Kids' Books for the Apocalypse
Scott and I were laying awake in the dark last night, talking about all the unknowns and fear in the air lately. It’s so thick it feels almost tangible-like this invisible cotton candy between us all.
Have you ever blown on a spider in their web before? And they just get so disoriented and spin and sputter and spin? That’s basically me when I feel out of control. I find all ways to regain it while sputtering around in the process. But you know what else? I feel like when everything gets shaken up and turned on its head that there’s an opportunity there to see things we didn’t before; To look at a situation and spot— instead of a cloud— a bunny making a phallic necklace. I get a little bit scared and a little bit inspired in the chaos. Do you feel that?
Anyways, I’m falling back hard on blogger tendencies, trying to connect to people in alternative ways and listening to Gregory Alan Isakov while the kids dismantle our bookshelf (etc). This time is scary, but this time can also be exciting. What if we discover something, even just about ourselves, that we wouldn’t have otherwise?
Here are some of our favorite children’s books lately, in case you are in need of inspiration, distraction and a little bit of phallic art.
Beautiful Books
The Moon Went to Addy’s House- a recurring favorite. Everyone likes reading this and, when the kids pull it off the shelf, I feel a kind of peace as I read it. I would never want to go to the moon, I don’t think, but I am so intrigued by the spiritual and natural pull it has on us and this book taps into that.
Over and Under the Pond (also Over and Under the Snow)- Beautiful illustrations, great for discussions about changing seasons and animals and nature. It’s another beauty, but with educational elements that make it come off the shelf for reference frequently. As an adult, I really learned a lot too. I had no idea what a “vole” was before reading Over and Under the Snow.
The Brilliant Deep- This book is so gorgeous! I like just having it on the shelf in their room. It was a little over the heads of a two and four year old- AKA they got a little bored in the middle, but it has such an important message about coral reefs and pursuing dreams. The illustrations alone make you feel like you’ve gone on a trip under water. I think it’s a very valuable book in our collection that’s importance and use will only increase over time.
The Lost Words- THIS BOOK IS BEAUTIFUL (I think there’s starting to be a theme here-I judge some books by their covers and illustrations). I have this on our coffee table currently and the girls and I look through it frequently. It’s magical, it really is.
Social / Emotional Books
Who Has What- A great book to get “the talk” started, especially for preschoolers. I love how this book depicts a mixed race family, it takes place at the beach, it doesn’t shy away from the biological facts (it talks about what’s inside too-- i.e. uterus and testicles), but it’s also a nice little intro to the differences and similarities of male and female bodies. AND it talks about how all bodies and beautiful and girls and boys can both play all kinds of sports etc. Just the book I was looking for, for this conversation!
Cool Down and Work Through Anger- I feel like we can’t talk about coping with emotions enough around here. This book gives clear examples and techniques of how to deal with anger and sadness. I try to always pick books that depict the diversity of the human race and this book does a pretty good job of showing many different faces and races.
St. Patrick’s Books
St. Patrick and the Three Brave Mice- a little fairy tale to go with some history behind the holiday.
Jamie O’Rourke and the Big Potato- Scott reads this with an Irish accent and it’s a hit. I love Tomie DePaola, don’t you?
Funny Books
Duck at the Door- a good lighthearted read that I usually read in winter because it talks about migration with a funny spin.
Tacky the Penguin- another good ‘winter comedy for kids book’. There’s other spin-offs too, which can be fun.
What recommendations do you have for us? I love how at least in all this chaos and uncertainty we can still find ways to connect and be together with out actually being together. Thinking of you all!