Patch Picks: Five Great Children’s Books
Keep the tradition of Read Across America going with these top picks.
Last week people throughout the United States participated in Read Across America. To keep the tradition going past last week, we found a few books that appeal to children of various ages.
1. American Girl Series
The historical series reaches girls who are in the later elementary school years. Tales girls living during the Great Depression, World War II, the Revolutionary War, the Civil War and more will stay with your daughters far past the first time they read the stories about the different characters. They will read tales of bravery, shenanigans and learning with the characters in the books while learning about themselves.
2. If You Give a Mouse a Cookie
From the Waukesha Public Library website:
“If a hungry little traveler shows up at your house, you might want to give him a cookie. If you give him a cookie, he's going to ask for a glass of milk. He'll want to look in a mirror to make sure he doesn't have a milk mustache, and then he'll ask for a pair of scissors to give himself a trim....
“The consequences of giving a cookie to this energetic mouse run the young host ragged, but young readers will come away smiling at the antics that tumble like dominoes through the pages of this delightful picture book.”
3. Chronicles of Narnia
As with all great books, before there was the movie, there was the book. C.S. Lewis’ Chronicles of Narnia are classics that have their way of working into the hearts of boys and girls alike. Talking beavers, a stone table, a prince fighting for his life, a journey to far off islands, magic rings and Aslan are just some of the things found in the seven books that take you to another world.
4. Mr. Men and Little Miss Series
Roger Hargreaves books for children delight child and parent. While targeted for a younger audience while teaching them life lessons through stories like Little Miss Tidy, Little Miss Bossy, Little Miss Sunshine, Mr. Grumpy and Mr. Happy.
5. Henry Huggins
Beverly Cleary’s stories about Ramona Quimby didn’t stop there. Cleary takes young readers through the life of Ramona’s neighbor Henry Huggins as he tries to navigate life in his neighborhood. The book offers an opportunity for boys to read their own adventures.
What are your favorite children's books?
Tell us in the comments.
Candace Decker
12:08 pm on Sunday, March 6, 2011
MANDY by Julie Andrews Edwards
"Ten-year-old Mandy feels lost among the thirty children who live in the old stone orphange. She dreams of a home of her own, a place where she belongs. When Mandy climbs over the high orphanage wall to explore the outside, she is lucky enough to find a tiny deserted cottage hidden in the forest. With a few “borrowed” items, the cottage becomes a refuge. To guard her secret, Mandy even lies – but when she falls terribly sick, no one knows where she is. No one, that is, except for a special admirer she didn’t know she had."
Kim Dutelle
12:59 pm on Sunday, March 6, 2011
For younger kids, of course Dr. Suess and Eric Carle can't be overlooked. But to keep in the spirit of "appealing to children of various ages" I have to mention Kevin Henkes. He is a local writer/illustrator (from Racine, now living in Madison) who has won both the Newbery Honor and Caldecott Medal. His picture books include Kitten's First Full Moon (for which he won the Caldecott) and Little White Rabbit among others. My children loved his mouse books, "Lily's Purple Plastic Purse," "Wemberly Worried," "Chester's Way," "Juilus, the Baby of the World," "Owen," "Chrysanthemum," etc. and have read some of his novels for older kids. My youngest is 10 now and his books (except for the novels he has yet to read) have been relegated to a special box downstairs that will be saved for my future grandchildren. I don't have the heart to give them away.