Library Books - week of September 17, 2007

We went to story time at the library last week and picked up a few books while we were there. Story time was very fun, and somewhat intimidating for Eleanor. Henry, on the other hand, slept right through it. There were a ton of kids there -- this was the under two bunch so everyone was about Eleanor's age give or take a few months. Story time consisted of a few easy songs with actions, two books, and a bit of dancing. The books included one that we have at home, Dear Zoo by Rod Campbell, which is a great lift-the-flap book and What Shall we do with the Boo-Hoo Baby? by Cressida Cowell and illustrated by Ingrid Godon. They had copies of both books for us to check out so we picked up "boo hoo" as Eleanor calls it, and have been reading it daily. Despite Eleanor's initial trepidation, by the end of story time -- when La Bamba was playing -- she was shaking it up with the rest of the group. Who can resist dancing to La Bamba anyway?

Eleanor picked out a couple of other books, all of which have been big hits with her. Here are a couple from her selection:

1. Kite Flying by Grace Lin
This is a really simple, beautifully illustrated book about a family that builds and flies a kite. The last page contains a nice (lengthy) explanation of the origins of kite flying, which was great for us adults, but Eleanor preferred the pages with more pictures and less words. She especially liked the inside cover where the illustration shows all of the supplies used to make a kite. The scissors captured her attention since we have a pair in the pencil holder in the living room. She always notes that our scissors are blue and the pair in the book are green. This book was also a perfect fit since we tried to fly a kite over the weekend.

2. Look at You! A Baby Body Book by Kathy Henderson, illustrated by Paul Howard
This book has been another big success with Eleanor. We read it five times in a row this morning before I was able to distract her with something else -- I like books as much as the next person but a little variety doesn't hurt! This book details all of the little things kids do: wiggle, squirm, toddle, crawl, etc. Eleanor likes the page that follows a baby through the stages of learning to walk -- she always gets up and walks at that point, as if to say, "I can do all of those things and I am very good at walking!" The last page contains some sleeping children, which of course elicit the response: "close eyes".

All of these books we have been reading and the book that Grandma sent make me want to write some books for Eleanor and Henry. Maybe that will be my next project.