This post contains affiliate links
Our book basket for January contains some fun winter reads as well as a few others that may not be winter themed but contain nods to winter. As I wrote last month, my book basket contains about 25 books rather than one for each day of the month so we have a little bit of margin. I aim to read for 20 minutes a day with my kids this year and my girls are especially motivated as they are participating in Pizza Hut’s Book It! program in which they earn free pizza for reading 20 minutes a day, 5 days a week.
Here are the titles in our January book basket. I hope you enjoy them as much as we do! You can print out a book list with cover images and a library checklist of these titles below!
1. Chicken Soup with Rice
My youngest sister enjoyed this book on repeat when we were kids. It’s written in rhyme and helps children learn the months of the year as you read it to them. I chose this book for my January book basket because it begins in January and what better season to eat soup than in winter?
2. Corduroy
This sweet story is a classic and one I enjoyed as a kid. The copy we own is the same one I grew up reading. I chose this book for our book basket because Lisa, the little girl who ends up buying Corduroy, looks bundled up and the last illustration in the book shows snow outside her window making it a cozy winter story.
3. Curious George Makes Pancakes
This is a fun tale about everyone’s favorite monkey! In this story, George attends his town’s pancake breakfast fundraiser and although he gets himself into a little trouble, he ends up making it a great success. This title is in our book basket because pancakes and maple syrup make for a delicious winter breakfast.
4. Frog and Toad All Year
This book contains short stories about friends Frog and Toad. The first story is perfect to read in January as it finds Frog trying to convince Toad that winter is fun. It’s a silly story and Toad comes to a different conclusion that I’m quite partial to. This story is a classic yet it has recently led to a flurry of hilarious online responses, including this one, and this one.
5. Ice Bear
We found this book at our local library and it contains fascinating facts about and lovely illustrations of polar bears. I read this to my girls and found that I was also enjoying learning about this unique bear. It is so neat to see God’s design in how He created the world and everything in it, including the polar bear.
(This book does detail how seals are the prey of polar bears and one illustration does include a polar bear with blood on its face after eating. I asked my girls, ages 4 and 7 at our reading, if they were scared of the image and they said they were not. I wanted to include this information anyway because it may be scary to younger readers. An alternative title suggestion is Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear?)
6. Like Me
Like Me is a sweet story from the perspective of a boy who has a brother with disabilities. It’s beautifully written and a great resource for helping young children understand God’s heart for people with disabilities. You can read my review of Like Me here.
7. Little Bear
This is a classic children’s book containing four short stories about Little Bear. The first story finds him putting on different clothing items to stay warm while it is snowing making it a fun winter read.
8. Little Polar Bear and the Husky Pup
In this story, Lars the polar bear and Floe the husky pup become unlikely friends when Lars rescues Floe and helps him find his mother after being separated from her.
9. Mr. Popper’s Penguins
We began this fun story as a read aloud and then finished it on Audible because I had a credit. My girls enjoy this story and we’ve been listening to it on repeat. I certainly enjoy reading out loud to them but the audiobook is also really neat because it has sound effects. Either way, this is a delightful tale and I’m so glad we read it!
10. Passionate About Penguins
After reading Mr. Popper’s Penguins, my oldest declared that she would like a pet penguin. Since that’s not going to happen, I bought a used copy of this book so she has the opportunity to learn different facts about them. We are hoping to visit a zoo with penguins at some point so I’m hoping reading this book will encourage her excitement.
11. Snow
This is a rhyming story about snow and how fun it can be to play in. At times, it reminded me of Green Eggs and Ham.
12. Sophie and the Heidelberg Cat
This story is about Sophie, who’s had a rough day but learns about the true meaning of grace from her neighbor’s cat. You can read my review here.
13. Sugar Snow
Sugar Snow is an adaptation of the stories shared in the Little House on the Prairie series of books. In this book, Laura and her family awake to what her Pa calls a sugar snow and she and her sister Mary learn about why as they enjoy maple sugar.
14. Sugaring
This story is about a girl named Nora who helps her grandpa make maple syrup using a process called sugaring. It is sweet in more ways than one and an interesting look into how syrup is made.
15. The Doorbell Rang
This book is special to me because my mom read it on repeat during my childhood and now she enjoys reading it to my kids. This story is about kids whose mother has made chocolate chip cookies and when they are about to eat them, the doorbell rings. Upon each ring, more kids arrive which means the cookies are continually being divided up.
I love that when the main characters have the chance to consume their cookies before more children arrive, they choose to wait and share what they have. The way the kids consider their friends as more important than themselves reminds me of Jesus in Philippians 2:3-8. This isn’t a Christian book but I love the opportunity it gives me to talk to my kids about Jesus and how God has generously provided for us in Him.
16. The Hat
In this book, Hedgie the hedgehog gets a sock stuck on his head. Many animals make fun of him for looking so ridiculous but after his explanation for why he’s wearing it, they begin to find funny ways of their own to stay warm.
17. The Last Train
This story is a little bit sad but in a good way. It’s about recalling the history of trains of the past and the memories that one boy has of his father and grandfather working for the railroad. The story is told in rhyme illustrations are stunning.
18. The Snowy Day
In this classic children’s book, a little boy named Peter enjoys a day of play in the snow.
19. The Snow Globe Family
This is a fun and silly story about a family that lives in a snow globe on a mantel in the house of an actual family. The snow globe family longs for someone to shake their globe and give them some snowy fun and they finally get their wish. My girls love this book so it has a permanent place in our January Book Basket.
20. The Story of Snow
This book contains fascinating facts about snow and enlarged images of snowflakes. My girls enjoy studying science so I ordered a used copy for our book basket.
21. The Sweet Story of Hot Chocolate
This book is about how hot chocolate was invented. I love books that make history fun for children. I ordered a used copy of this book for my girls and we can’t wait for it to arrive. When it comes to children’s books about inventions, we’ve also enjoyed Mistakes That Worked.
22. Winter Days in the Big Woods
In this book, Laura and her family prepare for winter. This book provides a helpful look at what winter may have looked like for pioneer families and shows the many preparations they had to take to survive winter.
23. White Owl, Barn Owl
We checked out this book from our local library and it is by the same author as Ice Bear. This is a story about a girl who makes a wooden box with her grandpa for white owls to nest in. As night closes in, they observe an owl nesting and flying. Each page contains facts about white owls which I’m excited for my girls to learn.
24. Winter on the Farm
This book from the My First Little House Books series, centers on Almanzo and how he helps his family prepare their New York countryside farm for winter.
25. Winter Snow Fun
This sweet book is a Frog and Toad style collection of stories about Raccoon and his friends. Winter Snow Fun is a part of the Tales of Buttercup Grove series and you can read my review of some of the other books in the series here.
