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Children's books

Join in for children's book recommendations.

Original poster

What books for 2 year olds can you read over and over again without losing the will to live?

69 replies

stubbornstains · 07/10/2011 12:34

...because The Little Princess is about to meet a sticky end in our house, I fear...

OP posts:
TreeHouses · 07/10/2011 21:41

The absolute classics:
The gruffalo (and g's child)
Any of the Hairy Mc books
No matter what
Each peach.

Each of these I must have read thousands of times, and would still be happy to read another thousand times.

Panzee · 07/10/2011 21:43

Each Peach
Peepo
Goodnight Moon.

Read so many times that son reads them to me now.

bluebump · 07/10/2011 21:44

Tiger who came to tea

Funnybones

The Babys Catalogue

Those are the three that my DS asks for and are the ones I can cope with reading over and over!

gapants · 07/10/2011 21:48

The Great paper Caper- Oliver Jeffers
The Gingerbread Man
The Gruffalo
Any of the books by Richard Scarry.

EmLH · 07/10/2011 21:50

I really like the books by Catherine and Lawrence Anholt, especially Good Days Bad Days

Bunsouttheoven · 07/10/2011 21:55

Most of the above....

Dogger Shirley Hughes

BornToFolk · 07/10/2011 21:57

Yes, I can read any Shirley Hughes book again and again. I love Alfie more than DS does!

Rooble · 07/10/2011 22:07

Any Quentin Blake, especially Mrs Armitage (any of them), and Mr Magnolia.

HarrietSchulenberg · 07/10/2011 22:08

Stick Man and Burglar Bill.

PelvicFloorOfAAAAARGHSteel · 07/10/2011 22:15

Loads that have already been mentioned, I also love Bear by himself.

mckenzie · 07/10/2011 22:20

Rattletrap Car - sorry, I'm not sure who it's by although i can find it later if you wish. I won't throw it away even though we don't read it any more - I loved it as much as the children.

mrsharrycunningham · 07/10/2011 22:24

Duck in a Truck / Super Duck - any of the Jez Alborough ones
Bumpus Jumpus Dinosaurumpus - Tony Mitton & Guy Parker Rees
Peepo - Ahlbergs
Any of the "Thomas & Friends" books
Dear Zoo / Dear Santa
The Hungry Caterpillar

posey · 07/10/2011 22:29

Just thought of another. Wobble bear says Yellow

SandStorm · 07/10/2011 22:30

I had Little Bear's Trousers by Jane Hissey. I knew it by heart and could probably still recite most of it.

Matronalia · 07/10/2011 22:39

Octopus Socktopus
Elephant Wellyphant
Moo Cow, Kung Fu Cow
Dont put your finger in the jelly nelly-all nick sharratt
Bathwater's hot by Shirley Hughes
Pirate Girl by Cornelia FUnke
Zagazoo
Click Clack Moo

jongleuse · 07/10/2011 23:22

DD just 3 loves all the Ahlberg ones; Peepo, Each Peach etc, The foggy foggy forest /Witch's kitchen/Jelly Nelly Nick Sharratt always get a laugh.
Also his fairy tale retellings are quite fun. I lIke Oliver Jeffers (Lost and Found etc) and Emily Gravett (Monkey and Me etc) because the illustrations are so lovely.

Poems? Spike Milligan, Michael Rosen, Roger McGough.
I'd find books that you like, whether because of the illustrations or the humour or whatever, and read them.
And think yourself lucky you don't have a toddler boy and have to read that Dig, Dig Digging or Flashing Fire Engines rubbish, night after * night. Also don't get into You Choose if you have a (slightly) obsessive child that likes to go through every single possible choice on the page....

goosiegander · 08/10/2011 08:15

Agree re rhyming books - and combined with humour works well. Try Mr Spotty's Potty.

MinnieBar · 08/10/2011 08:20

Peepo
Hurray for fish (Lucy Cousins of Maisy fame)

ballstoit · 08/10/2011 08:22

DD2 (2.4) is into repetition at the moment so Owl Babies and Stick Man are both going down well...she's nearly at the point of parroting readin them to herself!

josephinebonaparte · 08/10/2011 08:22

Peepo
The tiger that came to tea
Hairy maclary

Quenelle · 08/10/2011 08:29

Supermaket Zoo has been tolerable over and over again for a few months.

NOT Walking Through the Jungle though. It makes my brains pour out of my ears.

Quenelle · 08/10/2011 08:29

Supermaket Zoo has been tolerable over and over again for a few months.

NOT Walking Through the Jungle though. It makes my brains pour out of my ears.

RustyBear · 08/10/2011 08:38

I never got tired of the Elephant and the Bad baby, despite reading it at story time at the library for years and then to my two.
I still have a box of books in the loft for me to read to potential grandchildren - including Peepo, The Tiger That Came To Tea, Old Bear, Dogger and several other Shirley Hughes ones - my two particularly loved the rhyming ones like Two Shoes, New Shoes and Bathwater's Hot.

I don't know if they're still available but we had a series of books about a teddy bear in different jobs - Teddy Bear Farmer, Teddy Bear Coalman etc which were good because when DS got temporarily obsessed with the character there were several to choose from, so it didn't get too boring for me.

MrsKitty · 08/10/2011 08:41

Chocolate Mousse for Greedy Goose by Julia Donaldson is fun (and short!) we read nit so much that DS eventually decided he could 'read' it himself, which was a bonus!

MrsKitty · 08/10/2011 08:42

*read 'it', not 'nit', obviously!