MommaReads

A stray cat, named Comet, uses up almost all of his nine lives as he gets into all sorts of predicaments while trying to find himself a home. There is another story going on in the illustrations on the side of a man and another cat. In the end, the reader finally gets to see how both stories are leading to the same place. Jan Brett books are so much fun because even when you are done with the story, you almost always want to go back and look at the pictures again.

A girl and her dad go out owling on a cold winter night. She knows she has to be quiet and that she might hear and owl and she might not. I love the beautiful language in this book and the quiet moments that the little girl shares with her dad while they are out together on their nature walk in the snow.

A little girl wakes up to find it has snowed. She drags her dad outside to play, make snowmen, shovel and sled. This is a cute, short, rhyming book with colorful illustrations that would be perfect for the preschool and toddler set.

This is is a cumulative tale (kind of like The House that Jack Built) and it is also a rebus story which uses pictures to replace some of the words in the story. These types of stories are FANTASTIC for preschoolers and early readers. The repetition and rhyming are one bonus, but when pictures replace words in a story, they help the child to follow along which means they can help “read” part of the story which gets them engaged and excited about reading.

This a winter-themed book that an early reader could probably read on their own. My first grader read it tonight with no trouble, but our older son could have probably read it just fine in preschool. All kids start reading at different times, so you may want to read it to your child instead of having them read it to you. I like it because there is some repetition and it rhymes, both of which help early readers.

The Good Knight rescues three freezing dragons from their cold cave during a snowstorm. The only problem is that he has to bring them back to the castle where the king is having a ball. Despite the many warnings and reminders from the Good Knight, the dragons manage to make quite a scene at the ball when they almost set the castle on fire and literally are swinging from the rafters. Things make a turn for the better though when the Good Knight explains that they need to start using their manners…and it works! All those pleases and thank you make for a much more pleasant evening.

Poor Martin…all he wants is some snow so he can make a snowman. Since it clearly isn’t going to snow he tries to make snowmen out of other things and keeps getting himself in trouble. Without a doubt, my favorite part of the book is when he decides to make a snowman out of himself with soap bubbles. The ladies at book club get quite a sight when Martin goes downstairs to show his mom because by then the bubbles have slid off. 🙂

A little break from our winter/Christmas-themed books….I found out about this book from a friend of a friend. She was raving about it so I had to check it out. This is a super cute board book that is perfect for the three and under set. It rhymes and it has animals…what’s not to like? 🙂 The little girl in the story talks about all of the animals she plays with…she and the rhino have tea, she plays in the dirt with the pig, she and the ape sing along to a tape to stay in shape, she and the giraffe blow bubbles in the bath, etc. This would be a great book to include with a baby shower gift.

Carl and his charge have a fun-filled adventure in the snow while the parents are at a party and the babysitter is watching TV. Carl books are great picks for little ones as they often come in board book form and they usually don’t have a lot of words. They are great books to look at and talk about the pictures and then there aren’t any words, the story can be a little different every time you “read” it.

This story is SO interesting and has been a favorite in our house lately. It is the true story of Wilson Bentley who discovered that not all snowflakes are alike. Not only does is it a great story, but it has some of the pictures that he took of snowflakes and is also a great lesson in perseverance and believing in yourself when no one else does.