Skip to main content

Five Faves: New Board Books

Board books are an amazing way to introduce young readers to books, especially with their sturdy pages. These five board books were all published this year, and they're some of the best! Each one has some humor, great illustrations, and is sure to delight young and older readers alike.

Peekaboo Rex!
By Sandra Boynton
New York City: Boynton Bookworks, 2023. Board Book.

A T. rex plays a game of peekaboo with his other, smaller dinosaur friend, but the smaller dinosaur always finds the T. rex, no matter how well he tries to hide! Another adorable book by Boynton that will encourage young readers to play, and love, the game of peekaboo.

Big Kids No Everything 
By Wednesday Kirwan
New York: Little Simon, 2023. Board Book.

In a hilarious play on words, this board book highlights a child’s favorite word: “No!” The book highlights different kinds of no, such as a “small nos.” As children say “no,” time after time, they eventually learn when to say “yes.” An important book in helping children grow and gain autonomy.

Ducks!
Written by Deborah Underwood
Illustrated by T.L. McBeth
New York, NY: Henry Holt and Company, 2023. Board Book.

In a darling story with minimal yet striking colors, one duck wanders around as they seek to find the rest of their duck family. Where have they gone? And will duck be able to find them?

Today I Feel Like a Jelly Donut: A Book About Emotions 
Written by Katie Kenny Phillips
Illustrated by Shannon Snow
Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House Publishers, 2023. Board Book.

Being able to recognize emotions, not to mention label them, can be challenging for adults and children alike. This cute board book introduces children to common emotions, linking them with a food item to better understand said emotion, such as excited popcorn, or a nervous egg.

P is for Pirate
By Greg Paprocki
Layton, Utah: Gibbs Smith, 2023. Board Book.

A charming alphabet book that gives a different pirate related term for each letter: A is for ahoy, O is for overboard, and of course, P is for pirate. Each page has a fun, child appropriate scene, such as children “walking the plank” as they dive into a pool.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Five Faves: WWII Spies and Codebreakers

I can't help but assume I'm not the only kid who grew up playing spies. As a child, my imaginative playtime was filled with covert espionage largely derived from the Spy Kids movies. As an adult, my interest in spycraft has never wavered. In fact, the older I get, the more I am intrigued by spies, ciphers, and codes. Combine that with a love of rich historical settings and untold stories of people from history, there are few things I find as satisfying as a historical spy story. If you're anything like me, you'll love this list of stories -- real and fictional -- starring spies, codebreakers, and cryptanalysts. Max in the House of Spies By Adam Gidwitz New York: Dutton Children's Books, 2024. Fiction. 320 pages. After Kristallnacht, Max Bretzfeld's German Jewish parents decide to send him to England via the Kindertransport. Now accompanied by two invisible-to-all-but-him spirts -- a dybbuk and a kobold -- Max is desperate to return home to Berlin. As Max adjusts

Five Faves: Mysterious High-Low Intermediate Books

Intermediate Mystery books are a gold mine. High-low books refer to titles that are of high interest to readers, but contain low level vocabulary. These titles are clever, action-packed, and have several books in the series to keep the mystery alive. These intermediate mystery books are the first in their series and are sure to appease any mystery loving reader. The Ghost Tree Written by Natasha Deen Illustrated by Lissy Marlin New York: Random House Children's Books, 2022. Intermediate. 95 pages. With a dash of paranormal mixed with mystery, this book introduces Asim, a Guyanese American fourth grader who moves to a new town. After a visit to a graveyard, an evil spirit is unleashed. Asim works with new friends, Rokshar and Max, to save their town. With scarily cool illustrations to accompany this text, this book is great for any amateur sleuths who love a touch of creepy. Detective Duck: The Case of the Strange Splash Written by Henry Winkler and Lin Oliver Illustrated by Dan San

Display: Dino-mite Reads

Goldilocks and the Three Dinosaurs By Mo Willems New York: Balzar + Bray, 2012. Picture Book. "Once upon a time, there were three hungry Dinosaurs: Papa Dinosaur, Mama Dinosaur . . . and a Dinosaur who happened to be visiting from Norway. One day--for no particular reason--they decided to tidy up their house, make the beds, and prepare pudding of varying temperatures. And then--for no particular reason--they decided to go . . . someplace else. They were definitely not setting a trap for some succulent, unsupervised little girl. Definitely not!" --Editor Smart Vs. Strong! Written by Jill Esbaum Illustrated by Miles Thompson New York: Simon Spotlight, 2021. Easy Reader. 64 pages. "When Thunder gets stuck in quicksand, Cluck uses his smarts to free his friend." --Editor How Dinosaurs Went Extinct Written by Ame Dyckman Illustrated by Jennifer Harney New York: Brown and Company, 2023. Picture Book. "When a child in a museum asks how dinosaurs became extinct, Dad co