Books Bytes for Kids 

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Think sophisticated . . . .maybe edgy, or even tragic version of The Velveteen Rabbit when considering The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane. This is the kind of book that I would have read to my girls when they were growing up, except that they had (grown up) before I discovered it. I very nearly managed to catch my Kelsey Brooke just before that late adolescent, independent stage kicked in . . . you know the one - where their lives are full and busy and holding their attention is as tricky as pinning down a jello shot. . . and you spend a lot of time fervently praying that they are not out DOING jell-o shots. It's not that she wouldn't have listened, or even that she wouldn't have been interested.. I actually read to my girls (by mutual consent, REALLY) into their late teens . . . but by then it was out of necessity as they began to bring home required reading for their high school courses. I have vivid memories of trying to keep Kelsey awake during the Scarlet Pimpernel by changing the inflection in my voice dramatically to the point of adopting an excitable Minnie Mouse voice, a tacky British accent, and an angry mobster schtick. As a matter of fact, my copy of Edward Tulane was actually intended for her. It has an inscription on the inside cover dated Christmas 2006 . . . but it was too late.  Heavy textbooks, and job and college applications had taken over.  And since my career had evolved to a reading specialist by that point, I used Edward Tulane to bring classrooms of tough inner city kids to tears on late afternoons as payback when their teachers needed to rock at their desks for a while. True story. The Miraculous journey of Edward Tulane is transcendent in its effect and perfect for family and classroom reading from ages seven to seventy-seven.  Everybody should read it to someone else at least once. It's about a selfish, sociopathic bunny (and who couldn't relate to that?. . . the selfish part, because it's how we all start out and where most of us end up at one time or another) who, through varied and creative circumstances, changes hands - and lifestyles - a dozen times or so over the course of a stuffed bunny lifetime. Predictably, the circumstances through which the exchanges are made are not always good.  And sometimes the people involved are not good. And sometimes they're heartbreakingly good.  But often they're just good enough to teach Edward about real life, help him develop some bunny character and human compassion . . . and inspire in him enough true love to build a heart and bring him home to himself. Every one of us should experience the blessings of such a life. You only have to turn the page.
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"Ramona books" - Hopelessly outdated and altogether timeless.  I'm sending these to my girl, Mackenzie Leigh, in Colorado.  Five is just about the time I began reading the series to her mommy and her Aunt Kelsey.  Her mommy is going to have to clarify a few things to her  -- gay doesn't mean happy so much, anymore . . . a kindergarten witch chasing down and kissing a pint-sized pirate at the Halloween parade might just constitute sexual harassment these days . . . and nine year old girls don't walk their little sisters to places like the park and the library now unless they want to end up wards of the state in foster care.  Oh, for the siimpler times of 1950s America (and even 60s, 70s, and 80s). But some of the stuff of childhood is preserved indelibly here . . . the cultural rhythm of school days and freedom summers, the bond of siblings, and the angst and comical misunderstanding involved in the simple, day to day act of growing up.  Seeing the world through the eyes of Ramona Geraldine Quimby is a lovely way to connect with your babies . . . and your babies' babies.
Fill your house with stacks of books, in all the crannies and the nooks. 
~ Dr. Seuss . . . March is Reading Month across America! Featured below are all of your beautiful baby readers, and a few of the rowdy characters that delight them every day;)  Thanks for Sharing!