Saturday, May 15, 2010

books I want her to read:

I've always loved reading. A lot. I hated Accelerated Reader tests in school (kind of), but I loved reading. In elementary school, I only read fiction. In middle school, I read "chick" books. And in high school, I read mostly Christian non-fiction and a teeny smidge of fiction.

In college, I read everything. And my Anatomy & Physiology II book was my least favorite, by far ;]

Clayton is five, and he loves the "gross" non-fiction books. Anything about slimy creatures, dinosaurs, bugs, etc. is right up his alley. When the book fair came to his school, he asked for a joke book and a Ripley's Believe It or Not book. What a hoot.

But there were some books that I loooved as a child. They made reading fun. And, as a result, I associated reading with FUN! I definitely want our daughter to be extremely exposed to many different types of books with different styles of writing. I want her to be a regular at the library and develop a love for literacy at a young age. She'll choose what she wants to read, but there are a couple books that I might just have to get for her... :)


1. Amelia Bedelia and the Baby:


Oh my gosh! I LOVED this book. I've always had a little "obsession" with babies. Ahem. So when my mom bought me this book about Amelia Bedelia babysitting Missy, I fell in love. I clearly remember her smashing up baby food and giving Missy a bath. I'm really not sure what's up with Amelia's funky hat, but that girl is hilarious. Is she wearing a maid's outfit? And how old is she, anyway? And why is she so dense? :)


2. Arthur's Baby:


The most popular Arthur book among my elementary peers, by far! I'm pretty sure this book was constantly checked out. And why? Because it was adorable, of course!! All the Arthur books are just so fun to read. Arthur's Tooth and Arthur's Nose also brings back fond memories :) The fact that I still remember everything about Buster and Muffy is just too cool. I love this series!


3. Junie B. Jones:


Junie B. Jones is one of the funniest series ever. I'm pretty sure this might be the first "chapter book" series I ever read. Junie B. Jones books were always checked out for a library, but I remember looooving these books. I'm pretty sure that this series is one of the ones that introduced me to real reading, since I'd mostly read picture books before then. I even remember Junie seeing her teacher eat a grape at the grocery store and freaking out that her teacher "broke the law." Sigh. What great memories.


4. Wayside School Is Falling Down:


Absolutely INSANELY hilarious!! I can't remember any specifics about this book except that it made me literally laugh out loud. I also love(d) the set-up of this book -- how each character had their own "chapter." This author is a genius (also the author of Holes), and I would love for our daughter to get the same laughs that I did as a child! Timelessly hilarious.


5. American Girl series:


Molly was my favorite. And Samantha. But I loved all the American Girls!! This series is so genius -- it teaches little ones about girls growing up in different periods of history. I learned so much about different time periods and what it was like to be a young girl during different wars and eras. I couldn't get enough. I always wanted a Molly doll too :) I'm happy to see that American Girl is still popular, and they've "come out" with new girls from different eras! Can't wait for our daughter to discover this magical series.



For now, I'm dreaming of stocking her room with Eric Carle board books, We're Going On a Bear Hunt, The Mitten, and so many more. Soon, when she is able to more easily hear my voice, I'll start reading to her. I can't wait! :) Reading is SO MUCH FUN!


6 comments:

  1. Hey Shannon! I remember EVERY SINGLE one of those books! I loved everyone of them! I remember when we were at Natcher Eric Carle came to our school do you remember that? His books are great! I loved the Accelerated Reading Test because we had to pick a book out of the library for it! LOL I miss those days in Elementary School! Thanks for bringing back such a great memory for me!

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  2. I love all of your selections. Another series that is great is The Magic Treehouse. Reading is one of the best gifts you can give your child. Have fun!

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  3. omg, I have no memory of Eric Carle coming! But I do remember R.L. Stine coming and telling us how he typed his books with his thumbs on a typewriter. And that one author came and wrote a book about farmer's market and used Mrs. Chin's daughter as a character in the book!! That's pretty much all I remember :\ drat!

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  4. I remember all these books too! I loved ALL Amelia Bedelia books! And I read Wayside School is Falling Down TOO many times haha! I loved how there was no 13th story and the thirteenth chapter read "There is no 13th story, therefor there is no 13th chapter" HA! Love it!

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  5. I love all those books! I am sure that I will have all the Junie B. Jones books for my kids to read. And all of the Amelia Bedelia. And all of the Ramona books. And all the American Girl books. And all of the Little House on the Prairie books. Oh my goodness, this makes me want to go to the library to check out all these books so I can re-read them. I love books and my kids will
    most certainly be pressured to read a lot. I was a lit major at wku, after all! So glad you posted this!

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  6. You have an insanely great memory. Seriously. I remember reading those books, but I couldn't tell you what they were about now. And no, it isn't because I just had a baby and can't remember if it is Saturday or Thursday. :)

    Your little girl is going to be so precious!

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