Reading Recommendations: Ages 3-5

The following list of books was compiled by the ALSC Quicklists Committee for Reading Is Fundamental.

Albourough, Jez
Where's My Teddy?
ISBN 1-5640-228-3
In rhyming text, Eddie's in for a big surprise when he discovers that his teddy bear has grown much too big to cuddle. Then Eddie meets up with a real bear who's got just the opposite problem--his lost teddy bear has shrunk to a size much to small for such an enormous bear to cuddle.

Allard, Harry
Miss Nelson Is Missing!
ISBN 0-3954-0146-1
The kids in Room 207 take advantage of their teacher's good nature until she disappears and they are faced with a substitute, Miss Viola Swamp, their worst nightmare.

Barrett, Judith
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs
ISBN 0-6897-0746-5
In the town of Chewandswallow, the food is delicious and arrives with the Weather until the weather takes a turn for the worse.

Brett, Jan
Goldilocks and the Three Bears
ISBN 0-6981-1358-6
A lavish retelling of an old favorite about a curious girl who makes herself at home in an empty cottage, only to be discovered by the three bears that live there.

Bridwell, Norman
Clifford the Big Red Dog
ISBN 0-5904-4297-X
Emily Elizabeth introduces her enormous pet.

Burton, Virginia Lee
Katy and the Big Snow
ISBN 0-3951-8562-9
Bright, vigorous pictures show Katy, a beautiful red crawler tractor, as she plows snow for the Highway Department.

Burton, Virginia Lee
Mike Mulligan and his Steam Shovel
ISBN 0-3952-5939-8
Mike Mulligan proves that Mary Ann, his faithful old steam shovel, can work just as well as the fancy new machines.

Carle, Eric
The Mixed-Up Chameleon
ISBN 0-0644-3162-2
Chameleon's life is not very exciting until the day he discovers he can change not only his colors, but his size and shape.

Carle, Eric
The Grouchy Ladybug
ISBN 0-0644-3450-8
A grumpy ladybug challenges everyone she meets regardless of their size.

Carle, Eric
The Very Hungry Caterpillar
ISBN 0-5900-3029-9
A beautifully, illustrated counting book about a caterpillar turning into a butterfly.

Fleming, Denise
In the Tall, Tall Grass
ISBN 0-8050-3941-4
Rhyming text tells of the creatures to be found in the grass.

Guarnio, Deborah
Is Your Mama a Llama?
ISBN 0590447254
Rhyming story that allows all of friends of Lloyd, the llama, to describe their mamas.

Keats, Ezra Jack
Whistle for Willie
ISBN 0-1450-2025
Peter learns how to whistle.

Lionni, Leo
Frederick
ISBN 0-3948-2614-0
While the other mice are gathering food for the winter, Frederick daydreams the summer away. But when dreary winter comes, it is Frederick, the poet, who warms the hearts of his friends with his words.

London, Jonathan
Froggy Gets Dressed
ISBN 0-1405-4457-7
Froggy discovers snow! He wants to go out and play but his sleepy mother tells him that frogs are suppose to sleep all winter. But Froggy insists and off he goes, but only after his mother has dressed him properly for the cold weather.

McCloskey, Robert
Blueberries for Sal
ISBN 0-1405-0169-X
Sal and her mother set off in search of blueberries before winter comes. At the same time a cub and mother bear are searching for food for the winter. A comedy of errors ensues when the young ones wander off and trail the wrong mothers.

Sendak, Maurice
Where the Wild Things Are
ISBN 0-0644-3178-9
A naughty little boy, who is sent to bed without his supper, sails to the land of wild things where he becomes their king.

Shaw, Nancy
Sheep in a Jeep
ISBN 0-3954-7030-7
Rhyming tale of the adventures of a group of sheep encounters while riding a jeep.

Walsh, Ellen Stoll
Mouse Count
ISBN 0-4520-0223-5
A hungry snake finds ten little mice and counts them into a jar for dinner. But the clever mice soon outwit the snake and "uncount" themselves--until they have all gotten away.

Williams, Vera
More, More, More Said the Baby: Three Love Stories
ISBN 0-6881-4736-4
Williams' award-winning style captures the warmth and humor of three different babies and the adults that adore them.

Ziefert, Harriet
Bob and Shirley: A Tale of Two Lobsters
ISBN 0-1403-8792-7
Based on a true story, Bob and Shirley are two huge lobsters caught in a net and end up in a tank in a fish store window until some concerned humans picket the store.