While Spartacus still pulls his favorite books from his April reading list, a few oldies-but-goodies found their way off the shelf this month. If you have an almost-four-year-old in your life, my son would like to recommend…
Shhh! by Sally Grindley and Peter Utton
This was one of Hubster’s favorite books as a kid; it’s about sneaking through a giant’s castle, and has little doors you can open to see if everyone is still sleeping (spoiler: the giant wakes up). What’s hysterical is that the pictures for some reason TERRIFY Spartacus, but he loves the story. He asked me to read it four times one night to his sister on the couch; he sat across the room and asked me not to show him the “scary pictures.” This book is really cute and as long as your child doesn’t have weird selective fears like mine does, they’ll love it.
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| “Still asleep? Good.” |
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| Actual footage of Spartacus listening in a completely different part of the room. |
Llama Llama Red Pajama by Anna Dewdney
This bedtime classic has found new affection from Spartacus this month. We made the mistake of letting him watch the Netflix adaptation of Llama Llama, where Baby Llama is more like a super whiny 8-year-old instead of a sweet toddler. Spartacus has started repeating things from the show obnoxiously, and so now we’re just sticking to the books. I often use the line, “Mama Llama’s always near, even if she’s not right here,” when he gets clingy at bedtime.
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All By Myself by Mercer Meyer
I bought this one through a Scholastic sale, hoping it would encourage Spartacus to do more things independently, like go potty or dress himself. Little Critter also has a baby sister, so Spartacus relates extra to him as a character. He loves saying, “I do that too!” when we read each page.
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| “I’ve done that with you, Mommy!” |
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Castles by Philip Steele
We sometimes play video games like Skyrim, and Spartacus is obsessed with swordplay and dragons. Hubster found this book at the seminary co-op; it’s for elementary age, but Spartacus loves looking at all the pictures. He can identify the different areas of the castle, name all the weapons of a knight, and say fancy words like “portcullis” — but his favorite picture is the one of the toilets built into the castles with the top-floor guy pooping in midair. That is the funniest thing ever to a 4-year-old.
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Little Miss’s Picks
As a professional little sister, this 16-month-old does not like to be left out. Her favorite books of the moment are…
Don’t Push the Button by Bill Cotter
Spartacus got this for Christmas a year ago, but both my kids love it. There’s a button on each page. The purple monster Larry tells you not to push it. Of course you push it. Silliness ensues.
Blue Hat, Green Hat by Sandra Boynton
Little Miss doesn’t speak yet, but she will “read” this book to herself mimicking our own inflection. “Blue hat, green hat, red hat, oops!” turns into, “Uh-uh! Uh-uh! Uh-uh! Eh!” Too funny. Sandra Boynton books are all delightful. In this one, the poor turkey just can’t manage to get dressed properly! She giggles every time we say, “Oops!”
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| Spartacus reading with his grandparents on the front porch |
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