Children's Picture Books

My children’s picture books feature fantasy stories that take place in real world situations. They are written in quatrains of rhyming couplets.

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I have read aloud to children most of my life. From the time I was old enough to babysit and teach Sunday school, through my decades as an elementary school teacher, to my years as a mother, grandmother and great grandmother, I have recognized the value of reading picture books aloud to children. Recently, I watched a video where agents were asking what specific value reading picture books might have in terms of relevance to the publishing industry. As a teacher and parent, I quickly began recalling all the pre-reading skills that are taught coincidentally as a parent or teacher reads a picture book aloud to young children.

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Besides the obvious bonding experience with the child, the adult inadvertently teaches many valuable reading skills such as: the sight recognition of individual words, reading structures such as tracking sentences from left to right and top to bottom on the page in English, clues from pictures to help decipher text, and connecting the written word to the spoken word. If the story is in rhyme, the reader is also modelling cadence, rhythm, inflection, and language flow. The clues a child receives from looking at the pictures can also help them anticipate what an unknown word might be in the text and predict what might come next in the story. Reading aloud to children is one of the most valuable gifts you can give to the children in your life. Picture books are a veritable treasure trove for children as they acquire literacy. From the time the child is in the womb to the day they master the art of reading, reading aloud is an extremely valuable asset for every child. I cannot emphasize that enough. For me, as a teacher, the most exciting moments in my career were when a child made the connection between the spoken word and the written word. There is a sudden light in their eyes and recognition of the skill in that first moment that makes them grin from ear to ear. Many children become so excited that they want to share it with everyone! I’ve had children wanting to immediately go to the principal, secretary and custodian to show them that they can read now. It is so heartwarming to watch!

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As a child, my relatives in England would send me the Rupert Bear Books, originally written by Mary Tourtel, at Christmas and for my birthdays. I loved the rhythm and rhyme. I also enjoyed reading the Dr. Seuss books to my own children as they were growing up. I always felt there was something uniquely magical in books with rhymes. That was what inspired me to write The Devaro the wizard and Phildor the dragon books. I also felt the world of fantasy was a safe place to help children and adults explore the sometimes-harsh realities of life, while entertaining them. Keeping your inner child alive and well is critical. I spoke about it in greater depth in the section of my web site called “More About Me”.

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To me, children’s picture books are one of the most important things we can share with the children in our lives. I strive to make mine entertaining for both children and adults, while providing subtle opportunities to teach literacy skills as well. I hope you enjoy them!