Recent Favorite Reads: Picture Books and Early Reader Books

I may be a bit bogged down reading the Magic Treehouse Series out loud to my favorite resident first grader, but we have had a chance to delve into some great picture books over the past few weeks.  He’s also been busy reading to me.

Early Reader Books

Here are some of our recent favorites:

Houndsley and Catina by Candlewick Sparks:  These two characters are adorable.  We loved the illustrations and the stories.  There are four different Houndsley and Catina books, and they are all great.

Penny and her Marble, Penny and her Doll, Penny and her Song by Kevin Henkes:  This is one of my favorite children’s picture book authors (I love the Lilly books!) and when I saw these books at the library I remembered how much The Banana and I had enjoyed reading them when she was in first grade.  Mr. TOF liked them too.

The Good for Nothing Button by Cherise Mericle Harper:  Spectacular, with lots of wonderful drama!  This is a great opportunity to encourage dramatic reading.

 

Children’s Picture Books

I’ll never not love a good picture book!  Here are some absolute treasures:

Be Quiet by Ryan T. Higgins:  Truly, this book is hilarious!  It had me laughing out loud so much I had to stop reading.  It had my kids laughing out loud.  It even had two little girls from Latvia that speak limited English laughing out loud. Read it.

Dragons Love Tacos 2 by Adam Rubin:  We loved the first Dragons Love Tacos book, and the second is just as good.  Even Mr. SP gave it 5 stars.

Drat that Fat Cat by Julia Patton:  The protagonist in this book has some delightful quirks, and his life is made even better with the surprise arrival of a Fat Cat.

The Great Cheese Robbery by Tim Warnes:  I just had a lot of fun reading this, and I loved how all those mice started moving the furniture in a hurry.

Jabari Jumps by Gaia Cornwell:  Maybe I’m partial to this one because I can remember the fear of jumping off the high dive at the Jamestown City Pool in my whole body.  I can remember climbing the ladder, standing at the top, and not knowing if I’d actually have the courage to jump off, hitting the water, wondering if I’d make it to the surface, and then when I did, jumping off the high dive about 50 times in a row.  This is a terrific book about a little boy getting up the courage to dive off the diving board.

Paul Meets Bernadette by Rosy Lamb:  Charming!

Ice Boy by David Ezra Stein: This is a super creative book that incorporates liquid, solid and gasous states of water.

Triangle by Mac Barnett and Jon Klaassen.  It’s excellent.  I love this author illustrator team.

Dragon was Terrible by Kelly DiPucchio:  Perfect for all dragon and castle loving kids.  This is a really engaging book.

Storm’s Coming by Margi Preus:  My favorite local author has just written the most perfect book about Split Rock Lighthouse!  For years I’ve been wishing for a children’s book about the people who lived at Split Rock, and this book absolutely nailed it!  The writing is beautiful.  The illustrations are so perfect they make you feel like you are standing at the foot of the lighthouse even when you’ve left.