My children love Easter books. It is very special and poignant to read Christian stories about Easter with the children, but I also like them to have a little fun also with Easter eggs and bunnies.
Scholastic gifted us some very fun books.
Where’s the Easter Bunny – Louis Shea
Hands down, this is Jonty and Trent’s favourite of the Scholastic books this year. Just quietly, it is not mine. Don’t get me wrong, I was very excited when I first saw it, truly, I was. But that was because I know that this would be a hit with my kids, the illustrations were bright and even though there isn’t much text, there is still enough for the children to engage with and become familiar with words as they search for the clues. But, I really don’t get excited with search and finds and waiting for the children to find the hidden pictures. Alex is great at it, so I’ve now made a rule that Daddy does search and finds and Mummy only does books with stories in it. I know it’s a bit mean, but at least they aren’t missing out altogether.
Plus, they read it themselves a lot also, so they haven’t missed out trying to spot over 500 things! The boys love hunting through the hilariously detailed illustrations to find the Easter Bunny and other characters on every spread – they more they look, they more they laugh. And it’s always the sweetest thing to see two little heads bent over a book and laughing.
Those Pesky Rabbits – Ciara Flood
This isn’t really an Easter story. It just has rabbits in the stories. So that classifies it as Easter at this time of the year, but it can remain a favourite for the rest of the year as well. I would be in favour of repeat reading of this story. Those bunnies are such lovely bunnies. (Quite unlike bunnies in real life.) The book tells the tale of a family of cheerful rabbits who make their neighbours life unBEARable!
Old bear is a bit of a hermit and wants to be left alone but his rabbit neighbours don’t get it and keep trying to engage with the bear. Eventually their unselfish kindness wins and bear ends up making some wonderful friendships. A great story bringing out beautiful themes such as being a good neighbour, generosity, community, friendship, togetherness and consideration for others.
Little Barry Bilby Had A Fly Upon His Nose – Colin Buchanan and Roland Harvey
Ok, so once again, this isn’t an actual Easter book, but this time is about Bilby’s. Which in the real world are far more preferable to bunnies. It’s become very Australian to include Bilby’s in Easter celebrations and as a farmer’s daughter, I can see merit in this. Rabbits can be so destructive to crops and land. Bilby’s on the other hand are little natives who are far more likeable.
This book is set to the classic Little Peter Rabbit song, performed by Colin Buchanan. The book comes with a CD. Also very Australian is that Barry Bilby and his friends Peter Possum, Colly Cocky and a few others get absolutely attacked by Aussie bush bugs. (I winced when one character had a tick on his tail.) Roland Harvey’s illustrations (as always) are perfect. This is a great Aussie alternative for children at Easter. (And the rest of the year.)
Ten Easter Eggs
A friendly board book for children, the triplets particularly loved this little counting story. A great introduction to subtraction. The illustrations are sweet and the plastic eggs are so touchable.
So, if you are looking for some stories to read over the Easter weekend, these all have my hearty recommendation.
Do you buy chocolate bilby’s at Easter? Do you enjoy reading search and find books, or do you prefer to leave children to their own devices and search independently?