Books as a present for a new baby?

[fadingfast]

A colleague at work is imminently about to have his first baby. I thought it might be a nice idea to buy a small selection of classic young children's books with the collection as he is virtually illiterate.

I was thinking of the following toddler-friendly books:
Dear Zoo
Going on a bear hunt
Very hungry caterpillar
The Gruffallo
The tiger who came to tea

Any other suggestions please?

Not classics exactly, but Giraffes Can't Dance and Aliens Love Underpants have been favourites of DD for ages.

Emma Dodd's books are beautiful; "hippos go berserk" by Sandra Boynton is fun; and Quentin Blake always goes down well with DD3 - esp "The Wild Washerwomen"

Hairy mclary and each peach pear plum

The 'guess how much I love you ' rabbit books are beautiful

You can get a lovely set of the Beatrix Potter ones in a box etc.

I quite often get a board book version of The Baby's Catalogue by Janet & Allan Ahlberg.

I do love the Wild Washerwomen, bought it for a friend's toddler recently.

How about an anthology?

I was given books for DD when she was born

Each peach pear plum
Miffy
Meg and Mog
Going on a bear hunt.

So much lasting pleasure.

Just to add, we were given the board versions, so they stood up well to wear and tear.

If you buy going on a bear hunt, get going on a bar hunt too for him, very funny!

my mum got DD 'the cat in the hat' - the rhymes in it are fab!

All these suggestions are great. I just wanted to add that someone bought my DD a selection of these when she was born and it was probably the best present she received. We still read most of them every night. Such a great new baby present in amongst the mountains of clothes & soft toys!

Dr Seuss boxset. My DSs both loved Dr Seuss and the clever rhyming is very good for them to hear.

I've still got all the Beatrix Potter and AA Milne classics I was given as a baby/christening

Love books as a baby present.

Eric Carle and Sandra Boynton books are wonderful for babies - get the board books!

Goodnight Moon, Where the Wild Things Are. If You Give a Mouse a Cookie.

Something a bit different would be the NSPCC Art for Babies book, here full of monochrome pictures which babies love. I have a copy (I was a bit huh?) when I was given it but both my babies really seemed to like it.

We have some Sandra Boynton box sets. Her book Doggies was great for DD when she was really little. I also love Hippos Go Beserk. Elmer is a bit of a classic.

slinky malinky and hairy mclary sets were very popular here too.

Wow, some great suggestions thanks!
I hadn't thought of 'Each Peach', and I also LOVE Meg & Mog.
I had forgotten about the black and white picture books for babies NumTum, mine loved those too!

Awesome suggestions here too...I usually get Pat the Bunny, On the Night You Were Born, and Oh The Places You'll Go.