Anyone who knows me or has looked over my blog
knows that I love books. Preacher Man loves books. And we are raising our
children to love books. Just this week Monkey has started sitting still and
letting me read to him! Things are progressing nicely in this area, so I
started thinking ahead to the grandchildren. I know that my oldest is only
eight, soon to be turning nine, but I want to pass our families love of the
written word on to future generations.
So I started researching and selecting illustrated
classical books to purchase with the intentions of having these for my children
and for my grandchildren. Books that are as beautiful to look at as they are to
read. I wanted to share some of these books that I’ve already purchased and my
list of future illustrated classics to buy.
The Secret Garden: Unbelievable artwork and a nice big
book to hold.
The Hobbit: A very fantasy type of art which is perfect for
this story. I bought this one recently to read to Chipette since the movie is
coming out this fall/winter, but I don’t think she’s ready to hear this one
yet. I forgot how complex the language is.
Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland: The art in this version is very
much like a children’s book which makes this classic very accessible to the
youngest of listeners. There is a picture on almost every page which is nice.
Bruce Coville’s Shakespeare picture books. This is
the only one we own currently, The Tempest.
I am in love with this series of books. If you want to make Shakespeare
accessible and fun for early elementary children, these are the books you want!
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz: The art in this book reminds me
of old picture books. While some of the pages are not super easy to read
because they put the type over some of the art work, I didn’t have any trouble.
In the mail right now on the way to my house is Through the Looking Glass illustrated by
the same artist who did Alice’s
Adventures in Wonderland above.
On my Amazon Wish List to be purchased at some
point in the future:
The
Wind in the Willows (This is an abridged version, but the
illustrator is the same one who did The
Secret Garden above.)
Heidi
(I would really like to find a nice color illustrated version of this instead
of the one I linked here.)
The Chronicles of Narnia Box Set (Full color
illustrations!)
Winnie the Pooh Box Set (This set has been around for a
while, but now those delightful Pooh drawings are in color.)
TheAdventures of Pinocchio (The art in this book has a very
Renaissance feel to it. I found it hauntingly beautiful.)
These are the ones I've found so far, but I am
still on the lookout for more beautifully illustrated classics. If you have any
that you've found and your children love, please share in the comments.
Thinking about the future while collecting
classics from the past in the tree house,
Chelli
I so appreciate your links and book suggestions. I love discovering new "classic" stories :)
ReplyDeleteThanks! I can't be the only mom who has trouble getting her kids to listen to the classics unless there is a picture!
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