Thursday, February 28, 2008
GHM Top Ten List: Board Books for New Baby
Posted by Jenny M. on 02/28 @ 02:13 PM
Since Jen’s sister just had a baby (Congrats to you, Mama K!), she has new baby on the brain. Here are some of her all time favorite board books for wee ones.
Top Ten after the jump.
Hush Little Baby
Written by Sylvia Long, Hush Little Baby is a more environmental version of the traditional lullaby (hummingbirds instead of diamond rings, etc)--I love the illustrations and singing it (off key) as I read to my daughter. Sometimes she tells me NO MOMMY! As in, Just Read It, Already.
Elmo: So Big!
My firstborn loved this book so much (and we read it so often) that I ended up inadvertently memorizing it. Which came in handy when we were stuck in traffic in the car; I recited, she clapped her little hands with glee (instead of crying). Both of my daughters loved this book as one of their very first: a proven winner. I buy it regularly as a shower gift.
Touch and Feel (Farm, Puppies, Dinosaurs, etc)
You have to have a Touch and Feel book on your shelf, if not for the sheer pleasure of watching those chubby little fingers poke the various “feely” things on the pages.
Arthur Babysits
Seriously, there are some mysteries out there for Moms, and this is one of them: why BOTH of my daughters at basically the same developmental stage have become obsessed with Arthur Babysits. OK, well, maybe it’s that this tome has illustrations of all of the following: a baby with a dripping wet diaper, a baby puking, a baby sobbing, kids jumping on the couch, and a Swamp Monster. For a board book, there are a lot of words; we’ve gotten a lot of play out of this selection.
Goodnight Moon
I mean, you have to have this book, by Margaret Wise Brown and Clement Hurd, and you have to read it in the sing-songy soft voice that goes with the rhythm of the rhymes. And you have to explain to your child what “mush” is.
The Hungry Caterpillar or Brown Bear, Brown Bear
Either the Caterpillar or the Bear (or both) are essential--they’ve become classics and Eric Carle’s illustrations are simple and kids love them.
Hug
We received Hug, by Jez Alborough, as a gift from a family whose son adored it. There are few words; it’s all visual. It’s about a little monkey looking for a hug, and his facial expressions as he watches other mommy animals with their babies and searches for his own mother are poignant. My daughter literally tries to grab the little monkey out of the book to give him his requisite hug--a great empathic journey.
I Don't Want to Live on the Moon
I am a huge Sesame Street fan, and I also love the song that goes with this book. The illustrations are great--and if you can sing the song, even better...as you watch Ernie’s journey afar...and ultimately back to his best bud, Bert.
Guess How Much I Love You
Oh, Little Nut Brown Hare, you are so darned cute, I don’t care if my kids like you at all. I love you all the way to the moon and back.
Good Night Mr. Night
I asked my husband to round out the list with number 10. He offered Good Night Mr. Night, by Dan Yaccarino, a sweet simple story of Mr. Night waking up when the sun goes down, closing the flowers, igniting the stars, etc…
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