Losing a tooth is one of the highlights in a child’s life and it can be both exciting and scary. In classic Charlie and Lola style, the author captures these mixed emotions as Lola has a wobbly tooth which is about to fall out – but not if Lola can help it.
We chatted to Bette Mosher Geci, a retired librarian from Connecticut in the States whose passion for children’s books and reading is so inspiring. Bette shared some of her all time favorite children’s books.
This was one of the first books I read many years ago by the talented Niki Daly. Shepherd goes into the city with his Gogo (grandmother) to help her do the shopping. Gogo walks very slowly, but Shepard likes to take his time as well, hence his nickname Songolola, which is Zulu for millipede.
By Jon Klassen (Walker)
A bear has lost his hat. He wants it back. He asks a few animals but they have not seen it. Even the rabbit who, funnily enough, is wearing a red hat, has not seen it. Wait a moment. What happens after the bear remembers where he last saw his hat is both laugh-out-loud hilarious and a little dark…
By Jon Klassen (Walker)
Age 0-3, 4-6
This Is Not My Hat has just earned the double honour of winning both the Kate Greenaway medal and the Caldecott Award. A delightfully simple moral tale with a twist of humour about a fish who steals a hat and thinks he’ll probably get away with it. Probably.
This delightful book was lent to us by a friend and we hardly wanted to give it back. Katie and her grandma visit the art gallery for her grandma’s birthday. Katie is gazing at a picture of The Luncheon by Claude Monet when she spies a garden in the backdrop.
A lovely spin on the wicked wolf looking to eat the lamb story. A wily old wolf called Lou Pine is desperate to disguise himself as a sheep so he can cunningly slip into the flock and eat them all up.
I was immediately attracted by the image of paper dolls, which I used to love cutting out as a child. I still make them with my younger kids and they love colouring in their clothes and giving them accessories. In the book a mom and daughter make a string of paper dolls together, which go off on a fantastical adventure as they travel through the house and out into the garden.
One of the first words we teach babies is Hello! and Goodbye! Wave hello, wave goodbye we say many times during the day. This is a lovely little book that shows bear saying hello to the tree and all the animals and insects.
When Albert le Blanc arrives in Mr Jolly’s toy shop, he immediately catches everyone’s attention. Not because he’s so big, but because he doesn’t have a smile.
This series of books called Let’s Read are perfect for the child who has learnt to read and wants to extend themselves beyond the school readers. Miniature versions of much-loved classics, they offer a manageable size and feel less daunting than a chapter book. Don’t be fooled however into thinking they are ‘easy’…
Winnie the Witch is something of a celebrity in children’s literature. What makes Winnie a winner is her friendly, scatter-brained personality. She’s literally an accident waiting to happen – luckily a touch of magic usually sets her straight.
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