A book gift guide 🎁 for readers 10 and under
Notes From the Reading Nook: November 14
Hello, hello!
Since you are subscribed to this newsletter about books and reading, we can probably agree that books make wonderful, lasting gifts for children of all ages.
I’ve got you covered here from newborns all the way to 10 years old, and I hope you find a gift (or two or twelve) here for the kiddos in your life.
At the bottom of every section, I’ve included:
Another recommendation
A poetry pick
A link to find more titles for the age group — this takes you to my Bookshop.org storefront, where I’ve compiled heaps of books (even though, yes, I think books for specific ages are irrelevant; nevertheless, I know that’s how people like to categorize things).
Let’s do this!
3-12 months old
Global Babies by The Global Fund for Children
There is nothing babies like more than looking at other babies, and this international collection of adorable little faces — complete with celebratory text that states wherever they are, babies are “beautiful, special, and loved” — will fascinate your own sweet little one. Extra points for being a book grownups can read again and again with pleasure. (Link to purchase)
Baby Play by Skye Silver
This sweet, inclusive book is an easy way to give babies what they want, with page after page of eye-catching black-and-white photos that show babies of all kinds having fun with their loved ones, playing, dancing, building, swinging, splashing, and much more. (Link to purchase — bilingual English/Spanish edition)
Also recommended: I Love You, Sun / I Love You, Moon by Tomie dePaola
Poetry pick: Here’s a Little Poem: A Very First Book of Poetry by Jane Yolen
➡️ Find more recommendations:
12-18 months old
Peekaboo Morning by Rachel Isadora
Would that we could all wake up with the joy and wonderment of the little girl in this book, who greets each day, as well as her beloved people and things in it, with the repeated refrain, “Peekaboo! I see...” The smallest readers will identify with the comfort and fun of this routine, and feel the warmth of familial love and enjoyment of the world radiating from every page. (Link to purchase)
Ten, Nine, Eight by Molly Bang
There’s a reason this book is still in print 40 years after it was published. This tender countdown bedtime story, where a little girl and her father review all the small but wonderful things in her world —“10 small toes all washed and warm, 9 soft friends in a quiet room,” ending with “1 big girl all ready for bed” is as perennially comforting as a soft blanket, and just as welcome at tuck-in time, too. (Link to purchase)
Also recommended: Please, Baby, Please by Spike Lee and Tonya Lewis Lee
Poetry pick: Homemade Love by bell hooks
➡️ Find more recommendations:
2-3 years old
Bee-Bim Bop! by Linda Sue Park
It doesn't get much more fun than the rollicking rhyme of this super playful, fast-paced tale about a little girl and her mother who together shop for, prepare, and serve the traditional Korean dish of bee-bim bop to their loving, multigenerational family. The energy of this one is infectious and it's wildly fun to read aloud. (Link to purchase)
Happy in Our Skin by Fran Manushkin
It’s never too early to celebrate the skin you’re in, and this vibrant, rhyming picture book does exactly that. Emphasizing the fact that “this is how we all begin: small and happy in our skin,” Manushkin’s joyful observance of all different kinds of skin in all different kinds of families and places — on a picnic, in the park, at the pool, at a block party — is a lot of fun for littles to look at and listen to, again and again. (Link to purchase)
Also recommended: My Friends by Taro Gomi
Poetry pick: Digger, Dozer, Dumper by Hope Vestergaard
➡️ Find more recommendations:
4-5 years old
The Circus Ship by Chris Van Dusen
If you're looking for a wildly fun crowd-pleaser — and one you can stand to read on repeat — look no further than this perilous, riotous tale of a ship full of circus animals (overseen by a jerk of a circus boss) who undergo a wreck, arrive in an unsuspecting town in Maine, and then must figure out how survive. What the animals do (and how they blend in — or not), how the townspeople react, and of course, what happens to the villian is a story full of pure pleasure, and not to be missed. (Link to purchase)
Kitchen Dance by Maurie J. Manning
When a small girl wakes in the night to the sound of soft singing coming from the kitchen, she and her big brother tiptoe downstairs to investigate, only to be scooped up into the arms — and the dance — going on between their parents as they clean up for the night. This cheerful snapshot of family fun and togetherness is a warm winner for preschoolers, who are willingly swept into the story (and the song). (Link to purchase)
Also recommended: A Mother for Choco by Keiko Kasza
Poetry pick: The Tale of Custard the Dragon by Ogden Nash
➡️ Find more recommendations:
6-7 years old
Anna Hibiscus by Atinuke
Anna Hibiscus lives in “amazing Africa” with her big, lively family — a Canadian mother, a Nigerian father, twin baby brothers named Double and Trouble, and a huge extended clan, all together in a large compound in a bustling city. The story of Anna's middle-class life — the humorous things that happen, the lessons that she learns — are the subject of four chapters here, each a different, complete story complemented often by line drawings that make this manageable for an emerging reader but also wonderful as a read-aloud. (The best part? When you finish this first in a series, there are seven more!) (Link to purchase)
Mean Margaret by Tor Seidler
What would happen if a horrible toddler escaped her horrible family only to go live in a burrow with two woodchucks, one of whom loves her and wants to adopt her, and the other of whom barely tolerates her, though he tries? This hilarious story — full of one unbelievable happening after another and a supporting cast of various woodland creatures with big personalities (and opinions) of their own — is that tale, not to be missed by any young reader who loves nature and laughing a lot. (Link to purchase)
Also recommended: JoJo Makoons: The Used-to-Be Best Friend by Dawn Quigley
Poetry pick: National Geographic Book of Animal Poetry: 200 Poems with Photographs That Squeak, Soar, and Roar! edited by J. Patrick Lewis
➡️ Find more recommendations:
8-9 years old
Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin
This rollicking adventure story begins when a girl named Minli sets out on a quest to find the Old Man on the Moon and change her family’s fortune. What happens along the way as she encounters many obstacles — told as stories-within-the-story — is a wild tale of magic, friendship, bravery, and smarts that will leave any child on the edge of their seats. Hand this one to your independent readers, but only if you want to miss out on this truly unique and excellent tale (if not, read it aloud and enjoy every minute — and when you're done, seek out the next two titles in the trilogy). (Link to purchase)
Ronia, The Robber’s Daughter by Astrid Lindgren
The inimitable Lindgren created more lovable protagonists than just Pippi Longstocking, and I highly recommend getting to know Ronia. She’s a courageous young girl living in her criminal father’s crumbling castle and exploring the wild woods beyond every chance she gets. When she stumbles upon an intruder her own age — the son of her father’s sworn enemy to boot — things get complicated fast. This adventure story is beautifully written, but it’s the relationships at its heart that will leave you — and your young readers — begging for one more page. (Link to purchase)
Also recommended: Alvin Ho: Allergic to Girls, School, and Other Scary Things by Lenore Look
Poetry pick: The Day the Universe Exploded My Head: Poems to Take You Into Space and Back Again by Allan Wolf
➡️ Find more recommendations:
9-10 years old
Crossing the Pressure Line by Laura Anne Bird
When 12-year-old Clare Burch loses her grandfather under circumstances outside of her control, she feels responsible, and his death sets in motion a series of events that will change her life in more ways than one. This tender, moving middle-grade novel full of relatable personal challenges is as much about resilience as it is grief — a story in which we can all find comfort and strength, no matter our age. (Link to purchase)
Call Me Adnan by Reem Faruqi
Adnan Zakir is pretty happy with his life, full of best friends, an obsession with table tennis, and a wonderful family, including his toddler brother, Rizwan. When they all travel to Florida for the Ultimate Table Tennis Championship, that life shifts abruptly and impossibly when an unthinkable tragedy occurs. This heart-rending novel in verse doesn’t shy away from the deep pain of losing a loved one — and how everything changes — but its honesty is redemptive and beautiful, and written in a way that’s readily accessible for middle-grade readers. (Link to purchase)
Also recommended:
Save Me A Seat by Gita Varadarajan and Sarah Weeks
Poetry pick:
What Are You Glad About? What Are You Mad About? Poems for When a Person Needs a Poem by Judith Viorst
➡️ Find more recommendations:
Didn’t find any gifts here?
Don’t worry: I have a HUGE variety of booklists available on Bookshop.org, including (but not limited to):
Resource books for raising readers (possible gifts for the adults in your lives!)
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Happy gifting!
Sarah
Mean Margaret sounds perfect for my daughter! Thank you!
I have to tell you, I bought my daughter Ronja for her 8th birthday after your recommendation. She’s finished it already, she absolutely loved it, and - wait for it - she says it’s even better than Ramona! So thank you so much. I know you’re having a difficult time and I wanted you to know that your work has made one child (and her mother) ecstatically happy.