Favorite books for a baby/toddler:
Bathtime Peekaboo is a fun interactive book that D that all my kids read over and over. DK Learning books are at the top of our list for the toddler age. I also read her Playtime Peekabo
which is equally as cute. These books have stood the test of two kids and passed with flying colors. Each page has something related to the theme of the book hiding under an item. The child is then supposed to lift the flap in order to find if the item is hidden under the flap. These flaps are extremely easy for a young child to get to since it is a board book type of flap that is large. Some lift the flap books have flaps that are made of a thin paper and it can be extremely difficult and frustrating for young children to try and lift the flap up but the DK Publishing Peekaboo books will never give you a problem. I think the lift the flap part as well as having something to touch on each page(a fluffy ear or a bath sponge type of stomach) adds to a child’s interest and keeps their interest in the book. Last night we purchased Hoppity Hop Peekaboo!
and I hope to add more DK Publishing Peekaboo books to our home library.
Moo, Baa, La La La is associated with amazing memories for me of my reading relationship with D. D at the age of 13 months could already recite the words to this book. I would read to him and say, “A cow makes…” and he’d say “moo…” a sheep says “baa” three singing pigs say….then he would point and in his adorable baby voice say “no no noo nooo” thats not right… the pig says ” oik” all day and night. Although he couldn’t pronounce everything completely it was even more adorable and I don’t know if I will ever be able to give this book up. I wish I had recorded it with my video camera like I had planned to do on so many instances but yet they grow up so quickly and somehow time passes you by.
Goodnight, Gorilla – Now I am not completely sure what it was about this book that held D’s interest for months. For a few months this was honestly D’s favorite book (probably around 16 months). At 16 months this was his must read bedtime book. The book is about a zookeeper who checks on all the animals at night before he goes to bed but a cheeky gorilla steals the zookeepers cage keys and the Gorilla sneakily lets out all the animals that the zookeeper says goodnight to. This book is made up of very few words but the pictures seem to captivate toddlers. D’s favorite part in this book was when the lights went off and the only thing showing on the page was the zookeepers wifes big eyes.The copy we own is the extra large board book, I’m not sure if that made the difference in why he loved it but its worth checking out.
Goodnight Moon – I do not think any home library should be without this book. This calming tale is so relaxing and the last picture of the room with the night sky showing trough the window is one of the most beautiful pictures I have seen in any board book. The book starts off in the great green room and states all the interesting items in the room and then we say goodnight to all of them. This book not only winds your child down but it also winds you (the parent) down. I personally love this book and believe this is a must have book that belongs in every childs bookshelf. Goodnight Moon is a peaceful, calming, lulling book that will surely have you and your child yawning and ready to go to bed.
Trust me, when I say that we have a lot of books (especially for the 1-2 year age group) but the books above were our personal favorites. Other popular books that we own for this age range are:
The Very Hungry Caterpillar (which is also a captivating story),
Guess How Much I Love You (such a sweet book but I find that D only started loving this book now at age 3 and this post is about favorite books for a one year old.),
Big Red Barn (This is such a popular book amongst kids at this age and I always see it mentioned on various forums)
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? (rythmic verses and simple watercolor like pictures are very popular with kids.)
What were your toddlers favorite books?
RoseBelle says
I read to my two girls. One will be starting kindergarten this fall. I think the books you recommended are great. Will check them out in a bit. Reading is so important to kids, I want to make sure I do whatever I can to help mine in their development stages.
nopinkhere says
I just got Dress Up Peekaboo for M as a travel book, but my 4yo liked it better. I definitely am not reading to my 2nd child as much as I read to my first. In part, she is just not interested in sitting still, so we rarely get through an entire book. One that she did like that we had from the library recently was Let's Play by Leo Lionni. Other than the peekaboo books, all the ones you listed have been favorites in our house at one time or another. Sandra Boynton has a new board book series about a little pig named Little Pookie that is fun, but again it's my 4yo that like them.