The Best Books to Read to Your Infant

Reading to my son is one of the highlights of my day. I love watching him grab the pages (even if he's still trying to put the entire book in his mouth), and I love watching him scan the colorful pages. Even though he's only 5 months old, he still gets great enjoyment out of the rhymes, and I get great enjoyment out of simply spending some one-on-one time with him.

Here are some of the best books that I've found that he enjoys.

1. Hop on Pop, by Dr. Seuss.
It should come as no surprise that Dr. Seuss will make more than one appearance on this list, but Hop on Pop has been my absolute favorite. I love the rhyme schemes, and my son loves the repetition of the silly words. When else can you say things like Constantinople and Timbuktu, and get a giggle out of your little one? It's done with typical Seuss illustrations, so you'll find lots of bright colors on the characters in the book.

2. Goodnight Moon, by Margaret Wise Brown
This one is so good, we actually started reading it to our son before he was born. Every night, I'd read it to the bump, and I think that's one of the reasons he still likes me to read to him. Goodnight Moon is simple, with basic pictures, but it's a wonderful read that points out the small details of what's happening in one little room. The pages are done in bright colors contrasted with black and white, giving it sharp lines and lots of stuff for your child to focus on.

3. The Going to Bed Book, by Sandra Boynton
This is my wife's favorite book to read to our son, so I'll include it for her. Boynton has several books like this -- very short, packed with good words and lots of bright pictures. For a while, this was part of our going to bed routine every night, as it just seemed to set the mood for putting the little man down for the night. The text flows very well, and has a nice poetic beat, keeping things flowing very well when you read it.

4. Dr. Seuss's ABC: An Amazing Alphabet Book, by Dr. Seuss
The last book on the list is just as good as the others listed, but probably the most useful from an educational standpoint. It goes through the alphabet, and introduces your kid to words that start with each letter. "Big A, little A, what starts with A?" From Rosy's red rhinoceros to a Zizzer-Zazzer-Zuzz, you'll enjoy the silly sayings Seuss comes up with. I like knowing that this fun book will contribute to my son's language development in the future.