At its best, writing a children's book must be an act of love. Not only the love of a specific child, but the love of language itself. The lyrical qualities of words in sequence unlocking newfound emotions.
However, setting aside Dr. Seuss, because perfection demands a category of its own, there are countless books for our kids that I simply can't stand to read. And as I've watched my children grow in turn, unique as they are but still moving through a similar procession of understanding, I'm forced to compare the experiences of transporting pages in my own youth.
My daughter has only now begun to appreciate the joys of Winnie the Pooh, but has been hooked on the chapterized version of Daniel Tiger for years. The Bearenstain Bears early work comes off a bit out of step with the times, and the newer editions tend to read like they hope to make up for the former. Don't get me wrong, when my toddler asks for one more rendition of Pigs in Hiding I am doomed to oblige, but no parent in their right mind would trade a few minutes of reading for an otherwise unnecessary tantrum.
While I'm sure they won't work for everyone, the books on this list all share a common trait: they get better with repeated reading. As my oldest child recently turned 4, and will clearly soon be bound for college, allow me to share a week's worth of stories that bring me everyday pleasure in reciting.
All the World Sometimes, even though it's a short read, the lessons taught transcend the time invested. The story follows a day in the life of a coastal family and emphasizes the intrinsic value of all creatures great and small. The illustrations are spare and movingly colored. The text simple couplets of rhyming verse. It's a portrait of aspirational living, in tune with nature and surrounded by the bonds of community. I'm hard pressed to think of a more wholesome book of child like discovery.
City Moon As the title implies, here is a story of urban twilight. A boy and his mother walk out into the mixed residential neighborhood of Jane Jacobs' paper cut out dreams. The setting is that perfect stretch of autumn, when night falls early, but the air is not yet cold enough to chill a wandering child, and the joy of being out of bed after dark is still new. While pushing a stroller across darkened sidewalks, I can't help remember Fievel and his sister Tanya singing Somewhere Out There as the moon rises slowly over a sleeping city, but for parents who have to travel away from their families, here is a less Disney centered tale of reassurance that we all sleep under the same sky.
Du Iz Tak Is there anything more magical than the transformation of nonsense into order? I think about that a lot watching my 1 year old move through a daily reinterpretation of vocabulary. I think about it as I struggle in my adulthood to acquire fluency in a second language. I think about it especially while reading Du Iz Tak? when two bugs discover a small sprout and wonder what it could become, at least I'm pretty sure that's what's happening, but since the text is all written in gibberish, it's only fair to say that hilarity ensues. It's impossible for me to read this book without embodying the cartoonish nonsense voices, each with their own unique inflection. It's just too much fun to put down, and too playful of a story to forget.
The Golden Glow It's also totally entertaining to watch a child's expectations be realized. As an adult, it's hard to remember the tension and release of pages turning, but when young kids know what is coming next in a story, it almost seems more exciting. Here a bookish Fox sets out to find a fabulously, fascinating flower, and the quest is filled with beautiful adventure. The stylish illustrations are more than half the fun, but whileThe Golden Glow begins and ends in the same place, the mysterious adventure in between contains an introduction to basic ecology, botany, orienteering and conservation.
Tomorrow I'll Be Brave This slender volume is bursting with visual panache, hand drawn super saturated colors, and bold typography. Each spread provides a different encouragement to try new things without fear of failure. I'm a sucker for any story whose moral can be applied as much in grown up life as childhood, and this book manages to be inspirational without resorting to cliche. Cover to cover and back again, the skillfully designed layouts pull the reader forward into imagined possibility.
Aaron Slater Illustrator If you're following along at the library or local shop, you may have noticed a theme here. So much of watching my kids develop has made me think about the character traits I want to cultivate in them: kindness, curiosity, and self-expression are all high on the list. This is a book that resonates across all three, while still providing pages rich with detail rewarding the frequent reader. However, it's also the only book here that brought tears to my eyes on multiple occasions, that's based on a real person, and that's part of a series of equally compelling other volumes called, "Questioneers," which may be my new favorite euphemism for "children." I relish the adventure and take comfort in the verse. A reminder that joy and beauty, and art, all come from inside of a questioning heart.
Escargot One last journey here, this one across the wild and fearsome expanse of a picnic table, in the company of an adorable garden snail. Perhaps when you too are small it's especially satisfying to see something smaller than you, with such big feelings. Perhaps the thought of vegetables as "scary" is universal to both children and insects. Perhaps interacting with a book should always be this way, filled with snorts of fierceness, guffaws of laughter and smacks of kisses. There are so many fictional characters that feel as real as friends, whether because they remind us of parts of ourselves, or simply the best of one another. Here is a book filled with wit and kindness, a reminder that even the tiniest creatures are just searching for a little love.