Donald J. Sobol first introduced readers to the child detective way back in 1963, with the publication of Encyclopedia Brown, Boy Detective.  Not only does this classic mystery series continue to delight kids almost fifty years later, but parents love seeing their kids pore over the same mysteries they read as a kid.

To commemorate Mr. Sobol’s wonderful contribution to childhood literacy and the love of reading he inspired in his legions of young fans, we are offering the Encyclopedia Brown, Boy Detective Gift Basket at a special price until the end of July.

We also had a little fun putting this Encyclopedia Brown quiz together for young and old fans alike of the boy detective.  Try our quiz below and test how well you remember the world of Encyclopedia Brown!

As published by By Heart Books - children's books, children's gifts and loot bags

In fairness to kids, summer reading SHOULD be fun, and never treated as a chore. Kids have earned their break from school, so try to encourage reading as a voluntary leisure activity. For all children, and reluctant readers especially, it’s critical that they have access to reading material that they find enjoy reading. Heck, even the back of a cereal box, text in a colouring book or comic book apps on your iPhone are worthwhile! It doesn’t need to be great literature; it just needs to be interesting, written, and age appropriate. And remember there’s truth in the old adage “Monkey see, monkey do”… when children see that you find reading to be an enjoyable leisure activity, they’re likely to view it as such as well.

With that in mind, we’re thrilled to introduce our new series of summer reads for kids, called “Summertime Reading Stacks”. We have created inviting bundles of 2-3 classic books that we know have huge kid appeal and categorized them by age/interest – they’re great books to read under a tree at the cottage, or snuggled up on the couch on a rainy summer day.  (Equally fun for a family to read aloud, too.)  Our Summertime Reading Stacks come stacked and bound with a gorgeous ribbon, a cool bookmark and an oversized lollipop, along with a gift card that you can personalize for the lucky recipient. It’s the perfect gift to set the tone for a summer filled with sunshine, fun activities, and good books to boot!

We also love this closet-turned-book-nook, as spotted on thriftydecorchick.blogspot.ca.

Another great way to get kids reading voluntarily is by making sure they have somewhere comfy and special to curl up.  While some kids wouldn’t be distracted by a hurricane while engrossed in Captain Underpants, others may need an area of their own with minimal distractions to really lose themselves in a book.  We love the idea of creating kid-friendly reading spaces around the house.  In an awesome display of creativity (and space utilization!), Sarah at Thrifty Decor Chick turned her closet into a child’s cozy book nook as shown in the picture on the right.

But it doesn’t need to be that fancy, either.  One of our favourite stories about encouraging summertime reading comes from a mom we know. As the school year ended, as a congratulatory gift for passing grade 2, she offered to set her son up with a special reading nook all of his own. He picked a spot (happened to be the corner of their living room jammed between the couch and the wall, but hey – it worked for him), and she hooked him up with a headlamp, a throw blanket and a couple of pillows for the floor that he picked out, along with a new book to kick off the summer. He took to it immediately, and it wasn’t unusual to find him tucked in there after dinner reading or colouring.  Whether it’s indoors or outdoors, at the cottage or at home, consider helping your kids create a special spot of their own to lose themselves in a good book!

Do you have any other great ideas to get kids reading over the summer?  If so, please share in the comments section below!

As published by By Heart Books - children's books, children's gifts and loot bags

And for the folks who haven’t had the pleasure of reading Douglas Adams yet, you may be asking “Why a towel?”  Well, it has particular meaning to all fans of Adams’ not-really-a-trilogy trilogy, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.   To quote the first book: 

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy has a few things to say on the subject of towels.
A towel, it says, is about the most massively useful thing an interstellar hitchhiker can have. Partly it has great practical value – you can wrap it around you for warmth as you bound across the cold moons of Jaglan Beta; you can lie on it on the brilliant marble-sanded beaches of Santraginus V, inhaling the heady sea vapours; you can sleep under it beneath the stars which shine so redly on the desert world of Kakrafoon; use it to sail a mini raft down the slow heavy river Moth; wet it for use in hand-to- hand-combat; wrap it round your head to ward off noxious fumes or to avoid the gaze of the Ravenous Bugblatter Beast of Traal (a mindboggingly stupid animal, it assumes that if you can’t see it, it can’t see you – daft as a brush, but very very ravenous); you can wave your towel in emergencies as a distress signal, and of course dry yourself off with it if it still seems to be clean enough.
More importantly, a towel has immense psychological value. For some reason, if a strag (strag: non-hitchhiker) discovers that a hitchhiker has his towel with him, he will automatically assume that he is also in possession of a toothbrush, face flannel, soap, tin of biscuits, flask, compass, map, ball of string, gnat spray, wet weather gear, space suit etc., etc. Furthermore, the strag will then happily lend the hitchhiker any of these or a dozen other items that the hitchhiker might accidentally have “lost”. What the strag will think is that any man who can hitch the length and breadth of the galaxy, rough it, slum it, struggle against terrible odds, win through, and still knows where his towel is is clearly a man to be reckoned with.“

Just that excerpt alone should be enough to win over any person lucky enough to be reading Douglas Adams for the first time.  :)

We offer a fun gift to introduce newbies to Arthur Dent’s hilarious odyssey through space.  The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy Towel Gift Set contains the “trilogy” of the first four Hitchhiker’s books all in one lovely volume, along with an embroidered towel that says Don’t Panic.  After all, who doesn’t want to be a hoopy frood who really knows where his towel is?

On a personal level, when I was a kid The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy was a huge favourite with my family across multiple media platforms.  In fact ,the British TV series kicked off my love affair with the BBC.  I think I was only around 7 or 8 the first time I saw it aired in Canada so I didn’t catch all of the humour, but I do remember giggling over the whale / bowl of petunias animation sequence.  And a few years later, after I read the books, I was thrilled to catch the series on TV again and find that it was even funnier than I remembered.  If you haven’t seen the original six-part series before, it’s worth hunting down.  In fact, you can order it from the BBC Canada store for around $20 last I checked.  (And don’t be put off if you happened to see the hideous movie a few years back; I promise the TV series is far, far better.)  It’s a great series to watch with the entire family.

Besides the introduction to the BBC, the Hitchhiker’s Guide was also one of the first video games I played in DOS.  It was an interactive game following the novel where you typed your commands to make events move along, like a Choose Your Own Adventure but where you made up the turn-to-page-x choices.  (At one point, you actually did have to put your towel on your head to fool the Ravenous Bugblatter Beast of Traal!)  As I recall, it was a very complex game – and there weren’t any hints.  Even though we knew the books inside and out, my brother and I could never get by the part where you played as different characters.  Felt like we were caught in an infinite loop with Zaphod on the speedboat.  (Our frustration would have tickled Adams greatly, I’m sure.)  If anyone can find a working copy of that game for computers these days, let me know – I’d love to see if 20 years later, I can finish the darn thing!

Finally, for those of you who are over the legal drinking age, why not mix yourself up the (debatably) best drink in the universe: a Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster?  Be careful it doesn’t sneak up on you, though, because according to the Guide, the effect of drinking a Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster “is like having your brains smashed out by a slice of lemon wrapped around a large gold brick”.

1 oz Jack Daniel’s® Tennessee whiskey
1 oz peach schnapps
4 – 6 oz orange juice
1 splash Blue Curacao liqueur

Shake the orange juice, the Jack and the peach schnapps in a shaker 3/4 full with ice cubes. When it’s chilled, strain into the highball glass and drizzle some of the blue Curacao liqueur over the top of it. Add a citrus twist (and, bizarrely, an olive if you’re a DNA purist), sit back and be prepared to have your brain smashed out by gold bricks, lemons and allsorts.

Douglas Adams never did give a recipe for the drink in his books, but we found the above recipe online courtesy of drinksmixer.com.  And since it’s the official recipe used by the legendary club Zaphod Beeblebrox in Ottawa (wicked fun club, btw – great live music!), we’re going to believe that this is the drink as Zaphod invented it.  Plus, it’s delicious.

So on May 25th, wave your towel, knock back a Pan Galactic Gargle Blaster, and toast Douglas Adams – his wit, humour and sheer love of all things silly should be celebrated!

As published by By Heart Books - children's books, children's gifts and loot bags

It’s a simple story, but one that resonates with children.  Why do you think that is?  Do children love the story simply because they identify with Harry’s bath avoidance techniques, or do they take comfort in the underlying message of family acceptance no matter how badly you mess up?  From a personal level, I just remember loving the pictures as a kid.  But I may not have been particularly deep – let’s hear your comments below as to why you or your children loved the book!

For those of you with a little one in your life who hasn’t had the pleasure of meeting Harry yet, we have a wonderful Harry the Dirty Dog gift basket with the 50th anniversary board book as well as an award-winning chenille plush Harry.  It’s pretty darn cute and makes a wonderful gift for a preschooler.

Harry the Dirty Dog Activities and Story Time

If you are familiar with the book, here are some fun activities you may want to try with your kids, as well as an embedded video of the estimable Betty White reading the entire book aloud!  (Seriously – Betty White just gets cooler the more you learn about her – she’s an incredibly active animal activist; her energy and passion puts most of us to shame.  And the Screen Actors Guild project affiliated with her reading, Storyline Online, is almost as cool as Betty herself – check it out if you can.)

Harry the Dirty Dog Activity (Preschool) – Make Your Own Dirty Dog

You need:  white construction paper; black crayon; flour; water; brown tempera paint; scissors; comb

Click on this dog outline thumbnail, print onto white construction paper and cut out.

With a black crayon, have your child colour spots on the dog.
Mix a little flour and water together to make a thick, runny paste.  Add some brown tempura paint and mix.

Have your child spread the mix completely over the white construction paper dog, then take a comb and make swirls and lines in the brown paste.  You may want to do this over newspaper!

Let it dry, and the end result is a dirty dog (with discernable spots under the dirt!).

Up the imagination quotient:  When doing this activity, it’s fun to start with two spotted dogs and only apply the paste to one of them.  That way when you’re done, your child is left with one dirty dog and one clean dog – all the better to reenact the story on their own!

Harry the Dirty Dog Activity (Toddler) – Match the Clean Dog with the Dirty Dog!

This one’s pretty simple – click and print the picture on the left (or open it up on screen) and let your child figure out which dirty dog looked like which clean dog before getting into mischief!

Note there is no answer key, for obvious reasons.  :)

A special note: inspiration for both activities was pulled from Early Childhood Teacher Created Materials, Inc. 1989, although modified and updated by By Heart Books.

Enjoy!  And please share your thoughts about Harry below.  Do you remember him?  And if so, why does he stand out for you?

As published by By Heart Books - children's books, children's gifts and loot bags

Countdown of Favourite Female Characters (FFC) in Children’s Literature

#20 – Princess Elizabeth (The Paper Bag Princess, Robert Munsch)

• Princess Elizabeth, aka The Paper Bag Princess, is one of Robert Munsch’s finest creations.  When a dragon smashes her castle, burns her clothes, and flies away with her fiancé, spunky Princess Elizabeth doesn’t miss a beat. Instead, she fashions a dress out of a paper bag (somehow the only thing in the kingdom not burnt – go figure) and follows the dragon’s trail to confront him.  But not only is she clever, determined, and a staunch defender of her prince, she also proves to be NOT blinded by love.  Elizabeth quickly and easily sees through Ronald’s shallow arrogance, and she has the self-respect and the inner strength to skip, not walk, away from him.  We love, love, love this feisty little princess and think she’s a great role model for kids everywhere.

To celebrate Princess Elizabeth, here are some fun Paper Bag Princess activities that you can do with your little ones. (After you’ve read the story together, of course!)

Paper Bag Princess Activities: Dress and Crown

This is incredibly simple, but oh-so-fun for little ones to play dress up.

All you need: one of those large paper bags that you use to collect leaves and yard waste; scissors; crayons / ribbons / glue / etc. – whatever you want to use to decorate the bag.

Cut a hole in the closed end of the bag for a head, and two arms holes in the corners (take care to leave sturdy shoulders).  Cut a jagged border out of the bottom.  Let your child decorate the dress at will with glue, glitter, etc.  In the meantime, measure the jagged strip you cut from the bottom of the dress and glue it in a circle that will fit your child’s head.  Then decorate it as a crown – because if you’re like me, you’re going to want to do crafts alongside the kids.

Easy-peasy and guaranteed to keep your little one entertained for hours… first in fabricating the dress, then in reenacting the story while wearing the dress, then in showing it off to all and sundry!

Paper Bag Princess Activities: Maze and Word Search

If your child’s a little older, you can also print off these fun puzzles that we have created with the Paper Bag Princess in mind.  (To print, just click on the puzzle.  It will open the image in a new window, and then you can print them individually.)

Paper Bag Princess Activities: Dragon Braggin’

This is a simple little activity that doesn’t need any props; just an imagination!  In the book, Elizabeth gushes about the dragon’s abilities and asks him to show them off.  Ask your child  to show off too.  Get him to pretend to be the dragon and fill in the blanks of the following sentences:

• With my fiery breath, I would:
• With my wings, I would fly to:
• I am so smart that I can:
• I am so fast that I can:
• I am so fierce that I can:
• I am so hungry that I could eat:

You get the drift.  Have fun with it – maybe answer some yourself to get the ball rolling.  Depending on the age of your child, you might get some funny answers… but never wrong answers!

The Paper Bag Princess Book Gift Sets

And finally, if you know a child who doesn’t have a copy of The Paper Bag Princess, then your next gift is a cinch (and sure to be a hit!). We offer Robert Munsch’s classic book paired with a gorgeous slinky dragon with shiny wings, and we even have a deluxe version that includes a castle – great gifts sure to stimulate imaginations!  (For bilingual party-goers, we are also pleased to offer a French loot bag: La princesse dans un sac.)

As published by By Heart Books - children's books, children's gifts and loot bags

Based on previous revelry, I can pretty much guarantee that one of the songs that will be covered at pubs across the country on Saturday is The Unicorn by The Irish Rovers.  And that got me thinking about one of my favourite poets, Shel Silverstein.

Shel Silverstein is the renowned author-illustrator of children’s poetry – we love his work so much, we built gifts around his classic book The Giving Tree and his wonderful poetry collection Where the Sidewalk Ends.  But did you also know that Silverstein was a renowned songwriter as well, writing songs for himself as well as for others?

Here are some examples of his songs that were subsequently made famous by other musicians:

The Unicorn by The Irish Rovers

A Boy Named Sue by Johnny Cash (he even won a Grammy in 1970 for writing this!)

Cover of The Rolling Stone by Dr. Hook and the Medicine Show (in fact, he wrote all of their biggest hits, including Sylvia’s Mother and Freakin’ at the Freakers Ball, and my personal favourite Roland the Roadie and Gertrude the Groupie)

All classics, all family favourites.  Not only did Shel have a huge influence on our childhood with his poetry, but his songs remain a huge part of the music playlist my dad insists on playing up at the cottage every summer.  Now that’s some serious cultural influence.

So this St. Patrick’s Day, when your local Irish cover band launches into a rousing, crowd-pleasing rendition of The Unicorn, raise a green pint to Shel Silverstein!

(And if you can’t make it to a pub, you can pretend by watching this.)

As published by By Heart Books - children's books, children's gifts and loot bags

So if your kid hasn’t read The Hunger Games, then we strongly recommend that you encourage them to do so.  For kids from about 12 and up, Katniss Everdeen and the plight of District 12 is a story that will get even the most reluctant readers riveted and engaged.  Check out our Hunger Games gift basket if you want to really impress your teen!  (Or frankly, your spouse.  I first read The Hunger Games trilogy in Jamaica last winter, and my husband still wishes I hadn’t started it until we got home.  Poor guy spent a LOT of time splashing around on his own while I had my nose buried in a book.  New rule is I can only bring non-riveting novels on vacation.  But I digress.)

If your teen HAS read The Hunger Games and loved it, then you may be casting around for some more novels along the same lines.  Here’s a handful of books you may want to consider – some oldies, some new, some considered young adult, some not – but we think at least a few of them should intrigue anyone who enjoyed The Hunger Games.  And if you can think of any more, please – comment below!!!

1. The Giver by Lois Lowry (grades 6+, pub. 1993).  Thinking about how Jonas’s father was just fine with the role he played as Nurturer still gives me the shivers.

2. The Chrysalids by John Wyndham (grades 9+, pub. 1955).  Absolutely riveting.  The Day of the Triffids by Wyndham is also great, but I chose The Chrysalids because it’s set in a post-apocalyptic Labrador (love those Canada sightings!) and I think the characters have more teen appeal.

3. 1984 by George Orwell (grades 9+, pub. 1950). As they read this classic about a totalitarian regime, watch as your teens clue in to why their favourite summer reality TV show is called Big Brother.

4. The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood (grades 11+, pub. 1985).  To add insult to injury, if I lived in Atwood’s horrific Republic of Gilead, my name would be Oflogan.

5. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley (grades 9+, pub. 1932).  Still feels incredibly relevant 80 years later.  And it is kind of sad-funny that there is still an ongoing movement to ban this book in certain school boards, given books are banned in the book…

6. Uglies by Scott Westerfield (grades 6+, pub. 2005). Only read this one recently, but I can totally see why this series would appeal to teen girls.  Kind of like if Orwell wrote an episode of Gossip Girl…

7.  Divergent by Veronica Roth (grades 9+, pub. 2011). Imagine if the Sorting Hat in Harry Potter put kids through massive initiations to get into a specific house.

8. The Maze Runner by James Dashner (grades 6+, pub. 2009).  Every time the WICKED force was referenced, my mind flashed back to THRUSH and seeing reruns of The Man From U.N.C.L.E. as a kid.  Darn all caps.  (Great read, though!)

9.  Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro (grades 9+, pub. 2005).  Usually books about boarding schools made me wish I’d went to one as a kid.  Not Hailsham, though!

10. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury (grades 9+, pub. 1953). Remind me not to let any firemen near our store’s inventory.  Kidding.  It’s not a long book, but it’s a great one – Bradbury’s prophetic story should hit home with thoughtful teens.

11. Unwind by Neil Shusterman (grades 7+, pub. 2007).  In all honesty, we can’t really blame Connor for not wanting to have his organs removed.

12. Lord of the Flies by William Golding (grades 9+, pub. 1954).  Reading this as a kid is probably the biggest reason I still make sure I wear my glasses instead of contacts when flying.  Never know when you’ll need to start a fire, after all.

As published by By Heart Books - children's books, children's gifts and loot bags

We already had a plant-a-tree gift set built around The Lorax but, by popular request, we have now added The Lorax loot bags in standard and deluxe versions. To mark the addition of these themed loot bags, here are some The Lorax birthday party ideas we would like to share with you:

The Lorax Cake Ideas

Feeling ambitious? Bakerella has three awesome Lorax cake pop recipes posted – The Lorax, Bar-ba-loots, and Truffula Trees – and they are up to her usual amazing standards. If you’re doing cake pops, remember to at least stick a candle in a cupcake or a cake pop so that the birthday kid has something to blow out… after all, they have to make their annual wish!

But if you’re not feeling creative or particularly bake-ish, there are likely some very talented bakers in your neck of the woods – save yourself some effort and order a Lorax theme cake from a local cake artisan.  For instance, if you’re in the GTA / Durham Region, I would strongly recommend Honey Bee Cake Creations – Melissa does beautiful work and has a huge following of happy customers in Oshawa. (For other bakers or cake enthusiasts, please feel free to post links to images of your Lorax cakes in the comments below – just make sure you include your city and the creator’s website and/or contact information!)

The Lorax Loot Bags

We want to make your life easier. Assembling loot bags can be time consuming and expensive, especially if you want to avoid cheap trinkets or candy – so we focus on reasonably priced, high quality items that both parents and kids will love. By Heart Books offers standard and deluxe The Lorax loot bag alternatives that are suitable for kids aged 3-8.  The standard version includes a Lorax activity book and a twig pencil, and our deluxe version adds a tiny terrarium in keeping with the environmental theme!  Both are tied with raffia ribbon and include a writable bookmark as a tag that the birthday child can fill in with each guest’s name.

The Lorax Birthday Party Ideas, Games and Snacks (Home-Based)

Home birthday parties for kids can be tons of fun without breaking the bank, and it’s a lot easier to plan out activities when you have a theme – so run with The Lorax!

• BAR-BA-LOOTS AND HUMMING-FISH SNACKS: Put out bowls of teddy grahams and mini marshmallows to represent Bar-ba-loots and white Truffula Tree Fruit, while orange goldfish crackers in a blue bowl can represent Humming-Fish. For fun, include a little card or label on the dishes identifying them with their Lorax alter-egos – it will transform them for the kids. Such a nice change from chips or cheezies, and so simple! (Thanks to Marie LeBaron for this snack inspiration and the craft idea below!)

• STORY TELLING: For kids aged 3-7, warm them up to the theme by taking 20 minutes at the start for story telling. Sit the kids down in a circle with snacks and read them The Lorax. The key is to be as animated and entertaining as possible, so if you’re not comfortable being over the top, enlist help. Even if kids have heard the story before, no matter – it’s worth re-reading with flair!

• THE LORAX MEMORY GAME: One of our favourite party games for kids is the Memory game, and it’s easy to put a Lorax twist on it. Put at least double the number of items to kids on a tray or table and cover it with a cloth. Once all the kids are circled around the objects, remove the cloth for a minute and tell the kids to memorize the objects. When the minute’s up, replace the cloth.  Have the kids draw numbers.  In order, ask each child to name one object on the tray within a set time limit (say 10 seconds). When a kid can’t name a new object, they are out of the game. The game continues until either all items are named or there is only one kid left – any children left standing are winners. To “Lorax” it up, include a variety of nature and environmental items: a stone, a twig, a recycle symbol cut from a box, a sparkly pompom to give a feel of a truffula tree, a gardening shovel, a seed packet, different leaves, etc.

• THE LORAX BROKEN TELEPHONE: Sit the kids down in a circle or line and have an adult whisper a phrase into a child’s ear.   At least for the first round, pick a phrase from The Lorax without telling the kids – for instance, “You’re in charge of the last of the Truffula Seeds!”  That first child then whispers the phrase into the ear of the next kid and so on. When it gets to the last child, he or she repeats the phrase out loud. This game can have some pretty funny endings, especially if you choose some of the crazier Dr. Seuss phrases!

• THE LORAX PASS A PARCEL: One of my favourite children’s party games, and it’s a lot easier to play anywhere now that everyone has iPods! Wrap a parcel in at least as many layers of gift wrap as there are kids at the party (we like to do at least 1.5x). Use old newspapers or recycled kraft paper – the theme IS The Lorax, after all! Sit the kids in a circle and give the gift to the birthday child. Start the music. The kids pass the parcel around the circle as long as the music continues. When it stops, the kid holding the parcel unwraps one layer. Repeat until the final layer is unwrapped and the prize is revealed. Here’s a fabulous make-ahead craft idea from Marie LeBaron that you can use as a prize – a Speak For The Trees framed picture. (Hot Potato Variation: Kids pass around a present (only needs to be wrapped once) while music plays and whoever’s holding it when the music stops, they’re out. Be forewarned, though – if you’re using the above craft for your item, wrap it in newspaper in a box… because odds are the “hot potato” will get thrown around and dropped in panic!)

The Lorax Movie Party

If Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax happens to be in theatres for when you are planning the party, then you have the option to take the kids to see the movie. Many theatres these days have fairly comprehensive packages for birthday parties, provided you meet the minimum number of kids. I scoped out a couple party options in Oshawa to get a sense of pricing. As of February 2012, to take 8 kids to the Cineplex Odeon near me, a party package for $119 gets you a party room for an hour, movie admissions, popcorn and drinks for 8 kids, and reserved seating for the group. ($133 gets you food served in the party room.) You supply your own cake and loot bags.

Kids love a movie outing, it’s a fun (albeit pricey) venue for a large group, and by the time you see the movie, have cake and open presents, the parents will likely be there to pick them up… and ta-da!  You’re done for another year!

Any other great Lorax themed party ideas you can share?  And if you saw it, what’d you think of the movie?  We’d love to hear your comments below!

UPDATE APRIL 3, 2012 – One of our happy customers in Toronto sent us a picture from her son’s The Lorax-themed birthday party (thanks, Karen!).  The adorable cake and cookies were made by Yummy Stuff (http://www.yummystuff.ca/), and of course the loot bags are the By Heart Books deluxe Lorax loot bags!

As published by By Heart Books - children's books, children's gifts and loot bags

That quote is from the lovely poem Read To Your Bunny by Rosemary Wells, and we couldn’t agree with her more.  Parents and other adults have an enormous influence on whether or not children become avid readers, and it is up to us to foster a love of reading in today’s children.

So with that in mind, here are some of our favourite tips to get kids to read for fun and enjoyment.

KIDS LEARN BY EXAMPLE.  And who do they look up to the most?  You!  Let your children see you reading.  Books, newspapers, magazines… it doesn’t matter, just as long as they perceive that you value the act of reading and that you enjoy it.

READ WITH YOUR CHILD EVERY SINGLE DAY.  Whether they’re babies, toddlers or in school, it is always the right time to read with your child.  When they are very young, it is critical that they see reading as a fun activity, and snuggling each night for storytime is a fantastic foundation to foster a love of reading.  (Before story time, you may want to have very young children sing, move or dance to get out the “fidgets” prior to settling down.)  As they get older, let them start to read aloud to you so you can encourage and praise their reading… but continue to read to them as well.  A nightly chapter from books like The Hobbit or The Wonderful Wizard of Oz can be a lovely, quiet family activity before bed – everyone will snuggle down to listen!  The rule of thumb is to always read aloud above a child’s reading level so that they get exposure to new vocabulary and ideas.

IT DOESN’T ALWAYS NEED TO BE SHAKESPEARE.  Don’t get hung up on whether or not the book a child is reading is a “good” book.  As long as the content is age appropriate, then the important thing is that a child is reading and learning those essential comprehension skills.  Comics, backs of cereal boxes, teen magazines… it’s all good!

BUILD A LIBRARY OVER TIME… AND USE THE LOCAL LIBRARY TOO.  Give good books as presents and treats for special occasions, and children will fill their library with a selection of meaningful books over time.  In the meantime, make sure both you and your children have library cards!  Not only do local libraries offer wonderful reading programmes, but to save money, nothing beats borrowing books from the local library.  The huge selection will expose your children to a variety of genres; encourage them to explore different books and topics.  After all, when you borrow a book from a library, it doesn’t matter if it turns out you don’t like it… you just return it and pick another one!  As your children learn more about what they do and don’t like, you will be able to find just the right book as a present for that special occasion and the gift will be appreciated and meaningful.

HOW TO CHOOSE BOOKS FOR KIDS TOO YOUNG TO PICK THEIR OWN:  For infants, your cadence and tone during read aloud sessions are far more important than the book selection itself.  Even reading the newspaper aloud to them can be as soothing as a lullaby.  
As the child ages, start choosing more colourful, tactile books – think The Very Hungry Caterpillar or Pat the Bunny – so that they can participate with their eyes and their fingers while you read.
By about 6 months, start pointing out and emphasizing different objects in the pictures as you read aloud. Richard Scarry word books are great fun at this age.  
 Toddlers love to mimic and anticipate what is coming next.   Incorporate sound effects and exaggerate words, and look for books with repetition. Sandra Boynton, Lynley Dodd… there are countless authors who have proven that they know what appeals to this age group and can hold their attention.

And finally, CELEBRATE READING!  If you have the chance, take your family to The Word on the Street festival.  There is always plenty to see and do at Canada’s largest book and magazine festival, and best of all, The Word On The Street and all of its events are FREE!   Every year, The Word On The Street aims to have lots of family-fun activities at the festival… there is really something for everyone at this wonderful event.  This year, the festival takes place across Canada on Sunday, September 23, 2012, in Vancouver, Lethbridge, Saskatoon, Kitchener, Toronto and Halifax.  Join the fun and make it an annual family celebration!

As published by By Heart Books - children's books, children's gifts and loot bags

I recently reread Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder.  It was probably the first time I’ve read it in over two decades, although I read all the Little House books multiple times as a kid.   And in reading it with a more critical, adult eye, I gained an enormous appreciation for what a fantastic job Laura Ingalls Wilder does in writing from the perspective of “Laura-at-age-x” throughout the book.  I think that was why Laura’s story became very personal to me as a kid, even if I was growing up in Ontario in the 1980s and she was a pioneer girl from Wisconsin in the 1870s.

For instance, do you remember the chapter in Little House in the Big Woods  when Laura and Mary go into town for the very first time in their lives?  Coming from their homestead in the woods, where there are no other houses or roads, Laura is struck completely dumb by the concept of a town.  So when they go into the store and meet the shopkeeper, Laura is overcome by shyness.

Mary said, “How do you do?” but Laura could not say anything.

The storekeeper said to Pa and Ma, “That’s a pretty little girl you’ve got there,” and he admired Mary’s golden curls.  But he did not say anything about Laura, or about her curls.  They were ugly and brown.”

When I was younger, I was absolutely infuriated by the storekeeper commenting on Mary’s beautiful blonde hair in front of Laura.  I thought that the storekeeper was a despicable man who thought Laura was ugly.  But upon rereading as an adult, I realized he likely was just trying to be kind by not talking to Laura directly and making her even more uncomfortable.  And I was also startled to realize that it was never the storekeeper who called Laura’s curls brown and ugly… it was Laura herself.   Laura Ingalls Wilder wrote what she felt from her child’s perspective, and did it extraordinarily well.  Because with that short passage, six-year-old, brown-curly-haired me was completely on her side.

Once the Ingalls were finished their shopping, the storekeeper gave Mary and Laura each a piece of candy.

After that they went out of the store.  Both pieces of candy were white, and flat and thin and heart-shaped.  There was printing on them, in red letters.  Ma read it for them.  Mary’s said:

“Roses are red
Violets are blue,
Sugar is sweet,
And so are you.”

Laura’s said only:
“Sweets to the sweet.”

The pieces of candy were exactly the same size.  Laura’s printing was larger than Mary’s.”

Mary’s candy was way better!!!  The injustice!!!!  At age six, I thought that the shopkeeper was completely out of line.  But as an adult, I realize the poor guy probably just pulled a couple pieces of candy from the barrel and handed them to the girls.  How could he possibly have known that over a century later, kids would still be fuming that Laura got a one-lined candy versus Mary’s verse?  But things like verses on candies are details that would be important to a child, not to an adult.  Laura Ingalls knew that, and wrote about what she remembered being critical from her perspective at the time of the incident, which was when she was four years old.

A child really internalizes what they read.  In writing her books, Laura makes it easy for kids to form a connection by letting them see the world as she did.  She doesn’t romanticize the family, either – remember how every now and then a little sibling rivalry with Mary would peep through?  No wonder – Mary was a pretty tough act to follow in the manners department.  This passage from Little House on the Prairie was a good example:

Laura stirred her beads with her finger and watched them sparkle and shine.  ”These are mine,” she said.

Then Mary said, “Carrie can have mine.”

Ma waited to hear what Laura would say.  Laura didn’t want to say anything.  She wanted to keep those pretty beads.  Her chest felt all hot inside, and she wished with all her might that Mary wouldn’t always be such a good little girl.  But she couldn’t let Mary be better than she was.

So she said, slowly, “Carrie can have mine, too.”

The entire series is written like that – they’re not just books about pioneers, they’re books about pioneer life from the perspective of a child in the midst of it, not from an adult narrator.  And the writing style changes; as Laura’s character ages, the writing becomes more sophisticated and the sentences grow longer.  By the time you reach These Happy Golden Years, Laura is a young woman.  You are experiencing the changes both in Laura and in the world around her at the same time as Laura as she grows up.  And that’s why I think the Little House books, which have already been popular with generations of children, will remain beloved for years to come.

If you would like to share some of the Laura Ingalls Wilder magic with your little ones, or if you would like to reread the series yourself, we have a number of gift sets related to the Little House books.

Happy reading!

PS:  Vacation tips!  If you love the Little House books and you are planning a vacation any time soon, here are a couple wonderful family destinations:

Canada:  If you’re vacationing in eastern Ontario, we strongly recommend you take time to swing by Upper Canada Village in Morrisburg, Ontario.  Touring Upper Canada Village will transport your family back in time and allow you to experience daily life in a small village in the 1860s. While Laura grew up in the U.S., this Canadian pioneer experience is very similar to the village life Laura describes in the books, and it will make a happy vacation for any Little House fan.

U.S.:  It goes without saying – if you happen to be planning a vacation in South Dakota, then you must plan a stop in De Smet.  How cool would it be to check the original Ingalls Homestead, the house that Pa built, the original Surveyors’ House from By the Shores of Silver Lake, Big Slough and Silver Lake?

Both sites offer camping experiences and tours that will make your family vacation truly fun, memorable, and educational all at once!

As published by By Heart Books - children's books, children's gifts and loot bags