A GOOD READ by Anna Chabada

Young children love a good book. They like books that make them laugh, books that are about kids like themselves and books that make them feel good.

Picture books are a great way for little ones to enjoy reading while they cannot yet read themselves. Here are a few of my favourite picture books, along with some seasonal classics since Christmas is just around the corner.

“Imagine a day… …when you build the world around you piece by piece.” Creativity and inspiration come to life in Imagine a Day, a book for both children and adults. Author Sarah Thomson takes her readers on a magical journey as artist Rob Gonsalves captures her words in his dream-like paintings. Each page describes an imaginative thought and the picture helps readers to visualize it. Imagine a Day is the companion book to Imagine a Night and Imagine a Place. All of these encourage their readers to look past the ordinary and dream about a world with endless possibilities.

Books with accompanying music CDs offer a fun twist on reading for children. We All Go Traveling by Sheena Roberts is my all-time favourite picture book. The theme of the book is modes of transportation and the author uses the “I Spy” game as the basis for her book. It has a sing-along CD by popular singer Fred Penner that is sure to get children singing and moving.

We all know what it’s like to wake up on the wrong side of the bed and Jeremy Tankard’s Grumpy Bird does a great job describing what this feels like. The story begins with a little blue bird who wakes up too grumpy to fly and exclaims, “Looks like I’m walking today.” As bird walks, he meets several animals along the way, all of whom are happy to walk with bird. Eventually, the walk turns into a game of follow-the-leader and bird soon forgets that he is feeling grumpy. If you read and like this one, look for Tankard’s new sequel, Boo Hoo Bird.

If you’re getting comfy on the couch under a warm blanket, Winter is the Warmest Season by Lauren Stringer is my favourite cozy winter children’s book. It’s written from the point of view of a little boy who describes all the things that happen to warm up the winter season. “Hats grow earflaps,” “cats sit on laps” and “pyjamas will grow big warm feet.” Reading this book always makes me feel like I’m at home, sitting in front of the fire with a steaming mug of hot chocolate.

For families that are celebrating a first Christmas with their son or daughter, the Usborne Touchy-Feely Hide-and-Seek Christmas book by Fiona Watt is a great addition to your home library. This book is geared towards babies and toddlers and has three-dimensional pictures that children can touch, like a furry Santa’s beard. Each page also has flaps that can be opened to see what’s hiding behind them. If you like this kind of book, Usborne has many other Touchy-Feely books in its series.

My list of favourites would not be complete without one by Karma Wilson. She is the author of a series of books about a bear and his friends in the forest. Her holiday book, Bear Stays up for Christmas, has become an instant classic. This story is about bear’s friends trying took keep him awake until Christmas when he really wants to be hibernating. It’s hard not to fall in love with this little band of woodland creatures and the adventures they have.

Other books in this series that I like are: Bear Snores On, Bear Wants More and Bear Feels Sick.

If you are looking for more great titles, don’t hesitate to ask at your library. We are always more than happy to recommend books for your little ones who love to read.

A Good Read is a column by Tri-City

librarians that is published every Wednesday. Anna Chabada works at Terry Fox Library

in Port Coquitlam.