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I'm looking to restock our 18-month-old lad's book pile. He really likes books with lots of pictures, detailed scenes, lots of things to pick out. (Especially, but not exclusively, those with cars or lions. Or diggers.) I'm ploughing through Amazon as we speak: anyone got any particular faves or recommendations for illustrated books? Ta 🙂
Harry and his bucket of dinosaurs
While they don't have the content you've specified, I've found that anything by Julia Donaldson goes down very well. Gruffalo, Zog, Room on the Broom etc etc.
Decent secondhand/charity book shops are a great resource and you can get rid of the old ones at the same time 😉
Julia Donaldson and Alex Schafer books like the Gruffalo etc are great for little ones.
Nick Sharratt's books are great.
+1 for the Gruffalo books. My two also liked the 'Thats not my digger, puppy, tractor' etc books.
Library?
My 2 love rifling through the piles of books, choosing a random selection then do it all again in a few weeks when the reminder letters come through the letterbox.....
Oliver Jeffers's[i] Way Back Home[/i], [i]Lost and Found[/i] and [i]How To Catch A Star[/i] were big hits with my boy when he was about that age. They're ace and not too annoying to read several billion times over.
Decent secondhand/charity book shops are a great resource and you can get rid of the old ones at the same time
+1 we've probably got 40 odd books in our 18mo book box, 90% of which are from charity book stalls. Would have cost hundreds to buy new.
The Night Pirates,
Slinky Malinky (or any of the Hairy Maclairy series)
Anything by julia donaldson
Hairy maclary from donaldson dairy series!
The mog books are good too.
Tiger who came to tea
Rumble in the jungles
Shark in the dark
Our 2.4 year old currently loves this:
[url= http://www.amazon.co.uk/Dig-Digging-Go-Margaret-Mayo/dp/1841214183/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1318624046&sr=1-1 ]Dig Dig Digging[/url]
It came from the charity shop for 50p, will go back if it survives. The charity shop seems to be a good place for books and jigsaws although I have no idea how people keep things in such good condition, maybe they don't let there kids touch them.
Julia Donaldson is the guvnor, as noted. Tyrannosaurus drip is a favourite here.
Some kids books really are weak - must be hard to match the artwork with good stories.
From the old(er) school, those two Scandinavian writers are excellent - the Albergs? Each peach pear plum was the book for our lad when he was younger.
Eeeeeeeeoooooooowwwwwwwwwwfffffffffffffftttttttzzzzzzzzz!!!!! Said scarface claw
Our girls like Tip Tip Dig Dig (and we have taught them the actions for tipping, digging etc) and they love doing them.
I always choose Gruffalo myself though given half a chance.
george was a giant, the scruffiest giant in town.
he always wore the same old brown sandals and the same old patched up gown.
'i wish i wasn't the scruffiest giant in town' he said sadly.
just realised i could actually go on typing that. jeez.
julia donaldson - the smartest giant. brilliant.
oh and hairy maclarey are genius too.
alan alberg (?) is pretty good too. 'monkey do' is a personal favourite
Gerald the Giraffe.... Room on the Broom... Digger the Dog are our boys faves. I can practically recite them all without looking at the books now!
Gerald the Giraffe
Giraffes can't dance?
This is our twins (2) favourite book, bet 4 quid you could spend IMO
http://www.amazon.co.uk/You-Choose-Pippa-Goodhart/dp/0552547085
2nd is anything by Julia Donaldson
Gerald the Giraffe
Giraffes can't dance?
That's the one...
[i]The warthogs started waltzing
And the rhinos rock'n'rolled
The lions danced a tango
Which was elegant and bold.
The chimps all did a cha-cha
With a very latin feel,
And eight baboons then teamed up
For a splendid Scottish reel.[/i]
Each Peach, Pear, Plum... Allan Ahlberg
I can still read that book out loud. In the dark. Without the book. And my youngest is eleven 😳 .
If you want bike related - Mrs Armitage on Wheels is great.
"What this bikes needs.... What this bike needs", said Mrs Armitage...
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Youngest read it to me the other night!
+10 for room on the broom and also you choos - both mentioned above. My kids loved them!
+1 for Room on the Broom, don't foget Charlie Cook.
While Julia is great, two books that also have been a favorite, and now reading to my youngest are:
One more Sheep, Mij Kelly & Russell Ayto, about a farmer who keeps falling asleep before he counts his 10 sheep.
Man on the Moon, Simon Bartram, about a guy who's day job is going to the moon and entertaining passing spaceships and is in denial about aliens. This also has beautifully detailed drawings.
Many happy memories reading these two.
Snore....
By Michael Rosen.
Kim Lewis books books. Maybe a bit of a northern thing, but this is my lad's favoutite;
http://www.kimlewisbooks.co.uk/books_lasttrain.html
Topsy and Tim series of books kept my lad amused at that age.
All good but as suggested go with the charity shop option.
Giraffes can't dance
The mole who knew it was none of it's business
I'm not cute
When mine were very small it was the Haynes workshop manual for a 1991 Vauxhall Calibra (always asleep by "re fitting is the reversal of removal") but these days room on the broom is our favourite.
Our two year old love her Usbourne [url= http://www.amazon.co.uk/First-Thousand-Words-Picture-Word/dp/0860202666/ref=sr_1_15?ie=UTF8&qid=1318659380&sr=8-15 ]1979 edition[/url] of First Thousand Words in French. There's also a [url= http://www.amazon.co.uk/Usborne-First-Thousand-Words-French/dp/0746023049/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1318659380&sr=8-2 ]new edition[/url] available (I think I prefer the old drawing style!) and it comes in a variety of languages should French not be your first second choice! In fact, we don't use the French part at all, just look at the detailed pictures and talk about what's going on... She has just started to talk about what she thinks will happen next in some scenes, it's lovely.
In summary, not a story book but great pictures and lots to see and talk about - an unexpected winner for us!
Any of the Spot books and Guess How Much I Love You are the firm favourites here.
Winnie The Witch.
She's a bit of a looker too 😉
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toad builds a road, etc nice pics and lots of rhyming, good for phonics
Guess How Much I Love You
I refuse to read that. Somehow I just find myself thinking that Big Nutbrown Hare is just a bit of a smug bastard who always has to be best and it annoys me. Stupid story.
I like 'click clack moo', it is a parable about collective action by a bunch of cows and hens and ducks. I think it might be left wing propaganda, but it has lovely pictures and is funny!