There are no babies in the household or extended biological family of pagesofjulia, but when I considered getting rid of my own baby/children’s books years ago, upon some move, my friend Liz protested. She told me that one day I would know babies, and I would wish I had books for them. And she has been right, again. Thanks, Liz.
I’ve been visiting with a baby recently, a family friend, a sweet little brown-eyed three-year-old who mostly remains quiet when I’m around but I’m told asks about me when I’m not. For her, for a recent visit, I dug out these four books which had been mine when I was small.
Giant Treasury of Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter
Mog the Forgetful Cat by Judith Kerr
The Patchwork Cat by William Mayne, illus. by Nicola Bayley
The Comic Adventures of Old Mother Hubbard and Her Dog by Tomie dePaola
It sort of tickled me to observe that these were all about animals.
And for the coming holidays, I have these two in hand for the same little girl:
Claude the Dog: A Christmas Story, words and pictures by Dick Gackenbach
Madeline’s Christmas by Ludwig Bemelmans
Several years ago I passed on a few classics to a friend’s new son, who is now going on five years old.
The Legend of the Bluebonnet: An Old Tale of Texas retold and illustrated by Tomie dePaola
The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush retold and illustrated by Tomie dePaola
And, I’ve just bought some board books for a baby friend for the holidays:
A Pocket for Corduroy by Don Freeman
Caldecott winner The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats
Baby Touch and Feel: Animals
The Tale of Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter
Baby Faces
These all in board book format, because this baby with her sticking-up hair is barely nine months old. I also got her an autographed copy of Katie Fallon’s Look, See the Bird!, but I know she won’t be ready for that one for a while.
Look, See the Bird! by Bill Wilson and Katie Fallon, illus. by Leigh Anne Carter
All of this is out of my comfort zone as a book reviewer, as babies are themselves out of my comfort zone, but it feels good to make some effort to pass on what I love and to help these parents out.
I confess I’m charmed by looking for the books I myself enjoyed as a child, rather than the new stuff. But then I come across an article like this one and am excited all over again. Of course I must link here as well to Shelf Awareness’s children’s gift book issue, for those searching for more recent titles – my children’s book review colleagues at the Shelf do such a swell job. Maybe next year I’ll do a better job of taking their advice!
What have you learned, as parents or just friends of parents, about books and gift-giving outside of your own comfort zones? Have any books to recommend for babies or small people?
Filed under: musings | Tagged: children's/YA, illustrated, personal |
pagesofjulia 
oh my, fond memories; proof books can be such wonderful powerful things…
Thank you for that!
You’ve got great taste in books for kids, I love all of these choices. There are so many wonderful new books coming out, but I like the old ones just as well, too. 🙂
Thanks, Marcia! Feel free to send titles my way. I feel like I have a lot to learn in this area.
And those two books have a place on his shelf! 🙂
As for recommended books for kids, there are oh so many we love. Next time you are in town you’ll have to come peruse S’s bookshelf! 🙂
Valerie, this brings me such pleasure!! I’m so glad they have a home. I would love to see S’s bookshelves.
I’ve been giving “The Snowy Day” as a gift at baby showers recently. It was a favorite of my former students. I just love children’s books!
Oh, that’s such an important one, too, especially as diversity in children’s books struggles to catch up with the real world. When a friend moved with her newborn baby to rural Vermont I sent her away with this one, because I was afraid that baby would know snow but not black people.