Tuesday, August 14, 2007

On Moppet's Bookshelf - 1

On account of owning two parents who lose all sense of proportion when in the vicinity of a bookstore, Moppet's book collection has been expanding prodigiously. We've been buying her a wide variety of books, and she seems to be quite happy to try them all out.

Like the music charts, her favourites move up and down from week to week. Some books that have had a fair amount of staying power in the charts so far are:

Look! There's Elmer
This is a really cool book, with peepholes on each page through which you can see a multi-coloured patch that might be Elmer. When you turn the page, you find that it's not him, but a parasol, a ball, a tent, etc. Moppet has great fun poking her finger through the peepholes and finding what's on the other side. We've even got a silly dance we do when we get to the last page and finally find Elmer. "We found Elmer, we found Elmer," we chant, waving our arms and wiggling our bums. The only problem is that this is not a board book, so the peepholes are getting a little ragged, what with all the excited little fingers poking through them so often. If this book stays in the charts, we may need to get another copy.

The Eye Book
Another classic Dr Seuss (writing as Theo LeSieg, since it's been illustrated by Joe Mathieu). With this one, I think it's the illustrations rather than the text that have caught her fancy. There's not much to the text, but she really enjoys pointing out the huge liquid eyes of the little protagonist (and nose and mouth while she's at it) and also naming all the things he sees.

The other Seuss book that remains a firm favourite is The Shape of Me and Other Stuff that I've mentioned before. This one has been read so much that it has literally disintegrated. Emergency surgery involving glue and weights has given it a fresh lease of life, but the strain is clearly showing.

Barney's Colour Train
I picked this up on our India trip for just 50 rupees (one more reason to miss home - you don't get inexpensive children's books here) and Moppet took to it immediately although she hadn't even seen Barney at the time. The text is in rather clunky rhyme and is not easy to read aloud, but the concept is nice. Each compartment of Barney's colour train is a different colour with matching and unusual cargo. We don't read this book as much as go through every page pointing out the various things of colour on it.

There are lots more books I could mention (I'm hard to shut up on the subject of books) but shamelessly stealing Kodi's Mom's wonderful idea, I'm making On Moppet's Bookshelf a series that I will update as and when we have new entries in our charts (or when I am out of ideas for a new post!)

Apart from Kodi's list, do also check out Chip's list of his favourite books. For more great reviews on children's books for all ages, hop on over to Saffron Tree.

16 comments:

Sunita Venkatachalam said...

Oh nice list. We like Barney's Train too. I am currently in the process of finding Indian books, mainly Indian characters. Getting a bit tired of seeing foreign creatures and faces on the books.

What I wouldn't give for a peacock instead of a raccoon or a chipmunk? And a Parsee boy instead of a chinese boy in her books!

Anonymous said...

er..are these books suitable for adults? :-)

Innovation Junxion said...

great stuff! will refer to this when my babykins is poppin's age.

thanks.

Innovation Junxion said...

sorry, meant moppet's age :-)

was at poppin's page a while back!

Anusha said...

thanks for honoring my request on the elmer book. I am all the more inclined to look for it now. look forward to the next in the series...

Something to Say said...

lucky kid moppet :)

Maggie said...

Poppins: I know - I looked this time when I was in India, but didn't find anything quite suitable for Moppet's age group. Don't know if you've already checked it out, but Saffron Tree does have some reviews of Indian books. Also check out Karadi Tales - they're very good, based on tales from the Panchatantra. I bought a few titles for my young cousin and she loved them. But she's 6, so I don't know if there's anything suitable for babies....

Priya: Welcome! And of course - for the young at heart, whatever your age :-)

Ammaforever: Sure - although you can certainly try out The Eye book right now - it has very little text, and lovely illustrations. I started reading to Moppet from when she was 6 months old. Try out different kinds of books with Babykins - you may be surprised at some of the titles he'll enjoy.

Kodi's Mom: Oh, like I needed an excuse! :-) Looking forward to more of Kodi's list too.

STS: Actually, lucky me :-)

Squiggles Mom said...

hey any suggestions for a 2 month old???

Anonymous said...

poppins mom,

check out the children's book trust (CBT) stuff. amazingly good. all stories/characters are based in india.

similarly stuff from 'read india' (pratham.org) who btw are based in bangalore and will easily ship out the books to you.

finally, agree with moppet's mom - karadi tales cannot be recommended highly enough. maybe better for an older child as she says but there are stories like 'fish friends three' (or something similar) which might appeal even to a 2-year old. they have v good music and songs so that they definitely like. also check 'karadi rhymes' - these are exxcellent.

(moppet's mom, sorry for the long comment!)

nV

Maggie said...

Squiggles Mom: I'm taking your question at face value. Although 2 months is probably too young for reading to, you can try some nice cloth books with different textures and bright colours that she will like looking at and handling.

At 2 months, I would read aloud to Moppet from the book or magazine that I was reading while breastfeeding her, if I noticed that she was alert and playful. At that age, I think it's really just about hearing our voices.

nV: Thank you for the useful info! I wish I had known this before, I could've got Moppet's Papa to pick up some when he was in India last week. Chalo, next time.

Squiggles Mom said...

I'm off to buy some books then. I'm not sure an article from the Economist is quite what Squiggles had in mind :)

Savani said...

lovely list. I am going to go see if the library has the Elmer book.

Sue said...

Nice list. The Bhablet was given these great books when my aunt came over from England a fortnight ago:

Scarface Claw(?) by Lynley Dodd
How to Cheat a Dragon's Curse by Cressida somebody and How to Train a Dragon also by her.

I have been meaning to read Seuss' Sleep Book to The Bhablet for the last ten months, but I keep forgetting! If anything works, that should.

Anonymous said...

Wonderful list.
The Barney series - Book of colors, book of shapes, counting were D's favorite and still are. Though lately she is hooked on to Dora, CG and Thomas train.

Sunita Venkatachalam said...

Hey Namvor: Thanks ! Guess what, I just ordered a set of books at Pratham and am awaiting their arrival, so maybe I will do a post on it. I shall check out CBt and Karadi tales (I knew abt these, but thought they were for older children)

Maggie said...

Squiggles Mom: You'd be surprised.
I used to read to Moppet from the Economist too! :-)

Dotmom: Do, I'm sure Chip will love it.

Sue: Checked them out on Amazon, they sound great - although Cressida Cowell's books appear to be for a much older age group.

Rbdans: What is it about Barney, I wonder? Kids just love him....

Poppins: Do write about the pratham books when you get them. Post which (pun intended ;-) I'll go splurge on them too!

nV: Didn't realise you were namvor!