Our book basket runneth over with terrific books this week! In fact, Steady Eddie has commented recently on its fullness. Not that he would actually complain about it–oh, no. He knows better than to do that. 😉
This week our read-alouds have been so rich and well-loved, it’s hard to pick the best. Here goes:
As I’ve mentioned before, we obviously like rhyming books here at the House of Hope. Roger Eschbacher’s Road Trip is a funny book that will be familiar to any parents who have taken their children on road trips over one hour in duration. (Actually, it’s more like thirty minutes in our car when Louise is along!) From backseat bickering to road trip games, meals at greasy spoon cafes to overnight motel stays, this book hits all the fun and foibles of the family road trip. Thor Wickstrom‘s illustrations are a real plus–his truck stop waitress is not to be missed in her beehive hairdo, cat-eye glasses, and semi-truck earrings!
Well, I could go on and on, but I think I’ll save it for another Read Aloud Thursday. What has your family enjoyed this week? Leave a link or a comment!
Filed under: Picture Books, Read Aloud Thursday | Tagged: Poetry, Rhyme | 4 Comments »
If your preschoolers love silly stories like my girls do, then they will positively love Parents in the Pigpen, Pigs in the Tub by Amy Ehrlich. In this story, the farm animals decide that life in the farmhouse must be better than life in the barn, so the animals move in. After the house gets a little too crowded, the people move out to the barn. Everything goes well for a while, but finally, everyone (people and animals) decide they miss the way things used to be. What makes this story so great, really, are the illustrations by Steven Kellogg. In his trademark style, Kellogg creates characters that are both realistic and humorous-looking. The facial expressions he creates are priceless. This book is pure fun!
Another book we really enjoyed this week is Shoes from Grandpa, written by Mem Fox and illustrated by Patricia Mullins. This is the story Jessie, whose grandpa declares that he will buy her some new shoes for the winter when he sees how tall she’s grown. What ensues is a fun rhyme about all of the things other members of her family give her “to go with the shoes from Grandpa.” Lulu especially liked the fact that Jessie really wanted jeans, and that’s the one thing no one gave her. Lulu loves a certain pair of faded, too small dungarees, so she can definitely relate. This is a fun and sweet rhyming story about family life and love. (On a somewhat related note, has anyone read 
This week our library basket contained some interesting and very quirky books. Among them was One Potato, Two Potato, written by Cynthia DeFelice and illustrated by Andrea U’Ren. This is the story of Mr. and Mrs. O’Grady, who are poor both physically and materially. The discovery of a magic pot, however, changes all of that. The pot can multiply anything placed within it, and the O’Gradys take advantage of this with humorous results. The illustrations in this book struck me as a little odd at first, but after I read the book the first time, I grew fond of their quirkiness. This book ends with a delightful play on words.
Our favorites of the week, however, are two history books written in the form of poetry. Covered Wagons, Bumpy Trails, written by Verla Kay and illustrated by S. D. Schindler and Homespun Sarah, written by Verla Kay and illustrated by Ted Rand, are wonderful introductions to the westward movement and colonial life, respectively. In Covered Wagons, Bumpy Trails, we follow Father, Mother, and Baby John as they trek along the California Trail from Independence, Missouri, to the Sacramento Valley. The obstacles and triumphs of the pioneers wagon train are described in rhyming 
couplets and in warm and expressive illustrations. It is especially fun to “watch” as Baby John grows into a toddler on the journey. Homespun Sarah, on the other hand, details the daily life of a girl in colonial Pennsylvania. Sarah does many chores including fetching water, filling the wood box with branches, tending the garden, cooking, doing laundry, making candles, gathering berries, spinning wool, and finally, making her own dress since she has outgrown the one she wore throughout the whole story. Again, rhyming couplets and warm illustrations make this book engaging for little ones, all the while giving a good sense of life in the 1700s. My four year old daughter requested to have this book read as a bedtime story even as I had it in a stack to review here on my blog. Of course, my girls do have a 
Hope Is the Word 