Books for little ones

[kikkert]

A friend and co-worker is going to pop any day now and we're throwing a baby shower for her and her boyfriend. Normally I run away screaming in the other direction when the words bridal, baby, and shower are used in any combination, but she's awesome and my co-workers are cool and it's something special that I am looking forward to.

If we choose to bring a gift, we are asked that it not be your usual gift type stuff ... partly because she is a feminist and doesn't want people to buy a lot of stereotypically girlie crap, but mostly because she's a really unique, fun, and brilliant person and deserves thoughtful gifts. So that her daughter will have the world at her fingertips whenever she wants, we are giving her books - be they fiction, non-fiction, classic childrens or young adult books, fuzzy bunny counts to ten, or the complete works of E.A. Poe.

If you were to buy a book or several books for your child, a friend's child, your grandchild, etc to be cherished for 1 year or many, what would it be? And any special reason for the choice?

ETA: she went vegan 10 years ago but is now vegetarian.... she's a staunch AR supporter, does animal rescue and foster, and hopes to be able to eliminate dairy from her diet again.

[bird]

It's my favorite book in the whole world, and has always been, since early in my childhood. I've read it countless times, and know most of the lines by heart. In my opinion, there's simply not a better book written about a young girl's coming of age.

[grog]

Is there an age range? Or we are talking about the unborn and books for the future?

[gladcow]

My favorite for babies and toddlers is "My Many Colored Days" by Dr Suess. It doesn't look like a Suess book because it was illustrated and realeased after his death. I love it. Each page has a different color, feeling, and animal. Great pictures and can be read a million different ways. My kids and I loved it so much that I've bought it twice.

The kids and I recently read "Sector 7" which has no words, but tells a story with pictures. I was impressed with the illustrations and the idea behind it.

The "Olivia" books are really great, too. Especially the first one.

Lastly a great book for all ages (but it's a bit long for some younger kids) is "The Very Persisitant Gappers of Frip" by Jon Scheiska (sp?) and Lane Smith.

ooooohhhh books. I love them so!

[bird]

Is there an age range? Or we are talking about the unborn and books for the future?Oh. Well, she mentioned the complete works of Poe, and also buying books to be cherished for "one year or many", so I assumed it was okay to make recommendations of books that the child won't be reading until she's older. Otherwise I would have chosen something else, obviously.

[stegan]

-Anything by Richard Scarry. He always gave great big worlds to explore...
-"Hop on Pop" by Dr. Seuss. My brother and I quite literally read this with our dad :)
-Encyclopedias. Definitely.
-"Where the Sidewalk Ends" by Shel Silverstein. Indispensable...
-"The Very Hungry Caterpillar" by Eric Carle.
-"Where the Wild Things Are" by Maurice Sendak
-"The Runaway Bunny" by Margaret Wise Brown
-the Amelia Bedelia series

And too many others to count...

[petaske'kwe']

For little ones: Martha Speaks (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0395729521/qid=1121370379/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/102-7430621-0451368) by Susan Meddaugh

For reading age:
Gertie's Green Thumb (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/044040018X/qid=1121371132/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/102-7430621-0451368?v=glance&s=books) by Catherine Dexter

The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar and Six More (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0141304707/qid=1121370540/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/102-7430621-0451368?v=glance&s=books) by Roald Dahl

Island of the Blue Dolphins (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0440439884/qid=1121370481/sr=2-1/ref=pd_bbs_b_2_1/102-7430621-0451368) by Scott O'Dell

I also liked the Anastasia Krupnik, Ramona Quimby, and Little House on the Prarie Books when I was young and would read them over and over.

[bird]

This thread should also give you an idea of what some VR members enjoyed as children:

http://www.veganrepresent.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2052

[bird]

Also, especially since she's having a daughter, I found the Judy Blume books to be immeasurably helpful about getting my period for the first time, my first boyfriend, and those kinds of things.

[kikkert]

Is there an age range? Or we are talking about the unborn and books for the future?

Well, any range really. I'd like to get several books for her that will take her through teenage years. So maybe a book that will be read to her, a soft chewable one for babies that is natural and unbleached (they are so freaking hard to find), a favorite of 8 year olds like bunnicula or something, something to make her think and explore like historical storybook, fantasy, maybe a cool atlas....

I agree with gladcow ... books books I love books!

[attackferret]

-the Amelia Bedelia series
OMG!! I loved Amelia Bedelia.

I would recommend Julie of the Wolves and My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George.

I was also a huge fan of Madeleine L'Engle, particularly the books 'An Acceptable Time', 'A Ring of Endless Light', and 'Troubling a Star.'

For a younger age range (just learning to read, perhaps?), I'm not sure if there is a better book than 'Go, Dog. Go!' by P.D. Eastman. After just looking it up on amazon, though, it looks like someone abridged it in a sneaky fashion (it's hard to find where it says it's abridged), so avoid the 'bright and early board books' version.

Finally, I've been cherishing the first few books in the Redwall series by Brian Jacques from about 5th grade though the present :)

[attackferret]

Oh, and The Giver by Lois Lowry!! How could I forget?

[Emiloid]

steveo74 stole all my ideas! I actually got "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" and "Where the Wild Things Are" for my nephew... and Shel Silverstein's books are always a good bet.

Another good book for your friend might be "The Serpent Slayer, and Other Stories of Strong Women" (retold) by Katrin Tchana. It includes folk stories from around the world in which the main characters are strong/clever/resourceful/brave/etc. girls and women.

Good luck!

[jenzie]

-"Where the Sidewalk Ends" by Shel Silverstein. Indispensable...
-"The Very Hungry Caterpillar" by Eric Carle.
-"Where the Wild Things Are" by Maurice Sendak

Those are my picks as well; "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" is still one of my favorite books ever. :D

[bluedawg]

for babies/toddlers, i'm a sucker for stories about animals with great illustrations. here are some books i bought when my niece was born last summer:

hungry pig (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/140521032X/qid=1121380242/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/102-7251304-6856127?v=glance&s=books)

happy rooster (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1405210303/qid=1121380242/sr=1-5/ref=sr_1_5/102-7251304-6856127?v=glance&s=books) (i swear the one i bought was not called happy cockerel)

(...or it looks like you can get a box set of several of these books here (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1405216670/qid=1121380242/sr=1-2/ref=sr_1_2/102-7251304-6856127?v=glance&s=books).)

daisy: the little duck with the big feet! (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0316794546/qid=1121380477/sr=1-2/ref=sr_1_2/102-7251304-6856127?v=glance&s=books) (box set)

[bird]

daisy: the little duck with the big feet! (box set)I :heart: Daisy! I bought a big stuffed terrycloth Daisy doll for a former boyfriend of mine, and got a smaller version for myself. (Yellow ducks were a special symbol of ours.) She's the cutest! :smitten:

[feenix101]

Hey, Little Ant or anything by Robert Munsch.

outside of kids books, I have to agree that A Tree Grows in Brooklyn has been one of all time favorite books since I first read it when I was about 10.

[bird]

I have to agree that A Tree Grows in Brooklyn has been one of all time favorite books since I first read it when I was about 10. :love: {{{{feenix101}}}}!!!

[matriarco]

What a great idea!

Younger books:

I second the "Olivia" books. The first one is great.

Basically anything by Robert Munsch (http://www.robertmunsch.com/booklist.cfm) , but I especially like "I Have to Go!" and "Stephanie's Ponytail."

"The Wolf's Chicken Stew," by Latresa Bray. It's about a wolf who plans to fatten up a chicken to make stew but then ends up becoming Uncle Wolf to her babies and baking them cookies.

"Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus," by Mo Willems

"It's OK to be Different," and "The Peace Book," by Todd Parr.

I realize these books aren't classics now, but every kid I've encountered loves them and they all have good messages.

Older books:

Ender's Game, by Orson Scott Card. This was my absolute favorite book as a kid and I still love it.

Eva by Peter Dickinson. I actually just read this, but it's meant for middle school age.

For some reason those are the only ones I can remember right now even though I read so much as a kid.

[herbi]

"The Wolf's Chicken Stew," by Latresa Bray. It's about a wolf who plans to fatten up a chicken to make stew but then ends up becoming Uncle Wolf to her babies and baking them cookies.

This reminds me of a classic Little Golden Book called "The Tawny Scrawny Lion", about a lion who every day of the week eats a set number of different animals (2 zebras on Wednesday, or whatever), until a mama rabbit feeds him some delicious carrot stew and fills him up, and he plays with all the baby rabbits and eats carrot stew and never eats another animal again and they all live happily ever after! (Gee, I didn't quite realize the level of pre-vegan priming I received as a child! :D)

[ETA: Oh no! I just did a search for this book and saw a comment by a vegetarian mother disappointed that some FISH are added to the veggie stew!!! :( I'd forgotten that part. Sigh.]

Anyway, as far as book recommendations...

As a REALLY little kid I loved the Dr.Seuss Alphabet Book. Pretty much anything Seuss is gonna be good, and many of them have good Messages too (the Lorax, the Star-Bellied Sneetches, etc).

As an older kid, one of my FAVORITES was "The Hero & the Crown", by Robin McKinley. I was sooooo sad when I lost my copy after re-reading it a zillion times. The hero in question is a young woman, and while she does slay a dragon (tsk, bad vegan!), she also heals (uh, and then rides... heh heh...) a neglected aging/injured warhorse, rediscovers the recipe for fire-proof ointment through reading and patient diligent scientific trial & error, and struggles with sexism, social & familial expectations/obligations, falling for someone she's not supposed to, and her own physical/psychological weaknesses. Dang, now I want to go check it out from the library so I can read it again! :p

I love a lot of the other suggestions already put forward, also.

[theveganmary]

There is an absolutely wonderful paperback book called "Kindness: A Treasury of Buddhist Wisdom for Children and Parents" collected and adapted by Sarah Conover. It's got some beautiful sepia-toned illustrations by Valerie Wahl. It's a very nice collection of simple stories suitable for the young no matter what your spiritual beliefs are.

Also, I strongly suggest a GORGEOUSLY illustrated book called "Tuesday" by David Wiesner. It's got no words; the story is told entirely by the pictures. It's a very magical story.

Last, I have to suggest Stellaluna, because I love bats.

[IncredibleWeirdo]

I'll second Stellaluna, because it's adorable, and beautifully illustrated. I love children's books, especially if they're well illustrated.
I have a little plush Stellaluna bat hanging by her feet from my rearview mirror, actually.

[lex_talionis]

When our friends have kids, I always give the kid a copy of the greatest book ever written in the English language, _The Grapes of Wrath_.

[kikkert]

I knew you all would have great ideas!! Thank you!

By looking up your wonderful suggestions, I was able to find a couple more titles I want to research.... Not One Damsel in Distress: World Folktales for Strong Girls, Buttermilk Bear, Zippity Zoom, The Dream Tree, A Garden Circus, Fall of Freddie the Leaf, and Stellaluna - which was recommending here too. Also, I would think that Reading Rainbow - the kid's tv series - would be a good resource for past and present kid-focused books with good themes.

And I love John Steinbeck's writing. Several of his novels would be excellent for older child/teen reading.

Thanks again!

[Kat]

When my friend had a baby, I bought him Children of the Earth...Remember (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1559716401/ref=pd_bxgy_img_2/002-0455851-3302427?v=glance&s=books) by Schim Schimmel. My reasoning is that my parents were hippies and I grew up on this sort of thing, so he may as well, too, haha. (That kid is going to be the coolest kid ever, by the way. We got him all the Dr Suess books, and tapes of all the best cartoons from the 1970's, 80's, and early 90's...he definately knows who the Smurfs, Ewoks, Carebears, and Muppet Babies are, etc)

Schim Schimmel has another book too, The Family of Earth (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/1559717904/ref=pd_bxgy_img_2/002-0455851-3302427?v=glance&s=books). His artwork is awesome, and his books have sort of a fluffy, feel-good, "mother nature is so awesome" sort of theme.

My other recommendation is DR SUESS! I can't fathom a child growing up without it.

[jenzie]

Also check out Graeme Base. Love love LOVE him. :D

[Kat]

YES! Seconding the Graeme Base suggestion.
Animalia (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0810918684/qid=1121450052/sr=1-6/ref=sr_1_6/002-0455851-3302427?v=glance&s=books) is such an awesome book.

Also, Peter Lippman's One and Only Wacky Wordbook (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0307137392/qid=1121450109/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/002-0455851-3302427?v=glance&s=books) was one of my favourite books when I was a child. It's crazy but awesome. Not neccessarily vegetarian, but rather absurd, actually; like one word page is in an ice cream shoppe, and flavours of ice cream include snails, green slime, etc.

[attackferret]

Oooh! Animalia! I loved that book. I have no idea how many times I read Animalia in speech therapy, but I enjoyed it each and every time.

[Kat]

heeheehee. My speech therapy book was "There are rocks in my socks!" said the ox to the fox. (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0688518516/qid=1121450761/sr=8-2/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i2_xgl14/002-0455851-3302427?v=glance&s=books&n=507846)

[bird]

heeheehee. My speech therapy book was "There are rocks in my socks!" said the ox to the fox. (http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0688518516/qid=1121450761/sr=8-2/ref=sr_8_xs_ap_i2_xgl14/002-0455851-3302427?v=glance&s=books&n=507846)OMG, that title! Kat, you're killin' me! :laugh:

[kikkert]

I bought the following books for the baby shower today:

Richard Scarry's Busy Town
Hop on Pop
Tiny Seed (same author as Very Hungry Caterpillar)
The Onion Girl

Good thing children's books tend to be inexpensive because I also ordered Zippity Zoom, Creole, and The Dream Tree (little storybooks by Stephen Cosgrove - I am impressed with his stories and artwork), The Serpent Slayer and other Stories of Strong Women, and Saving Emily. I couldn't resist getting more to give as a gift when her daughter is born... which should be in about a week!

Oh, and I gave her copies of For the Kids and For the Kids Too because there are some great songs on those compilations.

[kikkert]

Just have to share.... my cousin had a baby this week, I am going to be an Auntie again next year, and my nephew is going on 3 and has a real interest in books being to read to him (and he has an amazing imagination and invents stories on his own). I am so glad that I have this thread to go back to for more ideas for books and stories and learning fun for kids!

Yay books! :silly:

[bird]

Congratulations, kikkert!

[the bean]

i know you've already bought the books you needed, but just in case you need more suggestions for later i wanted to add Owen and Mzee (http://www.amazon.com/Owen-Mzee-Story-Remarkable-Friendship/dp/0439829739/sr=8-1/qid=1164055638/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/002-2943327-0954448?ie=UTF8&s=books)to the list. it's such a sweet and beautiful book!

[mamaquilla]

I just read that one at Barnes and Noble a couple weeks ago, very sweet !!!
yes I read it, to myself, LOVE childrens books and Anna was busy lookin at other stories :silly: