing cuter than the animals are their babies –
and here is a beautifully illustrated board book about baby animals in their
natural habitats. While the book is great for babies, it is definitely a
conversation starter at a toddler story time, as children who are 3 to 5 years
old understand that different animals live in different places and they will
have a blast identifying jungles, ponds, forests and mountains. The book ends
with a human baby to perfectly sum up that everyone starts off as a baby and
each of them are beautiful in their own way. This is definitely a great gift
for any young animal lover!
A Carnival of Cats – Charles
Ghigna
Everyone has a cat lover in their life and this is your next gift to
that person. This circus of cats parading on each page is an adorable guessing
game for the cat enthusiast. This book is also a great way to introduce
differences in animals that are the same, a lesson most toddlers start to
learn. While these are all cats, some are black and some are grey with
different colored eyes and different shaped tails. So too, some children are
tall and some are short, some have brown eyes and some have blue, but just as
all the cats come together to put on a great show, so too children can all
coexist and play together happily.
