Books were an important part of my childhood and they’re an important part of my life now.  I’ve read to my girls (age 4 and 10) every day since they were a couple of months old so they could experience the joy of reading from a young age. I thought I’d begin my time as a blogger for little bluebirds by sharing a few books my girls and I have loved. 

My oldest is 10 now but as a baby she had a favourite book, and despite its sorry state, we held onto it because it held such wonderful memories.  I can’t tell you how happy I was, 6 years later, to have my big girl reading it to her baby sister who was also enthralled (see photo).  The book, baby giggles by Rachael Hale is a board book which always kept my girls engaged as their tiny faces reflected the emotions they could see shown in the faces of the gorgeous babies on the page.

Click on the link below to see some of the pages:
https://au.phaidon.com/store/childrens-books/this-is-not-a-book-9780714871127/

This is Not a Book by Jean Jullien is the current favourite of my 4 year old.  There is no writing at all in this book.  In fact, it is a series of pictures my daughter can interact with.  For instance, her favourite page looks like you’ve opened a box of tools rather than a book.  I ‘fix’ her with the tools while she writhes around in giggles because it’s so tickly.  Another page is the open mouth of a monster who talks to her and asks about her day.  The monster happens to also be 4 and go to kinder, so they have a lot in common.

Click on the link below to see some of the pages:
https://au.phaidon.com/store/childrens-books/this-is-not-a-book-9780714871127/

The last book I want to share is one of my personal favourites; Journey by Aaron Becker.  I bought this while studying Primary Teaching because it was so beautiful and had so much teaching potential.  This is another book without words where the illustrations and your own imagination tells the story.  It can change with every re-reading giving it a timeless appeal.

It is full of emotion, adventure and friendship and I would highly recommend going onto the author’s website (see below) to see a beautiful video trailer for the book.  The best thing?  It’s part of a trilogy and the other 2 books are just as beautiful.

https://www.storybreathing.com/journey/

What strikes me most about these books, is how little they rely on the written word.  Reading time isn’t just about reading words on a page, it’s about connecting with your little ones and sharing time together.  It’s about sharing our own words and naming the things our little ones are interested in or need to know.  It’s about creating worlds together that might only last for the one reading but the connections we make with our little ones will last a lifetime.

Comment below and tell us your, or your little one’s, favourite books.  I could do with some suggestions seeing as I have read This is Not a Book by Jean Jullien every night for months and months.