Merry Christmas, Ollie! by Olivier Dunrea

What can I say? My kiddo is festive! As I mentioned last week, he is obsessed with Christmas. I love it. I'm a big fan of the holidays myself and I am SO excited to have Santa come visit our house this year. E is going to go nuts. You should hear him in the car when we drive my Christmas lights. He is constantly "oo"ing and "ah"ing. He shouts out "BEE-OO-TEE-FUL" and "AH-MAAAAAZING" at random intervals. It's awesome.

Anyways, I digress. It's no surprise that E's Pick for this week is another Christmas title. This one comes from the series of books by Olivier Dunrea about five little goslings, each with their own little quirks. In this book, the goslings are all waiting for Father Christmas Goose to arrive, but Ollie, the stomper, is getting a bit impatient. It's a quick, adorable holiday read. If you need a last minute gift for a little one, I'd go try and find this one! My sister bought it for E at a department store, but I'm sure you can find it on shelves everywhere.


"Merry Christmas, Ollie!" by Olivier Dunrea is available in hardcover, board book, and Kindle formats from Houghton Mifflin Books for Children.

Need a last minute Christmas gift? Buy a book!

I have read so many wonderful books this year (93 so far! 7 more to go to reach my 2011 goal). This list was incredibly hard to make, but I know if you’re anything like me, you love giving books as gifts. So run down to your independent bookseller or head to an online retailer ASAP. Christmas is upon us! GAH!

Here are some books that were released in 2011 that I think would make AH-MAZING gifts.

• Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini - Everyone I’ve given this book to has absolutely loved it. The romance is so sweet and delightfully angsty. It’d be a great book for someone who isn’t a regular reader since Ms. Angelini’s writing is so enjoyable and cinematic. I bet it’d get them hooked on reading!
• Daughter of Smoke & Bone by Laini Taylor - this book is perfect for both ladies and gents. It’s full of lush fantasy, epic action, and endearing romance. I think everyone should read this book, especially fantasy fans. This is definitely one of my top 5 favorite books of 2011.
• Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi - This book is for the friend or family member who loves to deeply connect to the characters they read about. Ms. Mafi’s unique writing style is incredibly engaging and so fun to read. It’s like Juliette’s arm actually reaches out of the book, grabs you and pulls you into the story.
• Imaginary Girls by Nova Ren Suma - This is for the friend who likes to go “WTF?!” You know the type, the ones who watch movies like “Inception” over and over again. They love to analyze and see the hidden meanings in things. The writing in this book is hauntingly beautiful and will definitely keep them entertained.
• The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin - What about that person who likes the creepy, but not too creepy? The romance, but wants a solid, interesting plot to go with it? Well, then I think Michelle Hodkin wrote just the thing for them! From my review, “Ms. Hodkin bakes up a book that is one part mystery, one part romance, one part paranormal and one part horror to create something extraordinarily delicious.”
• Paranormalcy or Supernaturally by Kiersten White - Have a friend who is paracurious (that’s paranormal curious)? Well, then get ‘em Paranormalcy or be super awesome and get them both of the books in Kiersten White’s series. This is a great book to introduce new paranormal readers to this fantastic sub-genre (you know it’s one of my favorites!). Kiersten White lightens up the mood with incredible charm in her writing. Evie is so darn funny and kick butt! I just love this series.
• Silver Phoenix or Fury of the Phoenix by Cindy Pon - For the anime or Asian culture lovin’ person on your Christmas list, I have JUST the thing. Get them Cindy Pon’s two books. You also might want to get them a gift certificate to a local Chinese restaurant. Ms. Pon’s descriptions of this Chinese inspired fantasy world’s food will have your mouth watering. These books are so fun and refreshingly unique. I adored them. They are great for non-anime lovin’ fantasy fans too!
• Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins - For a romance that will keep your friend or family member grinning from ear to ear, get them a copy of “Lola and the Boy Next Door”. (Stephanie Perkins' other book, “Anna and the French Kiss” is also another great one!) Any romance fan of any age will fall in love with these boys. Mm mm!
• Across the Universe by Beth Revis - This book is perfect for fans of sci fi and even those who aren’t. It’s a murder mystery set on a SPACE SHIP! How cool is that? It bounces back and forth between a male and female narrator which also makes it easy to gift to either gender. My husband and my YA-hatin’ friend both read it and loved it. And if they loved it, the lucky recipient of your copy will too.
• Ashes by Ilsa J. Bick - For the horror loving and doomsday fans on your list - this book takes the cake. It’s so flipping creepy. I loved it and I normally am not a fan of being scared out of my wits (not that I had much to begin with!).

Phew! Obviously, there are so many books I’d love to mention. I tried to keep this as short as I could, but more and more books kept sneaking onto my list. Let me know if you give these books as a gift. I’d love to hear about how your recipient reacted to your choice! :)

Clifford's Christmas Presents

It's been a festive couple of weeks around our house. E is obsessed with Christmas. So obsessed that we had to take DOWN our Christmas tree this weekend because we couldn't get him to leave it alone. It's a shame because it was pretty adorable. He'd walk up to the tree and say "it's beautiful!". Then he'd proceed to spin it around, pull down ornaments, and pluck off needles. LOL! Ah, the joys of toddlers, right?

ANYWAYS, E's Pick of the Week is "Clifford's Christmas Presents", a flap-filled board book (over 30 flaps!). He is insane for Clifford and when he got this in the mail last week, he squealed. As a mom, I don't really care for it. Unlike the Spot series where the flaps have a purpose in the story, these are actually referenced as flaps. It's a gimmick instead of a fun story telling device. There are also quite a few flaps on each page. It drives me a little batty, but E just loves it.

So, if you have a little one who is a Clifford fan, this is a fun little holiday book that will keep them busy for awhile. If you can't abide flap books though, you better avoid this one.

The Clifford books are published by Scholastic. This book is a large board book with flaps.

The Nutcracker, illustrated by Alison Jay

Okay, so E's Pick of the Week this week, is really "Mommy's Pick of the Week", but I can't help myself. I LOVE Alison Jay's illustrations and with the holiday season upon us, I had to share this book with you guys. Her rendition of the Nutcracker is absolutely breathtaking. The illustrations are so gorgeous that E sat through the entire book (which is saying a lot since it is a bit on the long side for a 2 year old!). I have always loved this holiday tale and this version is amazing. I may just have to order another copy to keep as a back up. It's so beautiful.

I'm sorry. I seriously have nothing of substance to say. The text of this traditional story is wonderful rendered and the illustrations are magical. It's a version that boys and girls will definitely enjoy this holiday season.

I purchased "The Nutcracker". It was published by Dial (Penguin) last year and is available in hard cover.