Top 10 children's books
This week I'm going to chat about some of my favourite children's books! I think it's so important to immerse children in literature from an early age. This gets their imaginations running, their speech and language rolling, their sense of humour in gear as well as it being a great and special time for you to bond with your child. Here are some of my favourites! Enjoy.
'Feelings - inside my heart and in my head' by Richard Jones - For me this very important book, allows children to identify and relate to various emotions and 'feelings'. Identifying and controlling our emotions can be very tricky, especially when we are growing up and I think this book describes how children or, i suppose, adults may feel throughout our day to day lives. The book goes through the motions of 10 feelings all in rhyme. At the end of the book, however, it has a very powerful message. 'Try to walk in someone's shoes to see how they might feel. For though you cannot see them, feelings are still strong and real.' The illustrations are incredible - definitely one to read when your little one needs a quiet moment or two.
'The tale of Mrs Tiggy Winkle' by Beatrix Potter
I'm a big lover of Beatrix Potter and this book has been a favourite of mine since I was very young. We always had hedgehogs in the undergrowth at the bottom of our garden so this story was very believable for me! It even makes it more comical that the character of Mrs Tiggy Winkle was based off of a Scottish washer woman from Perth! I also love how when Lucie enters Mrs Tiggy Winkle's home, it holds all things in miniature form; pots, pans, irons and dressers. This, for me, really gets your imagination rolling. I love the development of the relationship between Lucie and Mrs Tiggy-Winkle - it reminds me so much of my granny and I! A national treasure!
'Fantastically great women who changed the world' by Kate Pankhurst. Coming from a woman who - as a sassy, flighty, young girl - could not relate to many female characters in her childhood books - I would've loved to have had this book back when I was small! Women in my childhood stories were always portrayed as the weaker sex, always needed 'saving' and couldn't be the hero, didn't fight back or show any gusto... This book, however, is set to squash all that. It details all the amazing women in history who have made an incredible difference to the world as we now know it - from Jane Austen to Rosa Parks. This book is written in such an informative yet child friendly language that any sassy, savvy, feisty young girl reading it is going to be inspired beyond belief! Who runs the world?
'Feelings - inside my heart and in my head' by Richard Jones - For me this very important book, allows children to identify and relate to various emotions and 'feelings'. Identifying and controlling our emotions can be very tricky, especially when we are growing up and I think this book describes how children or, i suppose, adults may feel throughout our day to day lives. The book goes through the motions of 10 feelings all in rhyme. At the end of the book, however, it has a very powerful message. 'Try to walk in someone's shoes to see how they might feel. For though you cannot see them, feelings are still strong and real.' The illustrations are incredible - definitely one to read when your little one needs a quiet moment or two.
'The tale of Mrs Tiggy Winkle' by Beatrix Potter
I'm a big lover of Beatrix Potter and this book has been a favourite of mine since I was very young. We always had hedgehogs in the undergrowth at the bottom of our garden so this story was very believable for me! It even makes it more comical that the character of Mrs Tiggy Winkle was based off of a Scottish washer woman from Perth! I also love how when Lucie enters Mrs Tiggy Winkle's home, it holds all things in miniature form; pots, pans, irons and dressers. This, for me, really gets your imagination rolling. I love the development of the relationship between Lucie and Mrs Tiggy-Winkle - it reminds me so much of my granny and I! A national treasure!
'Giraffes can't dance' by Giles Andreae. A heartwarming story about a gangly giraffe called Gerald. All the other animals at the jungle dance can dance so effortlessly and fine but poor Gerald gets himself in a right whip and all the other animals laugh at him! This story is written in beautiful verse and has such a lovely message to it. 'Sometimes when you're different, you just need a different song!' How wonderful a message is this to send to kids? It's triumphant ending makes this book one of my favourites.
'The Very Hungry Caterpillar' by Eric Carle - comes as no surprise! This is one of my all time favourites. Encompassing a vast array of topics in one small story, this book covers the importance of healthy eating, the days of the week, numeracy and maths and even the life cycle and transformation of a butterfly! Amazing. Read it to your little one with puppets, props and soft toys to get the most out of it and it will be a one of treasure for ever more!
'The Smartest Giant in Town' by Julia Donaldson. I adore Julia Donaldson books and each one has an endearing message behind it. This story is about a giant who has just bought himself some new clothes and on his way out of town, meets various animals who need his help. 'My tie is a scarf for a long giraffe, but look me up and down, i'm the smartest giant in town.' The creatures he helps along the way cannot help him in return but in the end the giant is awarded for his kindness.
'Monkey puzzle' by Julia Donaldson. We're back in the jungle again, but not with Gerald this time, with a little monkey who's lost his mum! Oh no! The poor little monkey comes across a butterfly who tries to help him on his way. Will little monkey's clues for Mr butterfly help him finally find his mummy? Written in rhyme, this clever little story will be one to read together with your wee one and will sure to be a firm favourite in years to come.
'The Dinosaur that Pooped a Planet!' by Tom Fletcher and Dougie Poynter. Anything that has 'poop' 'knickers' or 'underpants' on the front cover (metaphorical, not literal) is going to be a favourite of younger children. At a young age, their sense of humour surrounds all these sorts of words so it's bound to be popular with both boys and girls. This is the first book in the four book series which is written in beautiful verse and involves Danny's trip to space with his pet dinosaur. He's been warned not to forget to have lunch, and finding they've forgotten to pack the sandwiches - dino starts to munch! Oh no! Stuck in space with nothing to do, Danny looks at his dinosaur and sees he's starting to.... 💩One of the books in a 5 book set, this creative little story is bound to get your little one's imaginations running wild. Love!
'The adventures of Katie Morag' by Mairi Hedderwick. One of my favourite books growing up. Katie Morag lives on the fictional island of Struay. These books tell of her adventures living on the island along with her family as well as her 'granny mainland' and 'granny island' - who is definitely my favourite. She reminds me of my own granny - always in rubber boots, fixing her tractor or cooking on the rayburn. The sense of isolation (the ferry only sails once a week) but also the sense of community was one which I could relate to and I loved hearing all about what Katie Morag got up to. Definitely a book to read infront of the fire on a cold night!
'The Gruffalo' by Julia Donaldson
This has to be my ultimate favourite! I'm sure everyone is familiar with the adventures of mouse as he wanders through the forest fooling different animals about being friends with the Gruffalo - a horrible beast with knobbly knees and turned out toes. It's not until he meets the fictional beast that he has to think fast before he ends up in the Gruffalo's inside. A joyous wee story that demonstrates even if you're small you can still defeat your enemies if you have the wit and courage to do so. (Also available in Scots, Shetlandic, Dundonian, Orcadian and Doric dialects!)
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'The Smartest Giant in Town' by Julia Donaldson. I adore Julia Donaldson books and each one has an endearing message behind it. This story is about a giant who has just bought himself some new clothes and on his way out of town, meets various animals who need his help. 'My tie is a scarf for a long giraffe, but look me up and down, i'm the smartest giant in town.' The creatures he helps along the way cannot help him in return but in the end the giant is awarded for his kindness. 'Monkey puzzle' by Julia Donaldson. We're back in the jungle again, but not with Gerald this time, with a little monkey who's lost his mum! Oh no! The poor little monkey comes across a butterfly who tries to help him on his way. Will little monkey's clues for Mr butterfly help him finally find his mummy? Written in rhyme, this clever little story will be one to read together with your wee one and will sure to be a firm favourite in years to come.
'The Dinosaur that Pooped a Planet!' by Tom Fletcher and Dougie Poynter. Anything that has 'poop' 'knickers' or 'underpants' on the front cover (metaphorical, not literal) is going to be a favourite of younger children. At a young age, their sense of humour surrounds all these sorts of words so it's bound to be popular with both boys and girls. This is the first book in the four book series which is written in beautiful verse and involves Danny's trip to space with his pet dinosaur. He's been warned not to forget to have lunch, and finding they've forgotten to pack the sandwiches - dino starts to munch! Oh no! Stuck in space with nothing to do, Danny looks at his dinosaur and sees he's starting to.... 💩One of the books in a 5 book set, this creative little story is bound to get your little one's imaginations running wild. Love!
'The adventures of Katie Morag' by Mairi Hedderwick. One of my favourite books growing up. Katie Morag lives on the fictional island of Struay. These books tell of her adventures living on the island along with her family as well as her 'granny mainland' and 'granny island' - who is definitely my favourite. She reminds me of my own granny - always in rubber boots, fixing her tractor or cooking on the rayburn. The sense of isolation (the ferry only sails once a week) but also the sense of community was one which I could relate to and I loved hearing all about what Katie Morag got up to. Definitely a book to read infront of the fire on a cold night!
'The Gruffalo' by Julia Donaldson
So that's it for this blog post! I hope you enjoyed it. Let me know if you want to see me doing more of these types of post or if you're happy with it being a one off.
I hope you've all have a good week.
Lots of love
Lauren
xoxo
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