Rachel Owens has been with the O’Neal Library Children’s Department for 15 years. She performs story-times for babies and lower elementary students, as well as a book club for emerging readers and their parents. Besides books, she spends her time immersed in music and the outdoors. Rachel and her husband also conduct hours and hours of library book quality control with their own littles, Isaac and Etta. Here, Rachel recommends her top five winter reading suggestions for children.
Bear is Awake!
By Hannah Harrison | Fiction
A not-very-sleepy bear needs a little help focusing on hibernation preparation. After the bear makes itself at home in the well-stocked kitchen of a house, the little girl who lives there tries to help the bear beef up and get back to its den. Shenanigans follow. From “awake” to “zzzzzz,” expressive watercolors bring bear and girl through the alphabet from mischief to mellow. Share this silly story with preschoolers who are excited about their ABCs.
Fix and Stitch
By Barbara Nass | Fiction
Autumn is about to turn to winter, and Squirrel is ready to close up his tailor shop and hunker down at home. However, his forest friends keep coming to him with last-minute problems that require sartorial solutions. Despite his growing urgency to build his winter home before the snow arrives, Squirrel helps each friend and soon learns that when it comes to kindness, what goes around comes around. It’s the just-right picture book to greet winter with laughter and friendship. Families will adore the moments they spend bonding with each other over this fun, furry tale.
Fox vs. Winter
By Corey Tabor | Fiction
“Fox does not like winter,” the narrator informs readers on the first page of this hilarious title. Brand new readers can make their way independently through the story of Fox as he tries to solve winter, outsmart it, fight it (with fire) and finally accept it for the sweetness it holds. Children will love the humor in this story, and parents will love watching them smile, reading along.
A Long Road on a Short Day
By Gary D. Schmidt | Fiction
Award-winning author Gary D. Schmidt offers readers in lower elementary school the quiet tale of a boy and his dad who spend a day together making trades with community members. Samuel and Papa start out with just a Barlow knife and good manners; they aim to bring home a milk cow for Mama. With short chapters and colorful illustrations, this slim volume of historical fiction makes a warm, giggly family read-aloud on a chilly evening and the perfect book to read before bedtime.
Seaside Stroll
By Charles Trevino | Fiction
Those who prefer a beach in winter can saunter down the shore with a little girl whose story consists entirely of words that start with the letter, “S.” The wordplay and vocabulary will appeal to emerging readers, while preschoolers can delight in the emotional highs and lows of the wonder-infused plot. Best of all, the cozy ending makes this book a perfect bedtime story. Pick up this cozy book for both an educational and fun-filled read-aloud time with kids.
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