Suggested age: 2-10 years.
The 20th-Century Children's Book Treasury
Picture Books and Stories to Read Aloud
Unparalleled in scope and quality and designed for reading aloud and sharing, this splendid anthology brings together some of the most memorable and beloved children's books of our time.
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This massive collection contains no less than 44 beautiful picture books. While the 44 books alone are enough reason to make this a priority for your home library, there is so much more that makes this treasury extra special. If your goal is for your children to develop a lifelong love of reading, you will love introducing them to this delightful anthology that covers a complete range of childhood themes.
Editor Janet Schulman includes a 5-page Note to Parents discussing the books and the reasons for her choices. She then includes a recommended list of books that were published after the treasury was sent off to the printers. These 15 books have been written by some of the most prominent new voices of the 21st century.
Our copy of
The 20th Century Children’s Book Treasury is literally falling apart after many years of being loved and shared with our 6 children. I can flick through all the great stories and find some well worn favorites that were read over and over again throughout the years. You will recognise many well-loved authors including Maurice Sendak, Dr. Seuss, A. A. Milne and Robert McCloskey.
The benefit of such a huge collection is that even if only half of the books become favorites in your family, you are still making a great investment in your children’s literary education by gifting them with some of the most beloved children’s books the storybook genre has to offer.
Filled with short read-aloud stories, this splendid anthology covers a complete array of childhood themes. The selections range from wordless books, sounds and color books for toddlers along with more comprehensive family favorites and animal stories including Caldecott Medal winners. The Stories cover themes ranging from everyday life such as meal times and bedtime, through to wildly imaginative adventures such as in Where the Wild Things Are.
Quality picture books are one of the best natural ways to expose your children to early literacy and numeracy skills without it having to be a “lesson”. Reading aloud to your children every day will expose them not only to letters, words and sounds but also to the natural rhythm and cadence of language.
The 20th Century Children’s Book Treasury is also a great choice of children’s literature for grandparents or others who may not have the room or budget for a huge collection of books but would like one, special book to keep on hand that will cater to a wide range of children. Treasuries of books are such a great investment due to the fact that the price you pay per story is so very much cheaper than buying each book individually. If you are limited on space or budget, this is an easy solution. It will also serve you well when you are travelling as you can just take one big book in the car or RV or for in the tent on your next camping trip.
Because this comes in a beautiful hardcover version, it makes a great gift for Christmas, birthdays and other special occasions. Once I find a new favorite gift to give, I order ahead and keep a couple on hand in order to be prepared for any busy periods with limited shopping time or for last minute invitations.
“Big Nutbrown Hare settled little Nutbrown Hare into his bed of leaves. He leaned over and kissed him goodnight. Then he lay down close by and whispered with a smile, “I love you right up to the moon – and back.”
Sam McBratney
Guess How Much I Love You
This is the list of all 44 Books:
- Madeline
- Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
- Swimmy
- A Chair for My Mother
- Goodnight Moon
- The Snowy Day
- “The Letter” from Frog and Toad Are Friends
- Freight Train
- Make Way for Ducklings
- A Million Fish… More or Less
- A Boy, a Dog and a Frog
- Millions of Cats
- Guess How Much I Love You
- Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
- Curious George
- I Hear, I See, I Touch
- Miss Nelson is Missing!
- Titch
- Where the Wild Things Are
- The Cat Club
- Sylvester and the Magic Pebble
- Good Night, Gorilla
- Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel
- Stevie
- The Tub People
- “In Which Pooh Goes Visiting and Gets into a Tight Place” from Winnie-the-Pooh
- Bedtime for Frances
- “The Stinky Cheese Man” from The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales
- The Story of Babar
- The Berenstain Bears and the Spooky Old Tree
- “The Elves in the Shelves” from A Necklace of Raindrops
- Ten, Nine, Eight
- Stellaluna
- D.W. the Picky Eater
- Petunia
- First Tomato
- Amelia Bedelia
- I Am a Bunny
- Harry the Dirty Dog
- Whose Mouse Are You?
- Owen
- The Story of Ferdinand
- “The Sneetches” from The Sneetches and Other Stories
- The Story of Little Babaji
Biographical Notes
- This section in the back of the book contains notes on each of the featured authors in the treasury with extra recommendations of more titles from each author. A treasury that contains such an abundance of beautiful stories is a great way to discover your favorite authors and it acts as a sampler to guide parents in where they may want to spend the rest of their storybook budget.
Guide to Reading Ages
- There is a color coded book symbol next to every title in the contents and at the bottom of each page that indicates which ages might be most suited to each story. The red book symbol indicates stories for the youngest children such as babies and toddlers. The blue book symbol indicates stories for preschoolers and the green book symbol guides you to stories for ages 5+. Of course, many stories written for younger children are universal and can be enjoyed by all ages if you have a wide range of ages within your family. Each book is categorised by age in a complete list in the Guide to Reading Ages at the back of the treasury.
Index of Titles, Authors and Illustrators
- In the back of the book is a complete, single page, alphabetical, listing of every title, author and illustrator featured in the treasury for easy reference in finding your way around the books.
You and your children are sure to find many new favorites in this treasure trove. Whatever the size of your family’s bookcase, you will be very happy you made space for this beautiful anthology of classic stories of the 20th century.
The 20th-Century Children's Book Treasury
Picture Books and Stories to Read Aloud
Unparalleled in scope and quality and designed for reading aloud and sharing, this splendid anthology brings together some of the most memorable and beloved children's books of our time.
We earn a commission if you make a purchase, at no additional cost to you.