A bear, a rescue, a fish and several wild things

As you can see by the image below, this week was W at preschool. Not only is our last name a W word, but we live in Wisconsin. This is one letter we’re very good at recognizing. However, only two W books made it into our favorites this week.

Disclaimer: all of the opinions I share here are my own or are a summary of my kids’ reactions.

Besides a bunch of fun fiction, the kids and I wandered into the nonfiction section and picked up a book on wolves, weather and two Native American tribes who live in Wisconsin – the Ojibwe and the Oneida. In the near future, we hope to take the kids on some trips to learn more about the tribes that lived in Wisconsin before tons of settlers came. Fortunately, there are a lot of great resources and events in Wisconsin for learning about these cultures.

The nonfiction books were great, but not something that we read over and over except for one.

My kids were not big Winnie-the-Pooh fans until we read this book and borrowed a few Pooh movies to go with them. For the last week, they have called me Kanga and asked for a pet bear. Sally M. Walker’s very cute tale Winnie: The True Story of the Bear who Inspired Winnie-the-Pooh tells us how a veterinarian soldier and WWI brought Winnie, the Canadian black bear, to London to eventually meet A.A. Milne’s son, Christopher. A must-read for all fans of the Hundred Acre Woods.

Staying on that side of the Atlantic, we found a Madeline book we hadn’t read yet. Madeline’s Rescue by Ludwig Bemelmans is a delight for all Madeline fans. The pictures, the tiger in the zoo, 12 little girls in two straight lines and a new pet. Like the bumper stickers ask, “Who rescued who?” Also, who can keep a straight face when an adult has to read “Lord Cucuface”?

Jon Klassen does it again. My kids loved wondering what was going to happen next because this is one oblivious fish. This is not my hat by Jon Klassen is a great read because the kids really put together the text and the pictures to get the whole story.

The last book that the kids loved is missing. Fortunately, I have two more weeks to find it before the library fines start racking up. Perhaps the book has gone to Where the Wild Things Are? Yes, this classic Maurice Sendak monster book is somewhere in my house. It’s probably roaring its terrible roars, gnashing its terrible teeth, and dancing in a wild rumpus. Or the kids stashed it under the couch? I’m sure I’ll find it and then be asked to read it at least 20 more times.

Since last week was W and this week is X, I’m sure we’ll be finding some interesting alphabet-ending books coming up. As always, feel free to let me know if you’d choose to highlight other books from the stack. Or you know a book that falls in the “if you loved ___, then you’ll love…” category? Please share what to look for at our next library visit in the comments.