A good children’s book is one that appeals to children AND adults.

Our youngest son loved the book Are You My Mother by P.D. Eastman. I read it over and over and over to him.

I grew to detest that book.

Recently, I gave it to him. I told him that was inheritance. Good riddance (to the book — not my son).

I recently came across a delightful, delightful book for children ages 4-8 — Silly Frilly Grandma Tillie by Laurie A. Jacobs.  When Grandma Tillie babysits Sophie and Chloe, she takes her knitting, disappears into a closet, and is replaced by a whole cadre of silly and outrageously fun people.

With a grand entrance, Tillie Vanilly (with a bouffant pink hair) recites the alphabet backwards, hangs a spoon on her nose, juggles and tells jokes. Then, she leads Sophie and Chloe all around the house and into the kitchen while doing the conga.

Let’s pause here to see what the conga dance is like . . . (I would like one of these outfits.  To wear to work, maybe?)  The video lasts 4 minutes.  You don’t have to watch it all to get the idea of how to dance the conga.

Chef Silly Tillie wants to feed the girls worm chili with glue gravy. They decline. At bath time, Madam Frilly Tillie makes the girls gorgeous by giving Sophie a bubble beard and Chloe a tower of bubbles on her head.

Regular Grandma Tillie tucks the girls into bed and as Sophie drifts off to sleep she believes she hears Grandma Tillie dancing down the hall.

This is a great book. I love the illustrations. They are very appealing. I love the plot — it’s fresh and fun. I would be willing to read this book over and over to my grandchildren. It would even spark a let’s-dance-the-conga activity with the grandkiddos. This book is definitely a keeper.

GIVEAWAY!  GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY!

It’s been a long time since I’ve had a giveaway. Too long. So I’m changing that. Right now. Right this very minute.

If you would like to win a copy of Silly Frilly Grandma Tillie, post a comment and tell about a “Grandma Tillie” type of experience that you have had with your own grandmother or an experience that you have had as a “Grandma Tillie” to your grandchildren. (I can’t wait to hear your experiences!!)

The giveaway will go until Thursday February 9 at midnight. (By the way, the 9th is our daughter’s birthday.  Happy Birthday, Christi!)

I will announce the winner on Friday.

Good luck!

Do you have a grandchild that is eight or older? Looking for a fun Christmas present to give?  If so, you might want to consider giving the book Fashion Kitty and the B.O.Y.S. (Ball of Yellow String).

Imagine a family of cats that has a mouse as a pet. Imagine a daughter kitty that tries on outfit after outfit as she gets ready for school.  Fashion is critical to her.  Imagine that a shelf fell and this daughter kitty gets bonked on the head by some fashion books.  Imagine that the bonking turned her into a super hero — Fashion Kitty.

Now, imagine twin boy kitties where one is good and the other one is not so good.  (The good twin hates it that people can’t tell him apart from his bad twin.) Imagine that  the bad twin forms a club and is making plans to capture the super hero.

Gasp!

Imagine a t-shirt designing contest, marshmallows, the Eiffel Tower, yellow string, and Super Sticky Spray.  They are all part of the evil plot to capture Fashion Kitty.  Who will come to her rescue? Who can save the t-shirts from being stolen?

Guess you’ll have to read the book to find out.

Fashion Kitty and the B.O.Y.S. has a fun plot that appeals to elementary school readers.  It has suspense.  It has drama.  It has a moral about what it takes to be a good friend and that good triumphs over bad.

It also has sketches with funny side comments that add humor to the plot. At the end of the book, there are craft ideas and simple recipes for kids to make.

If you are looking for a fun book to give as a Christmas present to a grandchild, this book is a good choice.

Now, that being said, I did a little reading up about the book.  This is the fourth Super Kitty Book.  Apparently, the first three were more like a comic book.  This book has more text and less ‘comic book’ drawings. If your grandchild is familiar with the first three Super Kitty books, this book could be slightly disappointing.  (Transitioning from less pictures to more text is such a hard thing for young children!)

But it’s still a cute book.  Put it on your list to get for grandchildren who have been nice (and not naughty). They will definitely enjoy reading it.

Disclaimer: A review copy of this book was provided by the publisher/author. This did not impact my opinion of the book.

I’ve got an attitude.  Yesiree, Bob.  (Only one? my husband retorts. )

It’s an I-can-do-it attitude.  It probably started around the terrible twos, that age when kids want to do things for themselves.  That can-do attitude stuck to me through the years like a cocklebur clings to a sock.

That’s probably why I enjoyed The Summer of Hammers and Angels by Shannon Wiersbitzky.

Delia, the main character, has that can-do attitude.  She has spunk.  She has initiative.  She has drive.  What a delightful character.

Delia lives with her mother in a ramshackle home.  An inspector visits their home and threatens to condemn it unless repairs are made — and there’s a long list of them.  Before they could do anything, a bolt of lightening strikes the home injuring Delia’s mother who is rushed to the hospital in a coma.  As Delia’s mother lays in the hospital, Delia feels time ticking by.  They have only 19 days before the inspector returns.  Delia’s can-do attitude kicks in and she tackles the repairs with the help of her best friend, Mae — and with Tommy’s help, someone who Delia considers scum between her toes.

This book is for middle readers.  If you have grandchildren in this age bracket, I recommend this as a good summer read for them — the characters are beliveable and the what-is-she-going-to-do-now plot sucks readers in.  You keep reading because you want to know how in the world Delia is going to make all of those repairs — especially fixing the blackened hole in the roof left by the lightening.

The author sprinkels expressive phrases throughout the book.  Novel and fresh phrases that enchanted my reading.  Phrases like ‘hot and humid enough to make a toothpick wilt’ and ‘honeysuckle smells warm, like fresh buttered buiscuts’ and sunflowers that ‘started scarlet in the center and then faded to butter.’  (I wish my writing was like hers and not the drab oatmeal brown crud that plops out of my fingers onto the page.)

So, grab your middle-grade grandchildren.  Snuggle together on your comfy couch and read the book outloud to them.  This memory-making activity would last a long time for your grandchildren.

Two thumbs up on this book, Shannon!  Can’t wait to read your next one!

(I went to a conference in Philadelphia the end of June.  A few days before the conference, my husband and I visited several places in Pennsylvania — Gettysburg, Valley Forge, Hershey, Lancaster.  Come to find out, Shannon lives in that area.  Had I known that, I would have dropped by to say hello.  It’s always fun to meet authors in person. Maybe next time . . .)

One day, an elementary school teacher started saying, “Humpty Dumpty sat on a _______.” She paused, looking expectantly to her students, waiting for them to fill in the missing word. After a long pause, a little girl timidly said, “A chair?”

How sad it is that we are losing the tradition of handing down nursery rhymes from one generation to the next! Nursery rhymes provide rich opportunities for children to hear the rhythm of spoken language, to hear ‘short stories’, and to be introduced into the wonderful world of reading.

It has been said that reading is to the mind as exercise is to the body.  (Boy howdy! Then my brain is svelte and comely!)  The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization says that literacy “enables individuals to achieve their goals, to develop their knowledge and potential, and to participate fully in their community and wider society.”

I like the part where it says ‘develop their knowledge and potential.”  As a mother and grandmother, that opportunity resonates with me and makes me want to read, read, read to my children and grandchildren.

Research shows that we should continue reading aloud to children even after they can read themselves.  When our children were in junior high, they thought that they were too grown up for bedtime stories.  Plus, their evenings were so full of activities and homework, it was hard to find family reading time. But, I didn’t want to let go of that special reading time together.  So, I read to them while they ate breakfast.  I found that they (and my husband!) lingered longer over their meal so they could hear ‘what happened next!’

Research also claims that children need to hear a thousand stories before they can begin to learn to read.  Grandparents can relieve parents from some of that burden by reading, reading, and reading to their grandchildren! So, make sure you take every opportunity to read to your grandchildren.

I recently learned how readers are 300% more likely than non-readers to visit museums, attend plays or concerts, and create artworks of their own.  They are also more likely to volunteer, exercise, play sports, attend sporting events, or do outdoor activities.  What a wide impact reading has!  (And you thought that reading to your grandchildren just helped them develop a love of reading!)

I have two reading ideas to share with you.  First, create a reading center in your home.  We all know how expensive books are.  Get cheaper books at thrift stores or used bookstores or even your local library that might occasionally sell books for a small fee. Have Grandpa build some shelves for your books.  Buy some child sized chairs — banana chairs or bean bag chairs — or have big over-sized pillows and make it an inviting reading place.

You could allow your grandchildren to ‘check out’ a book that interests them — making sure that they return it to your lending library.  Or, you could even let them keep the book (these cheap books from the thrift store).

Second, sponsor a read-a-thon.  Get lots of pillows, wear your pajamas, and have cozy blankets to lay on or wrap up in to give it a festive flair.

A read-a-thon could be tricky for really young grandchildren.  Maybe the read-a-thon only lasts for half an hour where Grandma reads nursery rhymes, fairy tales, or other age appropriate books.  And then end it with a pizza party or simply cookies and milk.

If your grandchildren can read, they can bring their favorite book (a short one) and read it to everybody. Or they could read one of the books from your book collection. Or, have everybody read silently for half an hour then take a break for 5 minutes and then read for another half an hour.  You’ll have to adjust the amount of reading time to the age level of your grandchildren.

There are many, many fine books that you can share with your grandchildren. Here are some of my favorites that have crossed my path recently.

Books for young children:

• the Llama, Llama series
• the Olivia series
• the Scaredy Squirrel series
• The Incredible Book Eating Boy
• the Flat Stanley series
• Duck on a Bile
• No David and David Goes to School
• Too Many Toys
  

For middle aged readers:

• The Ranger’s Apprentice
• The Pictures of Hollis Woods
• Walk Two Moons
• Holes
• The Whipping Boy
• Mississippi Trial
  
• Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry
  

For young adult readers:

• The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau (love, love, love this book and ditto for the next one!)
  
• The Eyre Affair (but you need to read Jane Eyre first to really appreciate this book)
• The Thirteenth Tale
• The Life of Pi
• The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing
• The Book Thief
• Goodnight, Mister Tom
  

What are some of your favorite books to read to your grandchildren?  What fun reading activities have you done with them?

This post is part of a blog carnival on About.com:Grandparents. Check it out.  There are TONS of great information and links to follow!