WHAT’S IN THE BOX: NOVEMBER 2016 BABY

In the November Baby Box we had three board books.

We Sang You Home by Richard Van Camp and illustrations by Julie Flett. Richard and Julie were the creators of 2013’s award-winning Little You and teamed up again to create this lovely lyrical board book celebrating the special relationship between parent and child. Richard Van Camp is a member of the Dogrib (Tlicho) Nation and lives in Edmonton, Alberta. Julie is a Cree-Metis artist from Vancouver, B.C. You could make the assumption that the illustrations are of a first nation’s family, but they aren’t too specific, nor is the gender of the child or whether the child is possibly adopted. Pretty much works for everyone.

How Do Dinosaurs Go To Sleep? I’ve always loved this great series about “dinosaur” children who live with human families. They even behave like real children. Fun rhyming text by Jane Yolen and hilarious illustrations by Mark Teague will surely bring a smile and a giggle to kids and parents. Jane has written over 300 books and received countless awards. She lives in Western Massachusetts. Mark is from Hudson River Valley, New York and has his fair share of awards and honours for his wonderful work.

Baking Day at Grandma’s by Anika Denise and illustrated by her husband Christopher Denise. Originally published in hardcover in 2014, it works perfectly in this new board book edition. Gentle rhyming text tells this adorable story of the bear grandkids visiting their Grandma bear for a day of baking. It even includes Grandma Rosie’s Chocolate Cake recipe on the back of the book.