In my efforts to simplify simplify simplify and take better care of myself (no, fellow mothers, this is not an oxymoron), I decided that during a slam-fest of kiddie birthdays this fall, I'd do something radical: I decided to give the same gift to every child. The best part is, I followed through. While I am all gloaty proud of myself for not over-indulging in toys other mothers will mentally kick me in the neck for buying or scouring the internet for the ubiquitous perfect birthday gift for a child (note that those gifts are never for the perfect child, but are rather usually for the kid you aren't too keen on, for some strange reason), all the children in playgroup are reading one of our favorite authors. One thought, one gift, one great read for the preschoolers and parents in our circle. I'm telling you, this kind of simplicity is like crack for the mommy's soul. And these books are like the big bag of Doritos afterward.
I chose hardback Mem Fox books as gifts, and if you read this author in your home, you surely understand why. Mem Fox has a way with words that makes each page fun to read for parents and fun to hear for kids. The illustrators she collaborates with are as diverse as the material she writes about, and the pictures are always special accompaniement. In contrast to many other favorites in our house -- from Curious George to Berenstain Bears to Little Critter to random and crappy books on construction -- very few other families we know already own Mem Fox books. That means our gifts with a note saying we hope they love the book as much as we do, is not only a fun new addition to bedtime but is also an introduction to an author's entire collection.
Fox's Time for Bed is a sweet and simple, nuzzly animal story that is a great place to start. It comes in both hardback and board book, so a gift can span from birth to birthday. I could read Where Is The Green Sheep? happily every night and my son adores pointing out each of the sheep's silly roles over and over on the pages. Whoever You Are is a stunning affirmation of what makes kids (and us all) different and similar, with poetic text and intriguing illustrations that I imagine are as healing for adults as emotionally educational for kids. Doesn't that all sound so much better than another talking plastic toy, stack of poorly-written licensed character board books or 80-piece lead bonanza?
