The
New York Public Library recently released its 2013 list of the best 100 books for kids. It’s an interesting list and it makes me
wonder what are your favorite children’s books? Which books have you most
enjoyed reading to your kids – or are you looking forward to reading to them
once they get old enough?
You
might be surprised to notice that most of these books were around when you were
a child. In fact, many of them were around when even I was a child, old granny that I am! The oldest book on the list is
Winnie-the-Pooh, first published in
1926. It’s a book still on my own bookshelf and that I remember having fun
reading with my own boys, doing the voices for Kanga and Roo and Piglet and
all.
More
than half (52) of the books were published before 1980. Here is my absolutely
favorite book to read to small children, Caps
For Sale, but also a close runner-up in Millions
of Cats. Green Eggs and Ham is
here, along with The Hobbit. The
beauty of children’s books is that they do seem to unite the generations. Books
your children’s grandparents enjoy are still likely to be ones the children
will like too.
The
list includes books like Where Is The
Green Sheep? that toddlers (and their parents) find charming and other
books like A Wrinkle In Time that are
appropriate for much, much older children. So there are ideas here for
read-alouds at every age group through the elementary school years. Reading
aloud to children is a great way to introduce early literacy, of course, but
it’s also a great way to support older readers who have trouble “getting into”
a book. No one is too old to be read to!
But
what’s missing from the list? A list of only 100 books, when there are about
30,000 new “juvenile titles” published each year, according to Bowker’s Books
In Print database, is bound to overlook some truly excellent books that might
be your favorites or your children’s favorites.
One
entire genre that’s missing is children’s non-fiction. Books like David
Macauley’s The Way Things Work are
not included. These are books one might not read cover-to-cover as part of the
before-bedtime ritual but they are books older children, including many
reluctant readers, find deeply interesting.
Poetry
is also missing from the list, including Where
The Sidewalk Ends, which you probably remember fondly. So this list, like
any list, is incomplete. But if you’re at the library, unable to find something
good to take home with your child, this list is a great place to start.
Take
a look at the list and check off the ones you’ve read with your children, the
ones you read and a child, and the books you want to read together soon. Then
think of what’s missing. I invite you to comment and tell us what books you recommend!
© 2013, Patricia Nan
Anderson. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast,
rewritten, or redistributed.
