Picture Book Picks: What Caught My Youngster’s Eye in March

My pre-kindergarten child has different interests than an average youngster. He prefers nonfiction books to fiction, and generally chooses adult books about historical figures when at the library. Obviously, this makes working on his reading skills a little difficult (he can read words like “constitution” and “liberty” on sight, but struggles with “form” vs. “from”, for example, and the font is quite a bit smaller in adult books). I would never tell him not to read the books that interest him, but I am also trying to push a picture book or easy reader here and there. Here are a few picture books that caught his attention this month!

Nobody Likes a Goblin by Ben Hatke

Nobody Likes a Goblin is adorable. It was a win for my youngest, and I enjoyed it too. The imagination of the storyline, combined with the charming illustrations, kept him entertained. He happily read it to his dad and then to me afterward. The text is simple enough that an early reader can sound out the words and grow their vocabulary, which is a major plus. Nobody Likes a Goblin was a great choice for this geeky household.

Everybody’s Favorite Book by Mike Allegra, Illustrated by Claire Almon

This one had mixed reactions. My youngest enjoyed the pictures, but seemed a little less interested in the story itself. The way some of the text was set up confused him, as far as which part he should read first. He did laugh at some of the shenanigans that ensued, though. Personally, I was happy that he only wanted to read it once. It was cute, but I felt it was a little abrupt in its ending.

Mustache Duckstache by Amy Young, Illustrated by A.J. Young

Mustache Duckstache was just plain cute. There’s a facial hair competition between a bunch of animals (because why not?), with moostaches and duckstaches galore. There wasn’t a lot in the way of wording, so my youngest didn’t get much reading practice in, but so what? He thoroughly enjoyed the book, which I think makes it a win.

The Duckling Gets a Cookie? By Mo Willems

One of the many titles in the hilarious and adorable Pigeon series, my youngest and I had a great time cuddling up and reading this together. The words are simple, and the story is funny. One thing that I love about this is that it teaches about exclamation marks vs. other punctuation without being obnoxious about it. My youngest loved yelling the parts that were bolded with exclamation marks added. He’s developing his own “reader voice”, which is a blast to hear.

Go, Dog, Go! by P.D. Eastman

I have fond memories of Go, Dog, Go! from my own childhood. Watching my youngest read it was a lot of fun. There aren’t too many new words presented at once, and the vocabulary used is repeated several times throughout the book, helping those sight words stick. The illustrations are fun, and my youngest has read this many times.

It’s exciting to see my youngest mixing it up a little, and reading both nonfiction and fiction. I’m curious to see what catches his eye next. Have you read any of these with your children? What are some of their favorites?