"The Polar Express" by Chris Van Allsburg

Obviously "The Polar Express" is one of those seasonal novels that reminds us of the holidays. This children's book dives into the holiday fantasy of every child in which they actually get to physically meet Santa. The illustrations in this novel take up about 9/10 of every page horizontally, thus keeping children constantly visually stimulated with the story. I believe this is an effective literary technique since these broad images may help keep the children's imagination's flowing as the author narrates. The imagery the author chooses to paint in this novel is one of realism - while using soft wintery colors. Rather than using cartooney images, the author's use of realism aid children to couple realistic people with a world of fantasy.

Although this is a fantastic seasonal novel that empowers the imagination of children, I believe this may not be the best book to be read in schools. I, myself, see no problem with it, but many other children of other religions may feel alienated if this book was read around Christmastime - since all religions don't believe in Santa. The author clearly does not make any religious statements, however, I can see some parents complaining if this was read in school - and their children did not celebrate Christmas. Obviously, most children's books are not meant to promote certain beliefs, but an educator must understand and use caution if they want to use stories that contain religious aspects, no matter how subtle.

"The Lorax" by Dr. Suess

"The Lorax" has always been one of my favorite children's books when comparing it to other books I read in elementary/middle school. As usual, Dr. Suess is extremely creative in his choice of diction throughout the story. Although words may seen to be created at random, each word that seems like nonsense actually has an underlying meaning that many young children may not initially pick up.

Similar to many of Dr. Suess' other books, he expresses the possible ominous future our world may take if we continue to destroy our ecosystem. I believe children are very keen at picking up an author's tone, and I believe Suess sets the perfect tone for children to learn about the negative effects of industrialization. Even though this book seems to be eco-centric in nature, the book also raises the notion of capitalism and how many business' disregard the environment when fishing for a prophit. Obviouisly, it is unlikely for many 5-10 year olds to pick up these subtle messages.

I believe Dr. Suess is one of the greatest children's authors for a variety of reasons, but mainly because his stories can be read and appreciated by adults as well. Books like "Hooray For Diffendoofer Day" and "The Lorax" both highlight important societal issues, and raise awareness of such issues to children and adults. In "Hooray For Diffendoofer Day," Suess predicts the possible future of schools that become dependent on achievement tests (strikingly similar to NCLB). Similarly, in "The Lorax," Suess discusses the effects of uncontrolled industrialziation on the world's ecosystem. Dr. Suess' ability to creatively and effectively educate children on mature issues make him one of the most significant children's authors of the century.

"The Snowman" by Raymond Briggs

"The Snowman" is a picture book in which each page is divided into different frames which help tell a story. In my opinion, "The Snowman" is a great book for the holiday season for toddlers to 2nd grade. Why 2nd Grade might you ask? Considering this is purely a picture book, the educator can make his/her students actively engage and write down (in their own words) what is happening in the story. This gives children the opportunity to build literacy skills, while practicing writing mechanics and encouraging creativity. I absolutely love Briggs' use of wintry colors to help paint the pictures of a cool, soft winter. The use of the anthropomorphic snowman's constant curiosity with everything in the young boys house was quite amusing; although I don't think I agree with letting him drive a car... Anyways, this classic novel will always be one of my favorites - as it constantly reminds me of the beauty of winter and the warm, homely atmosphere of the holiday season.

"Seven Little Monsters" by Maurice Sendak

Although Sendak is also the author of the popular children's book "Where The Wild Things Are," I was definitely not impressed with this extremely short story. I understand this story was called the "seven" little monsters, did there really have to be only seven pages? Each page shows a different humble monster causing mischief in a town, eventually ending with them being banished. When comparing this to Sendak's classic, "Where The Wild Things Are," I was completely let down. Two of the only positive aspects I can extract from this 7-page children's book is: 1) It helps children learn to count (to seven?) and 2) The fun imagery. Also, if this short story is help children learn to count, why couldn't Sendak have at least made 9 monsters, so children could learn ALL single digit numbers, rather than just the first seven. I will never understand Sendek's intention creating this book, aside from teaching the numerical values of 1-7 in a short/fun way.

"The Very Hungry Caterpillar" by Eric Carle

I believe Carle's "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" is a great novel for Kindergartners and younger. Being one of the most popular children's books, Carle expresses every spectrum of color in his cartoonized depiction of a caterpillars journey towards maturation. Aside from the great imagery, children are able to relate to the caterpillar's necessity to grow and mature throughout the book. Parents would be able to use this book to teach their children the importance of eating healthy food in order to grow, similar to the caterpillar. Another fantastic aspect of this book's design are the interactive pages. Children are able to interact with throughout the novel by helping the reader flip through pages. Many of these pages are designed so children are encouraged to count the fruit, as well as learn the spectrum of colors. Overall, I thought this children's classic is still fantastic based on Carle's ability to keep the reader engaged both physically and visually.