3 Favorite Children’s Book Authors You Will Love

Book Blogger Hop #43: March 16th – March 22nd

Book Blogger Hop

Hello everyone! Many thanks to Billy B. at Ramblings of a Coffee Addicted Writer! who hosts a book meme called the Book Blogger Hop. Just answer weekly questions, and then link up your post on the question’s page. This is a great way to interact with other bloggers!

This week’s question is : 

 This week’s question is submitted by Kitty @ Vicarious Bookworm.

Who is your favorite children’s books author and why? 

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As a former elementary teacher and librarian, choosing a favorite children’s author is like picking my favorite fur baby. I can’t select just one, so I decided to share my three favorite authors Eric Carle, Jan Brett, and Ezra Jack Keats who are all also illustrators. They have all won numerous awards for their books.

Eric Carle is my favorite author of all time! I recently surprised to find out that my father and Eric Carle had the same art teacher, and my father had the opportunity to talk with him a few times when he was at the Eric Carle Museum (in MA) signing his books. I always enjoyed his vibrant colors and collage technique. Most of his books effectively teach general concepts and have some sort of surprise embedded in the book. Carle’s rhythmic and repetitious words appeal to young readers and the kid in all of us.

Eric Carle began his profession when he coauthored and illustrated the book Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? with Bill Martin, Jr. Martin had a background in elementary education, and together with Carle, created a successful book that teaches colors and rhymes.

 

Eric Carle wrote and illustrated the wildly popular children’s book The Very Hungry Caterpillar. I have used it as a Kindergarten teacher to teach the life cycle of a butterfly, days of the week, and counting. This book has been translated into many different languages, and it has won many awards. This is a great read for spring!

From Head to Toe encourages children to mimic the animals in the book and move their own body parts like a game of Simon Says.

I used The Grouchy Ladybug to teach time to my second graders.

Jan Brett is also a famous author and illustrator of children’s books. She wrote and illustrated the New York Times Bestsellers The Mitten, Gingerbread Friends, and The Three Snow Bears. Brett’s pictures usually hide whimsical surprises/foreshadowing in the artwork in the borders of her pages. She is a prolific author and illustrator that has won numerous awards. Brett focuses on books that explore folktales/folklore.

With Easter coming up, The Easter Egg will get children into the spirit. This book encourages creativity and responsibility. If Hoppi can craft the winning Easter egg, then he can help the Easter Rabbit deliver eggs on Easter morning. As Hoppi checks out his competition, he sees eggs being carved out of wood, shaped out of chocolate, and wildflowers planted in eggs. He realizes that he has to design and create an original masterpiece in order to win. However, he has a moral dilemma when a blue robin’s egg tumbles out of its nest. What will Hoppi do?

As an elementary teacher, I used The Mitten to teach sequencing and size (smallest to largest). Click here to learn more about The Mitten in my previous post 10+ Wonderful Winter Books for Children.

 

Ezra Jack Keats has unfortunately passed away, but his legacy lives on in the Ezra Jack Keats Foundation that supports diversity. Keats had written and illustrated approximately 85 children’s books. Keats has won various awards for his books, and he also used a collage technique using patterned paper, fabric, oilcloth along with other materials. Keats wrote a series of books which featured an African-American boy named Peter during a time in U.S. history where this was controversial. Keats tended to address social issues such as friendship and accepting a new sibling.

Keats won the prestigious Caldecott Medal for illustrations in a children’s book with The Snowy Day. Click here to learn more about The Snowy Day in my previous post 10+ Wonderful Winter Books for Children.

Peter’s Chair is a delightful book that teaches children how to accept a new sibling.

Related Post: 10+ Wonderful Winter Books for Children

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Also seen at Link Party#244 Booknificent Thursdays at Mommynificent.com

12 thoughts on “3 Favorite Children’s Book Authors You Will Love”

  1. Those are all very cute children’s books! And how AWESOME that Eric Carle and your dad had the same art teacher! They must have had a great time reminiscing at those book signings! 🙂

    I am not at all familiar with these books. They must have been published after I grew up, lol. If only I could go back and be a kid again, in order to enjoy them…..lol. I especially like the “Brown Bear” book, as well as “The Easter Egg”, “The Mitten”, and “The Snowy Day”. I LOVE winter-themed, as well as holiday-themed, books!

    Thanks for sharing! Thanks for commenting on my own BBH post, too!! <3 🙂

    1. Hi Maria,
      Thank you for commenting on my BBH!? Yes, my dad and Eric Carle looked like they were having very animated discussions. You are never too old to enjoy a good children’s book! I like checking out the children’s section on the local libraries. I am 40+, and children’s books have come such a long way since I was a child.
      You are welcome. I enjoyed your BBH!?
      Best,
      Christina

  2. Oh, I love The Very Hungry Caterpillar! It’s so cool that your dad had the same art teacher as Eric Carle. Thanks for the recommendations, I am always looking for new books for my daughter. She’s only two but is absolutely book mad.

    1. Hi Tizzy,
      Thank you so much for your comments! 🙂 I think that it is awesome your two-year-old daughter is so engaged with books!:) I was an elementary teacher, and I have a degree reading. In addition, I am a certified school media specialist. I know that birth to age 3 are the formative years where children are soaking in their environments. You sound like a terrific mom who is giving her daughter the gift of reading!:) Board books are fantastic for little hands. They are very sturdy, and this allows little ones to interact with the book without worrying about ripping pages. I do have a section in this blog under Teacher https://www.teacher-librarian-forlife.com/category/teacher/ that discusses different children’s books & activities. 🙂

      You might have already read these gems to your daughter, but here are a few suggestions. Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown (classic), Alphaprints Numbers (creative, colorful, counts up to 5), Opposites by Sandra Boynton, Cookie’s Week by Cindy Ward (Cookie is a mischievous cat that gets into trouble every day), Alphabet City by Stephen Johnson, (Bear series) Bear Snores On by Karma Wilson & Jane Chapman (good for social emotional skills), Spot (dog) series that teaches a wide variety of concepts by Eric Hill, Star Bright Books are primarily photos of babies covering different concepts such as “My Face Book” by Star Bright Books shows babies’ faces expressing a variety of emotions, Pat the Bunny by Dorothy Kunhardt, Peek a Who by Nina Laden, Guess How Much I love You by Sam MacBratney (classic), Kiss Kiss by Margaret Wild (loved this book! exposes kids to African animals), and Tana Hoban books are oldies but goodies when it comes to teaching concepts like shapes.

      Happy reading to you and your daughter! 🙂
      Best,
      Christina

      1. Thank you so much for your kind words, Christina. My mum was very proactive in reading to me when I was little, so much so that I could read before I started school. I’m trying to encourage my daughter to have the same enthusiasm for reading. Out of the books you mentioned, we have Guess How Much I Love You and some of the Spot the dog board books, I will have to check out the other titles. At the moment she is enjoying the Gruffalo and the other books by the same author, as well as the Mr Men and the Daisy series by Kes Gray. I have a few vintage children’s books passed down to me from my Nan, such as Goodnight Owl and Wobble the Witchcat and I’m so pleased she likes those too.

        1. Hi Tizzy,
          You are welcome! 🙂 You truly sound like a wonderful mom who is passing on her love for reading! 🙂 Your daughter is very lucky to be benefitting from a family of readers! 🙂 I love the Daisy series, too. I have not heard of some of your selections. Are they English based? I noticed that you are from England, I believe. I am from the States. I will look up your choices, too. You got me curious. (By the way, we used to travel to Europe when I was younger, and I fell in love and still have some of my Paddington books that we bought in England.)
          Best,
          Christina 🙂

          1. Yes, I’m from England. I’m not sure if the books I mentioned have been published in the US or not, but I highly recommend them if you can get hold of them. Oh yes, Paddington is wonderful too-a true British classic.

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