Hank Finds an Egg

Hank Finds an Egg
By Rebecca Dudley
Recommended for ages 2 and up

Cuteness alert! Hank Finds an Egg, by Rebecca Dudley, is so stinkin' adorable that I can hardly stand it.

Oh, and The Boy likes it, too.

Hank is a little...bear, I think?...who finds an egg on the ground in the forest. He sees that its nest is high above him in a nearby tree, and try as he might, he can't reach the nest to put the egg back inside. He takes care of the egg overnight, then returns to the tree in the morning. Hank finds someone there who can help him, but they'll have to work together to return the egg to where it belongs. The sweetness of the ending might knock you over.

This is a wordless picture book, which really works here. I'll be keeping my eye out for more books by Rebecca Dudley.

Hank Finds an Egg is available on Amazon.com. To purchase, click on any of the Amazon affiliate links in this post.

Forever Friends

[Note: I'm required by the new FTC guidelines to tell you that this post includes Amazon Affiliate links. I choose the reviewed books myself, from the local library or my own bookshelf.]

Forever Friends is the story of the friendship between a bluebird and a bunny. They become friends one spring, and they play together throughout that summer and fall. When winter approaches, the bluebird says that she must fly south for the winter, and that she'll be back again in the spring. The bunny waits patiently all through the winter, and when spring returns, so does her bird friend.

This story reminds me of City Dog, Country Frog (I love that one, by the way)--except that in this book, the friend really does return after the winter ends.

I know I say this all the time, but I'm going to say it about this story, too: the illustrations are fantastic. I'm a sucker for cut-paper illustrations anyway, and I was fascinated by the way Berger used magazine print and graph paper to create such beautiful pictures.

This story is pretty simple, so I'd recommend it to be read-aloud to younger children, although older children might appreciate its simplicity as well.

Forever Friends is available at Amazon.com.
Written and illustrated by Carin Berger
Approximate age range: 3-7 

The Surprise

[Note: I'm required by the new FTC guidelines to tell you that this post includes Amazon Affiliate links. I choose these books myself, from the local library or my own bookshelf.]

The Surprise is a wordless book that is aimed at children in the preschool-to-early-elementary age range. It begins with a sheep. We see her measuring her wool, shearing it off, choosing from a rainbow of dyes, and taking it to be spun by a poodle...but why? Well, that's the surprise: Sheep takes that spun wool and knits it into a lovely sweater for her giraffe friend.

This is a great story to look at together, as children try to guess what Sheep is up to. One warning: it's barely noticeable, but Poodle is smoking a cigarette; this might be explained by the book having been first published in the Netherlands. Anyway, I just see it as an opportunity to discuss smoking, if your children point it out. Otherwise, this is an offbeat, touching story about an unlikely friendship.

The Surprise is available at Amazon.com.
Written and illustrated by Sylvia van Ommen
Age range: 3-6 (Age ranges are very flexible.)

My Grandson Lew

This story is not for the faint-of-tear-ducts.

In My Grandson Lew, Lewis calls for his mother and asks her why Grandpa doesn't come around anymore. His mother hadn't realized that Lewis remembered his grandpa, who passed away when Lewis was very small. Lewis tells her everything that he does remember about his grandpa, and his mother assures him that even though Grandpa is gone, remembering Grandpa together is better than having to remember him alone.

Yeah, I cried. I'm tearing up a little right now.

There was one odd thing about this book is that it doesn't have any quotation marks in it, which makes it a little hard to read out loud. I guess authors got a little bit experimental when this story was published, way back in 1974. Anyway, it's still a good book, and it's especially good for children who have begun to question what happens when loved ones die.

My Grandson Lew
Written by Charlotte Zolotow and illustrated by William Pene Du Bois
Age range*: 4-8
My rating: 4 stars [out of five] 

*Age ranges are very flexible.

Full disclosure: The books reviewed here are books that I own or that have been checked out from the local library. Some links in this post are Amazon Affiliate links.

Leprechaun Gold

Do you celebrate St. Patrick's Day? There's not a lot to the holiday, really, but it's pretty easy to make it fun for kids. And, lucky for me (haha, get it?), the library had some St. Patrick's Day stories on hand this week.

In Leprechaun Gold, Donald O'Dell saves a leprechaun's life, and the leprechaun tries to repay him with gold. Donald just isn't that kind of guy, apparently, and he keeps refusing the leprechaun's offer. The leprechaun insists that one day Donald will accept it, one way or another, and he does...without realizing it, until the very end.

I like this story for two reasons: one, the leprechaun is nice, not sneaky; and two, most of the illustrations have the leprechaun hiding in them. I don't think that really young kids would follow this one; read it to kids about five or older. Fun story for St. Paddy's Day.

Leprechaun Gold
Written by Teresa Bateman and illustrated by Rosanne Litzinger
Age range*: 5-7
My rating: 3 stars [out of five]

*Age ranges are very flexible.

Full disclosure: The books reviewed here are books that I own or that have been checked out from the local library. Some links in this post are Amazon Affiliate links.

Bear Stays Up for Christmas

We love the Bear series by Karma Wilson. And this one is one of my favorites in the series.

Bears, of course, hibernate in the winter. But Bear's friends come over to his cave to help him stay up for Christmas this year. Bear's pretty sleepy, but his friends sing carols, bake, and do other fun Christmas activities to help their friend stay awake. When Bear's friends each fall asleep, Bear stays up and makes Christmas presents for them. And then, Bear gets a little surprise visit from a jolly visitor.

The Bear series of books uses some vocabulary that's a little advanced for smaller kids, but the pictures help tell the story. This book is also secular, but it does celebrate friendship and giving.

Bear Stays Up for Christmas
Written by Karma Wilson, illustrated by Jane Chapman
Age range*: 4-7
My rating: 4 stars [out of five]

*Age ranges are very flexible.

Full disclosure: I don't receive any compensation for reviewing children's books--the books are usually just checked out from the local library.

Cock-a-doodle Christmas!

We loved this book. Little Boy asked my husband to read it to him every night for at least a week.

Cock-a-doodle Christmas! takes place in Bethlehem. A little rooster named Harold has to take over crowing duty when Old Rooster retires, but Harold just can't crow loudly enough to wake the other animals. Then one night, a couple comes to the barn, a miraculous baby is born, and Harold is so happy that he crows more loudly than he ever has before.

I like that this story has elements of the religious Christmas story in it, and it celebrates Christ's birth, but it also has a fun little story to go along with it.

Cock-a-doodle Christmas!
Written and illustrated by Will Hillenbrand
Age range*: 3-7
My rating: 5 stars [out of five]

*Age ranges are very flexible.

Full disclosure: I don't receive any compensation for reviewing children's books--the books are usually just checked out from the local library.

Babar and Father Christmas

I have a confession to make: I didn't grow up reading Babar.

I know. It's like I didn't have a childhood.

Anyway, as an adult I've read two stories about Babar: the first Babar story, and Babar and Father Christmas. In Babar and Father Christmas, Babar's children hear that a magical being called Father Christmas visits human children--but why doesn't he visit elephant children? Babar is an excellent king and father, so he sets off to speak to Father Christmas and hopefully persuade him to come to Elephant Land (or wherever it is that Babar lives). Father Christmas can't come, but he inspires Babar to be Father Christmas in his place. Ta-da! Best elephant Christmas ever.

There are a couple of things about Babar stories, including this one, that make them interesting. One is that they were written in the 1930s. The second is that they were written in French, and then translated to English. Put the two together, and you get text that sounds a bit different from the storybooks of today. I, personally, think it's kind of charming.

The only downside to Babar and Father Christmas is that it's l-o-o-ng. Read it to a child who has a good attention span, or maybe just read a little of it at a time. Some kids might have questions about words or phrases that sound different from today's English, but I don't think that's a bad thing.

Babar and Father ChristmasWritten and illustrated by Jean de Brunhoff
Age range*: 3-6
My rating: 5 stars [out of five]

*Age ranges are very flexible.

Full disclosure: I don't receive any compensation for reviewing children's books--the books are usually just checked out from the local library.

A Christmas Tree for Pyn

This is a nice Christmas story from the author of the Gossie and Gertie series [some of which I love, and some of which I don't]. Pyn lives in the mountains with her father, Oother. He's gruff and bearlike--he doesn't like for Pyn to call him "Papa"--just "Oother." It's not that he doesn't love Pyn, it's just that he's embarrassed by affection.

Pyn decides that this year, she wants a Christmas tree like the ones down in the village. She sets off by herself to find one and gets herself in a bit of trouble, but Oother finds her. They bring home a tree, and Pyn decorates it with bits and pieces that she's been gathering all year--birds' nests, that kind of thing. Oother sees what she's done and pulls out a bird ornament that had belonged to Pyn's mother. They admire their tree and Oother finally lets Pyn call him "Papa."

This is really more of a father/daughter story than a Christmas story--the tree is the only Christmas-y thing in it. It's a bit on the long side, so I'd definitely recommend it for kids with a good attention span. The story's not religious at all, but it still celebrates Christmas in a way that isn't about presents or Santa Claus.

A Christmas Tree for Pyn
Written and illustrated by Olivier Dunrea
Age range*: 5-7
My rating: 3 stars [out of five]

*Age ranges are very flexible.

Full disclosure: I don't receive any compensation for reviewing children's books--the books are usually just checked out from the local library.

Whoever You Are

I read once (somewhere) that children need to be taught about why people are different. If parents ignore the issue, kids are left to try to figure it out on their own--and trust me, they notice differences.

So sometimes I'll check out a book like this. A lot of them are a little too poetic or touchy-feely for Little Boy to understand, but this one is simple. Straightforward. The message is that whoever you are, wherever you are, we all have similarities and differences.

I think Little Boy is getting it. We'll see.

Whoever You Are

Written by Mem Fox
Age range*: 3-6
My rating: 4 stars [out of five]

*Age ranges are very flexible.

Full disclosure: I don't receive any compensation for reviewing children's books--the books are usually just checked out from the local library.

Something from Nothing

This. Is a good book.

I'm pretty sure I've heard the story before, and I don't think it was from this book. I have a feeling it's one of those folktales that's been done several times (kinda like The Mitten), but the reason that these folktales are re-told so often is that they're good.

Anyway, maybe you've heard this one, too. Baby Joseph's grandfather makes him a beautiful baby blanket. Joseph loves the blanket, and it starts to get worn out. So he takes it back to his grandfather, and Grandfather makes it into a beautiful jacket. Joseph loves the jacket, and it starts to get worn out. So he takes it back to his grandfather, and Grandfather makes it into a beautiful vest. And so on.

There are two things that I really like about this book. One, the text repeats itself over and over--kinda like I did in the last paragraph. (See what I did there?) That's great for kids, especially pre-readers. Two, the illustrations are gorgeous. And the illustrations tell a second little story along the bottom edge of the pages. So there's something for the kids to look at every time you read the story.

Something from Nothing

Written and illustrated by Phoebe Gilman
Age range*: 3-7
My rating: 5 stars [out of five]

*Age ranges are very flexible.

Full disclosure: I don't receive any compensation for reviewing children's books--the books are usually just checked out from the local library.

Belly Button Book!

[First off, I just want to say that I think more children's books should have an exclamation point in the title. Exclamation points are fun.]

Okay, this one's a board book; I'm pretty sure that it's aimed at kids younger than Little Boy. But Little Boy thinks it's really funny, so it's still in regular rotation around here.

If you've read anything by Sandra Boynton (and you really, really should), you know that most of her children's books are colorful, silly, a little ridiculous, and warm and fuzzy--all at the same time.

This one, like I said, is one of our favorites. It's about hippos and their feelings about their belly buttons (spoiler: they LOVE their belly buttons). So silly. Oh, and it rhymes. Give it a read with the little ones at your house--I betcha they'll laugh.

Belly Button Book!
Written by Sandra Boynton
Age range*: 1-5
My rating: 4 stars [out of five]

*Age ranges are very flexible.

Full disclosure: I don't receive any compensation for reviewing children's books--the books are usually just checked out from the local library.

Oh, the Places You'll Go!

Another quick one.

So, this is one of those Seuss classics. People love this book.

Don't get me wrong, I really like it. It's very inspirational. But I don't think most little kids get the metaphor. Little Boy, for example, likes the rhyming and the funny illustrations. He really likes the book. But he doesn't get it.

So, I think this is one of those stories that are written for adults more than kids. I see that in picture books quite a bit, actually. And sometimes that's a good thing, I guess--both the child and the adult can get something out of the book.

Oh, the Places You'll Go!
Written by Dr. Seuss
Age range*: 4-8
My rating: 4 stars [out of five]

*Age ranges are very flexible.

Full disclosure: I don't receive any compensation for reviewing children's books--the books are usually just checked out from the local library.

City Dog, Country Frog

[Update: I'm required by the new FTC guidelines to tell you that this post includes Amazon Affiliate links. I choose these books myself, from the local library or my own bookshelf.]

City Dog, Country Frog is such a sweet story.

A city dog and a country frog become friends. They teach each other their games and stories. They spend every day together...until, one winter day, the frog is gone. The dog waits and waits for the frog, but the frog never returns. The dog is lonely, until the next spring, when the dog makes a new friend.

I like this book for a few reasons. One, the watercolor illustrations. (Duh...when do I ever not like illustrations?) The pictures totally match the tone of the story. Two, the story implies that the frog has died during the winter, but it doesn't actually say so--which makes it easy to discuss the frog's disappearance on your child's level. And three, I'm always a sucker for stories about unlikely friendships. Like I said before, they're sweet.

Little Boy liked this one, too. So it has his four-year-old stamp of approval.

City Dog, Country Frog is available from Amazon.com
Written by Mo Willems, illustrated by Jon J. Muth
Approximate age range: 3-6

If You'll Be My Valentine

This is one of my fav-o-rite Valentine's Day stories. We discovered it last year, and it was the only one that I INSISTED on checking out from the library again.

Each page of the story has a little rhyming verse starting with, "If you'll be my valentine...," aimed at a different member of his family. Oh, that includes his pets. And his teddy bear, I think. And the reader, at the end.

The illustrations are cute, of course (I'm starting to wonder...are there any illustrations that I don't like?). My Little Boy likes the rhymes, especially "treaties" rhymed with "feeties" on the page about the boy's puppy.

If You'll Be My Valentine
Written by Cynthia Rylant, illustrated by Fumi Kosaka
Age range*: 2-5
My rating: 5 stars [out of five]

*Age ranges are very flexible.

Full disclosure: I don't receive any compensation for reviewing children's books--the books are usually just checked out from the local library.

I Lost My Kisses

I totally missed the bloggy-bus as far as posting stories for Halloween and Christmas. So! Here's a Valentine's Day story, before Valentine's Day!

Actually, this story isn't about Valentine's Day. It's about kisses. But do you see how there's a connection between the two? Haha. I checked out waaay too many Valentine's Day and love-related books from the library for Little Boy this week. So far, this is one of my favorites..

Matilda is a little cow (calf?) who has "lost her kisses." This is a tragedy, because her daddy is flying home on an airplane today, and the first thing he always says to her is, "Where's my smoocheroo?" So she goes searching for her kisses, asking her friends, family, and the grocery store clerk where those darn kisses might be.

The illustrations are A-DORABLE. (I seem to talk a lot about illustrations on this blog, don't I?) Really, I just want to squeeze Matilda's chubby little cow cheeks. Good illustrations are a little bit lost on Little Boy, but that's excusable...he is, after all, a four-year-old boy.


I Lost My Kisses
Written by Trudie Trewin, illustrated by Nick Bland
Age range*: 2-6
My rating: 4 stars [out of five]

*Age ranges are very flexible.

Full disclosure: I don't receive any compensation for reviewing children's books--the books are usually just checked out from the local library.

The Nice Book

Little Boy picked this book out from the library shelf himself. I'm not sure what about it caught his eye, but he's asked for it several times since we checked it out.

Each page has a finger-painting of a pair of animals (owls, monkeys, koalas...) and a word or two that expresses how to be nice. For example, one page says "cuddle," and another page says, "say hello."

This is a fun, cheerful book. The animals are cute, the pages are colorful, and each page's words are in a different font.


The Nice Book
Written and illustrated by David Ezra Stein
Age range*: 2-4
My rating: 5 stars [out of five]

*Age ranges are very flexible.

Full disclosure: I don't receive any compensation for reviewing children's books--the books are usually just checked out from the local library.