Flip, Flap, Fly-- Phyllis Root

Guess How Much I Love You-- Sam McBratney

The Gruffalo--Julia Donaldson

Otis-Loren Long

I second any of the Babar Books, Curious George. Also, the Madeleine Books. Olivia Books, Frog & Toad, Peter Rabbit, etc., Leo Lionni's books.

The Little Engine That Could -- my father used to read that to me, and it was a favorite.

Winnie The Pooh by A.A. Milne

For older children, The Eleventh Hour is great

At around age 5 my daughter loved The Rain Babies by Laura Krauss Melmed. The illustrations are amazing!

At around 2 my little guy was addicted to Please, Baby, Please. It was written by Spike Lee and Tonya Lewis. The illustrations are also fabulous! Warning...even though the toddler loved this book it sometimes drove me a little crazy!

I LOVED Andrew Henry's Meadow. Which reminded me of 2 of my other favorite stories that had once been my parents' childhood books...Harvey's Hideout and We Were Tired of Living in a House
http://www.amazon.com/We-Were-Tired-Living-House/dp/B000TX7BWS/ref=pd_sim_b_1
Also, the Winnie the Pooh books and Corduroy were favorites.

For older children, "The Witch Family" by Eleanor Estes, "The Borrowers" series by Mary Norton, and the Edward Eager books, especially, "The Thyme Garden." Happy reading!

Barbapapa's School (out of print) - this was mine as a child and my daughter loves it. The Barbapapa family was ahead of their time with child-rearing/schooling philosophy. ha ha

Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter
A Tree is Nice by Janice May Udry
The Story of Ferdinand by Munro

Partially related: I have friends who now have a lot of grand and great-grandchildren. They decided with the first grandchild, to give him books---and only books---for Christmas presents, and they continued to do that with all subsequent grandchildren. They've kept carefully dated lists for each child. Many of their choices were classics and every child received the same ones, but then other times the books were tailored to the child.

I heartily recommend any and every book by Martin Waddell. Also, Kevin Henkes has always been a favorite. And the Charlie and Lola books by Lauren Child are totally adorable.

My favourite book as a child, and my daughter's favourite too (she keeps sneaking it into her room to read it and stare at the pictures) is Once Long Ago by Roger Lancelyn Green. My dad gave it to me for Christmas one year when I was about 7 or 8. It is an anthology of very well told versions of classic fairy tales, myths and fables from around the world. Even now, I am constantly discovering or re-discovering something in those beautifully-illustrated pages. It is well worth trying to hunt down a copy in a used book store.

Around the age of 8, I also discovered Anne of Green Gables and the many works of Lucy Maude Montgomery. They are magical, and unfamiliar to Americans.

The Secret Garden was the big I reread every time I was sick... I've lost count how many times I read it, but I've practically got the prose memorized. I hope that it will be the same for my daughter.

Right now, all I can remember from the earlier years is Where the Wild Things Are and Goodnight Moon, Goodnight Gorilla and Runaway Bunny, but will try to remember.

One set of books that I think are absolutely magical are the season books by Rotraut Susanne Berner. She has done a series of 4 season books that take place in the same town, with the same town locations, and the same cast of characters, season after season. There are no words, but many, many things for your and your child to laugh and talk about. I believe that for the English market, they were all combined into a single volume (originally, all the pages were glossy cardboard for durability; not sure of the English book is the same).

http://www.amazon.com/In-Town-All-Year-Round/dp/081186474X/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1332439606&sr=1-2

They were so much fun!!

In the original German and in French, there are also back-story books that explain some of the recurring characters in the books (these ones have words).

OH MY GOD, THE ORDINARY PRINCESS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I loved, loved, LOVED that book as a kid! The lovely illustrations! My gosh, I had completely forgotten about it!

The entire Mr. Putter and Tabby series by Cynthia Rylant -- early readers but also charming enough to read aloud -- age 5/6 (indeed, nearly everything by Rylant is great!)

Another classic early reader: Mr. Pine's Purple House

King Bidgood's in the Bathtub illustrated by Audrey Wood (written by Don Wood?) Also When the Root Children Wake Up by the same illustrator, different author.

So many great childrens books! I always wonder why there are any bad ones given the sheer number of great ones.

Noticed "Corduroy & Company" under Age 5, but not the original "Corduroy" which is my favorite book of all time. How could you not include this??!!!!

I give it to all my friends who are pregnant to start their nursery libraries. It teaches a very powerful lesson in a very simple format - I've given to boys and girls.

Patrick- Do your kids attend Waldorf school by any chance? About half your list is tradtional Waldorf books and it made me curious.

Elsa Beskow rocks. The illustrations are lovely, but its the language and cadence that I enjoy. The ragamuffin weeds in A Midsummer's Party are my girls' favorite. "What Happens on Wednesdays" by Emily Jenkins/Lauren Castillo is my all-time favorite to read with my 6 year old.

Oh, yea. No Disney.

I can't remember when my mother started reading them to me, but Laura Ingalls Wilder's Little House books were a huge part of my childhood (especially Little House in the Big Woods.) I was slightly obsessed with them between the ages of 6 and 7, in a good way of course.

I see a LOT of kids books come through at work (public school district library office), and there's some really weird stuff out there that I'm not sure about. (Super Diaper Baby, anyone?) But there are also some really cute things, like all of Peter Brown's books ( http://www.peterbrownstudio.com/ ), and 'Piggy Bunny' by Rachel Vail, and Mo Willem's 'Knufflebunny' and 'Elephant and Piggy' books.

Oh, and one last thought. Not sure if it counts as a classic, but I'll always remember Robert Munsch's 'Love You Forever' as read by my mother. "I'll love you forever, I'll like you for always, as long as I'm living, my baby you'll be."

The Quiltmaker's Gift (age 5+) for beautiful illustrations and an artful story with an important life lesson.

A few years ago the youth group in my church wanted to have a baby shower for our associate pastor. Since she was having many other showers, we decided to make it a "book shower." Each teen brought a new copy of whatever THEIR favorite book was growing up -- something they remembered a parent or loved one reading to them. And they wrote notes inside the bookcovers, explaining why it was their favorite. The result was a very special book collection that will be treasured by that family for years to come.

Anything written by Robert Munsch. For me it was Mortimer but The Paper Bag Princess seems to be a classic and of course, Love You Forever.

My daughter's current favourite is Pinkalicious by Victoria and Elizabeth Kann.

OK, I love, love, love Andrew Henry's Meadow, and I recently introduced my five-year-old son to it (he gasped when we got to the page with Andrew Henry's first big contraption; he's hooked). But I had *completely* forgotten about We Were Tired of Living in a House until I clicked through Bean's link. I loved that book!

Tikki Tikki Tembo by Arlene Mosel (illus. Blair Lent) has the most wonderful illustrations and all the kids I've ever known can't get enough of saying Tikki Tikki Tembo's long full name.
Summer by Alice Low. I read this one to myself EVERY DAY in first grade.
Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
Thimble Summer by Elizabeth Enright (for older children)

What a great list. We have many of the Elsa Beskow and Astrid Lindgren books, as well as the ones about Babar and Curious George. I'm definitely going to look for some of the others on the list that I am not familiar with.

My six year old has been enjoying the books in the Tiptoes Lightly series by Reg Down lately. Fans of Elsa Beskow may also enjoy books by Sibylle Von Olfers. "The Princess in the Forest" is very popular in our house, as well as "The Story of the Root Children" and "The Story of the Snow Children." I wish our library had some of these books.

I'm surprised that "The Little Prince" by Antoine de Saint-Exupery isn't mentioned! It's such a great book for kids and grown-ups alike!

Where the Wild Things Are, Where The Sidewalk Ends, The Stinky Cheese Man, Winnie The Pooh, The Jungle Book, The Neverending Story (I read this book for the first time as an adult and really wished I had as a kid).

Wonderful list. I had a book themed baby shower which was a fantastic way to start my little guy's library. I received many classics and a few fun books that were unknown to me. He's still in board book phase (books are still sometimes chew toys as well as things to read), but he loves being read to. His current favorites are Good Night, Gorilla and I Am a Bunny, both of which have darling illustrations.

@Mschatelaine, I'm curious where you got the impression that the works of Lucy Maud Montgomery are unfamiliar to Americans?! I assure you, this is not the case at all. I, my sisters, and all of our friends grew up with her books. We were pretty obsessed with them. (Still are!) :)

I haven't seen anyone mention Richard Scarry's books. What People Do All Day and Cars and Trucks and Things that Go are the first items I put on my baby registry because of how much time my brother and I spent with those in our early childhood and although my 18 month old is still a little young, I have thoroughly enjoyed looking through them while she's napping. I also loved the book "Swimmy," about a bunch of little fish who get together to protect themselves from a big fish.

Oh, I also loved Harold and his Big Purple Crayon.

@mschatelaine -

The Anne of Green Gables series is widely read in the US. And the movies have been broadcast on PBS for years.

Dear Garbage Man and Harry the Dirty Dog -- both by Gene Zion.

And I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the Pippi Longstocking books by Astrid Lindgren.
:-)

'The Giving Tree' by Shel Silverstein - an incredible and timeless book.

'Ferdinand the Bull' by Munro Leaf is one of my favorites.

Last summer I read 'Wind in the Willows' by Keneth Graham to my 7 year old. We both wept when it was over we loved it so, so much. My husband's reading 'The Hobbit' to our kids now & they love it.

We also love classic Dr. Seuss books- 'The Sleep Book' makes us yawn like crazy & gets all of us ready for bed after a hard day.

'Diary of a Wombat' is hilarious.

I could go on & on, but I gotta get outside & enjoy this amazing spring weather with my kids!

Corduroy
The Velveteen Rabbit
Click, Clack, Moo

This is probably the reason why I am unable to get rid of the stuffed animals from my youth.

Y'all -- I went to school in the U.S. loooooong before the Kevin Sullivan Anne of Green Gables and Road to Avonlea series, and I was never introduced to them, or found them in the library. However, once I moved to Canada, LMM and her books, starting with Anne, were put in my hands by the school librarian.

Plus, when I discuss favourite books of childhood with American women my age (I've been in a Canadian/American book club for many years), none of the Americans have ever mentioned any Lucy Maude Montgomery books, whereas all of us who grew up in Canada did.

Maybe it's a generational thing -- those who grew up in the mid to late '80s and mid '90s (when the series ran) are familiar with Anne and the other Lucy Maude Montgomery books. Me, I grew up in the '70s, and find that among women my age, they don't know Anne. They all list Little Women though.

I grew up in the late 1970s but I read my mom's childhood copies. And they were often recommended by the school librarians, back when schools had such wonderful things.

I agree with many of the previous comments.We loved Paper Bag Princess, and Courdoroy, Astrid Lindgren's Troublemaker Street books, and loads of Cynthia Rylant (though the Henry and Mudge books were kind of tedious for me, but not my little readers). Reading aloud and poring over illustrations is such a sweet way to spend time together. So... I have my own I LONG list of favorites to add from when my now teen/tweens were tots (many of which are still on the shelves in my kid's rooms because they are like old frieds)!

PetraMathers: Lottie’s New Beach Towel
Jan Brett: The Mitten
Judith Viorst: Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Daniel San Souci: The Dangerous Snake and Reptile Club
Doreen Cronin: Diary of a Worm
Diary of a Fly
Ezra Jack Keats: A Letter to Amy
The Snowy Day
Russell Hoban: A Birthday for Frances
Best Friends for Frances
Patricia Polacco: An Orange for Frankie
Chicken Sunday
Kay Thomson: Eloise Takes a Bath
Katherine Hollabird:Angelina Ballerina
Peggy Rathman: Officer Buckle and Gloria
Susanna Gretz: Roger Takes Charge
Roger Loses his Marbles
Kevin Henkes: Owen
Chrysanthemum
Lily’s Purple Plastic Purse
Bernard Waber: Ira Says Goodbye
Ira Sleeps Over
Arnold Loebel: Frog and Toad Together
Virgina Lee Burton:Katy and the Big Snow
Leslie Tryon: Albert’s Field Trip
Albert’s Alphabet
John Vernon Lord: The Giant Jam Sandwich

Oh books. Little stepping stones to many warm memories.

These are great "imagination" books my son loved/loves:
Mattland
Stanley Goes for a Drive - especially loved when my son was 18mos - 2 years.
Craig Frazier's other books are also winners
Any Laura Joffe Numeroff books are great "exploratory" and "cause/outcome" fun thinking books.
We also like Elmer a whole bunch.

My two year old has really enjoyed Jon Muth's Zen Ties, Zen Ghosts, and Zen Shorts. He also really likes the Tilly series by Polly Dunbar and the Monkey with a Tool Belt Seriesby Chris Monroe. Thanks for your list!

This is a great list!

Here are the latest favorites of my 3 year old (sorry, I couldn't get links to work):

The Giant Jam Sandwich
Stick Man (or anything by Julia Donaldson, really)
Milo Armadillo
The Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig
Elmer
The Angelina Ballerina series
Pancakes, Pancakes and Walter the Baker by Eric Carle
The Apple Pip Princess

Where the Wild Things Are, I give to every child in my life.

Anything by Mem Fox
Diary of a Wombat
Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed
Scaredy Cat (Joan Rankin)
The Dot (Peter Reynolds)

Dog and Bear,
a series written and illustrated by Laura Vaccaro Seeger. My niece is 5 and loves to try reading them and having them read to her. The stories are simple, fun, and touching.

Dumb Bunnies,
a series written and illustrated by Dav Pilkey and Sue Denim. Wonderful visual puns and silly stories. Great for any child that loves humor. A young reluctant reader in my live just loves these books.

curiouspages.blogspot.com

great childrens book blog

"Charlie was no ordinary chicken."

If you haven't experienced the "Broadway Chicken" you haven't fully embraced life. Like Andrea posted above, I too was an adult when the dark humor and prophecy of this cautionary tale came into my life and took my "grownup" perspective and turned it on its tail feathers, so to speak. It has changed how I live my life and allowed me to embrace the amazing and unique person I am. I promise it will change your self perspective too.

Give yourself a gift, read the "Broadway Chicken" by Jean-Luc Fromental.

P.S. I proudly display this book of wisdom and delight on my coffee table... right next to Robert Mapplethorpe, Hemingway, Anne Lamott, Pema Chodron and even Buddha.

The Stinky Cheese Man is my favorite children's book as an adult. My favorite as a kid was The Monster at the End of This Book, starring Grover.

BARNEY BEAGLE by Jean Bethell and for older kids HALF MAGIC by Edward Eager.

All of the Findus & Pettson books by Sven Nordqvist are fun for 5 and over. We also love Barbara Lehman's books. Especially Trainstop and Rainstorm. We enjoy Elsa Beskow books. Our six year old is enjoying Woody, Hazel & Little Pip and Ollie's Ski Trip. The tiptoes lightly series is divine for 6 year olds and we have just begun reading The Wonderful Adventures of Nils by Selma Lagerlof. The edition we have is from Floris books with beaurful illustrations by Lars Klinting. It is a fabulous first chapter book for the 6-7 year old child.

No Where the Wild Things Are? That's very surprising. Your list of essential kids books is very different from mine. Goodnight Moon, Where the Wild Things Are, Olivia, Brown Bear Brown Bear, Winnie the Pooh stories, No, David, Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus; Dr. Seuss and Amelia Bedelia for our five year old and lots of Sandra Boynton for the toddler. My eight year old went through a heavy Magic Treehouse phase, but we are reading the Little House series now, and I hope to start her on Madeleine L'Engle and Louisa May Alcott soon.

AH!!! Chronicles of NARNIA!! Hello childhood memories!!! And how's about 'If You Give A Mouse a Cookie', that one is adorable.

Where the Wild Things Are is the first book I remember from childhood. Like others, my mom gave me the Little House series too. Judy Blume books were a favorite. Ramona the Pest, and Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing. Oh, and Freckle Juice.

We had several Dr. Suess and Shel Silverstein books. I still have Where the Sidewalk Ends, and several others he wrote. Watership Down was a big one. The Narnia series.

The Pokey Little Puppy was the book I carried with me my whole life, and still possess. It's one of the many Golden Books that we all probably read as kids.

I adored Peter in Blueberry Land as a kid. Other favorites:

Judith Kerr - The Tiger Who Came to Tea
Dare Wright - The Lonely Doll
Clyde Watson - Catch Me and Kiss Me and Say It Again
Nancy Willard - The Nightgown of the Sullen Moon (wonderful watercolor illustrations by David McPhail)
Ruth Stiles Gannett - My Father's Dragon (trilogy)
Noel Streatfeild - Ballet Shoes (a bit old for Ursula's 5 years...but a must read very soon!)
Mercer Mayer - What Do You Do with a Kangaroo?
Richard Kennedy - Amy's Eyes

Make Way for Ducklings
Mike Mulligan and His Steamshovel
The Hundred Dresses

Also, for very young children: Moo, Baa, Lalala

David Wiesner books are genius.

Bunbun the Middle One by Sharon Pierce McCullough
Bunbun at Bedtime (the favorite)
Max and Ruby by Rosemary Wells

The Walter the Farting Dog books by Wm. Kotzwinkle weren't around when I was a child. But I love them now and friends' children to whom I've given Walter books also love them.

My all time favorite children's book: Sendak's Where the Wild Things Are

And if you run out of ideas.... "1001 children's book you must read before you die" by Julie eccleshare! If only I had read as many on the adult list!

Love that you chose Beskow and Von Olfers. What a beautiful thing that you're starting her out on the slower-paced, gentle classics instead of the hyper new stuff. (I say this as a children's book illustrator!)

Definitely Mo Willems' Pigeon books! Although I think they're even more amusing to me as an adult than they would have been when I was a kid, joining the ranks of "Fraggle Rock" and "The Adventures of Pete and Pete" as things meant for kids that I appreciate infinitely more as a grown-up.

I also really like "A House for Hermit Crab" by Eric Carle.

Oh, and this one is mean for slightly older children (ages 7 and up, according to Amazon), but "The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane" by Kate DiCamillo was amaaaazing. I read it for a children's lit class when I was in grad school, and I kid you not, this book had me SOBBING.

So many wonderful books...some favorites of my 6 year-old granddaughter- "Wolf Story" by William McCleery (out of print), the Moomintroll series by Tove Jansson; when she was 3 or 4 anything by William Steig- but especially "Brave Irene", "Children of the Forest" by Elsa Beskow, and "Roxaboxen" by Alice McLerran; the Boxcar Children series, My Father's Dragon, and the Magic Treehouse series are popular with her now.

My youngest (now 22) LOVED another Elsa Beskow book, "Pelle's New Suit." It tells the story of Pelle, who needed a new suit, so he shears the wool of the sheep, and the wool is then carded, spun, dyed and woven. The beautiful illustrations fascinated her so much that she attempted to shear the cat...but that is another story! Loved reading these books to my kids when they were around 6 and older: "My Father's Dragon" (a great book for beginning readers to read on their own, with maybe a little parental help); "The Witches" by Roald Dahl; "Half-Magic" and the others by Edward Eager; books by Rumer Godden, such as "The Story of Holly and Ivy." You can't read too many or too often!

Despite the movie, I think that my favorite kid's book of all time is still Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. I also completely loved I Can't, Said the Ant (HOW is it out of print??), The Most Wonderful Egg in the World (which I still think of as my pivotal "beauty is in the eye of the beholder" book), and the Courderoy books will always have a place in my heart. Also, anything by Jack Prelutsky and/or James Stevenson, especially Grandpa's Too-Good Garden and "Could Be Worse!" Graeme Base was definitely among my favorites in terms of art, even before I could read well enough, I spent literally hours poring over the paintings in his Eleventh Hour and Sign of the Seahorse, trying to find all the the little hidden intricacies. Henry and Mudge definitely got me from pictures to chapter books with ease, and I'm not sure where I'd be without Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle and Mr. Popper's Penguins.

Aaaand now I want to re-read all of these. Oof.

My biggest regret with my daughter is that we never recorded her at age 3 reciting by heart the complete Where the Wild Things Are. For about a year, I had to read it to her every night, and it was magical.

My daughter's favourite princess stories are Lauren Child's retelling of The Princess and the Pea (which I loved so much, I gave as a birthday present to many little girls), and the Paper Bag Princess.

But both my children LOVE Robert Munsch, and we own 5 of his story treasuries, as well as the individual stories not in the anthologies.

Tomi Ungerer stories -- Crictor, the Three Robbers, Emile, and Otto: Biography of a Teddy Bear

The kids also love the Walter the Farting Dog series, and in the spirit of dog stories, I also read them the Clarence books (Clarence the TV Dog, etc.).

The Findus & Pettson books are wonderful, but a little hard to get hold of. We've bought a couple of the dvds, and they are lovely.

Anything and everything by Astrid Lindgren we can find in English.

My daughter and I are now reading A Wrinkle in Time, and she is reading Harry Potter with her dad.

My 5 year old son loves the Wink books -- Wink: the Ninja Who Wanted to Be Noticed and Wink: the Ninja Who Wanted to Nap

I love books that rhyme, like the "Skippyjon Jones" books by Judy Schackner

"Fabulous Franko and his Fabulous Toys" by Jane Matlock and Kate Seeley

and of course, "The Gruffalo" books by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler

What nothing by ENID BLYTON??

The three books in the Magic Faraway series are the best books, great for boys or girls. Do yourself a favour and get the older versions, cheaply available on AbeBooks.com, not the modern edited versions. My little girl is addicted to these.

At the moment I am reading her the TASHI series which is fantastic, with great illustrations.

Other great books for older kids are The Famous Five series by Enid Blyton, and Swallows and Amazons and others by Arthur Ransome.

My son Jasper is also 5 1/2. It's so amazing when you can make that transition from picture book to chapter book. They lay back on their pillow and listen, and imagine. We recently read the original Peter Pan. At that age they're also discovering reading on their own. For that I am actually very fond of Dr. Suess. His stories are littered with Kindergarten sight words.

Now:
The Giving Tree (Shel Silverstein)
The Haunted House (Kazuno Kohara)
Any of the Moomin books (Tove Jansson)

In a year or so:
The Twits (hilarious); James and the Giant Peach; Fantastic Mr Fox (Roald Dahl)
The Wildwood Chronicles (Colin Meloy and Carson Ellis)

When my daughter was reading confidently by herself, she also enjoyed the Narnia books, and Michael Morpurgo's books.

This poem by Roald Dahl is kind of lengthy but priceless!

Television

The most important thing we've learned,
So far as children are concerned,
Is never, NEVER, NEVER let
Them near your television set --
Or better still, just don't install
The idiotic thing at all.
In almost every house we've been,
We've watched them gaping at the screen.
They loll and slop and lounge about,
And stare until their eyes pop out.
(Last week in someone's place we saw
A dozen eyeballs on the floor.)
They sit and stare and stare and sit
Until they're hypnotised by it,
Until they're absolutely drunk
With all that shocking ghastly junk.
Oh yes, we know it keeps them still,
They don't climb out the window sill,
They never fight or kick or punch,
They leave you free to cook the lunch
And wash the dishes in the sink --
But did you ever stop to think,
To wonder just exactly what
This does to your beloved tot?
IT ROTS THE SENSE IN THE HEAD!
IT KILLS IMAGINATION DEAD!
IT CLOGS AND CLUTTERS UP THE MIND!
IT MAKES A CHILD SO DULL AND BLIND
HE CAN NO LONGER UNDERSTAND
A FANTASY, A FAIRYLAND!
HIS BRAIN BECOMES AS SOFT AS CHEESE!
HIS POWERS OF THINKING RUST AND FREEZE!
HE CANNOT THINK -- HE ONLY SEES!
'All right!' you'll cry. 'All right!' you'll say,
'But if we take the set away,
What shall we do to entertain
Our darling children? Please explain!'
We'll answer this by asking you,
'What used the darling ones to do?
'How used they keep themselves contented
Before this monster was invented?'
Have you forgotten? Don't you know?
We'll say it very loud and slow:
THEY ... USED ... TO ... READ! They'd READ and READ,
AND READ and READ, and then proceed
To READ some more. Great Scott! Gadzooks!
One half their lives was reading books!
The nursery shelves held books galore!
Books cluttered up the nursery floor!
And in the bedroom, by the bed,
More books were waiting to be read!
Such wondrous, fine, fantastic tales
Of dragons, gypsies, queens, and whales
And treasure isles, and distant shores
Where smugglers rowed with muffled oars,
And pirates wearing purple pants,
And sailing ships and elephants,
And cannibals crouching 'round the pot,
Stirring away at something hot.
(It smells so good, what can it be?
Good gracious, it's Penelope.)
The younger ones had Beatrix Potter
With Mr. Tod, the dirty rotter,
And Squirrel Nutkin, Pigling Bland,
And Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle and-
Just How The Camel Got His Hump,
And How the Monkey Lost His Rump,
And Mr. Toad, and bless my soul,
There's Mr. Rate and Mr. Mole-
Oh, books, what books they used to know,
Those children living long ago!
So please, oh please, we beg, we pray,
Go throw your TV set away,
And in its place you can install
A lovely bookshelf on the wall.
Then fill the shelves with lots of books,
Ignoring all the dirty looks,
The screams and yells, the bites and kicks,
And children hitting you with sticks-
Fear not, because we promise you
That, in about a week or two
Of having nothing else to do,
They'll now begin to feel the need
Of having something to read.
And once they start -- oh boy, oh boy!
You watch the slowly growing joy
That fills their hearts. They'll grow so keen
They'll wonder what they'd ever seen
In that ridiculous machine,
That nauseating, foul, unclean,
Repulsive television screen!
And later, each and every kid
Will love you more for what you did.

-- Roald Dahl

Beings as I'm old as dirt, and I don't have kids, these are the ones from my childhood. You could even call them the classics.

The Poky Little Puppy
Here comes Peter Cttontail
Where The Wild Things Are
Peter Rabbit
The Madeline, Curious George, and Babar books
Harriet the Spy
Encyclopedia Brown

A few years ago, I made a list of my children's favorite picture/story books:

The Ant and the Elephant, The Caboose Who Got Loose, Pamela Camel, and anything else by Bill Peet

William Steig's books are fab: Brave Irene, Doctor DeSoto, Shrek, Sylvester and the Magic Pebble, and Rotten Island

The George and Martha books by James Marshall. Love!

Good Night Moon gets all the attention, but Margaret Wise Brown's best books IMO are The Little Fur Family, Big Red Barn, and the Little Fireman.

Rosemary Wells' & Iona Opie's Mother Goose book. Also by Wells: Yoko, and Max's Bath.

Peter Spiers' "Bored, Nothing to Do" and "People"

Also:
Benny's Had Enough
The Big Orange Splot
Bored Nothing to Do
Caps for Sale
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs
D’Aulaire’s Greek Myths
Dinosaur Roar
Fortunately
Frederick
Freight Train (by Donald Crews)
Gabriella's Song
Good Night Gorilla
Green Eggs and Ham
The Hello Goodbye Window
How the Grinch Stole Christmas
In the Night Kitchen
June 29, 1999
Katy and the Big Snow
The Little Red Lighthouse and the Great Gray Bridge
Madeline
The Maggie B
Mice Twice
Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel
Millions of Cats
A Mother for Choco
Nothing Ever Happens on My Block
Owl Moon
Peek a Boo (by Janet & Allan Ahlberg)
The Philharmonic Gets Dressed
Row, Row, Row Your Boat (by Pippa Goodhart)
Sector 7
The Seven Silly Eaters
The Shrinking of Treehorn
The Sneetches
Snowflake Bentley
The Snowy Day (Jack Ezra Keats)
The Story of Ferdinand
The Tale of Custard the Dragon
Tasty Baby Belly Buttons
Tickle, Tickle
Tikki Tikki Tembo
Tops and Bottoms

The Runaway Bunny

I loved the illustrations when I was little

Let me begin by saying "I LOVE CHILDREN'S BOOKS!" Ok, now that I've got that out, I would also like to add that I also still continue to buy them now at 43 years of age. My family always encouraged the love of reading and my father would buy me books. My all time favourite and not mentioned in any of the posts (I checked through all of them but could have missed it) is everything by Enid Blyton. I still dream of living in The Faraway Tree and going to Birthday land, which you can only go to when it's your birthday. I still have the full set of The Faraway Tree series in my collection, which I read from time to time. I also love all the Dr. Seuss books and my favourite is "Oh, the places you will go" which I give to friends when they graduate or are going through a rough patch in their lives. It never fails to uplift my spirits. For a more contemporary choice, I love the stories and the beautiful illustrations of books by Oliver Jeffers, my favourite one being "The Incredible Book Eating Boy".

My nieces and nephew love coming to my home because they all sit in a pile on the day bed in my library and read my collection of children's books that range in stories for the very young to teenagers. My favourite to collect are stories of dragons, fairies, magic, popup books and all that makes my imagination soar. Of course, I do have "grown up" books that I collect and read but nothing puts a smile on my face then when reading a story about magic.

"The Ordinary Princess" was written way before 2002 - I read it (and loved it) as a child in the 80s...

I can recommend www.librarything.com as a great place to locate new books. Search using suitable tags (children, age3-5, etc) to find what other users recommend.

Another vote for The Tiger Who Came to Tea (Judith Kerr) - and her 'Mog' series is simply delightful.

The Big Brag by Dr. Seuss

Just a note...Miss Suzy was not originally published in 2004, but in 1964. It is one of my all time favorite childhood books and I remember my mother reading it to me. I was born in 65. My children bought it for me for Christmas a few years back. Great list!

my mom used to read the beatrix potter books to me, the small green ones. then she taught me to read in 1978 with a set of four books she'd given me for - my first and only - children's day. after that, she made me read my own bedtime stories.

between me and my only female cousin, we had quite an assortment, though i tended to covet her collections more than my own. she had a set of classics that had been digested for children - ben hur, the prince and the pauper, etc. i particularly remember one my aunt gave me called beyond the paw-paw trees about a girl who gets to take her first solo trip to go visit an aunt. there were so many...i just remember the impressions of going on long trips to the past, future, other planets. heck, i read the bad seed and the "little house" books at 10.

we never met a bookfair we didn't like. once, when i was about 14 my great-aunt tipped me off to bookfair at the sports arena and called my mom from a payphone. she didn't have her car for the day and took a bus downtown to meet me. we picked up so many free books we couldn't carry them home. we had to wait for the rest of the family to come pick us up. a great day.

My favorite kids book is still The Princess Who Grew Down (Shirley Sloan Fader, Lion Books, 1968). It is a great story with amazing illustrations. Come on, what little gifl wouldn't want to grow small and live in her doll house for a couple of days.

It is out of print, but Albris seems to find copies in great condition on a regular basis.

Glad someone else loves "The Witch Family" by Eleanor Estes as much as I do! Also all the Winnie the Pooh books; "The Bat Poet" by Maurice Sendak; The Edith the Lonely Doll picture books series by Dare Wright; "The Wind & the Willows"; the entire Laura Engles Wilder "Little House Books" and for pre-teens the entire "
Anne of Green Gables" series was so lovely...

This set me thinking, and I remembered a book I enjoyed as a girl: Miss Happiness and Miss Flower (Rumer Godden, 1961). It even had instructions for building your own Japanese doll's house.

@Spottedteacups: Love that poem! I had never seen it before. I also love just about everything else Roald Dahl ever wrote. Oh, how I loved "Matilda" when I was in elementary school. Still do.

I'll ditto Jon Muth's Stilwater books : Zen Shorts, Zen Ghosts, Zen Ties. Probably our favorite "new" books. "Hippo! No, Rhino!" is also a great new-ish book--lots of potential for acting and making faces & strange sounds.

Hop on Pop.
Morris the Moose Goes to School.
Up a Tree, by Winifred & Cecil Lubell.
"Read-aloud Poems Every Young Child Should Know"

And somehow, "Hiawatha's Childhood", by Longfellow. I believe this came about because my husband wanted something for himself one long bellyachy night -- but she quickly loved it and asks for it over and again. It knocks my socks off that my 5yo likes this.

Some of her favorite books are little dinky old ones that I gave her a dollar to pick something out at a charity sale. The very act of choosing made her want to read it.

What a wonderful collection of titles. My 2 cents - The first, Goodnight Moon, is written by Margaret Wise Brown. Each of my children, when very young, insisted on it each night at bedtime. I think it's its dream-like quality that lulls them into a sense that all is right with the world. There's also a little mouse to be discovered on each page. The second, is a series of books by Arnold Lobel that features two characters, Frog and Toad. The books have won many awards and for good reason. Life lessons are delivered in a most charming and gentle fashion. It is impossible to meet Frog and Toad and not be smitten for life. It's been 15 years and I still think about them and smile. Finally - well done, you. Reading with you children is one of life's great gifts. Debra

Starting when I was 2 or 3, my mother read me Ruth Heller's Kites Sail High. She chose it because the pictures are bright and gorgeous. The text, though, was about verbs, and what they do in sentences. Mom read the rhyming text aloud while I looked at the pictures, and I didn't realize until I was older that I knew that "the subjunctive mood expresses a wish and uses the words AS THOUGH or IF. (IF I WERE a fish, AS THOUGH that COULD BE, I WOULD SWIM in a beautiful, tropical sea.)"

Heller has a picture book for every part of speech. I fully intend to brainwash my children with them.

At age 6, I loved Kay Thomspon's Eloïse! Such a fun book enhancing creativity and self confidence, I think.

I also spook about my love for Color Kittens (for toodlers) : http://homeofbambou.blogspot.be/2012/10/color-kittens-margaret-wise-brown.html

I adored the What-A-Mess books as a child and the illustrations are still fabulous to enjoy as an adult. Sadly, I think they're mostly out of print these days.

Saint-Exupéry's Little Prince and Lewis Carroll's Alice in Wonderland. They have a philisophy.

I was wondering if any book lovers could help me with the first book I remember from my childhood. My memory is probably quite vague it was about a boy, who used a diving rod/stick to find water and took a balloon elephant ride to the moon? It would have probably been out in the mid 70s. It is the only book out of my list of favourite childrens books that I have been unable to find. Any ideas on a title or author would be wonderful!

Andrew Henry's Meadow is one of my favorites, my mom used to get us books from the Weekly Reader's Book Club. that and Frederick by Leo Leonni still make me smile.

Beautiful books all treasured throughout my life:

A Summer to Die by Lois Lowry

Betsy, Tacy & Tib series by Maud Hart Lovelace --- follows three dear friends as they grow up in Minnesota(?) at the turn of the century.

Meet the Austins and the entire Austin family series by Madeline L'Engle (the better-known Wrinkle in Time series is wonderful, but the Austins are even better).

Anything by Patricia MacLachlan (most famous for Sarah Plain and Tall), but especially
Arthur for the Very First Time

Hatchet by Gary Paulsen --- about a boy who survies a plane crash and lives in the Alaskan wilderness.

Cracker Jackson by Betsy Byars --- about domestic violence. A beautiful story.

Where, oh where is The Phantom Tollbooth?

And thanks for reminding me of Ferdinand, I've been looking for him for years.

Although I am wary of contemporary children's books, I have found that my children really enjoy anything by Andrew Clements (Frindle, The Report Card, etc.).

These may be out of print but worth the effort to find... Albert Herbert Hawkins - the Naughtiest Boy in the World, Charmed Life, Olga Da Polga series. Current books- my kid adore the Olivia, the Happy Hector and the Charlie and Lola series', and any Little Critter book. And any well illustrated children poetry compilations. Bear Stays Up is a nice Christmas one.

Harold and the Purple Crayon

I loved "Skunks go to Bed" and "Where the Wild Things Are" when I was younger.

When it comes to chapter books:

-Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing ( I think there's a series for this one too, I read them all but forgot what it's called)

- Any and all Just Blume books :)

- Little House on the Prarie

-By the Great Horned Spoon

- Stewart Little

-The Narnia Series

- The Trumpet of the Swan

- From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler

- The Big Friendly Giant

- Hatchet

- Island of the Blue Dolphins

I could go on, but those are my faves :)

I believe you're thinking of Harold and the Purple Crayon :)

Brambly Hedge series, from UK writer Jill Barklem. Very much like Beatrix Potter stories with attention to details of life as small animals would live it. Pictures are amazing and based on actual English country life. And you can find the recipes online of the food they make and eat.

The Three Questions. Based on 3 questions from Zen Buddhism, but I guess the author isn't a Buddhist because it's not very pronounced. Excellent book on living ethically in society. The one we have is a large red hardcover with a panda, a turtle, and a red kite featuring prominently within the pages. The landscapes especially are just beautiful art. The story is short and so gentle, if that makes any sense.

Thanks Sammystyle, it is similar, but not the one.

Thanks everybody for the great suggestions; some of them will find their way under our Christmas tree this year :-)

My son is three going on four and these are some books he's asked for over and over again. He's napping right now so I can't check his bookshelf, so this is just some off the top of my head:

The Tale of Peter Rabbit, Mr. Jeremy Fisher, Benjamin Bunny, Jemima Puddleduck, Tom Kitten and Squirrel Nutkin. Those are our favorite Beatrix Potter books.

The Grinch, The Sneetches and Other Stories, Horton Hears a Who, The Lorax, The Sleep Book, Fox in Socks. By Dr. Seuss

Go Dog, Go. The Best Nest. Are You My Mother? By P.D. Eastman

Little Pea
Little Hoot
A Child's Garden of Verses by Robert Louis Stevenson
Everything by A.A. Milne. Currently (for his age) my favorite is When We Were Very Young
The Story of Ferdinand
Skippyjon Jones
Harry the Dirty Dog
Mr. Dog
The Saggy Baggy Elephant
Guess How Much I Love You

There are more, but we absolutely love Beatrix Potter, Dr. Seuss, A.A. Milne, Little Pea and Little Hoot. Skippyjon Jones is new to us but I can tell it's going to quickly become a house classic.

Chapter Books:
The Magical Land of Noom
The Wizard of Oz
Peter Pan
Alice in Wonderland
The Little Prince
(He most enjoyed Alice in Wonderland and The Wizard of Oz, he's starting to show more interest in The Little Prince, too)

Last year we started a tradition of getting him a classic book for every birthday, we got Peter Pan.