I have a confession to make – I love picture books! I have been known to check out picture books from the Library, even during times without young children or grandchildren in my life. Most book lovers can trace their love of reading back to the pages of picture books.
In addition to helping develop a love of reading, comfort can be found within the pages of books in the form of bibliotherapy*. For children, picture books can help them to make sense of a confusing and sometimes scary world. The right books can help nurture tolerance, acceptance, and understanding.
The Library has a great collection of picture books.
Summary: “Aria loves her soft and bouncy hair, but must go to extremes to avoid people who touch it without permission until, finally, she speaks up. Includes author's note.”
Great book for opening up discussions about respecting personal space and boundaries, as well as race.
Splat the Cat by Rob ScottonSummary: “A nervous Splat finds his first day at Cat School much better than he expected.”
Is it just me or do we ever really outgrow the curious mixture of excitement and anxiety about the first day of school?
Summary: “Ian, who is autistic, takes a walk with his sisters and demonstrates how he sees, hears, smells, and tastes things differently.”
Great selection to foster understanding and open discussions about differences. This book features beautiful, realistic illustrations.
With over 1,000 picture books in the Library collection, there is sure to be something to share with you children, grandchildren, or to read on your own. If you are not convinced about the joys of reading picture books, the Library has books to help convince you otherwise. Happy reading!
Summary: "An irresistible, nostalgic, and insightful--and totally original--ramble through classic children's literature from Vanity Fair contributing editor (and father) Bruce Handy. In 1690, the dour New England Primer, thought to be the first American children's book, was published in Boston. Offering children gems of advice such as "Strive to learn" and "Be not a dunce," it was no fun at all. So how did we get from there to "Let the wild rumpus start"? And now that we're living in a golden age of children's literature, what can adults get out of reading Where the Wild Things Are and Goodnight Moon, or Charlotte's Web and Little House on the Prairie? In Wild Things, Vanity Fair contributing editor Bruce Handy revisits the classics of every American childhood, from fairy tales to The Very Hungry Caterpillar, and explores the back stories of their creators, using context and biography to understand how some of the most insightful, creative, and witty authors and illustrators of their times created their often deeply personal masterpieces. Along the way, Handy learns what The Cat in the Hat says about anarchy and absentee parenting, which themes are shared by The Runaway Bunny and Portnoy's Complaint, and why Ramona Quimby is as true an American icon as Tom Sawyer or Jay Gatsby. It's a profound, eye-opening experience to reencounter books that you once treasured after decades apart. A clear-eyed love letter to the greatest children's books and authors from Louisa May Alcott and L. Frank Baum to Eric Carle, Dr. Seuss, Mildred D. Taylor, and E.B. White, Wild Things will bring back fond memories for readers of all ages, along with a few surprises"-- Provided by publisher.
*According to the 1993 edition of The New Shorter Oxford English Dictionary, “bibliotherapy n.[is] the use of reading matter for therapeutic purposes.”
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