Selecting Board Books

When it comes to selecting board books for babies and toddlers, some may not realize that certain types of books are more engaging than others. Although I am an avid reader and am under no illusion that all books are created equal, upon reading Kathleen Horning’s (1997) article, “Board Books Go Boom,” I was surprised to learn that some board books really miss opportunities to truly capture a toddler’s attention, and some adapted from picture books and other original works even leave out integral portions of the original story.

Horning advises readers to avoid board book adaptations such as Chicka Chicka Boom Boom and Guess How Much I Love You where either chunks of the story or part of the illustrations have been left out in order to cram long yet beloved stories into board book format (p. 156). She acknowledges that while some picture books such as Goodnight Moon are adapted to board book format without losing anything other than size and shape, many lose much more, and are only republished because publishers seize the opportunity to sell products twice because they know parents can’t resist purchasing durable board book editions of popular stories (p. 157).

So what makes a great board book? Horning advises looking for books with bright, simple artwork that introduce or identify recognizable objects and familiar events (p. 158). Lois Ehlert’s Color Zoo, for example, displays colorful shapes rearranged in different ways to form a variety of animals. Objects such as animals, trucks, balloons, and other familiar and interesting items typically excite babies, and brief rhymes can make a story more interesting (Horning 1997, p. 158). Carol Lynch-Brown, Carl M. Tomlinson, and Kathy G. Short (2011), authors of Essentials of Children’s Literature, note that the best board books present patterns and associations in a way that encourages the reader to interact with the child by discussing the book’s contents together (p. 96). Some books that encourage such interaction might not have any words at all, or very few.

In the end, different books will be special and engaging for different children, but I appreciate having the guidelines of Horning, Lynch-Brown, Tomlinson, and Short to consider when selecting reading materials for my son. I am now able to bypass some of the many available books in favor of those I believe will be most interesting to him, which essentially leads to more successful storytime sessions.

References

Horning, K. T. (1997). Board books go boom. Horn Book Magazine, 73(2), 155-160.

Lynch-Brown, C., Tomlinson, C., and Short, K.G. (2011). Essentials of Children’s Literature. 7^th ed. Pearson: Boston, MA.