Wuthering Heights: A Weather Primer

By Jennifer Adams
Illustrated by Alison Oliver

This is actually a really great book about the weather.  Each page shows exactly the same scene with slight changes.  My daughter likes to point to all the changes, even the shifting colours on the castle.

The descriptive word is in big letters.  These were great!  My daughter loved to point to the letters and yell at me until I told her what they were.  It was trying.  But she learned a lot of letters!

I still haven't read the quotes to her, because they're still a bit much.  But I like teach her synonyms for the descriptive words, and we like to make weather related sound effects as we read.


Our copy is covered in food and chew marks.  It's been well loved.

Peepo!

 By Janet and Allan Ahlberg

This is an adorable book.  It has metered rhyme - good rhymes and working rhythm- and gorgeous pictures.

The peep-hole first shows what the baby sees, then as you flip it, it frames the baby on the opposite page.

 If you like, you can get the American version titled "Peek-a-boo!"  You know, if you want me to roll my eyes at you.










The details in each room are fantastic.  Many people consider this to be the ultimate baby book, and it's a fair assessment.  This is a delightful read for babies as well as parents.

First Prayers

 These are uncredited.  Some of them are traditional prayers, some are nursery rhymes, and the rest are vague rhymes about God written specifically for the book.

This is a Catholic book because it contains the Hail Mary and the Guardian Angel Prayer.

It has a fun handle on it and some cut-out pages, so the kids like it.

It's a pretty good read.  It's a nice way to say prayers with a toddler who REFUSES to say prayers.  I like to sing the Our Father with the melody we use at mass.  That song's a big hit at bedtime.

The pictures aren't special.  The prayers written specifically for the book are dreadful.  But they're short, so whatever.

Wherever You Are, my Love Will Find You

 By Nancy Tillman

Drivel.


This is another book leaning on the popularity of a previous installment.  Unfortunately, though "On the Night You Were Born" was a best seller, it was also drivel.

 No baby cares about sentimental crap.  These are things a baby or toddler might be interested in:

1. Story about a cat
2. Pictures of baby faces
3. Story with animal or vehicle sounds
4. Flaps or cut outs

This book has none of the above.

Instead it has offensive art, inspirational messages, uneven meter and forced rhyming.

The sentimentality is meant to appeal to emotional gift givers.  It looks like it could be a good book for babies, which is enough to make it a commercial success.

Cozy Classics: Pride and Prejudice

This is a pretty popular book for baby showers.  It's really meant for the parents.

Each page is a scene from the novel (*cough* film adaptation *cough*) done in adorable felt figures accompanied by a single word for baby to learn.

The words are mostly a little abstract.  One page is "Friends" for instance, and the next is "Sisters".  My daughter, at 2 years, knows what a friend is, but is a little confused by the concept of sisters because she doesn't have any.  And while I keep insisting that her aunts are all sisters, that just makes the whole thing even more confusing.





Probably the biggest problem is the polygamous marriage at the end of the book.  Yes, I know that they don't all end up married to eachother, but try explaining that to a toddler who doesn't even understand what marriage or weddings are.

This book wasn't purchased for my kids, it was purchased for me.  And I love it.  And we still read it with the kids.  The pictures are so adorable, and it's way more enjoyable to read than any of those utilitarian stock photo baby books.