Bunnies, Bears, Trees, Stinky Cheese and Poop? Five Favorite Children's Books

Kids quench their reading appetite these days with Harry Potter, The Polar Express, read-along and sing-along books that come with batteries — the list goes on. While there's nothing wrong with that, it does call to mind a time when big story lines came in simple packages. Or maybe I'm just jealous.

Saying this does not bring any amount of joy  — because it indicates that I am aging — but I didn't have all these bells, whistles and wizards when I was younger.

To pay homage to my childhood and the "Read Across America" campaign this week, here are five of my favorite, classic children's books, with 19 to 61 years between now and when they were first published:

• Pat the Bunny by Dorothy Kunhardt. (First published: 1940, Simon & Schuster) I am told that I demanded this book most nights for the first three to four years of my life. This pocket-sized book is filled with pages of different texture (the highlight, of course, being the bunny's fur), making it easy to keep a young listener engaged.
• The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales by Jon Scieszka. (First published: 1992, Viking) When my grade-school librarian first showed up to our weekly reading hour with this book, I snorted. Really. In front of the whole class. The stories are hilarious enough that I have not allowed that experience to ruin my associations with it.
• The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein. (First published: 1964, Harper & Row) A beautiful story about love, selflessness and friendship, this one has actually led me to tears when I've revisited it as an adult. An excellent read for kids who need a lesson in the cycle of life.
• The Berenstain Bears series by Stan and Jan Berenstain.(First published: 1962, Random House) A franchise had been built around this bear family, from when The Big Honey Hunt was first published to its television series from the 1970s to 2003. Most of life's lessons can and have been highlighted with the help of the bears in more than 300 titles.
• Everybody Poops by Taro Gomi. (First published: 1977, Fukuinkan Shoten) The brevity of this entertaining classic is undeniable, nor is the allowed enjoyment while you read from it in the presence of more conservative folk. It took America about 15 years to learn of this Japanese classic about human science and create an English translation.

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