From My Bookshelf ~ Christmas Readings....by Lynn Willoughby

I didn't do a Christmas Wish List/Children's Book Review last year. However, I've had many people ask for it again, so here goes, with a lot of help and input.
For the very young crowd - up to about age 2

• The Bear Stays Up For Christmas - Karma Wilson, Jane Chapman, this has great illustrations and a catchy lilt to the story
• The Nativity
• That's Not My Reindeer (Snowman etc.), all are touchy-feely books for the very young from Usborne Books
• The Animal's Advent, 25 flaps until Christmas - Lisa McCue
• Jingle Bells - Jeffrey Ebbeler great illustrations
• Olivia Claus, Olivia and the Christmas Present or any of the Olivia books; my personal favourite’s by Jared Osterhold
• any of the age appropriate Dr Seuss books
• Guess How Much I Love You? - Sam McBratney
• anything by Sandra Boynton - kids love the rhymes, the illustrations and the silliness. So do I!

3-5 year olds

• Christmas in the Mouse House - Maggie Kneen; lift the flaps as well as pop-up surprises to be read next year as well
• Merry Christmas: Look and Find - Julia Lobo, great for finding and identifying details
• Fancy Nancy's Splendiferious Christmas - Jane O'Connor, your Fancy Nancy girls will love this one
• Oh, What a Christmas! - Michael Garland, this is a wonderful NOT the Night before Christmas, which will have kids, parents and grandparents giggling.
• Olivia Helps With Christmas - Atheneum Books for Young Readers; your kids will love it and you will love reading it to them again and again and again!

Other than Christmas Books, my list includes:

• Go, Dog. Go! - P.D.Eastman, my grandson's very favourite and easy to read
• The Paper Bag Princess - Robert Munsch, enough said if you know Robert Munsch!
• Someday - Allison Meghee, a great story to read together

6-8 age group
Some you can read together, some they will enjoy reading on their own.

• Geronimo Stilton series - Scholastic Books, but especially look at A Very Merry Christmas
• Thea Stilton and the Ice Treasure
• A Porcupine in a Pine Tree - Helaine Becher
• A Canadian Twelve Days of Christmas - Werner Zimmerman, "seven sled dogs sledding", "four calling moose”, "five Stanley Cups"….you get the idea. I just loved this one.
• A Charlie Brown Christmas - Charles M. Schulz, one to read together every year

Non-Christmas choices:
1. If You Give a Mouse a Cookie - Laura Numeroff, this is one you'll get to read together. It is wonderful fun.
2. The Kissing Hand - Audrey Penn, a perennial favourite and for every good reason
3. Barbara Parks books especially the Junie B. Jones series
4. Magic Tree House series like "Dinosaurs Before Dark", "Pirates Past Noon", "Afternoon on the Amazon", etc
5. Beverly Cleary's "Beezus" and "Ramona" books
6. The Madeline books by Bemelmans - great rhythm and easy to read
9-12 group
This gets harder as kids are starting to be selective in their reading. However, there are still standby's:

• anything by Roald Dahl and Johnny Depp has made the movies to prove these are still popular!
• Judy Blume books are also timeless
• Kenneth Oppel books are especially appealing to boys who may not be readers
• Carl Hiaasen is a great writer of adult comedy, but also has three books for younger readers - "Hoot", "Scat", "Flush" - mysteries for edge of the seat thinkers
• there are lots of graphic novels out there for young readers, as well as "you choose the ending" books.

Some kids are moving into non-fiction and there is a huge choice, depending on interest and reading level:

• The Fly Guy - Tedd Arnold, comes highly recommended
• A Great and Terrible Beauty - Libba Bray series for older girls

Teens

• Harry Potter books are still around and still popular - J.K.Rowling
• The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins; a futuristic series that is well written and riveting
• The Lightning Thief series (Percy Jackson) - Rick Riordan; my grandson read this series from beginning to end with stops only to eat!!
• Molly Moon's Incredible Book of Hypnotism - Georgia Byng, another all-nighter!
• The Garbage King - Elizabeth Laird, takes kids into Ethiopia and shows life in an new part of the world for most of them

Sometimes, however, it's just easier to buy a gift card and let them make their own choices at this age. I know when I get a gift card I can't just spend it willy nilly on any old book, but must choose a REALLY good book.
Hope this helps with your shopping. I know eBooks, iPads, etc are handy, but I still love to get a great book to hold and read all night. It's still my favourite thing!