Graeme Base

Allow me to introduce you to your new favorite picture book author...that is if you haven't already met!  Reader meet Graeme Base am amazing, fantastic, wonderful, author and illustrator of stunning picture books.  He is both an author an illustrator of all of his books and all of his illustrations are done with elaborate detail.  I was first introduced to Graeme Base books when, in high school, I read the Sign of the Seahorse.  Shortly there after I came across the book The Eleventh Hour: A Curious Mystery and that was the book that truly turned in into a devotee.  I was in college at the time and my boyfriend (now he's my husband) and I spent a few happy hours engrossed with the book pouring over the pictures tyring to solve the mystery.  It was his first encounter with Graeme Base and he was instantly hooked as well.   Over the years I've developed a small collection of his books.  What makes them so great is their wide ranging appeal.  The rhyming language in books like the Sign of the Seahorse appeal to the very young, even though they have no hope of following the plot.  The story is suitably complex for older readers (say fourth grade on up) and the pictures are just stunning and make reading the book a treat for any adult.  The Eleventh Hour: A Curious Mystery has the same appeal.  On the surface, the story is simple enough to appeal to a young reader, but the mystery and again the stunning pictures (which this time play an important part in the mystery) keep even older reader enthralled.

When my husband and I found out we were expecting we added one more book to our Graeme Base collection, Animalia.  This ABC book puts all other ABC books to shame.  The book is filled with Base's brilliant pictures.  Each page features alliterative tongue twisters.  The pictures, as in all of his books, seem to unfold in layers.  Just when you think you've found all of the hidden quirks in his illustrations you'll notice something you over looked the first hundred times you read the book.  I would say if you had money to buy only one ABC book this would be the one to buy.  Long after your child has lot interest in other ABC books, he'll still love to read and look at this one.

Here's a mini-list of some of my favorite Graeme Base books.  Get your hands on one (or all) of his books soon.  They are perfect for filling the time on these cold winter days and nights!

Sign of the Seahorse
The Eleventh Hour: A curious Mystery
Animalia
The Water Hole

We Love Sandra Boynton Board Books

In this house we are HUGE fans of Sandra Boynton.  I was lucky enough to get an introduction to Sandra Boynton about seven years ago when my friends first started having kids.  So, I knew to keep an eye out for her books while my husband and I were expecting.  I scoured garage sales, thrift stores, library sales, and used book stores swooping up any Sandra Boynton books I could find.  (For as popular as Sandra Boynton board books are, good quality used board books are surprisingly hard to come by.)

For those who are just getting their first introduction to Sandra Boynton through this blog, she's a must get to know author if you have children between the ages of 0 and 3.  She's best known for her board books.  She is both the author and illustrator of her books and they all have a distinctive Boynton look.  What we love about her books in this house are her silly rhymes that grab and hold kids attention.  When they are very young, babies enjoy the rhyming cadence of the words even if they don't hold any meaning for them, but as the kids get older they'll enjoy the silliness of the stories.  Some of her books are very repetitive and so they make wonderful books for early readers because they are predictable and kids can "read" repeated words or phrases.  This list below represents the books that we've managed to get our hands on, but this is by no means an exhaustive list of her books.  Several of her books also incorporate music, which is always a huge hit with children.

1. Fifteen Animals
2. Belly Button Book
3. The Going to Bed Book
4. Barnyard Dance
5. Oh My Oh My Dinosaurs
6. Pajama Time
7. Moo Ba La La La
8. The Going to Bed Book

Of course we have our favorites from the list above.  My husband and I both love the Belly Button Book, and The Going to Bed Book is another popular title in our house.  I'm sure once you read a few Sandra Boynton books you'll fall in love with her the way we have and you'll discover your own favorites.

Sheep In a Jeep

I made the greatest discovery by accident this week.  (Well, technically it was my boss who made the fantastic discovery.)  I have long loved the book Sheep In a Jeep by Nancy E. Shaw.  For years it was my go-to book that I gave to new and expecting mothers.  This week my boss, knowing how much I loved the book Sheep In a Jeep, bought me a surprise gift, Sheep On a Ship!  Sheep On a Ship is just as great as Sheep In a Jeep!  (I may even like it just a bit more than Sheep In a Jeep!)  But the real gift was learning that Nancy Shaw has a whole series of Sheep books.  (A flock of sheep books if you will...ha ha ha.)  I had no idea!  I thought Sheep In a Jeep was just a one book thing.  But, I could not have been more wrong!  There is a bunch of Sheep books, including Sheep Take a Hike, which fits so perfectly with our nursery theme.  I can't wait to check some of the other titles out from the library and add a few of them to the Christmas list. 

The Sheep books all feature simply rhyming text and tell of an ill fated adventure that a flock of sheep take on.  The books are charmingly illustrated by Margot Apple.  They are funny and clever and I am just so excited that there is more than one!  I can't wait to read them all to my son!

Currently Published Sheep Books by Nancy E. Shaw

• Sheep In a Jeep
• Sheep On a Ship
• Sheep In a Shop
• Sheep Out to Eat
• Sheep Take a Hike
• Sheep Trick or Treat
• Sheep Blast Off