Books to Help You Share the Things You Love with Your Baby
by Lindsay Barrett
Reading to babies is the ultimate snuggly activity for promoting a close relationship, and there’s no shortage of research hailing its learning benefits. With the American Academy of Pediatrics urging parents to read to their children every day from birth, though, even if you put the canon of classic baby books you received as gifts on shuffle, that’s a LOT of bedtime farewells in Goodnight Moon. Consider the opportunity to think outside the gift box. Part of the fun of being a new parent is imagining how you’ll introduce your child to what you love. In today’s market, there’s a book for that. You’ll still have to wait a few years to teach your baby how to strum guitar chords or wield a chef’s knife, but in the meantime, we’ve compiled this list of books to help you bring your passions right to the nursery.
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For Literature Lovers
Even though it will be a while before your future English major can weigh in on the symbolism in War and Peace, you can introduce Pierre and Natasha now, as fuzzy felted figures in the Cozy Classics version by Jack and Holman Wang. Literature-buff parents will also love the entire BabyLit series. The child-friendly renditions of the perilous creatures met by Odysseus in The Odyssey: A Monsters Primer by Jennifer Adams and illustrated by Alison Oliver are adorable. The carefully chosen short quotes in Little Women: A Playtime Primer, by the same team, are the perfect throwback to a simpler time.
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For Art Aficionados
The only challenge here is narrowing down which type of art you want to introduce to your baby first. You can go the classic route with the Mini Masters Box Set by Julie Merberg and Suzanne Bober. Or, go for pop art with Mudpuppy’s A Is For Andy: ABCs with Andy Warhol, which includes illustrations by the artist himself and lettering by his mother, Julia Warhola. Color-lovers can go far beyond the basics with Pantone Colors: A Children’s Book (and should probably plan to invest in a giant box of crayons down the road). If you can’t wait to dig into art projects with your little one, start making plans together as you enjoy The Artist Who Painted a Blue Horse by master illustrator Eric Carle.
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The Artist Who Painted a Blue Horse
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For Sports Fans
When you found out you were expecting, did you or your spouse immediately begin planning your child’s sports career? Give some early encouragement by reading Sporty Babies Wear Sweats, by Michelle Sinclair Colman and illustrated by Nathalie Dion. To introduce your budding athlete to equipment and key concepts in hockey, football, baseball, soccer, basketball, and tennis, share titles from the First Sports series, by Sterling Children’s. There’s no better way to get your baby exclaiming, “Goal!”
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For Musicians
Introduce your baby to a world of musical possibilities with Music Is…, written by Brandon Stosuy and illustrated by Amy Martin, which spans a cappella to percussion. For a read-aloud that will get you humming and tapping your favorite songs, try Baby Loves to Rock! by Wednesday Kirwan. As an alternative to traditional lullabies, read Elvis Presley’s Love Me Tender. Stephanie Graegin’s sweet illustrations probably aren’t quite what Elvis imagined when he wrote the lyrics, but they will give you plenty to talk about with your baby, from your musical aspirations for her to memories of your first moments together.
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Elvis Presley’s Love Me Tender
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For STEM Enthusiasts
Scientist parents can introduce their babies to protons and electrons in Quantum Physics for Babies by Chris Ferrie, while mathematicians will find plenty to discuss in ABCs of Mathematics by the same author. If you’re an engineer, try Baby Loves Aerospace Engineering, written by Ruth Spiro and illustrated by Irene Chan. Simple explanations reveal the flight secrets of everything from birds to rockets.
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For Nature Lovers
If you dream of family trips to the world’s most scenic spots, or if you just want to relive your adventurous pre-parenting days, take your baby on a whirlwind tour in All Aboard: National Parks by Kevin and Haily Meyers. If digging in your own yard is more your speed, prime your baby to join you one day with the simple facts and cheerful illustrations in Hello World! Backyard Bugs by Jill McDonald. For those who simply love to marvel at nature’s wonders, add the beautiful Outside Your Window: A First Book of Nature, written by Nicola Davies and illustrated by Mark Hearld, to your collection. Snuggle up together with some pillows to prop up this large volume and share the eloquent verses about everything from lizards to feathers.
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For Top Chefs
If you love to shop for, prepare, and savor good food, take your baby on a bountiful trip to the market and back with Stefan Page’s We’re Going to the Farmer’s Market. Titles from the Cook in a Book series, like Pizza!: An Interactive Recipe Book by Lotta Nieminen, are fun to read aloud to infants and also to enjoy later with toddlers, who will like manipulating the cardboard pieces to “help” prepare a tasty dish.
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What books do you love to read that reflect your interests? Share them with us in the comments section below!