Greening Families’ Gift Guide for Children’s Books

Garrison Keillor was right when he said, “A book is a gift you can open again and again.” We love giving books to our children and their friends. We slip at least one book into every birthday present and enjoy searching for new titles to share. Here are some of our favorite green-themed books. Please let us know if you have others!

Beatrice’s Goat
by Page McBrier

This book, with its lovely pacing and beautiful illustrations, would be great on its own. But the fact that it is a true story makes it even more joyful. The story introduces Beatrice, then a little girl from Kisinga, Uganda, who dearly wants to attend school. However, the cost is out of reach for her family so attending school seems like a distant dream at best. Then her family receives a goat, who Beatrice names Mugisa or Luck. The goat is well-named and the lives of Beatrice and her family greatly improve because of her. This is a great book for showing how small acts can lead to real change.

Beatrice Biira is now a young woman and the gift of the goat, from children in Niantic, Connecticut through Heifer International, changed the course of her life. With the money her family earned from the goat, Beatrice was able to attend school in Kisinga and became a top student. She won a scholarship to a Ugandan high school, then to a prep school in the US, then to Connecticut College. She graduated from Connecticut College earlier this year and is pursuing a master’s degree in public service, with a focus in international development. She intends to return to Uganda after graduation so she can help other children.

If you’d like to read the book and then make a similar donation, visit Heifer International. Or if you are interested in donating to scholarships for girls in developing countries, visit Room to Read or Three Cups of Tea.

An Alphabet Of Animals, The New Alphabet Of Animals and Teeth, Tails, & Tentacles
by Christopher Wormell

Simply put, Christopher Wormell has taken children’s books to a new level. Wormell is a wood engraver whose start as an author and illustrator came when making a book for his son. All his books feature beautifully done linoleum-block prints. An Alphabet of Animals won the prestigious Graphics Prize at the Bologna International Children’s Book Fair while Teeth, Tails, & Tentacles won the 2004 New York Times Book Review Best Illustrated Children’s Book Award.

These three books feature a wide variety of animals, along with either letters or numbers. This makes them great books for young children. At the end of each book is additional information about the animals featured. This makes them great books for older children. All of the prints, done with rich colors, are a pleasure to behold. This makes them great books for everyone.

Let’s-Read-and-Find-Out Science series by various authors

Named one of the top ten nonfiction series for younger readers by Booklist, this series is a treat for children and adults.  A host of science concepts are discussed in the carefully illustrated books. Each book is categorized into one of two levels, with Stage 1 written for children in grades PreK-1 and Stage 2 written for children in grades K-4.

With title ranging from Clouds to Spinning Spiders to Energy Makes Things Happen, there is something here to interest any child. Amazon is currently running a “4 for 3” sale on these books, so they are an affordable gift option.

The Lorax by Dr. Suess

No list of children’s books would be complete without a title from Dr. Suess and this one is simply a classic. The Lorax, who speaks “for the trees, for the trees have no tongues,” tries to stop the Once-ler from chopping down all the Truffula Trees. The Once-ler, however, is more interested in selling all the Thneeds he can make, “which everyone, EVERYONE, EVERYONE needs” and keeps on chopping.

The ending is pure Dr. Suess. The Once-ler saved a Truffula Tree seed and hands it to a small child, saying, “Plant a new Truffula. Treat it with care. Give it clean water. And feed it fresh air.” Change is still possible if “someone like you cares a whole awful lot.” Letting children know that they can make a difference seems like the best gift of all.

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