Babies can't eat kimchee (or read books, yet)

Can we read? No. 100

Apr 12, 2023

Whew!

It’s been ages since I’ve sent a regular old issue of this newsletter, and here we are.

Thanks for reading today — especially if you’re new around here. It has been a tremendous period of growth for this newsletter over the past couple of months, and I’m truly grateful for your time, attention, and space in your inbox. I don’t take it for granted — in fact, I work super hard to continue to make this a useful and valuable addition to your already-busy life. If at any point I’ve helped make your trips to the library or bookstore easier, added to your to-be-read-as-a-family pile, introduced you to new titles and authors, prompted you to read poetry to your kiddos, or inspired you to read (or continue reading) with the children in your life: then I’m fulfilling my purpose here. I’m doing all of the work that has been given to me as a gift to do. Thank you for receiving it.

Now for some books! 📚

Harriet, You’ll Drive Me Wild! by Mem Fox (2000)

Truth: when I had my first little baby, I didn’t like this book at all, because I couldn’t imagine losing my temper with her. Then when she got older — and uh, “stuff” got real — it turns out I was (and am!) an entirely human parent: sometimes I yell.

That’s when I started not only to understand this book but be truly grateful it exists: it’s realistic and deeply compassionate (thanks to Frazeer’s vivid, gorgeous pen and watercolor illustrations) and it has gotten my kids and me through the tougher parts of our relationship over the years.

If you don’t know this one and happen to be a human parent also, run — don’t walk — to remedy that right away.

Babies Can’t Eat Kimchee by Nancy Patz, illustrated by Susan L. Roth (2007)

The baby’s face is a whole mood and I FEEL it 😂

This bright, vibrant story — brought to life by Roth’s vibrant collage, ink, and oil pastel illustrations — begins with a big sister listing off all the things her baby sister can’t do, but just when you think this might be one of those titles that focuses on all the negative feelings around having a new sibling, the older girl makes a shift, saying, “But babies get bigger.”

From there on out, she catalogs the ways she’s going to help her little one grow and learn — including a lovely image of the baby on her first birthday, “in her special dress,” a traditional Korean outfit worn on this occasion — and the things they’ll do, alone together, including eating kimchee.

This story carefully and cleverly handles what is often the biggest emotional event of a young child’s life with grace, style, and a whole lotta love. Highly recommended for toddlers and preschoolers, or any family with a new baby on the way.

The Tub People by Pam Conrad, illustrated by Richard Egielski (1989)

The Tub People — all seven of them — stand in a line on the edge of the bathtub all day, always together, except when they’re brought out to play during bathtime. They have their routine, of course — their own entertainments and melodramas — but one night, things take an unexpected turn, and the Tub Child disappears down the drain.

Where did he go? What’s happened? What will the rest of them do now?

I won’t spoil the ending, merely assure you that there’s a simple, satisfying resolution for the Tub Family that will reassure young readers: sometimes things can go wrong in even the most predictable life, but there’s always hope, there’s often a solution, and there’s nothing quite like being right back where you belong.

The Barnes and Noble Guide to Children’s Books by Holly Rivlin, Michael Cavanaugh, and Brenn Jones, edited by Michael Cavanaugh and Brenn Jones (1999)

For those of you who are looking to build your home library — or who are unfamiliar with the public library and don’t know where to start or how to find good books when you’re there — consider this dense, spiral-bound guidebook your new best friend. Besides me, of course 😉

Don’t worry about the fact that it was published in 1999 or that it was created by a corporate bookstore chain, because neither of those things matters — good books are good books regardless of they came out or who (or what) is recommending them. (And to the Amazon reviewer who wrote, “too old not updated” — you’re exactly right. It is old — it’s out of print, in fact, but can be found easily online for just a few dollars — and it has not been updated, but it’s still incredibly helpful.)

The book is broken, helpfully, into ages and stages:

Baby Books
Preschool
Picture Books
Poetry & Anthology
Early Readers
Fiction
Special Needs (which covers adoption, death, and “special issues,” which appears to be a way to avoid using the word disability, as all of the titles in this section address just that)

What makes this a gem — beyond the 95% of excellent titles it covers — is its organization. Indexed by author, illustrator, subject, and award winners, it’s also super easy to browse, as each title is accompanied by a short description and, often, a photo.

An interior spread of *The Barnes and Noble Guide to Children’s Books*

I’ve read this one cover to cover and recommend it for new parents or other caregivers who are starting a children’s library from scratch, as it covers all the most wonderful books and then some, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t also mention that I don’t agree with every title here — some of them are problematic if not outright racist (The Five Chinese Brothers by Claire Huchet Bishop in the Picture Books section, for example), so: trust, but verify. Read the books you discover before you buy them and share them with your children.

With that caveat, this is, on the whole, an outstanding, useful resource.

For more books to help you raise readers — that is, books for adults about this topic — see my Bookshop.org list, Resource Books for Raising Readers. (If you make a purchase using that link, I get a small commission at no extra cost to you.)

That’s it from me today.

If you enjoyed this issue, send it to a friend! A grandparent! Someone you like (or maybe not?)! As I’ve said a million times: word-of-mouth will forever be the love language 💗 of the internet, and every little bit helps.

Sarah