Please, please, please...

not again... is what I usually think as I pull out the favorite bedtime books for my daughter. Longing for something new in the rotation, I pulled this book, that I had originally bought for my classroom because of its repetitive text, off the shelf because of her new found fascination with dogs. Lily went wild at the beautiful depictions of little faces and a rambunctious 'dod' (as she says with renewed vigor every time I turn the page).

Kadir Nelson, the genius behind these pictures, is, quite possibly, the greatest illustrator ever. Check out his work in: one of my top 5 favorite stories, Salt in His Shoes (about a young Michael Jordan... told by his mom and sister) and He's Got the Whole World in His Hands (which puts Kadir's amazing work behind the classic tune.) I picture his illustrations in my head for all of the stories that I write... which is why my own never measure up!

Now, I am usually not a fan of celebrities who think they can also be children's book authors, but Spike Lee and Tonya Lewis Lee put rhythm to simple words and tell a hilarious story in Please Puppy Please and Please Baby Please, with words like"Go back to bed, baby, please, baby, please" ..."Not on your HEAD, baby baby baby, please!" ... we can relate, too.

These books will be favorites for the baby bedtime routine now and for MANY childhood years to come!

There's an animal strike at the zoo... it's true!

VanillaBean Designs recommends this book by Karma Wilson and illustrated by Margaret Spengler. It is incredibly clever, has scores of great vocabulary, and sets you up for a wonderful social studies lesson with your kid.

I wish I had this book in my classroom and had known about www.karmawilson.com. I just spent ENTIRELY too long there myself... and will definitely use her parent/teacher resources even at home. She has loads of books that are now in my amazon shopping cart. I love discovering authors that I adore!

So, go grab the animal crackers, your little one, and this book for storytime this week!

Rapunzel threw down her underwear...

got a big laugh out of my second graders every time I read FALLING FOR RAPUNZEL to them.

I rediscovered it recently on the bookshelf of my 9 month old, bored from reading 'goat, girl, goo-goo goggles.. G...G... G' a million and a half times. As a lover of all things children's literature, I like to spice up my book selection... even to an infant.

She may have not understood the cute rhyming misunderstandings this poor princess has... but she showcased her favorite dance move to the beat of their rhyming couplets and gazed for SECONDS on end at the colorful, mixed media illustrations.

Now that your no-sew princess tutus are ready...Vanilla Bean Designs highly recommends this tale, our storytime pick of the week!