This month we’ve read a LOT of books. Our October book list contains quite a few autumn and Halloween related books, though not as many as I wish. Still collecting books for this season. Next year we’ll have the perfect stash of book for this season. Here comes what we’ve read this month:
With E. (5 years)
Funnybones by Janet and Allen Ahlberg
The first book of the Funnybones series. E. LOVED it, just like I did. Two skeletons and their dog live in a cellar and come out to play during the night. The name of the game: scare someone. E. liked it so much that I bought her two other books of the series. What’s more she read the Funnybones books by herself as well.
Funnybones: Dinosaur Dreams
Little Skeleton and Big Skeleton are dreaming about dinos. Dangerous dinos. Luckily Dog Skeleton is dreaming too and saves them. Really funny. Just as good as the other two in this series we’ve read. E. asked to read this one too many many times.
Funnybones: Ghost train
Another great book for Halloween. The Skeletons get on a ghost train at midnight and meet a lot of scary things of which they are not frightened at all. But there is one thing that scares the hell out of them. So funny! Read it a million times.
Little Miss Sunshine and the wicked witch by Roger Hargreaves
Little Miss Sunshine needs to stop the wicked witch who casts a spell on other Misses and Mrs. But Miss Sunshine finds a way to break the spell. An average book. Nothing too exciting.
Bugs
Caterpillar Butterfly by Vivian French
I loved this book just as much as E. The story is about a little girl who witnesses the metamorphoses of caterpillars into butterflies. I especially enjoyed the beautiful illustrations as they are unique and engaging. The real reason why this book was a hit is our own Caterpillar. (Read more about it on the link I’ll add later)
Gilbert the hero by Jane Clarke
Well, a book about fish is always a winner in our home. Gilbert needs to take care of his little brother at the playground but he wants to go skating with his friend and leaves little bro on the swing. Do you think he could save his brother from the killer whale? 😉
Ribbit! Ribbit! by Anne Marie Herron
I gave this book to E. to read while she was waiting for me in the afternoon after snack. it took her 10 minutes to read. The story is about an annoying little boy who pretends to be a frog and says ribbit ribbit in every situation. But there’s a little girl who knows how to stop it. I also made activities for her that she did after reading it. That took her five minutes. I needed that 15 minutes to clean up the mess in the kitchen.
Zack’s Alligator by Shirley Mozelle
Surprisingly we borrowed this book from the library. Yes, in English. E. enjoyed this book a lot because we have a close friend who is named in the same way as the Alligator in this book. Not to mention the fact that the toy alligator comes alive when she gets some water and gets involved in some adventures with Zack.
With L. (22 months)
Touch and Feel Halloween (DK)
Real enjoyment for little hands. You can touch a velvety black cat or a bumpy pumpkin. L. really loved this book even after Halloween.
Cuddle by Beth Shoshan
A sweet little boy keeps cuddling his toy animals and imagines what if they were real. Not only L. liked it (who, by the way, adores cuddling) but E. enjoyed it when I read it to them. there are plenty of conditional sentences in this book which helps to focus (subconsciously) on this complex structure.
Sleepy head by Karma Wilson
A tiny little creature doesn’t want to go to bed and find out all kinds of things just to play for more time. Strange illustrations, real-life story, though nothing special. Whose kid hasn’t asked for another glass of water after bed time?
Guess Who’s Hiding? By Ana Martin-Laranaga
A peek-a-boo book with rhyming words. Sometimes E. read it out for L.
The Big Match by Julia Donaldson
Originally, I bought a few books of this Songbird series, but Little L. enjoys them more that E. This is about a football match played by the Foxes and the Ducks. One of the foxes should learn about fair play. L. likes ball games so this was a hit with her.
Chocolate Mouse For Greedy Goose by Julia Donaldson
A classic. If you have a picky eater this book can ease some tension at lunch time. The well-know rhymes from Julia Donaldson and vivid illustrations from Nick Sharratt (He is one of my favourite children book illustrators)
Busy Garage by Melanie Joyce (Ladybird series)
This was too much for L. And I guess it was boring for E. (I bought it as it a part of a series and E. loved Busy shop when she was about 2.) We read it only twice which is quite unusual in our home. We re-read book until my eyes fall out and my mouth dries out. Another disappointment was that the last page was missing so i had to make up the ending. I’d bought it used but it had never happened before.
Berry and Dolly At kindergarten by Erika Bartos
Erika Bartos is a famous Hungarian children book writer. Her books and poetry are very popular with children (nursery and kindergarten aged kids). Her drawings are very unique, the stories are simple and depict the life of families with children. Some parents find them annoying, but I’m okay with it. These two stories are especially good. L. enjoys going to E.’s kindergarten and the other story is about a big scary spider who turns out to be kind after all. Both stories take place in the autumn. I’m happy that some of Erika’s books are available in English. Berry and Dolly has a youtube channel as well where you can find some stories in English.
Non-native Mommy 