April Reading Roundup: Top Book Picks for Kids and Moms
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Welcome back to my Book Nook! April was a fantastic month for reading for my children and myself. We discovered new worlds, revisited old favorites, and gained new insights from various books. As always, I’m excited to share our literary adventures with you, and I hope our experiences will inspire you to embark on your own reading journey.
My Children’s Favorite Reads in April
I want to share the books we’ve enjoyed reading as a family. This way, I can provide options for moms to read alone and fun books to read with the family. If it helps, my twins are four years old, which might influence whether our book choices align with your needs.
As of writing this (April 27th), we haven’t finished the month and have already read over 100 books. Most of these are short books, many of which we’ve read multiple times. I started documenting our monthly reading in April and wasn’t surprised by the quantity. I’m thrilled that my daughters have inherited my love for reading.
Here are a few of our favorite books from this month:
Are you a monster? by Guilherme Karsten
Synopsis: Warning! This book contains a monster. A really angry, really scary, really bad monster…or so the monster says. And Monster has a very important question: are you a monster too? Children will love playing along with the book as monster tests them on their monster skills. Do you have a long pointy tail? Big yellow eyes? no? Can you make a big, loud noise? You can! Kids get to join in with this hilarious story and play their monstrous part, and by the end Monster may just regret asking that all important question.
We adored this book, borrowed from our local library. I plan to purchase a copy; in the future, as our daughters loved it immensely!
Monster Park! by Annie Bach
Synopsis: “Monster play. Monster ‘YAY!’ Monster Park- come on, this way!” MOnster’s having a fun time at the park – swinging and sliding, swirling and twirling, and riding the whirly-whirl. When it’s time to go, though, Monster says “NO!” But all’s okay because Monster can return another day. A monstrous-ly enjoyable follow-up to Annie Bach’s delightful Monster Party!
This was yet another enjoyable book for us. The rhyming engaged my daughters so much that they soon began to read the book out loud with me.
The Fog by Kyo Maclear
Synopsis: Warble is small yellow warbler who lives on the beautiful island of Icyland, where he pursues his hobby of human watching. But on a warm day, a deep fog rolls in and obscures his view. The rest of the birds don’t seem to notice the fog or the other changes Warble observes on the island. The more the fog is ignored, the more it spreads. When a Red-hooded Spectacled Female (Juvenile) appears, Warble discovers that he’s not the only one who notices the fog. Will they be able to find others who can see it too? And is the fog here to stay?
I found this story to hold more meaning than my girls would have noticed, which I deeply appreciated.
Ninja on the Farm (Moby Shinobi #1) by Luke Flowers
Synopsis: In the first in this fun Level 1 reader series, Moby Shinobi heads to the farm! Moby tries to collect eggs, gather hay, and feed the pigs, but each try ends in a funny mess. moby wants to help Farmer Bob, but what if his ninja skills aren’t right for the job? Then the cows break down the gate-can Moby use his ninja tricks to save the day before the runaway cows ruin the farm? Rhyming text and energetic full-color artwork make this the perfect book for young readers!
This is a cute and fun story. It’s very interactive and kept my daughters interested all the way through.
Curious George Goes Camping by Margret Rey, H.A. Rey
Synopsis: Spend a day in the outdoors camping with Curious George as he pitches a tent, roasts marshmallows, and tries to stay out of trouble! George and the man with the yellow hat are going camping! George tries to be helpful, but after he upsets a neighboring camper, he ends up exploring the woods on his own. Before long, an encounter with a cute forest creature throws George into a chain of outrageous events that allows him to find a way to be helpful after all.
We chose this book to complement our camping theme for the Preschool Playbook curriculum. It was easily one of the favorites that week.
Biscuit’s Day at the Farm by Alyssa Satin Capucilli
Synopsis: For fans of Clifford and Spot, welcome everybody’s favorite little yellow puppy, Biscuit, in an I Can Read adventure! Woof, woof! Come along, Biscuit! Join Biscuit at the farm. Biscuit is going to help out on the farm today and can’t wait to feed all of the farm animals. He makes friends with the hens, the geese, and even an eager little piglet who wants to follow him everywhere! Biscuit’s Day at the Farm, a My First I Can Read book, is carefully crafted using basic language, word repetition, sight words, and sweet illustrations – which means it’s perfect for shared reading with emergent readers.
The Biscuit Books have become a favorite of my daughters. We already own a few, but after reading this one from the library, we have decided to purchase more.
My Favorite Reads in April
As of writing this, I’ve completed five books in April. My reading habits haven’t been consistent recently, and I often experience these bursts of reading, so this isn’t surprising. I’m currently about a third of the way through another book, and I might finish it before the month ends in three days.
Here are the books I read in April:
Love the Home You Have: Simple Ways to…Embrace Your Style *Get Organized *Delight in Where You Are by Melissa Michaels
Synopsis: Like a perfectly overstuffed chair, Melissa’s encouragement beckons you to get comfortable and then get creative as you: find beauty in the ordinary, discover your style and let it shine with simple ideas, entertain possibilities and people with more gratitude and joy, gather inspiration in the 31-day Love Your Home Challenge, and leap from dreamer to doer with confidence. Much more than décor! This is your invitation to fall in love with the home you have and embrace the gifts of life, people, and blessings right where you are.
My rating: four stars
This book ignited my desire to declutter and redecorate our home, despite not planning to paint or purchase any large items. It introduced the concept of appreciating and cherishing our current home, even if it’s not our ideal place, while we are still working towards finding and purchasing a new one.
Throne of Glass #2: Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas
Synopsis: From the throne of glass rules a king with a fist of iron and a soul as black as pitch. Assassin Celaena Sardothien won a brutal contest to become his Champion. Yet Celaena is far from loyal to the crown. She hides her secret vigilantly; she knows that the man she serves is bent on evil.
Keeping up the deadly charade becomes increasingly difficult when Celaena realizes she is not the only one seeking justice. As she tries to untangle the mysteries buried deep within the glass castle, her closest relationships suffer. It seems no one is above questioning her allegiances—not the Crown Prince Dorian; not Chaol, the Captain of the Guard; not even her best friend, Nehemia, a foreign princess with a rebel heart.
Then one terrible night, the secrets they have all been keeping lead to an unspeakable tragedy. As Celaena’s world shatters, she will be forced to give up the very thing most precious to her and decide once and for all where her true loyalties lie… and whom she is ultimately willing to fight for.
My rating: five stars
I’ve adored everything I’ve read so far from this series. Since I’m borrowing the books from my library, it’s taking me longer than I would like to read them. This series is quickly becoming one of my favorites.
The Rule Book by Sarah Adams
Synopsis: Nora Mackenzie’s entire career lies in the hands of famous NFL tight end Derek Pender who also happens to be her extremely hot college ex-boyfriend. Nora didn’t end things as gracefully as she could have back then, and now it’s come back to haunt her. Derek is her first client as an official full-time sports agent and he’s holding a grudge.
Derek has set his sights on a little friendly revenge. If Nora Mackenzie, the first girl to ever break his heart, wants to be his agent, oh he’ll let her be his agent. The plan is make Nora’s life absolutely miserable. But if Derek knows anything about the woman he once loved—she won’t quit easily.
Instead of giving in, Nora starts a scheme of her own. But then a wild night in Vegas leads to Nora and Derek in bed the next morning married. With their rule book out the window, could this new relationship be the thing to save their careers?
My Rating: five stars
This book, written as a companion to The Cheat Sheet, offers a captivating look into the lives of Nora Mackenzie and Derek Pender. The author, Sarah, masterfully creates a quirky and goofy female lead without making her overbearing. I instantly fell in love with Nora’s character for her fearless boundary-pushing nature. Derek’s attentiveness and endearing behavior towards Nora were also particularly delightful. This book is the perfect comfort read that I’ll certainly revisit.
I want to extend my gratitude to the Random House Publishing Group and NetGalley for granting me early access to this title, in exchange for me to provide an honest review.
Harry Potter #4: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling
Synopsis: It is the summer holidays and soon Harry Potter will be starting his fourth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Harry is counting the days: there are new spells to be learnt, more Quidditch to be played, and Hogwarts castle to continue exploring. But Harry needs to be careful – there are unexpected dangers lurking…
My rating: five stars
I’m revisiting these books as an adult and they’re not letting me down. I can still see why these stories captivated me in my youth. There are details I’d forgotten that the movies didn’t highlight, and I’m thrilled to be rediscovering them and immersing myself in this magical world once more.
Throne of Glass #0.1-0.5: The Assassin’s Blade by Sarah J. Maas
Synopsis:
Celaena Sardothien is her kingdom’s most feared assassin. Though she works for the powerful and ruthless Assassin’s Guild, Celaena yields to no one and trusts only her fellow killer for hire, Sam.
When Celaena’s scheming master, Arobynn Hamel, dispatches her on missions that take her from remote islands to hostile deserts, she finds herself acting independently of his wishes—and questioning her own allegiance. Along the way, she makes friends and enemies alike, and discovers that she feels far more for Sam than just friendship. But by defying Arobynn’s orders, Celaena risks unimaginable punishment, and with Sam by her side, he is in danger, too. They will have to risk it all if they hope to escape Arobynn’s clutches—and if they fail, they’ll lose not just a chance at freedom, but their lives . . .
A prequel to Throne of Glass, this collection of five novellas offers readers a deeper look into the history of this cunning assassin and her enthralling—and deadly—world.
Included in this volume:
The Assassin and the Pirate Lord, The Assassin and the Healer, The Assassin and the Desert, The Assassin and the Underworld, and The Assassin and the Empire
My Rating: four stars
I’m truly grateful for these books, as they’ve allowed me to understand Celaena’s character more deeply and learn about her past. This remains one of my all-time favorite series, and I’m eagerly awaiting the arrival of the next book from my library.
At the time of writing, I’m currently reading “Happy Place” by Emily Henry and thoroughly enjoying the storyline so far.
As we bid farewell to April, we’re eager to see what May has in store for us in terms of reading. We hope these recommendations will inspire you to explore new books; whether for yourself, or to read with your children. Remember, the world of books is vast and full of surprises. Until next time, happy reading!
For more reviews and recommendations check back on the Styled and Curated Collections for previous posts and future updates.
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