The twins, at nearly two, are warming to books. I've read to them from birth; there's a picture of me reading Make Way for Ducklings to them when they are about three weeks old. We read a few stories every night before bed, and both Maddie and Riley are starting to pull books off of their bookshelf and bring them over to me for a book fix during playtime. They recognize a few letters, and like to hunt for those while we read. And at this age, they are big fans of the novelty book: flaps, tabs, and tactile inserts are twin-pleasers.
I look forward to the day that I can enjoy longer, more complex stories with the twins, when I can share with them some of my favorite authors. When we are ready to go Beyond the Board Book, a great resource for the latest and greatest in children's literature—as well as a place to find information on old standbys—is the Horn Book's new online newsletter, Notes from the Horn Book. Confession: a very good friend of mine is the Managing Editor of the Horn Book Guide, so I'm a wee bit biased when I say that this is a great resource. But! Anyone who knows anything knows that the Horn Book is the Last Word on children's lit, so my opinion, while influenced by personal ties, is hardly in the minority.
So if you have kids or know kids or like kid lit, link on over and subscribe—it the newsletter is free and comes out monthly.
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10 comments:
I hear you on the reading. It's always been my favorite pastime. When I was 14 my foster mom grounded me from reading because I wasn't outside meeting enough people my own age. I still read - I just hid from her to do it. :)
Both of my kids love books at this point (ages 5 & 2) I hope it continues.
Tamar
On of my earliest childhood memories is of sneaking out near our bedroom door, so that I could get enough light to read. My parents used to chase me back to bed, but I think they eventually gave it up as a lost cause.
They would read to us before bed (often out of the books THEY enjoyed, like fantasy novels and historical fiction), and I'd stay up to read well past the place that they stopped.
My sister used to be an editor at The Horn Book!
My mother was the librarian of our small town library; she would bring me home new books before she would even put them in the system.
Unfortunately I have two boys (14 and 17) who think reading is a form of torture.
Bobbie
You can't go wrong introducing your children to books...with your background I'm sure they will have a lifetime of great reading to look forward to.
I was like you when young, the library was my favourite place to hang out, still is if the truth be known...I introduced my (now 14yo) daughter to books very early and she is an amazing and voracious reader.
One of my life's greatest treats and pleasures is coming across an independent bookstore with cafe attached...books & good coffee...divine...!!!
we are also a book-loving family - this week brought the joy of introducing my girl to Where the Wild Things Are - she loves it. She is on a "naughty boys" kick, with Peter Rabbit, Max of WtWTA, and beloved Llama Llama and his tantrums high on her list of favorites.
My favorite part? Seeing her read books to her dolls and animals when she puts them to bed. I absolutely LOVE that!
Just tonight, I pulled out a book of Shel Silverstein poems, and my boys loved them. It felt like an enormous milestone to read them a book I also loved as a child.
This librarian says THANK YOU! for the lovely PSA! :) Much appreciated! Love your blog!
Christine
I love books (I worked in my college library and my law school library). My kids all love books. I think we may possibly have more books than toys in the house, although I cannot be certain. Now that my oldest can read, it's a whole new world here with Little House and fairy books. Even my 3 1/2 year old son thinks books are the cats meow. Thanks for the link. I signed up!
Love reading too! And always signed up for the summer reading club at our library. Just signed my girl up for our summer reading program. Thanks for the tip on the Horn Book -- will definitely check it out!
Thanks for the PSA--I'm obsessed with finding good books for the boys. I'll have to check it out!
Also, the boys are now loving books beyond Eric Carle, books that have a plot and everything. I've started reading them books I thought they weren't ready for, and some of them have been huge hits. Some they're still not ready for. But I'm also looking forward to sharing my favorites with them, and I have a whole box full of books I've bought ahead of time, knowing that someday, we'll read them together.
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