I am enjoying reading kids books more than I thought I would–well, some of them. I’m generally not a huge fan of the maudlin, poetic, “I love you” books, but I do like the more “character-driven” ones, if you can say that about a board book or a picture book.
I am really digging Mo Willems in particular. Che loves Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!
I love that Willems creates characters who, though imaginary, feel real. There’s a verisimilitude to them. The pigeon wheedles us and throws temper tantrums. Trixie gets frustrated that her father has no clue what she’s trying to say. They aren’t merely characters who behave and are cute.
You can check out Willems’ website. It’s also cool that he lives in Noho. I also just read that he is going to be appearing at the Holyoke Barnes & Noble later this month.
Che also just received two books by Leslie Patricelli. She has very simple drawing, but the concepts are very fun. Higher! Higher!
As I mentioned, I have been pleasantly surprised by how fun some of these books are. I also like to embellish the stories, of course. Check them out below:
http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=sujaldotnet-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&asins=078681988Xhttp://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=sujaldotnet-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&asins=0786818697 http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=sujaldotnet-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&asins=0786837462 http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=sujaldotnet-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&asins=0786818700 http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=sujaldotnet-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&asins=0763632414 http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=sujaldotnet-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&asins=0763632457
The Connecticutian 
I’ve always been afraid to admit it, but I’m also not a fan of the “I Love You” type books. Maudlin is the perfect adjective for those. When I worked in a preschool and as a nanny, I would cringe when kids asked for those books to be read to them. Wow, I feel like I just came out somehow for confessing this.
One of my favorites is Sheep in a Jeep.
Sheep in a Jeep looks fun! I’ll have to check it out. I hear you on the love books. I actually do kind of like “Guess How Much I Love you” — but again, largely because it is playful, not maudlin. There’s a whole world out there! I always make sure to read the name of the author and illustrator for Che, so he eventually learns the importance of writers and artists.
My favorite book for little kids is Hippos Go Berserk (Sandra Boynton). I’ve read it hundreds of times to the babies I know, and it still cracks me up.
My daughter LOVES Knuffle Bunny. We read it every night! I heard that the author insists upon pronouncing the ‘K’, but my husband and I just can’t seem to consistently get our brains to do it! I also love reading books to my kids that have their names in them. I’ve done multiple amazon searches to make sure I have them all. They seem to dig books that might just be about them!