Amazon Children’s Publishing has 3 new offerings, all available in hardcover and Kindle, that my kids thoroughly enjoyed.
1-2-3 Va-Va-Vroom! is geared for pre-school and above and it’s my kindergartener’s favorite of the books. The opening page shows three friends in a bedroom, with cars, deciding to have a race. We jump right to a larger-than-life race track and fun, descriptive text as the racers complete each lap. Vibrant digital illustrations and an ending that leaves you pondering if the race was real or just in their imaginations make this one kids will come back to again and again.
The “there was an old woman who swallowed a ____” books mix with the familiar song in Old MacDonald Had a Dragon, also for ages 3 and up. Each time the farmer sings about an animal, along comes his pet dragon, who swallows that animal right up. The animals figure out what’s going on and start to protest, until the whole farm ends up in the dragon’s stomach. This is a great book to bring out those character voices kids love, and I enjoyed the puns scattered throughout.
Ralph Tells a Story uses simpler watercolor and colored pencil illustrations in a story for older kids who struggle with creative writing. My 4th grader related well to Ralph who just couldn’t come up with an idea for a story. With help from a friend who reminds him of the old adage to write what you know, Ralph breaks through his writer’s block and unleashes his creativity.
Whether you’re looking for some fun bright picture books or a quieter lesson, I recommend all 3 of these books.
Nancy enjoys books about race cars, dragons and helping kids break through barriers. She writes about her boys, books and life in Colorado at Life With My Boys and Books.