Our toddler loves story time, and I get just as much enjoyment from it as he does. We have a “bath, book, bed,” routine, but over recent months, our two year old has been asking for more and more stories. So one book turned into two… then into three! And some nights it’s even more than that!
Yes, yes… I’m a soft touch!
But he really does love stories and at 2 and a half, is now really able to decide for himself which ones he loved the most. So I’ve compiled a list of the best books for two year olds (according to the tot himself).
‘I Took the Moon for a Walk’
‘I Took the Moon for a Walk,’ is written by Carolyn Curtis and illustrated by Alison Jay.
It tells the story of a boy taking the moon out for a walk. It’s so gentle sounding to read aloud and the illustrations are creative without being over stimulating for a bedtime tale.
We’ve been reading this story to our now 2 and a half year old since he was 18 months old. At that time, he was starting to develop a fascination with the moon so I went off looking for stories about it and stumbled across this.
We’ve read it so much now that I know the words by heart, so sometimes when we are in the car he’ll ask me to say the words aloud for him.
It’s a beautiful story and just perfect for bedtime.
‘Goodnight Moon’
Another on the moon theme (a story acquired at the same time as the one above), ‘Goodnight Moon,’ is written by Margaret Wise Brown and illustrated by Clement Hurd.
This is another book perfect for bedtimes, as it ends with a sweet “goodnight,” to all the simple items in the “great green room.”
‘Monkey Puzzle’
‘Monkey Puzzle,’ is written by Julia Donaldson and illustrated by Alex Scheffler. This is the same dream team that gave us ‘the Gruffalo,’ and several other amazing stories for children.
Our 2 year old loves this book. It starts with a little monkey declaring that he’s lost his Mum. A butterfly offers to help find his Mum based on descriptions provided by little monkey. A series of unfortunate “not, that’s an elephant,” type scenarios follows.
Our son LOVES it. It makes him giggle hysterically, which might not have been great at bedtime a few months ago, but these days he settles regardless.
This story is lots of fun for little ones.
‘Zog’
Another Julia Donaldson and Alex Scheffler offering, this book is about Zog the Dragon, trying his hardest to earn a golden star at Dragon School.
It’s a fun, bouncy story with a lovely ending. And there are some lines repeated throughout, like ‘Now that you’ve been shown, you can practice on your own…” Our 2 year old loves reciting these lines along with us when we read it to him.
‘A Squash and a Squeeze’
At the risk of getting a little bit predictable, I’ve included another by Julia Donaldson and Alex Scheffler.
‘A Squash and a Squeeze,’ is a rhyming story book with fantastic images. It’s about a little old lady complaining that her house is too small, so on the advice of a wise old man, she takes half the farmyard animals in! Ultimately, of course, she learns that her house isn’t so small after all, when she finally gets it back to herself.
Again, it makes use of repetitive lines like this: “Wise old man, won’t you help me please? My house is a squash and a squeeze.”
This is great for 2 year olds who learn the lines and “read,” along.
‘The First Hippo on the Moon’
Written by David Walliams, ‘The First Hippo on the Moon,’ is silly, fun and lovely.
The illustrator, Tony Ross, brings a delightfully silly story to life with big and bold images. This is one that the adults enjoy as much as the two year olds.
What are your favourite books for 2 years olds?
We’re always looking to expand our library! So let me know what your favourite stories for 2 year olds are. Any we buy and enjoy will be added to this list!