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...more great holiday gift books

by Cynthia -- Being Savvy Pasadena

Today's focus is on Richard Scarry, beloved author and illustrator of children's books. Don't tell your 1-4 year old, but his funny, lively characters Lowly Worm, Huckle Cat, and the road-trippin' Pig family are really a delightful way to help very young children through the "What's that?"/"How come?" stage without them having to know you're showing your child a picture-based dictionary.

Detailed, brightly colored hand-drawn animals encourage grown up readers to linger over each page with your child to soak up the details.

Five faves generations of kids have grown up with:

• Cars and Trucks and Things That Go: sounds like exactly what it is. Help Officer Flossy chase bad-boy Dingo Dog through a heavily-trafficked imaginary city street out to the countryside and past every possible kind of conveyance.
• A Day at the Airport: not only a fun read-at-home book, but a great one to pack on long flights. You can match what's going on at your airport at take-off and landing with what's pictured in the book.
• Best Word Book Ever: chock-full of everyday household items found in the kitchen, bedroom, bathroom, and elsewhere. What's remarkable is that so little has changed (okay, phones and tvs are different, and you won't find too many computers, but still).
• Richard Scarry's Please and Thank You Book: what to say when you're invited to someone's birthday party, and commit the faux pas of breaking a chair that's too little for you when you sit in it! These are the etiquette questions that bedevil tots and hippos. Cuz you know, it could happen.
• What Do People Do All Day?: an existential adult cri de ceour while waiting for quitting time, and an excellent question little minds want answers to. Scarry's sly plugs for writers, painters, and journalists delight, but undoubtedly some parents will wonder, could he have added more lucrative professions in this career counseling overview for preschoolers?