Every night before bed it's reading time. And each night when asked what Z-Dub wants to ready first, his reply is "The Fellings Book by Todd Parr." I'm not kidding. That's how he says it. Title and author.
HotMomma purchased the colorful boardbook from a Borders Books several months ago and it has been a favorite ever since. Authored by a accomplished artist, the book combines color, whimsical illustrations and simple messages that help children learn about emotions. It includes such lines as "sometimes I feel like celebrating my birthday, even though it's not today," "sometimes I feel cranky" and "sometimes I feel like camping with my dog." Z-Dub has the entire book memorized from cover to cover, but still enjoys reading it every night.
It's clear we need more books just like it.
So, as you can imagine, we were a little bummed out when we started on a quest to find more of Todd Parr's charming children's books and had trouble finding many of his boardbooks with titles such as "The Okay Book," "Underwear Do's and Don'ts Book" and others. We tried stores and online. Stores had none of the boardbooks and online only had a few used. Eventually I decided to go straight to the man himself, Todd Parr. He quickly responded to my e-mail inquiry and informed me that most of the boardbooks I inquired about were published eight to ten years ago and are out of print, although he had many other great books currently in print, with some new titles on the way. But learning how much Z-Dub is a fan of his one and only Todd Parr book, the gracious author offered to send him some copies of his out-of-print titles. On Saturday Z-Dub and I walked to the mailbox, opened it up and found a package addressed to Z-Dub. Opening it up like a holiday present, Z-Dub found three autographed Todd Parr books. He was so excited. Thanks to the generosity of Todd Parr, Z-Dub is one happy kid.
If you have a Toddler, check out his books. Your child will undoubtedly enjoy them.
|