Moo, Baa, La La La! by Sandra Boynton

So I'm typing this with a toddler on my lap.  He's cute and he's got some crazy hair, but he's not so hot at dictation.  I'm currently ready The Night Circus and am digging it quite a bit.  It has a nice mix of eccentricity and intrigue.  However, my reading keeps getting interrupted by my children.  They're so rude.  It's not like they can't take care of themselves; they are, after all, 4 and 1.5 years old.  They should be able to cook their own meals and entertain themselves.  As it is, they make me do that stuff for them and that's why I'm reviewing a children's book today.......well, really a children's author.

For anyone who has small children or knows someone who has small children or knows someone who will be buying for small children (Lord, how many small children are there?), I recommend pretty much anything Sandra Boynton has written.  Our current favorite is Moo, Baa, La La La!  It's our favorite mostly because it allows us to make fools of ourselves when imitating animal sounds.  It also allows my 1.5 year old to shake his teacher finger and say "No, no!" which is very exciting when you're one and half.  This particular story is actually more of a list of animals and the noises they make rather than an actual story but seeing as the target audience is little humans, I think that's just fine.  All of Ms. Boynton's books have an easy flow of words; almost always rhyming but not in an obnoxious fashion.  The books are not long, so that's a good start for littles with attention issues.  I can get my two to sit for an entire round of Pajama Time!, no problem.  These books are cute and fun.

One of the things I like about Ms. Boynton's books are her illustrations.  Ranging from barnyard animals to monsters who steal and then fix your birthday fun, they all have cute somewhat whimsical drawings.  Even more exciting than that is the frequency of silly songs in the books.  Snuggle Puppy and The Belly Button Book have my favorite songs, and as my daughter grows older she has yet to abandon the songs from these stories.  Possibly more exciting than that is that Ms. Boynton's board books (Which are an invention from heaven when dealing with little humans; our books have taken a swim, been run over, been attacked by Oreo, been the rope substitute in an unfortunate tug-of-war circumstance, and although they don't look new, they can still be read and loved.  And I have no idea why Oreo went all DEATH TO BOOKS! that day.  He has since come to an accord with all literature in our house.  It is a golden age of peace.) are now part of a larger franchise.  I have the Moo, Baa, La La La! app on my iPod Touch.  There are song books and recordings of the songs as sung by various celebrities.  There are family planners and calendars featuring Boynton illustrations.  She's everywhere and I can't say as I don't think she doesn't deserve the success.  After all, her books made me want to type a review with a toddler on my lap.  Even while he shakes his teacher finger at me and says "No, no!"

Check out the awesome at her official web page!