Top Ten Children's Picture Books

The main character in Where the Wild Things Are is Max, a little boy who wears a wolf costume and who is sent to bed without supper by his mother for "making mischief" one night. By the force of his imagination, Max's room morphs into a forest, and he sails across an ocean to a land populated by "Wild Things," a tribe of wild beasts. Max is able to tame the beasts and is anointed King of All Wild Things. Although the Wild Things revere Max, Max becomes homesick and longs for someone who "loves him best" in all the world. Despite the Wild Things' protests - "Oh, please don't go, we'll eat you up, we love you so" - Max sails back across the ocean to his bedroom, where he finds a tray with a hot dinner waiting for him.

Where the Wild Things Are won the Caldecott Medal for "Most Distinguished Picture Book of the Year" in 1964, and has been treasured as a classic of children's literature ever since. The book is even studied in children's literature classes in the most elite universities in the United States. The story brilliantly shows Max in conflict with both his mother and his own anger, and Sendak's illustrations masterfully reflect an angry little boy's fantasy. But even though Max is angry, the message of the story is unconditional parental love - symbolized by Max's waiting, "still hot" supper - which is reassuring to little ones and a perfect ending to the story.

2. Madeline, by Ludwig Bemelmans

Madeline takes place at a boarding school in Paris. Twelve little girls attend the school, an "old house covered with vines," and walk in two straight lines wherever they go with their teacher, Miss Clavel. Madeline is the smallest, but bravest of the students. She is not afraid of mice or the tiger in the zoo. The students' structured routine is disrupted by a late night emergency, when Madeline must be rushed to the hospital for an appendectomy. After the operation, Ms. Clavel brings the other students to visit Madeline in the hospital. The other little girls are jealous of the many toys and flowers Madeline has received in the hospital, but are most impressed when Madeline proudly shows them the scar on her stomach. The story ends with the little girls crying, "Boohoo, we want to have our appendix out, too!"

Children - particularly little girls - are instantly enthralled by Madeline. The routine and symmetry of the twelve little girls who proceed in two straight lines while walking, eating or sleeping appeals to young children. But before this routine becomes boring, Bemelmans throws in the twist of an emergency, which reduces the indomitable Madeline to tears in the middle of the night. When the other children come to visit Madeline in the hospital, Bemelmans perfectly captures the mix of concern and envy children naturally feel when another child gets sick and is consequently lavished with attention and gifts. The masterful rhyming also creates a rhythm that is fun for children to hear. The illustrations, which are mostly in the style of quick sketches, are both sophisticated and full of energy, and appeal to parents and children alike.

3. Marshmallow, by Clare Newberry

In this book, Miss Tilly brings a little bunny named Marshmallow home to live with her cat, Oliver. The book details this family's adjustment to one another and their new living situation. At first, Marshmallow misses his mother, and Oliver is suspicious of the new member of the family, but the book concludes with Marshmallow and Oliver becoming the best of friends.

Marshmallow is a classic that has resonated with children for years. Small children readily grasp the themes in the book - missing mom, feeling scared in new situations, the ordeal of making new friends. Although the story is somewhat long, it includes enough subtle insight to really reward repeated readings. The illustrations are stellar, and if children do not have the patience for the entire story, parents can rely on the pictures and read selected excerpts from the text. This is a good book to try at bedtime, when children are calming down and might be willing to listen a longer story.

4. Caps for Sale: A Tale of a Peddler, Some Monkeys, and Their Monkey Business, by Esphyr Slobodkina

Caps for Sale, by Esphyr Slobodkina, is a retelling of an old folktale. A peddler walks through a village, selling caps piled in a tower on his head. The peddler is not able to sell any caps one morning, so he leaves the village and walks out to the countryside to take a nap under a tree. When he wakes up, all of his caps are gone. He looks up into the tree, and - lo and behold - the tree is full of monkeys wearing his caps. He commands the monkeys to return his caps, and the monkeys mimic his commands.

Caps for Sale has been in print since 1940, and is a classic of children's picture books. Slobodkina's line drawings and rich colors will enthrall your child. Toddlers also love the repetitive rhythm generated by the peddler demanding his caps back, and the monkeys mocking his demands. The story is simple enough to read to children under age 1, and by age two, children will have fun offering their own version of the monkeys' "tsz, tsz, tsz." For slightly older children, this book is good for learning how to make predictions and recognize patterns in the sequence of events.

5. Harry the Dirty Dog, by Gene Zion

In Harry the Dirty Dog, Harry the dog goes to great extents to avoid having a bath. When he hears the water running in the tub, he grabs the scrubbing brush, buries it in the back yard, and runs away from home. Harry proceeds to have a fun adventure getting dirty in various places around the town-in the park playing with other dogs, at the railroad station, and at a construction site, sliding down a coal chute. When Harry returns home, he is so dirty, his family doesn't recognize him. Harry tries all his old tricks in an effort to show his family who he is, and is despondent when they don't work. But then Harry has an idea-he retrieves the scrubbing brush, runs into the house and jumps in the bath tub. The children give him a bath, and when he is clean, the family finally realizes who he is.

In print since 1956, Harry the Dirty Dog is a testament to the continuing appeal of a simple story, low-key humor, and a likable main character. Children respond to Harry's mischievous allure, as well as the occasional desire to escape the restraints of home-and the bath. What really makes the story a classic, though, is Margaret Bloy Graham's pen-and-ink, pastel-washed drawings. The illustrations have an old-fashioned charm, and add amusing details to the charming story.

6. Make Way for Ducklings, by Robert McCloskey

Mr. and Mrs. Mallard are about to have ducklings, and they are looking for a proper home to raise their babies. As they search for the perfect place, they fly over several Boston landmarks, such as Beacon Hill, the Massachusetts State House, and Louisburg Square. The mallards finally settle on island in the Charles River. Once the babies are born, Mrs. Mallard must convey her eight ducklings - Jack, Kack, Lack, Mack, Nack, Ouack, Pack, and Quack - safely across several busy Boston streets to the Public Garden so they can meet their father. When Mrs. Mallard and the ducklings try to cross the street, Michael, the policeman, stops traffic so the family can cross the street. Michael then calls police headquarters and instructs them to send a police car to stop traffic along the route for the ducks. When the family finally must cross Beacon Street to enter the Public Garden, there are four policeman standing in the intersection stopping traffic to "make way for the ducklings." Mrs. Mallard and the ducklings meet up with Mr. Mallard, and the ducks decide to settle in the Garden.

Make Way for Ducklings was published in 1940, and won the Caldecott Medal in 1942. The mallard ducks illustrate love and care in a family, as the parents carefully select a home for their babies, and later teach the ducklings basic survival skills. The story picks up pace with the adventure of Mrs. Mallard's and her ducklings' dangerous trip across busy streets to the Public Garden. Children respond with affection for the adorable ducklings, and enjoy the task of counting all eight ducklings in each illustration to make sure all are present. The story is quite long, though, so parents may find it necessary to edit out some of the text in out-loud readings.

If you visit Boston, your children will enjoy seeing the brass sculptures of Mrs. Mallard and her eight ducklings in the Public Garden.

7. Corduroy, Don Freeman

Corduroy is an adorable teddy bear with green overalls who has been sitting on the toy store shelf, waiting to be bought. Why won't anyone buy him, he wonders. One day, a little girl asks her mother if she can buy him, but her mother says no-she has spent too much already that day, and, besides, Corduroy was missing a button on his overalls. That night, Corduroy determines to find his missing button. He searches the store, but never finds it. The next morning, however, the little girl returns to the store and buys Corduroy with her allowance money. She takes him home, and Corduroy is ecstatic to have his own home and someone to love him. T

he illustrations in Corduroy are bright and colorful and full of expression. The illustrations also feature scenes familiar to children: a toy store department in a big department store, shelves of toys, and a little girl's bedroom. Not only will children respond to the drawings, but the book also offers subtle lessons in behavior. The little girl who ultimately buys Corduroy does not complain when her mother tells her she cannot buy the teddy bear she wants. When the girl returns the next day to purchase Corduroy, she does so with her mother's permission and with her own allowance money. The girl also looks past Corduroy's missing button and tells him she loves him just the way he is. These are important lessons for children, particularly in today's increasingly materialistic society.

8. The Cat in the Hat, by Dr. Seuss

Two children - a brother and sister - are sitting inside on a rainy day, bemoaning the lack of anything to do, when a surprise visitor arrives: the Cat in the Hat. The Cat in the Hat is there to entertain the children, but engages in a whirlwind of mischief, making a mess of the house, that the children and their scrupulous pet fish cannot control. When the children see their mother coming home, they and the fish panic, but the Cat in the Hat manages to clean up the house even more quickly than he destroyed it.

The Cat in the Hat is the book that made Dr. Seuss famous. Dr. Seuss (real name: Theodor S. Geisel) wrote The Cat in the Hat in response to a 1954 Life magazine article, "Why Johnny Can't Read," by John Hersey. In that article, Hersey concluded that the "Dick and Jane" readers that schools used to teach children to read were simply too boring for children. Dr. Seuss set out to create a new reading primer for children-one that wouldn't bore them to sleep and turn them off of reading. William Spaulding, director of Houghton Mifflin's educational division, gave Dr. Seuss a vocabulary list for 6-7 year olds, and Dr. Seuss spent a year rearranging that small list of words (about 200) until he produced The Cat in the Hat in 1957. It was an instant success and is a must-read classic for every child.

9. Miss Nelson Is Missing, by Harry Allard, illustrations by James Marshall

Miss Nelson is a sweet, demur teacher, who unfortunately has the most unruly class in the entire school. The children throw spitballs on the ceiling, put gum under the desks, and are even rude during story time. Miss Nelson has the clever idea to pretend to be missing, and during that time, dresses up as the evil Viola Swap-a teacher dressed all in black who tolerates no misbehavior and who gives mountains of homework. The children quickly learn how lucky they were to have Miss Nelson and go searching for her. They don't find her, but after a few days, the children are relieved when Miss Nelson returns to the classroom. Miss Nelson's experiment worked-the children are grateful to have her back and have learned to be respectful of their teacher.

Harry Allard's humor and James Marshall's expressive illustrations that underscore Allard's deadpan wit make Miss Nelson a hilarious hit with all children. The theme of the story - be respectful and considerate of others, and do not take people for granted - is clearly, but subtly, conveyed.

10. George and Martha, by James Marshall

George and Martha are two hippopotamuses who are best friends. The book contains five short, simple stories that offer solid lessons in behavior and character, on issues ranging from vanity, privacy, and honesty. George and Martha teaches children lessons about friendship and respect, but never in a didactic or overbearing way. Children intuitively grasp the meaning of the stories and respond because the messages are conveyed through humor and Marshall's distinctive illustrations.

Sources:

Fifty Years of 'The Cat in the Hat,' by Lynn Neary, available at http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=7651308