Dads Read Too

 DADS READ: “Lost. Found.”  by author Marsha Diane Arnold and illustrator Matthew Cordell explores the the meaning of being "lost" and "found" through the journey of a scarf that gets blown away from a bear, later "found" by some raccoons, only to be "lost" through conflict.  The scarf gets "lost" and "found" over and over again.  "Lost" through an unfortunate snag of a branch that pulled it off a beavers head.  "Lost" though an accidental fall.  "Lost" through forgetfulness.  "Lost" through play.  Each time it is "lost", it is "found" again by a new party, until the scarf is destroyed when all of the parties rediscover the scarf at the same time.  Eventually it is "found" while they work together to knit the threads back together and find community in the process.   The variations on "loss" made me reflect deeply on the times I've e...

JER: my good friend since 7th grade - @mshenriksen suggested this book: “ Hilda and the Troll ” by Luke Pearson.  It has unexplained creatures, adventure, rocks that look like Trolls, actual Trolls, and just the right amount of vulgarity.  Hilda enjoys sleeping in a tent outdoors in the rain since it makes her “coziness canvas thin”, and also learns that placing bells on the noses of Trolls is now considered a “barbaric practice”. My friend Mike summed it up best, “it is an interesting mystical adventure story, and the hero just happens to be a girl.” It isn’t pushing that storyline or detail, it just is.  I found it really refreshing. (NOTE: Ejler is an aspiring graffiti artist, and she has unfortunately left her mark all over this cover.)

JER: my spouse, Mallory Lake @americanhygge, found this really great book a while ago - “ Your Body Belongs to You ” by author Cornelia Spelman and illustrator Teri Weidner which is a great introduction into the concept of consent and bodily autonomy for children.  It empowers children to decide when and how they express affection, it models how parents can reinforce their decisions, and it makes it clear that only parents and doctors should be touching them on the “places on your body covered by a bathing suit”

JER: “Dog Loves Books” by Louise Yates is part of a series that Lake, Mallory, and I have grown to love. “Dog Loves Counting”, “Dog Loves Fairy Tales”  (which is my favorite), “Dog Loves Drawing”, they are all great, and are quick to get my 5-year-old giggling.