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I had nearly forgotten how much fun it is to read picture books to a child until grandbaby Damon came along some 16 months ago.
As Damon grows, so does his ability to focus on pictures and simple story lines. Intellectually I know that reading to him is important, but I maintain that children have parents and teachers who can take care of language development. The reasons Papa Jim and I read to Damon are, first, to give ourselves a chance to sit down for a few moments, second because he likes it and third because kids’ books are just so much fun. Not to mention that Papa Jim was quite a thespian in his younger years and he likes to read with enthusiasm. The last two Grammy Diaries suggested books for babies and toddlers. This column recommends time-tested books for 3- to 5-year-olds.
I like knowing that these books have been around as long as most of us grandparents. A unique bond is created when memories from our childhood merge with the memories we are creating with our grandchildren. Besides, anything that has been around as long as we have is definitely classic.
If you get to spend time with your grandchildren this summer, try to include a little down time for you and the child by reading some of them.
“Mad About Madeline” by Ludwig Bemelmans. “In an old house in Paris, covered with vines, lived twelve little girls in two straight lines.” Thus begins the first of the stories about the precocious little girl who gives the loving nuns who care for her such grief. This collection of six Madeline stories will keep you and your grandchildren smiling long after you have read the last one. The illustrations of the nuns, the girls and some of Paris’ famous architecture have timeless appeal.
“Harold and the Purple Crayon” by Crockett Johnson. Charlie Brown isn’t the only round-headed little boy with an imagination. Johnson published the first of the Harold stories in 1955. Legions of children have been inspired to use a crayon to create their own adventures after meeting the gentle and ingenious Harold in the pages of this book. Johnson’s ability to use simple lines and one color to create a whole world remains magical even in this age of computer-generated images.
“The Story of Ferdinand” by Munro Leaf. A person has to be true to his or her nature even if the person is a flower-loving bull. Ferdinand was first published in 1936, and it has never been out of print. The pictures of Ferdinand sitting under a cork tree dreamily smelling the flowers or facing a toreador with a puzzled look are funny and touching at the same time.
“Where the Wild Things Are” by Maurice Sendak. If you have not read this book, run, don’t walk, to the nearest library or bookstore. Published in 1963 it is the story of little Max who in his imagination dons a wolf suit and goes on a wild rumpus on an island full of scary (but not too scary) monsters. The story touches both children and adults with the simple truth that sometimes children are full of the dickens, but their parents love them even so. Sendak’s illustrations are wonderfully alive and match the text perfectly.
“Millions of Cats” by Wanda Gag has been delighting children and their grownups since 1928. As most of us know, cats seem to multiply exponentially, which is how a Little Old Woman and a Little Old Man came to have “Hundreds of cats, thousands of cats, millions, and billions and trillions of cats.” Fortunately when the cat mayhem is over, the couple is left with just one little kitten, and it is the sweetest of them all.
Hundreds of new picture books are published every year. Some of them will prove over time to be classics as well. When you are selecting books for your grandchild, just be sure to mix the old with the new. It will keep you young.
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Grand Junction resident Terry Pickens is a retired librarian, freelance writer, and a new grandmother.
As Damon grows, so does his ability to focus on pictures and simple story lines. Intellectually I know that reading to him is important, but I maintain that children have parents and teachers who can take care of language development. The reasons Papa Jim and I read to Damon are, first, to give ourselves a chance to sit down for a few moments, second because he likes it and third because kids’ books are just so much fun. Not to mention that Papa Jim was quite a thespian in his younger years and he likes to read with enthusiasm. The last two Grammy Diaries suggested books for babies and toddlers. This column recommends time-tested books for 3- to 5-year-olds.
I like knowing that these books have been around as long as most of us grandparents. A unique bond is created when memories from our childhood merge with the memories we are creating with our grandchildren. Besides, anything that has been around as long as we have is definitely classic.
If you get to spend time with your grandchildren this summer, try to include a little down time for you and the child by reading some of them.
“Mad About Madeline” by Ludwig Bemelmans. “In an old house in Paris, covered with vines, lived twelve little girls in two straight lines.” Thus begins the first of the stories about the precocious little girl who gives the loving nuns who care for her such grief. This collection of six Madeline stories will keep you and your grandchildren smiling long after you have read the last one. The illustrations of the nuns, the girls and some of Paris’ famous architecture have timeless appeal.
“Harold and the Purple Crayon” by Crockett Johnson. Charlie Brown isn’t the only round-headed little boy with an imagination. Johnson published the first of the Harold stories in 1955. Legions of children have been inspired to use a crayon to create their own adventures after meeting the gentle and ingenious Harold in the pages of this book. Johnson’s ability to use simple lines and one color to create a whole world remains magical even in this age of computer-generated images.
“The Story of Ferdinand” by Munro Leaf. A person has to be true to his or her nature even if the person is a flower-loving bull. Ferdinand was first published in 1936, and it has never been out of print. The pictures of Ferdinand sitting under a cork tree dreamily smelling the flowers or facing a toreador with a puzzled look are funny and touching at the same time.
“Where the Wild Things Are” by Maurice Sendak. If you have not read this book, run, don’t walk, to the nearest library or bookstore. Published in 1963 it is the story of little Max who in his imagination dons a wolf suit and goes on a wild rumpus on an island full of scary (but not too scary) monsters. The story touches both children and adults with the simple truth that sometimes children are full of the dickens, but their parents love them even so. Sendak’s illustrations are wonderfully alive and match the text perfectly.
“Millions of Cats” by Wanda Gag has been delighting children and their grownups since 1928. As most of us know, cats seem to multiply exponentially, which is how a Little Old Woman and a Little Old Man came to have “Hundreds of cats, thousands of cats, millions, and billions and trillions of cats.” Fortunately when the cat mayhem is over, the couple is left with just one little kitten, and it is the sweetest of them all.
Hundreds of new picture books are published every year. Some of them will prove over time to be classics as well. When you are selecting books for your grandchild, just be sure to mix the old with the new. It will keep you young.
-----------------------------
Grand Junction resident Terry Pickens is a retired librarian, freelance writer, and a new grandmother.
