5 of a Toddler's Favourite Books.

One thing I always wanted John to have was books. From day one, whenever people have asked about birthday & Christmas presents, I've always specified for books. I've never been big on books but really wish it had been a bigger part of my childhood. But the thing is, books are expensive. And I'm a bit of a snob when it comes to kids books. The library is great as it means we can see which books we like before spending money on them but I also love getting recommendations on books. So whilst I'll be searching for recommendations on more toddler-aimed books (& please do share in the comments!), here's 5 of John's favourite books for you, should you be interested!

Share!
This was one I picked up in a charity shop after spotting it in the window. That very morning I'd been losing my patience with John for refusing to let David go near any of his toys, so it seemed like a apt choice.

It's a nice simple story of a older sister sibling who doesn't want to share their things with their baby brother but their Mummy keeps telling her, "Share!" so she does. It has a lovely ending with then agreeing to share their Mummy (aww!).

On more than one occasion I've gone into John's room to find him sitting on the floor 'reading' this book to David, turning the pages and saying, "Share, Mummy - so I do!" Talk about your heart bursting with love & pride!

Pirate Pete's Potty.
Another charity shop find! This was one I picked up in that awkward, is he ready, is he not, stage of potty training. I'm dubious as to whether it really made a huge difference to John using the potty but he certainly loves the story of a pirate who has accidents & learns to poop.

Again, it's a pretty simple story of a wee boy who is a pirate & is ready to use the potty. It goes through the stages of choosing a potty, pants & what using the potty is all about. There's also a little button that cheers for when Peter chooses his potty/pants & whenever he uses the potty. David loves said button more than John!

There's no denying this book is a tad gender-stereotypical, with a Princess version for girls, but John loves it. So much so that we've now got the Pirate Pete's My Big Boy Bed book for the transition from cot to bed (y'know, for whenever we actually get the motivation to do that...).

Bumpus Jumpus Dinosaurumpus.

This was a book from my friend Hannah who is incidentally a primary school teacher (& in turn, automatically an expert in kids books). I thought it might be a bit long, with too many words for John yet but he's obsessed with the "Dinosaur Dance book". Who knew dinosaurs loved to dance? Well, these ones certainly do. Aside from not being able to pronounce most of the actual dinosaur names ("deinocheirus," anyone?) it makes for a pretty fun read. It's a up-beat rhyming story which you can help but dance along with. It's pretty obvious why it's a favourite book with John.
And thankfully it slows down at the end and all the danced-out dinosaurs fall asleep, meaning it's not too exciting for a bedtime story either!

I'm a Happy Hugglewug.

"Hugglewug?" Erm, that's Henry "HuggleMONSTER". Yes, you're right but this is the book that the much loved Disney cartoon is based on. Already a fan of "Henry-monster", John instantly fell in love with this book, practically running home from the library to read it the first time. It's a little different to the cartoon in that it doesn't really follow any kind of 'plot', instead it's just a look into Henry Hugglewug's life; from meeting his family, going to school & having a good old "Roarrrr!", which is undoubtedly John's favourite page. It also has some songs in it but we're not very imaginative in making up tunes for them.
I particularly love the illustrations in this book, with much softer colours than Disney the cartoon.

What The Ladybird Heard.
Who doesn't love Juilian Donaldson? I've yet to meet a parent who doesn't. And for a certain Gruffalo loving toddler, this is the perfect transition away from the purple-prickled monster. Our copy of this is the noisy Sound Book version, with buttons for each animal noise, making it a bit more interactive and attention-holding. It was actually a gift for John's 1st birthday but it's more recently he's become obsessed with, "Moo-Book".
It's a rhyming story of a ladybird that has never spoken until she over-hears two thieves plotting to steal the farm's Prize Cow. The majority of the story is simply made up of going through the animals noises, which is probably why John loves it. In fact, it's how he's come to learn all his farmyard animal noises. The only thing that he doesn't approve of is the ladybird button "not working" but really it's just a sticker above the animal noises that isn't even a button.

What is your wee one's favourite books?

Keep reading,

Facebook • Twitter • Bloglovin' • Instagram