why there aren’t enough children’s books…

This is a fascinating blog post on why there aren’t enough really good children’s books around…

I love to read, and I love to read to my children. There are few things I enjoy more than sitting on the couch with a boy under each arm, snuggled under a blanket, a stack of books lying next to us.

My mom did me a huge favor by saving a lot of books from my childhood. Many of them were Caldecott award winners… some of them are quirky books with great illustrations, vivid imagery, and challenging vocabulary. I love so many of them, and I want my boys to do the same.

But there aren’t as many of these treasures available as I would like, and I think this article may explain why. And sure, my boys like the occasional story based on a tv show…. but that isn’t the only thing I want for them to read.

I want them to travel down the Yangtze River with Ping, go to Portsmouth Market with the Ox Cart Man, fly a kite with (the original) Curious George, trick some bees with A.A. Milne’s Winnie the Pooh, and fight with some toy soliders for the return of Miss Suzy’s house. I want them to go sledding with Frog and Toad and follow Harold into his Purple Crayon world.

We go on adventures on our faded flowered couch…. and they’re the best!