Wish List: Picture Books

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Books are one of my favorite things to give to my kids. I love adding to our steadily growing library of children's books, and bringing in books that I love just means that the chances are better that the book I'll have to read 14 times in a row is one I like. Here are a few of the books on my wish list this year, since my two year old can't make her own. Pass along your favorites in the comments!

Brontorina by James Howe. If the author's name sounds familiar, it's because he wrote classic from my childhood, Bunnicula, which I am sorry to say I have not read, but I've never forgotten the days of it floating around my elementary school. However, this book  about a dinosaur who wants to be a ballerina is just ridiculously charming. Plus, one of the little ballerinas shares her name with my older daughter, and I think she thinks that the ballerina is her. I don't want to take it back to the library, which I think is a sign that someone in the family should own it.

Press Here by Herve Tullet. Have you seen this book? I know it's been around for a bit, but it is seriously so clever that I can't even stand it. The way it involves the child in the book is just brilliant. Press here on this circle - oh look! Now it's two circles! Turn the book on its side - and oh, the circles have all fallen to the side of the page! I love it.

I Want My Hat Back or This Is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen. I can't decide which of these slightly macabre books is better. My husband likes I Want My Hat Back best, and I think I am slightly more drawn to This Is Not My Hat, but both are funny in a subversive and twisted way that just makes them fantastic.

The Princess and the Pig by Jonathan Emmett. A princess and a piglet are accidentally switched as babies, and instead of jumping to logical conclusions, people assume fairies and spells are involved, because it's the sort of thing that happens all the time in books. Hilarity ensues. When we checked this book out from the library, my little girl asked for the "princess piggy book" almost every day, and I renewed it so we could keep it for another month.

Sleepy Little Yoga by Rebecca Whitford. When my husband brought this book home from the library, I was confused. And then we read it with my little girl and it quickly became one of our favorite books EVER. With phrases like, "Sleepy little yoga baby hangs upside down like a bat," and "Sleepy little yoga baby hums like a bee," to accompany pictures of simple yoga poses, it is impossible for my toddler to resist doing the poses. ("I up-down like a bat too!") It's great for getting the wiggles out before bedtime.

The Book With No Pictures by B.J. Novak. Yes, this book was written by Ryan from The Office. Yes, it actually does not have any pictures. If you aren't familiar with this book, please watch this video of B.J. reading it to a group of kids. I don't know if my little girls will get it quite yet (the two month old definitely won't, but the two year old might get a few giggles) but I just feel like it does such a great job of showing just how powerful books and words can be, and it's hilarious at the same time.

What books are you wishing for this year?