by Brianna

Brianna and Ariel love to read all year, but there's something special about summer reading. This article is part two of a series about books that are perfect for summer. Using our affiliate links to purchase these books will help keep Busy Nest News going. Thanks for your continued support!

Welcome back to our summer reads series! Last time I recommended The Tetris Effect by Dan Ackerman. If you missed it, click here to see what it's all about. This week I'm turning to a series that's a bit more in line with summer reading fluff. Yes, you read that right; it's a series. So if you like the first book, you're set for a little while.

by Brianna

American Independence Day is coming up! Here's a picture book to help your littles celebrate, and learn what it means to be an American. If you use the affiliate links in this article, you're helping to keep Busy Nest News running. Thanks for your continued support!

Here at Busy Nest News, we cannot get enough of holiday books. Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas all get the literary treatment in our homes. It will surprise no one, then, to learn that Independence Day, July 4th, gets the same treatment. We’ve dug up some fun books to review, and to introduce our littles to the customs associated with Fourth of July celebrations. ​

The first book I checked out is Apple Pie 4th of July, by Janet S. Wong and illustrated by Margaret Chodos-Irvine. It follows a Chinese American girl on Independence Day. She watches the parade go past her home, and can’t understand why her parents are in their restaurant all day, preparing Chinese food. The little girl tries to convince her mom and dad that Americans don’t want Chinese food on the 4th of July. At first, it seems as though she is right; people trickle into the shop throughout the day for only small things, like ice, chips, and matches. But by dinner time, there’s a line out the door! Their fellow Americans think Chinese food will hit the spot as they prepare to watch fireworks. At last, the whole family watch the show from the roof of their building, and their upstairs neighbor shares her apple pie with them. ​

By Brianna

By Brianna

By Brianna

By Brianna

​​This post contains affiliate links.  If you buy the product using our links, you're helping to keep Busy Nest News running.  Thanks!

By Brianna

​This post contains affiliate links.  If you buy the product using our links, you're helping to keep Busy Nest News running.  Thanks!

When Monkey started walking everywhere, we knew she would need good walking shoes.  My mother came to visit at about that time, and she went to the mall with us to find some sneakers for Monkey.  Monkey’s grandma bought her two pairs of shoes that day; white sandals with small flowers, and sneakers that were purple and hot pink.  Much to my surprise, Monkey loved trying on lots of shoes, and when the sandals fit, she refused to put them back in the box.  She clutched them tightly in her hands, while we pushed her stroller around and tried on more shoes.  Since then, Monkey’s grandmas have gotten her more sandals, sneakers, and- arguably her favorite- boots.  I suspect boots (both rain and snow boots) are her favorites, because they’re so easy for her to put on by herself.  Every morning, Monkey pulls on her boots, grabs her backpack or a purse, and heads for the door, proclaiming “Let’s GO!”

By Brianna

​This post contains affiliate links.  If you buy the product using our links, you're helping to keep Busy Nest News running.  Thanks!

Published in 1987, Owl Moon is a sweet story about a little girl and her father making the most of a clear, winter evening.  The prose is simple, but evokes beautiful imagery of the countryside in winter.  The illustrations won this title the Caldecott Medal for 1988, and it was featured on Reading Rainbow.

Owl Moon depicts a child and their father exploring the woods on a cold, winter evening, as they look for owls.  The story is about a very special one-on-one bonding experience, shared between a parent and child.  The two don’t talk in the woods, but the narrator tells us how she feels inside (special, loved) and outside (cold!).  She tells us that this has become a tradition, almost a rite of passage, to have Pa take you owling.  We learn that her older brothers have all gone owling, and she’s been looking forward to being told it’s her turn.

​By Brianna

​Most of us probably remember reading If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, by Laura Numeroff and Felicia Bond.  In the original, charming tale, depicts a little boy trying to appease a mouse with a cookie, and then a glass of milk, on and on, until the story comes full circle and the mouse asks for another cookie. If You Give a Mouse a Cookie was followed up by several more in the same vein; If You Give a Pig a Pancake, If You Give a Dog a Donut, If You Take a Mouse to the Movies, and more.  These books are all super fun for preschoolers and early school-agers, but they’re still a bit much for my toddler to sit through. 
I’m here to tell you that even if your little one is still very squirmy and hard on books, you can still enjoy the charming artwork and storytelling of Numeroff and Bond.  The first time we encountered one of these Mouse board books was in the form of It’s Pumpkin Day, Mouse!  It’s time for Mouse to decorate his pumpkins.  He paints faces on four pumpkins, and each is a different emotion.  Then, his friend, Dog, joins him, and the two have even more fun together. 
The story is very easy to follow, and the pictures are just as charming as those in If You Give a Mouse a Cookie.  This is one of Monkey’s favorite books to read over and over.  I like to ask her where Mouse is on each page, as well as quiz her on the emotions depicted by the various pumpkins.  There are also a few chances to count all of the pumpkins.  Since Monkey likes this book so much, and it gives us so much to learn in such simple pictures, I’ll give this book a five egg rating.  If you want a charming board book for fall, this one is a great pick.  It will keep your little one learning while they play with Mouse and Dog.

Numeroff, L., & Bond, F. (2012). Its pumpkin day, mouse! New York, NY: HarperCollins .

If you want to buy It's Pumpkin Day, Mouse! click the cover below.  This is an affiliate link, so Busy Nest News will get a little something from your purchase, which will help keep us running.  Thanks!

By Ariel

If you are a grammar nerd, you will flip over Orange Pear Apple Bear by Emily Gravett. The entire book is made up of only four words: apple, pear, orange and bear. The only thing that changes? The comma! By adjusting something so small and easily overlooked Emily Gravett teaches shapes, colors, sequence and – of course – the importance of the comma. What starts as orange, pear, apple and bear becomes an apple, a pear and an orange bear. A delightfully simple read.

The board book was hardier than usual; sturdy is an understatement! The pages were super thick – at least 2-3 mm and easily withstood the best efforts of my herculean toddler. The illustrations – simple soft watercolors – brought the corresponding text to life.  If it were up to only me, I would give it a solid five eggs.

Unfortunately, the clever grammatical tricks were lost on my toddler. The little bean could not get past the first four pages without discarding it in search of a more stimulating book. So overall? I would have to say that at this point in her development, its three eggs.

I have not lost hope though! After returning the board book to the library, I went on amazon and bought the hardcover. She may not like it now, but I foresee Orange Pear Apple Bear being a useful teaching tool when she begins learning the importance proper grammar and punctuation in effective communication!

If you want to buy Orange Pear Apple Bear, click the link below.  It's an affiliate link, so Busy Nest News will get a little something from your purchase, which will help keep us running.  Thanks!

Gravett, E. (2006). Orange pear apple bear. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster/Little Simon.