How to Find Great Books for Your Preschooler

And so we end where we began: how can I find quality books that both my preschooler and I will enjoy? Where do I start in wading through the piles of twaddle? 

It's been a long journey of 31 Days, and perhaps you have a good list of titles to get the ball rolling... but where do you go from here? 

I have four suggestions as you {and your preschooler} pioneer on in your reading adventure.

1. Ask People. Simple, no? Ask other experienced moms at church, the park, and on play dates what they've enjoyed reading with their kiddos lately. Check with the librarian for her suggestions. It wouldn't hurt to ask a grandmother or two what she read to her kids {or remembers having read to herself as a child}- if a book is so imprinted on a person's memory after decades since reading it, it is probably worth looking up. 

2. Check the list of Caldecott Medals and Honors. I first gleaned the idea of reading through the list of Caldecott's from Janssen's blog, Everyday Reading {thank you, Janssen!}. Each year since 1938, one winner and a small handful of runner-ups have been selected. Granted, we've covered a handful in this series... but there are many, many more, so this list should keep you busy for awhile!

3. Look up the Authors we've discussed. Speaking of what we've covered, we've featured around 25 kid lit author's in this series. A few were one-hit-wonders, but many of them have produced impressive bodies of work. Let's speculate and say each author wrote at least 3 more books that I didn't discuss {some of them have written many, many more}- that's another 75 books to keep you quite busy for awhile :)!

4. Do Your Homework. Honestly, I am always coming across new titles I want to look up and share with my kids. I read quite a few book blogs, and pin a lot of kid lit related articles on Pinterest. The internet has opened the door of possibilities exceedingly wide for us, if only we will step through it. Get on Amazon and search bestsellers, classics, and new releases. There is plenty of good stuff to grab!

I leave you with this, concluding 31 Days of Great Books for Preschoolers. It has been exhausting, but truly a joy for me. I'm all charged with fresh inspiration to get reading and crafting and playing with my preschooler- I hope it has done the same for you. 

Looking for more great books to read with your preschooler? Check out the rest of this 31 Days series here!