Children's Book Poll

Lately I've been frustrated at the library. I gravitate towards my favorite authors and to character books that I know Chloe will like (i.e. Curious George). I don't want to be so limiting to Chloe in our book tastes but I do want to be cautious. A few times I've picked up a book hastily and taken it home without realizing it contained questionable language (can you believe some children's books actually have bad language?!? c'mon!), a dumb plot, or drawings that weren't appealing.

I tend to like old authors and illustrators. One of my faves is Harold and the Purple Crayon. We've read almost all the Don Freeman, Beatrix Potter, H.A. Rey, and Dr. Seuss books from our local library. (Other favorite authors include Sandra Boynton and Karen Katz. I'm sure there are more but it's too late in the evening for my brain to function at full capacity. And even full capacity ain't much these days.)

We've also discovered the fun of wordless books like the Carl series by Alexandra Day or the Polo books by Regis Faller. I especially like wordless books because then I can make up slightly new stories each time to follow the pictures and point out different details. It keeps reading fresher for me. (We dig the Ella books and also the Coco books. Don't you love how little kids attach to characters?)

So now I need your help. What are your favorite books for toddlers? Do you particularly like certain authors or illustrators?

Watcha readin?

Now that my Clive is getting older and sleeping longer (Praise Jesus!) I'm finding snippets of time to do some leisure reading.

My two all-time favorite authors (forgive me if I've blogged about this before) are C.S. Lewis and Charles Dickens. So when I get the rare opportunity to read I almost always choose a book by one of these incredibly rich authors.

My tired brain is not quite ready to pick up The Four Loves (a book I'm ansy to read someday soon) or The Weight of Glory so I chose a lighter Lewis read. I love the Narnia series and with the upcoming Disney blockbuster movie coming out this summer, I chose to re-read Prince Caspian.

It's such an easy read that it's going fast. I might devour the rest of the Narnia series after I finish the Prince Caspian adventure! I've forgotten what a captivating storyteller C.S. Lewis is. And the character of God in the picture of Aslan is truly beautiful. As I read I often find tears coming to my eyes as I clearly see God's forgiveness, sovereignty, and challenge to faith.

What are you reading these days?