Please recommend your favourite toddler's books

[Feierabend]

I want to buy DD1 some new books for Christmas and her 3rd birthday. Please can you recommend your favourite classics - books that you think every toddler should own, and that you never get tired of reading to them? I am thinking along the lines of Rosie's Walk, Each Peach Pear Plum, The Very Hungry Caterpillar and The Tiger Who Came To Tea. I also love Monkey Puzzle. Thanks!

Anything by Lynley Dodd - Slinky Malinky, Hairy McLairy, etc. Wonderful illustrations and use of language.

notyummy I don't but funnily enough I bought 'Lost & Found' for DS today for his stocking (it's the only one he doesn't have) and the lady in Waterstones mentioned it. She said to look out for it as it would probably be on at Christmas.

We saw 'How to Catch a Star' at the Polka Theatre last year and it was brilliant.

Peace at Last
Saturday Night at the Dinosaur Stomp
Aliens in Underpants Save the World

Love the name Feierabend
DD1 is just 3 & loves Winnie the witch. I got her this for her 3rd birthday

oh what a great thread Feier - I am quite passionate about our book collection. Here are some we have and some which are on our wish list:

• Where the Wild Things Are
• The Elephant And The Bad Baby
• The Tiger Who Came to Tea
• Mog The Forgetfull Cat
• Winnie The Pooh
• Paddington Bear
• Elusive Moose
• The Hungry Caterpillar
• Brown Bear, Brown Bear
• Ginger
• Elmer (any of the Elmer books)
• Julia Donaldson - any but particularly loving Tiddler's Late and Sharing a Shell.
• Moomins
• Pippi Longstocking
• Raymond Briggs (the Father Christmas tales are great Christmas Presents, Fungus the Bogeyman is brilliant fun for older children and I still sob just thinking of Highwayman Jim)
• Letters From Father Christmas by J.R.R. Tolkein - letters the author wrote to his own children each year as if from Father Christmas.
• Anything by Roald Dahl (just been re-reading Revolting Rhymes - hilarious although DD doesn't get it at all yet)
• Laurie Krebs has done a series of books about different parts of the world - fabulous illustrations and packed with info - we love 'Off We Go to Mexico' there are others about the Galapagos, the Nile, Tanzania etc which really stir the imagination.
• Every child should also have well illustrated compendium of the classics (Brothers Grimm, Hans Christian Anderson, Perault etc). Have a look at Barefoot Books a children's publishers who seem to produce some beautifully illustrated collections.
• The Usborne Illustrated Children's Bible is quite good too.
• Arabian Knights
• Aesop's Fables

Mog! Of course! Except not Goodbye Mog

impressive list wriggly

can i add:
Milly Molly Mandy
anything by Mini Grey
anything by Mick Inkpen especially Blue Nose Island
Shoe Baby
Katie Morag stories - we love her
anything Quentin Blake
Dr Seuess
art deco version of Cinderella by Lynn Roberts ill. David Roberts - lush
Eat your peas- nick sharatt

Lovely recommendations from everyone, thanks. I want to put together a really nice collection of books for the girls over the next few years. Adding the German classics, we're going to need a lot of space for all those books! By the way am very surprised that apart from Pippi Longstocking, none of the Astrid Lindgren books seem to be popular in the UK? I read and loved every single word she ever wrote, and urge you to seek out her other books - especially the Noisy Village ones. They are for ages 5+ I would think.

fei i have started doing this partly from charity shops to keep down cost. am also heading for a space crisis.

can i also add we all went on safari - it's a lovely counting book published by barefoot

thanks for astrid lindgren - i havent read any of hers yet

Ooh forgot Nick Sharrat. DS loves his gimicky books like Elephant Wellyphant, Octopus Socktopus and A Cheese and Tomato Spider

Doh - Dr Seuss - meant to add that.

I'm a little anxious about how to store all these books too.

Any Shirley Hughes books - mine loved Alfie and Annie Rose (as did I). Also the Mog books. Cuddly Dudley (can't remember who by - but mine loved it). Kipper and The Owl who was afraid of the dark.

Oh God I am feeling so guilty now - DD is almost 3 and I haven't read nearly as many of these with her as I had with DS at the same age.

She does love lark in the ark, All things Blue Kangaroo, Cock a Moo Moo, Peepo, Wibbly Pig, and Hungry Caterpillar.

DS at 3 loved bear hunt, Dear Zoo, Gruffalo, Kipper, Some Dogs Do, Night Pirates (every little girl should own that one)... we own all these books and many many more, I just need to find time to read more of them to DD .

Can't believe no-one has mentioned Guess how much I Love You...

Where Are You, Blue Kangaroo? is my favourite BK one.

Noisy Village is Bullerby in the UK. I gave it to my 4.5 year old niece last Christmas (as Noisy Village, since we live abroad) and she loved it.

Usborne do the best books. I've probably spelt that wrong but it seems all DS's favourite books are published by them. Have a look at their website (and no, I'm not an agent).

Also he loves the Grufallo, The Hungry Caterpillar and Dear Zoo.