Lauren's Pippi

OK Christmas shopping is a litt.... lot nuts with a toddler in tow. However, I made it to Moon News Books and I'll rattle off the selections I made in record time before meltdown city. Firstly, I do have to say I got some awesome gift suggestions from the December Carnival of Children's Literature hosted at Big A little a. If you haven't been over there reading and clicking you still have four more shopping days! One of the 63 ways I gifted was, Poetry Speaks to Children (Book and CD) with the hot chocolate and coupon for reading it together. Thanks MotherReader!

Crossing off Santa's book list so far:
For Dad: Little Heathens: Hard Times and High Spirits on an Iowa Farm in the Great Depression by Mildred Armstrong Kalish- This book is likely to bring back fond memories of his early childhood and a good dose of new family stories.

For Mom: After This by Alice McDermott- Reading it should alleviate some of the guilt about her own children's wayward days.

For Brother: Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer- My brother's an adventurer, although not quite that extreme. I heard Sean Penn waited nearly ten years to get the rights to this story from the family and it's now a movie.

For My four-year-old: Knuffle Bunny Too: A Case of Mistaken Identity by Mo Willems- Love it, love it love it.

For My two-year-old: Someday by Alison McGhee, illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds- There are 69 customer reviews of this book over at Amazon to tell you how wonderful it is- tears me up every time.

And you can't escape a little holiday shopping without picking up something for yourself right? For some women it's earrings for me it's Pippi! Lauren Child illustrated a collection of Pippi Longstocking stories by Astrid Lindgren. I adore both Astrid Lindgren and Lauren Child and this hardcover book is perfect for chapter reading. It's a nice size to hold on my lap and has large print for enthusiastic read-alouds.

Those smart shop owners at Moon News have a little basket of toys and rumpled books to keep my toddler busy while I buy. I have to go back because I skipped over the cool Karma Checks at the register counter. Meltdown avoided.