BIRTHDAY BOOKS! Happy Reading to You!
Birthdays can be great! Except … if it’s your brother or sister’s, and you have to be nice while he or she gets the presents … or if it’s yours, and your presents are dictionaries and socks … or if you’re the host, and there are soda and cake smears on the table and kids screaming everywhere…
The books on this list are about all kinds of children having all kinds of birthdays. There are many different stories, but one thing they all have in common is they show that cake and candles mean you’re growing up – which is the really great part of having a birthday.
PICTURE BOOKS
The Secret Birthday Message by Eric Carle, 1972. By following the instructions in the coded message, Tim finds his birthday present.
The Birthday Pet by Ellen Javernick, 2009. Danny can have a pet for his birthday and he knows exactly what he wants, but the other members of his family think differently.
A Letter to Amy by Ezra Jack Keats, 1998. Peter wants to invite Amy to his birthday party, but he wants it to be a surprise.
Big Red Lollipop by Rukhsana Kahn, 2010. Having to take her younger sister along the first time she is invited to a birthday party spoils Rubina’s fun. Later, when her sister is asked to a party and their baby sister wants to come, Rubina must decide whether to help.
Every Day on Your Birthday, by Rose A. Lewis, 2007. Each year on the birthday of her adopted Chinese daughter, a mother recalls the moments they have shared, from the first toy to the friends left behind in China.
Hooray! A Pinata! By Elise Kleven, 2000. Clara gets a cute piñata dog for her birthday, but when she begins to pretend it is her pet, and she becomes attached to it, she doesn’t want it to get broken.
Bumble-ardy by Maurice Sendak, 2011. Bumble-ardy, a mischievous pig who has never had a birthday party, invites all his friends to a masquerade that quickly gets out of hand.
Scaredy Squirrel Has a Birthday Party by Melanie Watt, 2011. Scaredy Squirrel plans to celebrate his birthday by himself, quietly and without any unnecessary surprises, but a surprise found in his mailbox inspires Scaredy to increase his guest list to two.
Whopper Cake by Karma Wilson, 2006. Granddad bakes Grandma a whopper of a birthday cake. Includes recipe and directions for chocolate cake.
Mr. Rabbit and the Lovely Present by Charlotte Zolotow,1962. Mr. Rabbit helps a little girl find a lovely present for her mother, who is especially fond of red, yellow, green, and blue.
EASY READERS
A Birthday for Bear by Bonnie Becker, 2009. Despite Bear’s efforts to ignore his birthday, Mouse will not rest until his friend celebrates.
A Gift for the King by Damian Harvey, 2006. The king is having a birthday and the baker has prepared a special treat, but it is young Tom’s responsibility to see that the treat arrives in good condition.
Houndsley and Catina and the Birthday Surprise by James Howe, 2006. Friends Houndsley and Catina are sad because they do not know when their birthdays are, but they solve the problem in a thoughtful and creative way.
Mr. Putter and Tabby Make a Wish by Cynthia Rylant, 2005. Mr. Putter thinks he is too old to celebrate his birthday, but when he remembers some of his past birthdays, he changes his mind.
JUVENILE FICTION
Happy Birthday, Bad Kitty by Nick Bruel, 2009. Bad Kitty’s birthday fun is disrupted when someone takes off with her presents and an unexpected guest arrives for the party.
Nikki & Deja: Birthday Blues by Karen English, 2009. As her eighth birthday approaches, Deja’s biggest concern is whether her father will attend her party, until her aunt is called away on business and a classmate schedules a “just because party” on the same afternoon.
The Birthday Ball by Lois Lowry, 2010. When a bored Princess Priscilla makes her chambermaid switch identities with her so she can attend the village school, her attitude changes and she plans a new way to celebrate her birthday.
11 Birthdays by Wendy Mass, 2009. After celebrating their first nine birthdays together, Amanda and Leo, having fallen out on their tenth and not speaking to each other for the last year, prepare to celebrate their eleventh birthday separately but peculiar things begin to happen as the day of their birthday begins to repeat itself over and over again.
Finally by Wendy Mass, 2010. After her twelfth birthday, Rory checks off a list of things she is finally allowed to do, but unexpected consequences interfere with her involvement in the movie being shot at her school while a weird prediction begins to make sense.
The Big One-oh by Dean Pitchford, 2007. Determined not to be weird all his life like his neighbor, Charley Maplewood decides to throw himself a tenth birthday party, complete with a “house of horrors” theme, but first he will have to make some friends to invite.
Oggie Cooder, Party Animal by Sarah Weeks, 2009. Oggie Cooder has always wanted to swim in his neighbor Donnica Perfecto’s perfect pool, and when Donnica’s mother makes her invite Oggie to her birthday party, Oggie vows he will get his chance, no matter what obstacles stand in his way.
Jan Nash Murphy is a Children’s Librarian at the Cranbury Public Library. Visit the Cranbury Public Library at www.cranburypubliclibrary.org or call (609) 655-0555 to check out your copy of one of these great books