Easy Reader Classics: Wind in the Willows

 

Author: Kenneth Grahame, adapted by Laura Driscoll
Recommended Age: 4-6
Titles: #1 The Riverbank
         #2 The Open Road
         #3 The Wild Wood
         #4 Home Sweet Home
         #5 Sneaky Toad
         #6 Restless Rat

Wind in the Willows is a great story for younger kids. Unfortunately, they're simply not at that reading level! This series solves that problem. It is a series of beginning readers of stories taken directly from the classic book and adapted for the easy reader format. Kids love the fun filled stories of Mole, Badger, Rat, and Toad(and if they've ever been to Disneyland, they'll recognize the story of Sneaky Toad from the Mr Toad's Wild Ride!). I would estimate that, based on series such as Step Into Reading and I Can Read!, these are approximately level 2 beginning readers.

Runny Babbit: a billy sook

Author: Shel Silverstein
Format: Hardcover with CD
Pages: 89
Recommended Age:4-8

A lesser known Silverstein book, this is actually one of my favorites. It is a collection of the same silly style of poetry we all know and love from Shel Silverstein, but with an added twist! In this book, all the poems incorporate word-flipping, where the first letters of words next to each other are switched, often with hilarious results. Your tongue will twist around these fun-filled rhymes and silly stories.

 

14 Cows for America

Author: Carmen Agra Deedy in collaboration with Wilson Kimeli Naiyomah
Illustrator: Thomas Gonzalez
Format: Hardcover picture book
Pages: 29
Recommended Age: 2+


14 Cows For America is a beautiful story of generosity in the wake of September 11th. The story is told by Kimeli, a young man from the remote Maasai tribe in Kenya. When he returns to relate the story of September 11th to his tribe, they offer the humble gift of 14 cows because, "To the Maasai, the cow is life". 

This heartwarming tale is complimented by stunning illustrations in a style reminiscent of African art. It would be a wonderful, gentle way to introduce the topic of September 11th to a child. The book would also be an asset to any elementary classroom. It is a reminder that the world community can and will rally around us in the face of tragedy, as well as a lesson that sometimes the value of a gift lies in the sentiment behind it. After all, what do you give the country that has everything?