Our youngest daughter turned 3 at the end of September, and she was lucky enough to receive so many wonderful books for her birthday! You all asked for my thoughts on many of them, so I’m going to try to slowly work in reviews of the books she received.⠀⠀
Up first is Today, written and illustrated by Julie Morstad. Morstad’s beautifully illustrated book gives children the chance to choose everything about their day, starting from the moment they wake up. Morstad opens by writing, “What should I do today? Where should I go? Should I stay close to home or go far away? But first, what’ll I wear?” Children see the opportunities presented to them throughout each day, and somehow, through her gentle questions and many possibilities, these everyday decisions become exciting again.
My girls (ages 3 and 5.5) love reading this as a choose-your-own-adventure type of book. They enjoy changing their answers with every reading and get a kick out of (the other day, one created her story by choosing a bathing suit and a ninja mask to do ballet at the swimming pool. (Though some of their decisions always change, they both almost always want to get wherever they’re going by riding a camel!). This could be a wonderful prompt for writing projects, might allow inspiration for checklists for children who need a little push getting ready in the morning, and has excellent vocabulary development possibilities!
Published by Simply Read Books, Today is targeted at ages 4-8. The storytelling, choose-your-own-adventure feel of it makes it enjoyable for all ages— and gives wonderful opportunities for vocabulary development for even younger toddlers!
If you liked this, check out:
This is How We Do It: One Day in the Lives of Seven Kids from Around the World by Matt Lamothe
One Thousand Things by Anna Kovecses
Home by Carson Ellis
childrenslitlove.com 
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