November 17, 2008

Kid's Picks: The Hat by Jan Brett



Mom: Timothy, what is your favorite Jan Brett book?

Timothy: The Hat

Mom: What do you like about The Hat?

Timothy: It has a border trim!

So I have some work to do on the whole "interview" process, but Timothy's pick is a great one! This is a wonderful book. Brett's illustrations are intricate and beautiful. Not only that, in all her books she creates a "border trim" of drawings that actually have their own story line! In The Hat, the pictures in the border give you a snapshot of what is coming (which is great for building prediction skills in young children)! It's so fun and all her books are like this! These border trims will also show you other "subplots" of the story. It's remarkable how she weaves the story and pictures together! She's extremely talented.

You can get a list of Jan Brett's books on her website, which is packed with activities and information. And since it's almost Christmas time, I thought I would point out these two books: Gingerbread Baby and Gingerbread Friends. The cover nor the description do the books justice. You have to see them for yourself!


For more Kids' Picks, head on over to 5 Minutes for Books.

10 comments:

Tara Steffen Fotos said...

I wish my kids were still into those "cute" books! They read more novels now. I miss reading to them.

Pam said...

We will definately be checking those out!! But, not from the library... grrr... too risky!

Stephanie Kay said...

We have a whole set of these books. In all honesty the sidebar pictures annoy me. Too much eye clutter. We have the Gingerbread Baby and The Hat and I think 2 others. She also has a 12 Days of Christmas book I've thought about buying. They aren't my favorite books but my kids enjoy them.

Anonymous said...

I will look into these - prediction is definitely a challenge for my little guy. What I ask him what will happen next, he just says, "Turn the page!"

Here's mine!

ibeeeg said...

we love Jan Brett books. The illustrations alone tell a story worth talking about.

The Hat lends itself to wonderful extension projects that a Mom can do with their little people.

Anonymous said...

It's amazing what children value in a story.

Carrie said...

I've been looking at the covers of her books but have yet to crack the inside of one. The outside of them look adorable and your post as motivated me to pick some up and enjoy! Thanks for the review (and the link to her website)!

Alyce said...

I have never heard of these books, but I will have look for them in the library the next time we go.

Unknown said...

Yes, the kids don't always give us the answers we like on the whys, but it's still good to know what they like!

Heather J. @ TLC Book Tours said...

I like the idea about getting the kids to predict what will happen next - that's a skill kiddo (a 1st grader) is working on in school right now. Thanks!