Baby Preschool Books

Opening one of Gyo Fujikawa's books is like taking a step, or ten, back in time - back to when I was cozily snuggled up with a parent listening, rather than being the parent reading. They are the comfort food of children's books for me. And, on top of it, my daughter absolutely loves this book.

This is a beautifully illustrated tender story for snuggling at storytime with your little one.

When my son was five months old, I learned I was expecting another baby. My nurse-practitioner recommended this book as a first reading experience for my son and as an introduction to having a baby sibling. We read the book almost daily until his sister was born. It was a marvelous experience for all three of us. I am getting two copies for my first and second grandchildren, who will be six weeks apart in age! What a lovely thing to pass down the generations.

If you have read some of Gyo Fujikawa's other books, like "Oh, What a Busy Day", then you know they can have some strange stories. Why include the one about the two kids who go out into the woods and die? Still, this book is great. The drawings all have a very relaxed soft feeling and the underlying lesson is to be gentle with animals. This is a good book to share with your child at bedtime, while he/she is cuddled in your lap. The last page is a special treat, lots of baby animals. My daughter loves play a version of "I Spy" when we get to that page, pointing out the owl or monkey or other baby animals as I call out their names.

I love this book. The copy I have belongs to my 14 year old. Now I am reading it to my 16 month old. Every time she hands it to me I can't help but smile. The illustrations are the best I have ever seen in a children's book. The baby mice melt my heart every time!

Mr. Rogers creates a great book for young children who've recently become big sisters or brothers. There is a fair representation of some of the things big siblings might be feeling especially about sharing their parents. The color photos are good, but the clothing everyone wears is dated, fortunately little ones don't mind when you read it with them. This is a really good book for new big siblings.

As one might expect from a book authored by Fred Rogers, this is a sensitive and frank account of changes a family undergoes with the arrival of a newborn.

This book is a wonderful way to help an older sibling prepare for, and adjust to, a new baby. And as the baby gets older, she or he too will enjoy the interesting photgraphs of family members working and sharing together. It's a great book.

The New Baby is a book that discusses the feelings that older siblings can have toward a new baby. In the typically simple, direct style that Mr. Rogers uses on Mister Roger's Neighborhood, Fred Rogers helps a child understand that both the baby and he/she are special. He also offers the assurance that parents have enough love for every child in the family.

The book has warm photographs of family members interacting with babies. These are useful in discussing what it will be like to have a baby in the house. I think this is an excellent book to read with children who are soon-to-be brothers or sisters.

We received this book as a gift when we were expecting our second child. It is a great book for parents to read to very young children who are expecting their first siblings. The only drawback is the dated pictures. If they were updated, it would be flawless!

Relationship and parenting expert, John Gottman and the Talaris Research Institute insightfully presents What Am I Feeling? an informed and informative exploration of the mindset of children, and how certain adjustments might care for the sensitivity of most children. Gottman places an easy-to-follow "parent-friendly" guide to the constructive mentality of most children with an educational content to create the ideal book for struggling parents making What Am I Feeling? an enthusiastic recommendation to all parents.

Everything we do and everything we learn is based in some way on how we feel.

How we feel about our emotions-whether we value those emotions and how we cope-shapes how we nurture children.

Adapted from John Gottman's Raising an Emotionally Intelligent Child, this book helps adults identify their parenting and caregiving style. It explains the five important steps in "emotion coaching" children, to ensure that children are guided to healthy emotional growth.

Kids who can accept and share their emotions do better in many ways, Gottman's research shows:

They form stronger friendships;
They achieve more in school;
They bounce back from emotional crises more quickly; and
They are physically healthier.

Beautifully illustrated with photographs of parents and children.

Okay, hands down....this is one of my favorite books to read to my son. I first saw it in a local Target and was pleasantly surprised to see such beautiful artwork for a children's book. Even though it was rather expensive at the store, I am sure you'll be able to find a bargain here on Amazon. I guess I liked the black children and cute black lab since it's a reflection of our very own home too!

Anyway, since I purchased the book nearly a week ago, we've read it twice and PLEASE is now my son's favorite word. He says it ALL-THE-TIME. We laugh at how mischievous but loving the dog is described in the book.

Basically, every child needs a pet at some point and even if the parent won't allow one in the house, reading this book may turn out to be a great temporary substitute. The only thing is when your child starts to ask more persistently for a puppy and they end it "please, please".

Also, it is a good way to teach your child manners (and Lord more parents need to do that!)

I love the illustration in this book however I do not like the text... Too much puppy puppy please.

Next to "please baby please"..this is my 2yr old's favorite book. We have read it so much that she knows what comes next on each page. It is the best. I'm waiting for the next book !!!!!

This is a great book for any family to share together! Spkie Lee is my favorite director and now our daughter's favorite author! Since buying this book, we have bought the other book by Spkie Lee, which was a great hit!

My overly active 20 month old loves this book and will sit still quietly for an entire reading...until we finish at which point she will throw a tantrum because the story is over. The illustrations are beautiful and captivating and the rhythm of the text is delightful. My next purchase will be "Please, Baby, Please." Great work, Lees. I will be keeping my eye out for more from you guys in the future.

My 15 month old loves these cards. They hold his attention well. The pictures are colorful, real and beautiful. I definately prefer them to cartoony depictions of trees, planets and stars. A great product for the money.

Dissapointed!!!

Images are not the best ones for kids... I expected some animals and some toys...
The quality of the cards itself is good

I've been showing these to my daughter since she was just a few weeks old. Now, she has some 'favorites'. A good friend of mine used these with her son and when he was only two, we took him to the zoo and he pointed out "wetlands" and "meadow". Great to teach diversity of the outdoors. Great pictures.

Wonderful photography, easy to hold and durable for my 19 mos old's hands.

I wondered about explaining the subtle differences too but these cards are great. Just review them with your child and the differences can be made clearer as they grow older. In the meantime the kids really enjoy them and are armed with knowledge when you take outdoor trips. I am really happy with this purchase.

This is the 6th Spiderwick purchase. As before she was thrilled! This line of fantasy is right up her "alley". The quality of the product is superb. I cannot profess to comprehend the depth of these fantastical creatures, but my little girl can introduce you to them all!

I won't spoil it, but i can say that this book went a long way to please the reader, who won't get bored quickly like with classic books. Reading this book is a bit challenging because it's more than book; many would say it's a book for children but i think anybody will have fun just flipping a few pages. Very good quality at a surprisingly low price..

My four-year old and I just loved this book. It's illustrated charmingly, and has lots of "stuff" that's fascinating to us both. Your Spiderwick library isn't complete without it.

In this oversized, visually pleasing and thoroughly enjoyable tome, the brownie caretaker of the Spiderwick mansion, Thimbletack himself, shares his scrapbook. Each page offers up treasures, such as maps and photos. Many are in the form of separate sheets folded into envelopes, foldouts, pop-ups, riddles to solve, secret objects to find, hidden messages, booklets and similar pleasing gimmicks.

On one spread we learn all about brownies, from the mascot for the St. Louis Browns baseball team to information about our host, Thimbletack. We also read a note of apology to the boggart from Mallory, Jared and Simon Grace. And we get to check out a brownie's wardrobe. Thimbletack includes a self-portrait titled "Common House Brownie" with detailed, not terribly complimentary notes ("Thimbletack has beady black eyes and whiskers like a rodent...") And he makes a point to warn us: "Brownies are a blessing, true, But anger one and pity you."

A spread about Spiderwick House presents a cross-section of the mansion, along with notes about each room. The following pages display a family tree of the Spiderwick clan, along with family photos, letters and journal entries from, to and about everyone who has lived in the mansion.

Thimbletack has also scrapbooked letters, photos, awards, drawings, notes and much more about Jared, Simon, Mallory and Helen. These personal items make the Graces seem even more real than before. A spread warning readers about staying away from the ominous carriage house makes its case with cautionary scraps of journals, newspaper clippings, bits of stories, photos --- and a very cool booklet.

Luckily for us, Thimbletack has not forgotten "the curious fey." The spread explores unicorns, changelings, wyrms, dragons and many more fantastical creatures. We are also treated to detailed pages devoted to information snippets, tales and notes about trolls, goblins and elves. The awful Mulgarath gets his due in a spread devoted to the whims, practices and descriptions of ogres.

You have to love a book that describes its typeface by saying there are so many kinds that the publisher can't remember them all. That sets the tone for a light-hearted, good-humored romp through this scrapbook crammed full of myriad tidbits of information. (There is even a letter from Mallory, Jared and Simon to authors Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi!) For those who have not yet experienced the Spiderwick books, THE CHRONICLES OF SPIDERWICK is quite likely to inspire them to find the series and dive on in. In addition, the short snippets in this scrapbook will encourage reluctant readers.

--- Reviewed by Terry Miller Shannon

This is one of the best movie tie in books I have seen yet. Looks just like the Field Guide in the movie. Lots of really nice paintings and lots of hidden pockets with little things in them and envelopes. Just a fascinating book to read and browse. After reading through this book I feel I am fully prepared to see the movie when it premiers next week. Highly recommended.

My children have had a blast looking at these books! They are great, with real life babies to relate to. Fun reading for anytime!!

Mother of 4

I bought this for my two year old. He has aproxia of speech so we are teaching him sign language. I thought it was simple enough to keep his attention but the signs are not correct. I do not want to teach him the wrong signs because he may never be able to communicate like most of us do. I was disappointed to say the least.

Babies develop manual dexterity long before they can speak. Tapping into this valuable skill to help them express themselves is helpful to Mom and rewarding to baby! My granddaughter's eyes light up when she realizes that I know what she is telling me! And now she is combining verbal skills with the signs. We both love it!

Every night we would read and practice our signs. By the time she was one year old, she could sign the signs from this book. Ok, her signs were not perfect but I knew what she was talking about. Learning signs has really helped with her communicating with us. I am so glad she learned the signs. Now, at 2 years old, she talks and uses the signs to help us understand.

At first I was very excited to get this book for my son. As I was going through i realized that the signs were not ASL and although simillar it was confusing to him since we had been working on ASL and watching Signing Time. I won't buy anymore in this series since it is not ASL. If you are using your own signs or following baby signs I think it is cute but if you are following ASL all of the signs are differant.

Elmer's Weather is a great little book. I'm trying to teach my son Italian and am always looking for books like Elmer's Weather. I'm grateful for the translation and it is also fun and colorful! We laugh at Elmer's funny glasses every time. I will continue to look for more in the series. Thank You Amazon for carrying Italian language books!!

This title is wonderful and sweet, and the translations are fun. My son loves the illustrations and laughs when we read each page in italiano. Ci piace!

Elmer the elephant is an adorable character for toddlers. In this book, the multi-colored elephant incounters a different weather conditions on each page. From windy to snowy to sunny, toddlers learn about the weather in a simple, brightly colored format. My 19 month old son adores Elmer and insists on taking this book to bed with him each night.

Three animals compete in the first half of the book to see who can have the most apples on top of their head. During the second half of the book, they escape an angry mob, happily collide with an apple truck, and end up giving the entire town ten apples on their heads as well. (What fun! Ten apples up on top! We are not going to let them drop!)

This is a good book both for early readers, and for young children learning to talk. Very simple, rhyming vocabulary, of the sort with intuitive spellings (so much of English orthography is a mess...!)

Please note that I do not recommend the board book version at all. They cut out the entire second half of the book, as well as good parts of the first half. In addition, the board book is poorly constructed. Just wait and get the real version instead.

Review by Sherry North, Author, Because You Are My Baby

Ten Apples Up on Top is a good introduction to counting and addition for preschoolers. My 3-year-old loves it. He counts the apples on every page and never gets bored. Me, on the other hand - I would have liked the book to have more of a storyline.

Apparently this story is HILARIOUS. My 7 month old son completely cracks up every time I read it to him.

This is an excellent beginning reader. It provides practicing counting and even though it follows a predictable sequence, it is fun to see what will happen next.

This book is unbelievably good for early readers. My son started reading right after he turned 4. The book is written using about 85 basic words that all kids need to learn (sight words). Once they know these words they can read a lot of other books. The value in Ten Apples is NOT the illustrations, counting or the story. Put simply, it is a wonderful tool to get your child reading. My son (4 yrs and 3 months) can read this book to himself easily. Those 85 words help him read all other books that he wants to. Those looking for a good book to practice sight words must buy this book.