Holiday Gift Book Recommendations from a Librarian

Our monthly book list traditionally aligns with a theme, which, over the past year, has included women’s history, Earth Day, cooking and food, animal stories, summer reading—followed by returning to school. We have compiled lists of our favorite poetry collections for children and books that featured aspirational themes like gratitude and kindness.

Our final list of 2021 is especially meaningful for us because the theme, “librarian recommended gifts” is open-ended. What we have compiled for you this month are treasures that don’t fit neatly into a book category but are among our favorite reads. Some of them, like A Sick Day for Amos McGee, are all-time favorites, reliable super-stars among the books we read aloud to our Stratford students. Others, like Poems of the Planets and How to Wear a Sari are books that can be enjoyed in equal measure by the adult gift-giver and the child recipient.

As you begin to think about holiday gifts for the children in your life, we urge you to consider the gift of a book—selected from among your own childhood favorites or perhaps from ours, featured below.

Preschool

How to Catch a Clover Thief —Written and Illustrated by Elise Parsley
A silly story that teaches children the importance of reading. Roy, a hungry wild boar, awaits the bloom of a patch of clover. He is joined in the forest by Jarvis the sneaky-smart groundhog. Jarvis distracts Roy with books, sending him off on wild goose chases, and eventually to the library himself. This clever and hilarious tale is full of expressive characters, irresistible page turns, problem-solving, and a twist ending you won’t see coming!

A Sick Day for Amos McGee —Written by Philip Christian Stead, Illustrated by Erin Stead
Amos McGee is a kind, selfless zookeeper who makes time every day for all of his diverse animal friends at the zoo. One day he is sick and does not go to work, leaving the animals concerned. Children will laugh as the animals, including a giant rhino, hilariously ride the city bus to visit him at his home. The mutual love and caring beams through the exceptional art and words in this Caldecott Medal-winning picture book. The details in the elegant illustrations will have children asking you to read this to them over and over again.

Kindergarten

How to Wear a Sari —Written by Darshana Khiani, Illustrated by Joanne Lew-Vriethoff
This heartwarming story of a young girl who wants to be big, trying to wear a sari like her mom and aunties. As the spirited, determined girl tries to figure out this beautiful piece of clothing, from choosing the right one to wrapping it the right way, she is determined to prove that she is not too little to accomplish anything she sets her mind to. An original celebration of this child’s traditions and her own admirable spunk! A great book to introduce young children to the “how-to” of saris.

We Are Water Protectors —Written by Carole Lindstrom, Illustrated by Michaela Goade
A powerful story that inspires readers to take a stand not only to safeguard the earth’s water, but to make a positive impact in our community each and every day. The watercolor illustrations are spreads that flow like a stream throughout the pages as the young girl tells of the dangerous black snake (Dakota Access Pipeline) that came to threaten her village. The author and illustrator’s notes provide detail on Native American culture, beliefs, an explanation of the events at Standing Rock in 2016, as well as an “Earth Steward and Water Protector Pledge” for the readers to take at the end.  This 2021 Caldecott Medal winner will remind each reader to care for and appreciate our environment.

Grades One and Two

A Light in the Attic —Written by Shel Silverstein
Shel Silverstein follows no rules and has an imagination like no other. In this collection, poems are mingled into the line drawings and with titles like, “Monsters I’ve Met,” “Whatif,” “Messy Room,” and “Homework Machine,” children will find these poems very relatable, and will be given a glimpse of the way language creates beauty and inspires wonder.

Grades Three to Five

Poems of the Planets —Written by Eric Garen, with Katherine de Kleer
With chapters like, “The Ecology of Earth,” “Walking on the Moon,” “Those Annoying Asteroids,” and “Uranus and Its 27 Shakespearean Moons,” this collection of verse and prose sparks the interest of youngsters in not only astronomy, but also introduces important basic concepts in chemistry, physics, biology, and oceanography. An in-depth glossary provides clear explanations of nearly 200 terms. Amazing photos, many taken by the author, accompany the poems. It is also full of delightful detours such as the brief descriptions of the characters in Shakespeare’s plays for whom the moons of Uranus are named.

Smile —Written by Raina Telgemeier
Set in San Francisco in the late 1980’s, complete with an earthquake, fog and beautiful landscapes with the Golden Gate bridge, this incredibly relatable graphic novel is an autobiography of a sixth grader who wants to fit in. This book will appeal to kids looking for a story that reflects their fears and experiences, also giving them hope that life will eventually allow them to smile.

Middle School

The Wishing Spell – Land of Stories Book One (series) —Written by Chris Colfer
Alex and Conner Bailey’s world is about to change, in this fast-paced adventure that uniquely combines our modern-day world with the enchanting realm of classic fairy tales. This is the tale of twins Alex and Conner, who, through the mysterious powers of a cherished book of stories, leave the world that they know behind. After a series of encounters with witches, wolves, goblins, and trolls alike, getting back home is going to be harder than they thought.

Photo: Stratford School

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Keira Pride

Tinybeans Voices Contributor

Keira Pride is the Head Librarian at Stratford School, the leading independent private school founded with a vision of creating a unique, multi-dimensional, educational foundation for children. As Stratford's Head Librarian, she manages the library services department across campuses throughout Northern and Southern California.