A Peek at our Bookshelf: Roxaboxen and More Bugs!

I added Roxaboxen to our Spring book basket on a whim, mostly because I knew it took place outdoors.  Reading it with the boys during story time was actually my first read-through, and it was such a delight!  Roxaboxen (a true story) is about an empty field which turns into a town, a battlefield, or anything the imagination desires.  Reading it made me remember the lot of woods next to my house, where my friends and I made a kitchen with my old children's table, a rug and a few empty jars, or went horseback (bike) riding on the trails.  While Elliott liked the story, I certainly think I enjoyed the story and illustrations more.  Perhaps this book will spark a desire for the boys to create their own imaginary town, but either way, I hope as the boys get older, they think back to the farm and running through the fields where they sword fight with sticks or chase dinosaurs, and have the same great memories as Roxaboxen inspires.



The Best Book of Bugs is a factual book, not a living book, so we only read about a few bugs each night.  There are a lot of interesting facts, though, and both boys are enjoying it.








More Bugs in Boxes is a pop-up/lift-the-flap book with imaginative bugs, and is great for toddlers.  It is a "colors" book, but covers other early learning topics (like shapes) as well.  We read it quite frequently, at Emory's request.

One of Elliott's choices was The Adventures of Spider: West African Folktales by Joyce Cooper Arkhurst.  The stories (like How Spider Got a Thin Waist) are short, and are a great introduction to folktales and other cultures.  It'll take us a few more nights to finish the stories, but Elliott has enjoyed it thus far.







From Caterpillar to Butterfly was Emory's choice, and for some reason he wanted to "read" the whole thing with me.  If you've never heard a 2 year old say metamorphosis or chrysalis it is quite amusing!  This was a Let's Read and Find Out Science book, and so far we are enjoying each one that we've read.

Emory chose Hopper Hunts for Spring by Marcus Pfister as his bedtime book and the boys enjoyed laughing at Hopper as he encountered different animals asking if they were Spring.

We read the second story, The Tale of Benjamin Bunny, from The Complete Adventures of Peter Rabbit, this week, at Elliott's request, and he seems to be enjoying the mishaps adventures these little bunnies keep getting into.

Duck Soup by Jackie Urbanovic is another book about the lovable Max, who likes to cook...only his friends have decided he cooked himself!  It's a cute story like Duck at the Door, which we read last week, and the boys enjoy them.