For some reason I did a search for what was my favourite children’s book when I was a wee one, and found it scanned and available online.
Dad used to read this to my sister and I, using funny monster voices, and we’d shriek with laughter until Mom would shout down the hall: “They’re supposed to be going to sleep!”
Later, my 10-years-younger cousins ‘borrowed’ the book and refused to return it for ten years. We only got it back when my sister craftily stole it.
Shortly afterward, when I graduated from university, her gift to me was a spanking new copy… then she slid the original off my book shelf and eased herself out the door murmuring, “And now this is mine.” :fume:
I really can’t remember my favorite book as a kid, I just liked just any book I could get my hands on.
As a grownup, my favorite kids’ book is “Love You Forever” by Robert Munsch. I know some parents (and kids) find it a little creepy that a mom would crawl into her kids’ room at night, pick him up and rock him, and worse, that she would drive across town when he was a grown man with a home of his own, climb through his window and gently lift him up and rock him, but I cry just about every time I read this book. Just a couple of nights ago, my 8yo daughter read it to her little sister in Chinese and I was curious to see what they’d think of it because I’d never read it to them before. They both thought it was very sweet, especially the end.
“Love you forever, like you for always, as long as I’m living, my baby you’ll be.”
My eldest is a teen and once in a while he’ll send me a PS in his emails: “… as long as I’m living my mommy you’ll be.”
Hi there Braxton Hicks… that is also my favorite childrens’ book! I used to read it to my son when he was little and it was his favorite as well! The other one has always been “Where the Wild Things Are”. When I was a child many eons ago, my favorite books were the Narnia books by C.S. Lewis and The Secret Garden. I still re-read them from time to time…
I can’t remember one favorite from childhood, but for your new baby, Jaboney, I highly recommend the extremely talented, cheerful and colorful Lucy Cousins.
First thing that comes to mind is: If you give a XXX a XXX series. Like if you give a Mouse a Cookie. Those are so cute.
Another one of mine is Ms.Katz and Tush. Oh boy, that one makes me cry.
Anything by Shel is good readin’.
Are you thinking of starting a library for your daughter, J? How about starting off with Goodnight Moon.
my favorite was the Mr Meddler series by Enid Blyton. Unfortunately, they seem to have gone out of print and is no longer available from Amazon by the time I want to get them for my kids.Too bad.
[quote=“Namahottie”]Are you thinking of starting a library for your daughter, J? How about starting off with Goodnight Moon.[/quote]I am. I’ve still got shelves of kids books back home, but virtually none for the very young. Also, I have a massive collection of audio books for myself, but now I’m collecting unabridged audio books that’ll appeal to a young girl so that she’ll be able to listen and follow along. I have some basic stuff like Dr. Seuss, as well as stories for older kids: Laura Ingles Wilder’s Little House books, Nancy Drew, ect…
Greatly appreciate the recommendations, in English and Chinese.
Mine was about a little tiger in a zoo. I can’t remember anything else about it. My mom threw it away and I was really pissed. I’m still pissed. I also liked these books when I was in early elementary about a guy called Biggles, a pilot or something. Now I like “The Cat That Lived A Million Times.”
[quote=“braxtonhicks”]I really can’t remember my favorite book as a kid, I just liked just any book I could get my hands on.
As a grownup, my favorite kids’ book is “Love You Forever” by Robert Munsch. I know some parents (and kids) find it a little creepy that a mom would crawl into her kids’ room at night, pick him up and rock him, and worse, that she would drive across town when he was a grown man with a home of his own, climb through his window and gently lift him up and rock him, but I cry just about every time I read this book. Just a couple of nights ago, my 8yo daughter read it to her little sister in Chinese and I was curious to see what they’d think of it because I’d never read it to them before. They both thought it was very sweet, especially the end.
“Love you forever, like you for always, as long as I’m living, my baby you’ll be.”
My eldest is a teen and once in a while he’ll send me a PS in his emails: “… as long as I’m living my mommy you’ll be.”
Gets me every time…[/quote]
My God, I can’t believe you wrote this! I just saw this thread title and was going to post that this is our (my son and I) fav. book. We sing this evey morning on school days! And on days I’m too rushed and forget, the housekitten reminds me. Now that he’s bigger he likes to sing it with me and he sings “mommy” when I sing “baby.” I thought we were the only ones who were that cheezy, but reading your post just made me cry! To think of my son doing that when he’s a teen . . . ! I bet he will, though!
*Edit–another poster mentioned The Giving Tree and I did love that one. That one made me cry as a little girl, but not in a bad way–it was touching.
I loved the version of Snow White that my mom read to me–it was my favorite bedtime book for ages. It was a Little Golden Book. And Little Golden Books are a good idea for starting a baby’s library, by the way.
totallytika and housecat, I’m glad I’m not the only one who loves this book. I know a lot of people who hate it and think the mother’s a freak.
I read the Secret Garden as a young girl and should get a copy for my 8yo. My 12 yo and I read the Narnia books last summer and really enjoyed it. There are so many books I’m discovering now as a grownup that I just didn’t have available to me as a kid (or didn’t know where to look–our library sucked).
housecat, that is so sweet that you and your son sing it to one another every morning. My son is going to be 18 in Oct. He has our only English copy, softcover, so it’s falling apart. I’ve been meaning to get another one in English for my kids here in TW but just keep forgetting. Like I said before, we have the Chinese version with the zhuyinfuhao but the illustrations are by a local artist, lovely but not as engaging as our English one.
The first time I read this book I was in Wal-Mart looking or a gift for soneone else’s young child. I did not have a child of my own. I also thought it was kind of freaky that the mother broke into the married son’s house and took him out of his marriage bed to rock him.
But now I’m a mommy and I realize that this is simply an illustration of a mother’s special kind of love that dosn’t end and doesn’t question. Your baby’s always your baby–even when he’s a man. And it works because children are not aware of the creepier implications; they see the illustrations as they see their relationships with their mommies. My son, and apparently yours (how SWEET that he has the book), “gets it.” This became “our book” because my son would always pick that book first when it was reading time. His choice was like telling me that he loved me–and he knew it. He’d bring that book over with a big grin and peak up at me from behind his lashes! My baby!!
On a less “mother love gushy” note, The Berenstain Bears are a great series. They are very well thought out and do a lot of teaching along with entertaining.
