Books for 3.5 year old???

[meowmix]

Can anyone recommend books for a 3.5yr old boy? Really after factual books and/or anything that gets me out of reading Harry and the Profoundly Irritating Dinosaurs for one more time...

Thanks Mumsnetters.

MY DS also enjoys

Anything by John Burningham (Magic Bed, Where's Julius, Husherbye etc)
Anything by David McKee EXCEPT the Elmer books (Not Now Bernard, I Hate My Teddy Bear, Who's a Clever Baby Then?)
Don't know who wrote them, but we've borrowed Zigby from the library (Zigby Goes Camping) and they're v popular
How to Catch a Star
Whatever Next

I have hidden the Thomas the Tank Engine ones on the grounds that I hate reading them but they do come out for long car journeys or restaurants where I need to keep him quiet!

MIL bought him an AWFUL book called Whirly. Its a bout a helicoptor. He loves that to distraction.

Also The Carrot Seed is a big winner but he has to "read" it to me.

If you haven't already tried them then can't recommend Harold and the Purple Crayon enough.

As a discussion book - lots of lovely flaps and things - Wonderful world is great - just provide the information appropriate for the age of the child. The books is aimed at older kids but mine loves it at 4 and has done for the last 18 months

Has anyone suggested the "Little Red Train" books by Benedict Blathwayt yet? Fabulous illustrations with loads of detail to pick out, and just enough repetition in the text to grab their interest without making the stories themselves repetitive.

Ds is 3.5. Apart from ones already mentioned, he loves:

Billy's Bucket
Revolting Rhymes
Farmer Duck
Some Sandra Boynton (but possibly growing out of them)
Man on the Moon or Dougal the Deep Sea diver
Paddington stories (although I don't think he gets a lot of it)

Not available new I don't think, but me and ds are in love with

The Cozy Book

and A House is a House For Me .

Both the illustrations and the text are absolutely stunning.

Ds also likes all the Alfie books, all Judith Kerr's Mog books, and some chapter books inc. Milly Molly Mandy, Jamie and Angus (sweet short stories about a little boy instead of girls, for a change), and magical stories like A Necklace of Raindrops and The Last Slice of Rainbow (some mild editing needed here for sensitive 3 year olds).

Ds is also very very fond of Winnie the Witch although I think the story lines other than the first one are total shite. The illustrations are wonderful in a deranged way, though, so I can see whay he likes them.

My DS is 2.5 so a bit younger but I second lots of the suggestions on here.

I'm glad to see a parents' consensus on Mr Men books - I thought it was just me being churlish about reading them but my heart sinks when he chooses one, or one of the Thomas collection. I love to read Charlie and Lola, Harry and the Not Irritating in our house Dinosaurs, Gruffalo etc, Little Bear books, Catch A Star (we have a CD with the book and he loves the sound effects on it), Richard Scarry, Little Red Train, Kipper and Dr Seuss.
For Christmas I have bought him this Mr Men story CD so I don't have to read them anymore and a Thomas one too but that came from Borders and I can't find it on Amazon but they should have similar.

Also, Click Clack Moo and Giggle Giggle Quack by Doreen Cronin are good and funny for adults.

in our house pants by Nick Sharratt gets brought out every single night without fail and DS knows it by heart.
it is very pleasing and cheerful. Small pants, big pants, giant frilly pig pants; What a lot of lovely pants there are!

Thought of another one that's a fact-based story - The World Came to MY Place Today - all about where our food comes from.

oh I agree with loads of the previous suggestions, especially Charlie and Lola - I don't get bored of reading those stories.
plus David McKee books
anything by Julia Donaldson, especially the Gruffalo. I think ds2 learned that one off by heart, along with the silly voices I did for each character
anything published by Barefoot Books
any Alfie books by Shirley Hughes
The Elephant and the Bad Baby by Elfrida Vipont

Ds1 is 4 1/2 and in the last year or so has started listening to longer books, a chapter a night - he liked James and the Giant Peach and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

Do you have a local library? We have found some gems there that I wouldn't have discovered otherwise - and if you don't like the books you can always take them back after a week! Recently we borrowed 'The Loudest Roar' about a little tiger who annoys the other animals in the jungle. Both ds's liked that one (ds2 is 2 years old).

Or if you join a book club (Red House, The Book People, Books for Children) there are usually some good ideas in the brochures they send every month.

Great ideas thanks - would KILL (or at least maim) for an English language library out here but no. So am using you lot as virtual shelves for browsing.

Am I alone in finding that beloved-son-and-heir becomes hellish toddler from bratsville after application of a charlie and lola story then? We've given his C&L books to a neighbour and have noticed more stressed looks of mother since...

Yeah, I find those books give ds "ideas". Prefer the Storybook Wolves (2 books) by the same author.