Fox In Socks

Fox In Socks

by Dr. Seuss

The two main characters in this book are the Fox and Mr. Knox. The fox is coming up with funny tongue twisters for Mr. Knox to say. Mr. Knox keeps asking the fox to not make it so hard but the fox just keeps coming up with one tongue twister after another, until Mr. Knox has enough and builds the Fox into one of his own stories and finally has revenge, placing him in a giant bottle where he can't say anything anymore.

Again, Dr. Seuss added a ton of fun pictures to look at for the kids. However, what really stands out in this book is the writing. It is a bunch of fun but also a challenge to read this to your kids. I could see this book be  great, once boys get to the age where they can read it themselves. It really shows how many words are written in different ways, but are pronounced the same. My oldest likes it, but I am not sure how much of the story he is really getting yet. 

Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel

Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel

Lee Virginia Burton

This is certainly one of the classics. Mike Mulligan and his steam shovel Mary Anne run out of work. All the new shovels, like the electric shovels and the Diesel engine shovels are taking their jobs away. They go to the town of Popperville to get a job there for building the new Town Hall cellar. Their offer is to do it in a day, or  do the job for free. As they dig very fast, they forget to leave an exit and are stuck in the cellar. A little boy had an idea. They leave Mary Anne in the cellar to be the heater of the building and Mike Mulligan becomes the janitor. 

For my two year old this story is much too long, but my five year old really enjoys it. It is a great story about construction, about engines, about adventure. One thing that I thought might be harder for him to understand are things related to the different time this book takes place at. Things like steam engines for instance, but he doesn't seem to mind one bit. 

The graphics are what I think one would call pencil drawings. They are detailed and interestingly made. Usually there is a drawing covering half a page or something similar, whereas newer children's books seem to have drawings covering almost the entire page. 

The language is great. Simple enough for a five year old to understand but also challenging at the same time and perhaps too much for a younger child. 

Green Eggs and Ham

Green Eggs and Ham
by Dr. Seuss

We really like this book. The message is great, "don't say you don't like it until you have tried it." This would be a good book to talk about with your picky eater.

The language is easy and there is lots of repetition. It all comes in rhymes and has a great flow to it. It's a ton of fun to read this book with some attitude and the kids eat it up (pun intended).

I just think this is such a great boys book because even though the topic is food, it does have cars and trains and boats mixed into the story line. Boys love that and they love the ton of pictures that comes with the story.  So far, this is our favorite of Dr. Seuss.

I Need My Monster

I Need My Monster
by Ananda Noll
My five year old just adores this one. It is scary. I make the voices for the monsters and he totally digs that. When I ask him to pick a book to read, this is it. So far, it is the best monster book we have found.
The entertainment factor of this book is off the charts. The graphics are very well done. The monsters look awesome. All thumbs up!