What to read year round

Does it scream "former kinder teacher" when I tell you I love categorizing books by seasons, themes, concepts? Just like September makes me what a new box of crayons and a bouquet of sharpened pencils, I also love reading Chrysanthemum or The Kissing Hand the week before school starts. As a mama, I keep classic books and favorite stories on their shelves, but I also have those special few that make an appearance only once a year, when the time is right. 

January/February:

• Ollies Ski Trip, Elsa Beskow
• The Mitten or Three Snowy Bears by Jan Brett
• Winter, Gerda Muller
• The Story of the Snow Children, Van Olfers
• The Tomten, Astrid Lingren
• Cozy, Jan Brett

Bring in stories about penguins, bears, the moon, snow, hibernation, nighttime creatures, and baking. Be sure to make snowflakes from coffee filters and make a nature table with icy blue or white silk scarves and chestnuts or cranberries from outside! 

March/April

• How Does My Garden Grow, Gerda Muller
• How the Finch Got His Colors
• The Story of the Root Children, Sybill Von Olfers
• Flower Garden, Eve Bunting
• Mossy, Jan Brett
• The Sun Egg, Elsa Beskow
• Pippa and Pelle, Daniela Drescher
• The Flowers Festival, Elsa Beskow

Books about rain, rainbows, flowers, spring, leprechauns and gnomes

May/June/July

• Blueberries for Sal, Robert McCloskey
• Peter in Blueberry Land, Elsa Beskow
• Summer, Gerda Muller
• The Very Hungry Caterpilllar, Eric Carle
• The Story of the Butterfly Children, Sybille von Olfers
• Sunbread, Elisa Kleven 

August:

• Fatima and the Clementine Thieves, Mireille Messier
• Honey, Honey, Lion, Jan Brett
• Chrysanthemum, Kevin Henkes
• The Kissing Hand, Audrey Penn
• The Three Billy Goats Gruff, Paul Galdone

September/October:

• The Teeny Tiny Woman
• The Apple Cake, Nienke van Hichtum
• Spookley, the Square Pumpkin
• Stone Soup, Ann McGovern
• The Magic Porridge Pot, Paul Galdone
• The Turnip, Jan Brett
• The Hat, Jan Brett
• Autumn, Gerda Muller
• Red Leave, Yellow Leaf, Eve Bunting

November:

• Grandmother Winter
• Woody, Hazel, and Little Pip, Elsa Beskow
• Children of the Forest, Elsa Beskow
• Goodbye Summer, Hello Autumn, Kenard Pak
• Christopher's Harvest Time, Elsa Beskow
• Pumpkin Soup, Helen Cooper
• Community Soup

December:

• The NIght Before Christmas
• Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer
• Winter, Gerda Muller
• The Velventeen Rabbit
• The Nutcracker
• Peter and Lottas Christmas
• The Trouble with Trolls, Jan Brett
• Annie and the Wild Animals, Jan Brett
• Gingerbread Baby, Paul Galdone

Jan Brett books for Christmas: Gingerbread Baby, Home For Christmas, The Trouble with Trolls, Annie and the Wild Animals, The Hat

If you get lost...look for anything by Elsa Beskow, Elisa Klevins, Jan Brett, Sybille von Olfers, or Paul Galdone! These children's book authors have yet to fail me. 

Classics like Caps for Sale, The Giving Tree, Harold and the Purple Crayon, Ferdinand, and of course all the fairy tales are read year round in my home.

I also love to read stories that expose my children to different races, religions and cultures without fitting stereotypical norms or biases. We love:

• Namaste, Diana Cohn
• Handa's Hen
• Daisy Comes Home
• Jamaica's Find
• Under the Baobab Tree
• Nya's Long Walk
• Why the Sun and the moon Live in the Sky

Look for fairy tales, American folk tales, Aesop's fables, African folktales, and classic tales! I am a frequenty flyer at my local library, but I also rummage garage sales, estate sales, and discount book stores, especially the "vintage" children's area. Reading Pete the Cat or Clifford makes me feel like I've eaten a bag of Cheeto puffs with my mind and I crave nourishment and depth son after. 

I'll add to this list often as I discover new gems! Happy reading.