In honor of Dr. Seuss’ birthday (in addition to the fact that it’s Read Across America day) we are celebrating this evening by reading books by Dr. Seuss. Outloud. Simultaneously. Because that seems to be the perfect Seuss style!

A few of our [many] favorites include:
Horton Hatches the Egg
Horton Hears a Who!
How the Grinch Stole Christmas!
Green Eggs and Ham
If I Ran the Zoo
Hop on Pop
The Foot Book
My Many Colored Days

PS. We also love Go, Dog. Go! which is not by Dr. Seuss but reminds us of him.

The winner of the 2010 Caldecott award, awarded this past January, is this lovely book, “The Lion and the Mouse.”

The illustrations are exquisite! The illustrator is Jerry Pickney, who has a huge body of work. Seriously, what a talented man!

If you’re looking for books with great artwork, a Caldecott Medal or Caldecott Honor award winner is usually a great place to start. (That’s not to say that all beautifully illustrated books have won this award — and some of them are very text-heavy, too, as the books span many different reading levels.) You can view the complete list of books here. I have so, so many favorites on this list…and so many more that I still need to read! I don’t think I’ll ever catch up!

In honor of Valentine’s Day I thought I’d share our collection of huggable, lovable books by one of my favorite publishers: Candlewick Press. Candlewick Press has been around since the early ’90s. They’re a really, really nice bunch of people to work with and I love so many of the books they’ve chosen to publish.

All of the books pictured (with the exception of Yummy which we just borrowed from the library for the 1st time) are favorites in our house and perfect for cuddling up and reading together with your favorite toddlers or preschoolers:
Kiss Good Night — I cannot tell you how many times I read this book to Cole when he was little – over and over again!
Guess How Much I Love You — This super sweet book really illustrates just how much your heart swells after having a child.
All Together Now & Bunny, My Honey — Both of these feature more beautiful illustrations by the talented Anita Jeram. I love her work!
Hug — We have many Jez Alborough books in our house, including this adorable one about a little chimp who just wants a hug.

Also published by Candlewick Press:
Maisy — Lucy Cousins’ vibrant illustrations throughout the Maisy series will always brighten my day (and the short text is a nice little bonus!)
Yummy – There are more great illustrations by Lucy Cousins in this retelling of 8 fairy tales. I think this book is more suitable for a school-age reader, however…Cole enjoyed it when I read it to him just yesterday.
Charlie & Lola – Lola makes me laugh! I love these siblings and Lauren Child, the illustrator/author of this series.
Kate DiCamillo – Candlewick also has a great young adult section, including many favorites by this great writer.

I thought this choice was appropriate considering the 8 inches of snow we got over the weekend!

I love the textures & patterns in Ezra Jack Keats’ books! His accompanying text provides narration & insight into the world of a child (usually an adorable young boy) but his art really gives the pages a depth that makes one pause — to see & study the environment of a young boy as he explores his urban surroundings, makes friends, accepts (begrudgingly) his new baby sister, or simply takes a walk through the city after a snowfall.

Consider some of our favorites:
The Snowy Day
Peter’s Chair
Goggles
Apt. 3
There are many more – I just haven’t had a chance to read them all yet!

Though technically not books, many, many hours of our reading before naptime & bedtime have been consumed by these great magazines. First of all, the kids love the fact that something has arrived in the mail just for them. Second of all, they love to collect them – I’m pretty sure they haven’t thrown away a single issue.

Here’s a list of our current favorites:
Wild Animal Baby: Brought to you by the same people who do My Big Backyard and Ranger Rick, Wild Animal Baby features sturdy pages for little hands coupled with great images of animals (not just illustrations), poems and activities.
High Five: the precursor to Highlights magazine – Harper particularly loves the eye spy page and the stories of the Timbertoes’ pets
Highlights: This one’s been around a long time! I used to read these…just like Cole does now.
Zoobooks: Most definitely Cole’s favorite – these magazines are so informative and filled with awesome images and facts.
Ladybug & Spider: We just got our first issues of these yesterday – I’m excited to dive into them because the emphasis is all on reading.

Which magazines do your kids read? I’d love to hear about them, too!

Remember records? Okay, obviously, this is another collection of books from my own childhood. You can probably tell that both the books & the box (and the scratched up records) were very well loved. I still have such a fondness for so many of these stories today!

Little Golden Books have been around for years (65, in fact!) and, thankfully, the majority of the stories in this collection are still in print:

There’s No Such Thing as a Dragon ( I just saw a new hardcover version of this at Barnes & Noble; my kids love this one.)
Thumbelina
The Little Fat Policeman
Rumpelstiltskin I love this one, too! Never name your child Rumpelstiltskin.
The Little Engine that Could
The Poky Little Puppy
The Happy Man and the Dump Truck
Chicken Little
Little Boy with a Big Horn (re-released with new illustrations by Dan Yaccarino; I love Dan Yaccarino.)
The Saggy Baggy Elephant
Smokey the Bear
Noah’s Ark
David and Goliath
Tawny Scrawny Lion
Scuffy the Tugboat
Seven Little Postmen One of my very favorites – I love to get mail.
The Taxi that Hurried
Tootle
Puss in Boots (Another favorite of ours)

There are so, so many good ones in here! Be sure to check them out! Also consider Little Golden Books with their more modern counterpart - the CD.

I looove board books. Love their compactness, bright colors and minimal text. I love the way they fit in the diaper bag for long flights (until they slip down in the airline seat pocket and are forgotten on the plane, forcing you to quickly buy another copy of “Brown Bear, Brown Bear” in between flights.) I also love that they are durable, because the reality is that my children devoured board books. Like literally…corners and spines disappeared into their gummy little mouths. (The primary reason I have always avoided “Pat the Bunny” is the weak little spiral binding.)

When I was pregnant with Cole my dentist recommended that I have toothbrushes on hand for him to play with when he was a baby. The idea was for him to explore the toothbrush so that when it came time to actually brush his teeth the object would already be familiar and not seem so foreign as it shoved its way around his mouth. For books it’s the same premise: introduce them early into your child’s life (in the womb, even!) Keep them on the floor, in the crib, and on the bottom shelves so that they are a familiar sight and something to explore (or gum on.)

My personal feeling is that board books are a little expensive, which is why I especially adore them at 30% – 50% off or when received as gifts at baby showers. I’m pretty sure we went through 3 copies of Brown Bear, Brown Bear between the 2 kids. I am a big fan of Eric Carle’s illustrations. I also adore the newly released board books that include illustrations by Charley Harper. I have been known to laugh along with Sandra Boynton’s “Moo. Baa. La La La!” There’s also Clifford and Leo Lionni and… well, you probably get the picture.

Honestly, though, what I love the very most is a pair of chubby, adorable baby hands firmly gripping the edges of that board book. The introduction of books at an early age…

…followed by a continued interest in books as they grow.

PS. If you’re in the Asheville area, Waldenbooks at the Biltmore Square Mall is in the process of closing. All of their books are currently 50% – 75% off! The board book section is a little weak, however…which could possibly have something to do with the fact that I’ve been by there at least 3 times already.

If you have ever asked me about the name of our photography business, or if you have been to our house and seen our kids’ overflowing bookshelves, or if you happened to work with me when I was a children’s book buyer (a very long time ago before I had kids) it’s likely you know this about me already: I love children’s books!

Because I get to meet so many of you and photograph your beautiful families, I know that you love books, too. When and if I ever open a photography studio you can certainly count on this one thing: there will be a comfy nook filled with books (and beautiful photos on the walls…but I digress…) Though for now you’re definitely welcome to come over to our home office and curl up with a book, in lieu of a studio I thought I’d kick off the new year by starting a new installment on the blog: every Tuesday in 2010 I will share with you my thoughts about one (or more) of my favorite children’s books.

There are, however, a few qualifications before I get started:
1. Most of the books I write about will be for children under 8…because my children are under 8.
2. This compilation may very well be lacking in historical and non-fiction titles.
3. The books I’ll write about are chosen simply because I like them. I have not been paid or bribed in any way to share my opinions…though my husband would probably prefer that my English degree (which we’re still paying for) start paying for itself at some point.
4. Some of the books will be out of print. I’m sorry about that!

So, to kick off our very first installment, I have chosen the book “On Buttercup Farm.” According to the inscription my mom wrote on the inside, I received this book for Christmas in 1981.
I’m pretty sure my mom was inspired by the little girl’s hairstyle on the cover, as evidenced in this photo of me from around the same time…minus the chicken.

Anyway, the #1 reason I love this book is because it’s filled with wonderful photos. The photography was done by Phoebe Dunn, who happens to be the Judy Dunn’s mother (Judy is the author). Beautiful clear, classic images tell the stories of the animals (as well as the farmer and some of the lucky children) who inhabit Buttercup Farm.

Anyone who can make a pig look that cute gets my vote! I love that I can sit down to read this book with Harper and be immediately transported to a different place (without the smells! without the work! and with all the adorableness of baby animals in springtime.)

Although The Animals of Buttercup Farm is out of print, you can probably find a copy at alibris.com. Also, the Dunn ladies teamed up to write several other books together which are still available. Here’s a link for some of my favorites: The Little Kitten, The Little Puppy, and The Little Lamb. Check them out for more great animal stories & visuals.