Sweet Peas READ: Winter Holidays

I LOVE children’s books. The playful characters, the beautiful illustrations, the fun stories and the great life lessons that are weaved into those stories.  Books are memory-makers…bringing us back to our own childhood when we read a classic, and giving us new memories as we sit and read new stories with our little ones.

But walking into the children’s area of a library or bookstore can be totally overwhelming.  The stacks and stacks of brightly colored picture books are lined up by the hundreds.  I would LOVE to take the time to browse the stacks, searching for just the right read…but in reality, my 2-year-old can only handle so much of mama quietly browsing the books, and by that I mean three minutes.  In those time-crunches, I often lean towards my go-to children’s authors or quickly grab something that ends up being not what I had hoped for.

But what about all of those great books out there? Which books are best for early childhood? Which books are best for elementary-aged kids? Which books will teach my daughter a lesson I want her to learn? Which ones have great illustrations?

Which ones are the good books?

The answer (or at least a good start) lies in…book recommendations!  I LOVE hearing about great books from other people.  Friends, family members, teachers, other parents, librarians, favorite bloggers, magazine articles, and gift guides are all great resources.  I mean really, what better place to start than someone saying, “You have to read this book!”

On that note, I’m starting a new series today that’s dedicated to sharing some children’s books we’re currently reading and loving.  Of course there are those foodie books I’ve shared with you that relate perfectly to some of the recipes we make (like Italian Turkey Meatballs and Pea Pesto Dip), but there are so many other good books out there too; ones that may not be food related.  I hope you’ll keep a few of these in mind the next time you are looking for some good reads for your little ones.

As it’s December, our picks this month are winter-themed and holiday-focused.  This month, Sweet Peas Read…

Silver Packages: An Appalachian Christmas Story

By Cynthia Rylant, Paintings by Chris K. Soentpiet

 

Silver Packages, by Cynthia Rylant, and paintings by Chris K. Soentpiet, is a wonderful story about a community in Appalachia and the kindness they showed to an old man one cold winter.  To repay their kindness, the man comes back every year and delivers silver packages to all the children on The Christmas Train. The main character, Frankie, waits every year for his package and hopes for only one specific gift.  Each year, he gets a different toy and some mittens or socks to help him stay warm through the winter.  But he never gets the gift he hopes for.  As he grows up, he always remembers the Christmas Train and eventually moves back to his hometown.  When Christmas comes around, and the Christmas Train arrives, Frank, now an adult, is there to see the children get their gifts.  And he helps one little girl in an unexpected way.

I love the takeaway lesson in this story, a reminder that we don’t always get what we want…but what we need.

The Mitten: A Ukrainian Folk Tale

Adapted and Illustrated by Jan Brett

Em was given this book last Christmas by Jon’s Aunt Mary.  She used to be a preschool teacher, so she knows her stuff when it comes to great children’s books.  The Mitten: A Ukrainian Folk Tale, by Jan Brett, is a beautifully illustrated tale about a boy who loses his mitten, after warnings from his grandmother about white mittens in the white snow.  A whole crew of forest critters find the mitten and try to take up shelter inside it until a small mouse changes the course of events. Does the boy get his mitten back? What happens to the animals?

The illustrations alone are worth the trip to the library or bookstore for this one….just stunning! This story also provides a great opportunity for teaching sequencing skills, as one animal after another climbs into the mitten.  Along the way, ask your child if they can remember who got in first? second? third?

Christmas Parade

By Sandra Boynton

One author that is pretty much synonymous with great children’s books is Sandra Boynton.  If you have children under the age of five, you no doubt have MANY of her board books in your home, most of which you probably received at your baby shower.  You know which ones I’m talking about…Moo, Baa, La La La!, Belly Button Book, Barnyard Dance, …I could go on.  Christmas Parade is a new one I stumbled upon at the library last week and we LOVE it.  Ms. Boynton’s usual cast of characters take the stage in a fun Christmas Parade, complete with drumming hippos and a tiny bird playing the tuba.  Boynton’s books are known for their fun rhymes and this one is no different.  And it’s a perfect read for the holidays.

 

What does your “Sweet Pea” like to read?