I was raised with religion, but my husband really didn’t spend much time in church.  The net result is children who are in the middle of the spectrum.  I was a little flabbergasted when one of my kids asked me yesterday “Why do Jewish people celebrate Good Friday?”  After taking a few minutes to explain how Jesus hauled his cross all the way to the spot of his own crucifixion, their eyes lit up, as if to indicate that what was I was telling them sounded vaguely familiar.  Then one of them said, “That must have been really heavy.  Like carrying a piece of our fence around”.  Clearly we have work to do to help them better understand this important holiday!

That being said, we all love to read, and there are plenty of Easter books that we’ve shared over the years.  Undeniably, Easter symbolizes the start of Spring for me.  As a result, many of the books I love reflect the arrival of this new season with their colorful illustrations.

Here are five Easter choices sure to please your young readers from 4-12:

1. Easter Parade by Irving Berlin.  My mother is a kindergarten teacher and she gave this to my kids several years ago.  They love the colorful pictures, as well as the fact that the whole book is a song.  They love hearing me (attempt) to sing!

2. The Easter Egg by Jan Brett.  Any book written by Jan Brett will make a wonderful gift.  Not only are the stories wonderful, the artwork is amazing as well.  I recently gave this book to my godson for his birthday.

3.  The Berenstain Bears and the Easter Story by Jan Berenstain.  There are actually a few Easter titles by the same author, but this one is great because it spells out the true meaning of the holiday.  I know the Berenstain Bears seem to have a book for every topic, but my kids just love them.  They are so timeless.  We have read The Messy Room and Visit The Doctor over and over, always with keen interest.

4. Easter Eggstravaganza Madlibs by Price/Stern.  OK, now I know it’s not literature, but I had to mention Madlibs.  I recently re-discovered these funny books, and I do them with my daughter almost nightly before bed.   We laugh so hard at some of the stories we come up with.  It’s the perfect bonding activity to do with your 9-12 year old!

 

5. Daddy Long Ears by Robert Kraus.  For me, this book reminds me of my childhood as I read it with my parents over and over.   It’s short and simple, but a darling story.  Your kids will probably ask you several times why the rabbit has glasses like that stuck on his nose.  We’ve also had a few interesting discussions about the mother, who runs off with a muskrat! You will have to track down a used copy on Amazon, but it’s so worth it!