At the end of the year, the days get shorter, the temperature drops, and parents need ways to keep their cooped-up kids entertained. If you want to give kids something to read, Tessa Michaelson Schmidt ’00, MA’05 is the perfect person to talk to. As the director of the UW’s Cooperative Children’s Book Center (CCBC) [link to CCBC story 2], she and her colleagues evaluate between 3,000 and 4,000 new children’s book titles each year. Here’s her list of seven great kids’ books for cold days — “warm, cozy, books,” she says, “perhaps to be given in the holiday season.”
Smelly Peggy by Helen Stephens: “This is a rollicking picture book with a really strong child’s voice,” says Schmidt. Smelly Peggy is a story about a family’s dog, who loves nothing so much as rolling in all the poops. “My son wanted me to read this over and over again. It’s a fun book. It’s really child-centered and shows that no one is perfect.”
To See an Owl by Matthew Cordell: “To see an owl is magic,” says Schmidt. “That’s what we hear from the very beginning of this book that has a quieter, wintery tone.” This picture book follows a young birdwatcher as she tries to find an owl. “The lovely text and illustrations depict the magic of owls and of a child following their passion.”
Born Naughty: My Childhood in China by Jin Wang with Tony Johnston, illustrated by Anisi Baigude: “We were delighted with this chapter book memoir that chronicles the author’s experience growing up in a small village in inner Mongolia,” says Schmidt. “There’s a tone of reflection, of the girl saying, ‘I didn’t realize our life was so hard.’ There’s so much warmth and fondness for her family’s routines. It’s just her childhood and how she knows it. It’s relatable. And who wouldn’t like a book called Born Naughty?”
Just Us by Molly Beth Griffin: This picture book tells the story of a family — a boy and girl and their two moms — who are looking forward to their traditional big family gathering when a snowstorm forces them to spend the holidays alone. “They’re able to adjust expectations and also have some new traditions. That’s a relatable book, whether it’s just about managing expectations or thinking about specifically holiday traditions.”
One Wise Sheep: An Untraditional Christmas Story by Ulrich Hub, illustrated by Jörg Mühle, translated by Helena Kirkby: Translated from the German, this picture book tells the traditional Bethlehem story but from the perspective of a flock of sheep — the sheep whose shepherds the angels spoke to. “It parallels the nativity story,” says Schmidt. “But there are moments that are absurdly silly, and we found it to be a great family read-aloud. These well-intentioned sheep are trying to make their way without a shepherd and to figure out what’s going on. It’s hilarious.”
Mishka by Edward van de Vendel and Anoush Elman, translated by Nancy Forest-Flier, illustrated by Annet Schaap: Translated from Dutch, this chapter book tells the story of a family that has recently immigrated to the Netherlands from Afghanistan. Nine-year-old Roya tells her family that to make a home, they need to adopt a pet rabbit. “It’s this loving dynamic of family connecting through this new, little, sweet pet,” says Schmidt. “The family comes to terms with the trauma that they’ve experienced and the significance of identifying what it means to belong, both in their family and also in their community.”
Where Wolves Don’t Die by Anton Treuer: A young-adult mystery novel set in Minnesota and Canada, this book follows Ezra, who is under suspicion after a school bully’s house burns down. Ezra goes to live with his grandparents in a remote cabin on the Red Gut Reservation but remains under suspicion for arson. “It’s exciting and fast-paced,” says Schmidt. “There’s a level of mystery that comes to a close in a really cinematic way. But it’s also very much centered on a boy’s coming of age, both in his immediate family, but also in his Ojibwe community.”
