Weekly Reading Basket Volume 5 #weeklyreadingbasket

We have had lots going on around here. Lately I have really been lax about reading aloud time with my almost 5 year old and I see a difference in behavior with my son--not for the better. He still spends hours looking at books by himself, but he really does need the closeness and calming effects that reading aloud creates for us. My daughter and I have been reading a lot more than usual and it seems to help her concentrate better when she is perusing books independently.
Our audio book use has gone up, up, up in the past couple of weeks. Madeline has been on repeat...much to my chagrin. While I love the story, the audio version we got from the library this time is quite annoying to me with the two narrators and the cheesy songs..but the kids love it. We all absolutely love Barefoot's new release The Wheels on the Bus (affiliate link). I was hesitant about this book, but as usual its another success from Barefoot. It is set in Guatemala and my daughter loves, loves the pictures (even when the cd is off...although she has figured out how to make the song play repeatedly).
We have very much enjoyed the Grouchy Ladybug, the kids ask each other "hey, wanna fight?" and then burst into laughter. The rhythm, repetition and artistry in this book are just wonderful, its one of my fave read alouds. The Richard Scarry book literally provides hours of entertainment in itself, (although reading it aloud is a challenge, we just read bits and pieces). I want to make sure we read the Kissing Hand this week, we have never read it before. The Little Red Hen  (affiliate link) is amazingly told and illustrated...the illustrations are BREATHTAKING!! "This lively version of the classic tale is given contemporary treatment with dynamic, textured illustrations which consist of collage hung from wires then photographed by artist Kate Slater." Ah! Can you imagine the creative process there?
The Tale of Three Trees is filled with beautiful art and is not too long, sometimes beautiful books recommended by Catholic Mosaic are too lengthy. We have not read it yet this week, but I hear it is a moving tale of three trees whose destinies are not what they wished for but are what God wills for them.

In other book news, last week I saw this TWADDLE being toted around the house, the Lego book from the library and the Grover book from our pile of books. Both are oddly worded, hard to read, confusing stories. The Grover story seems cute but at first I thought it was missing pages because the story just ends abruptly, and the Lego one is a bit better. These books will be removed ASAP. I am all for letting the kids pick their books but these are just not beautiful, or even have worthwhile plots.

What are your kids reading this week? Use the #weeklyreadingbasket on social media so we can all see!