So when I started my blog back over the summer I had what seemed like an impossible task of reading 100 books all children should read before going to 'school'. Well, it seems that I have in fact finished that list - I just seriously slacked off on marking them off... so - In it's entirety, here is the list of 100 books all children should read. For the sake of "recommendations" I have coded them, green are favorites (or well liked enough to read over and over), yellow are ok but I wouldn't go buy it, and red are "why is this book on this list". If I can't recall it well enough to code I left it black :) (after all I'm getting old, if I don't write it down or take a picture I can't be sure to remember)
1. Where’s My Teddy?
Alborough, Jez
2. Miss Nelson is Missing
Allard, Harry
3. Happy Birthday, Moon
Asch, Frank
4. Ten, Nine, Eight
Bang, Molly
5. Animals Should Definitely Not Wear Clothing
Barrett, Judi
6. The Three Bears
Barton, Byron
7. I Like Myself
Beaumont, Karen
8. Madeline
Bemelmans, Ludwig
9. The Mitten
Brett, Jan
10. Clifford, the Big Red Dog
Bridwell, Norman
11. Stone Soup
Brown, Marcia
12. Goodnight, Moon
Brown, Margaret Wise
13. Mr. Gumpy’s Outing
Burningham, John
14. Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel
Burton, Virginia Lee
15. The Very Hungry Caterpillar
Carle, Eric
16. Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed
Christelow, Eileen
17. Miss Rumphius
Cooney, Barbara
18. Freight Train
Crews, Donald
19. Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type
Cronin, Doreen
20. Today I Feel Silly
Curtis, Jamie Lee
21. Strega Nona
De Paola, Tomie (This gets a brighter green because we love Strega Nona so so much)
22. Bed Hogs
DiPucchio, Kelly
23. Are You My Mother?
Eastman, P. D.
24. Feathers For Lunch
Ehlert, Lois
25. Go Away, Big Green Monster!
Emberley, Ed
26. Olivia
Falconer, Ian
27. Lunch
Fleming, Denise
28. The Magic Hat
Fox, Mem
29. Corduroy
Freeman, Don
30. Millions of Cats
Gag, Wanda
31. The Three Billy Goats Gruff
Galdone, Paul
32. Barnyard Song
Greene, Rhonda
33. Is Your Mama a Llama?
Guarino, Deborah
34. A First Picture Book of Nursery Rhymes
Harbour, Elizabeth (Illustrator)
35. Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse
Henkes, Kevin
36. Where’s Spot?
Hill, Eric
37. Bread and Jam for Frances
Hoban, Russell
38. Is it Red? Is it Yellow? Is it Blue? An Adventure in Color
Hoban, Tana
39. Miss Mary Mack
Hoberman, Mary Ann
40. Rosie’s Walk
Hutchins, Pat
41. Harold and the Purple Crayon
Johnson, Crockett
42. Splash!
Jonas, Ann
43. Jump, Frog, Jump!
Kalan, Robert
44. The Wolf’s Chicken Stew
Kasza, Keiko
45. The Snowy Day
Keats, Ezra Jack
46. The Caterpillar and the Polliwog
Kent, Jack
47. Anansi and the Moss Covered Rock
Kimmel, Eric
48. Leo the Late Bloomer
Kraus, Robert
49. The Carrot Seed
Krauss, Ruth
50. Over in the Meadow
Langstaff, John
51. The Story of Ferdinand
Leaf, Munro
52. Tacky the Penguin
Lester, Helen
53. A Color of His Own
Lionni, Leo
54. Frog and Toad are Friends
Lobel, Arnold
55. Froggy Gets Dressed
London, Jonathan
56. Chicka, Chicka, Boom, Boom
Martin, Bill
57. All By Myself
Mayer, Mercer
58. Guess How Much I Love You
McBratney, Sam
59. Make Way for Ducklings
McCloskey, Robert
60. Pigs Aplenty, Pigs Galore!
McPhail, David
61. Martha Speaks
Meddaugh, Susan
62. The Jacket I Wear in the Snow
Neitzel, Shirley
63. The Day Jimmy’s Boa Ate the Wash
Noble, Trinka
64. If You Give a Mouse a Cookie
Numeroff, Laura
65. Amelia Bedelia
Parish, Peggy
66. The Kissing Hand
Penn, Audrey
67. The Rainbow Fish
Pfister, Marcus
68. The Little Engine That Could
Piper, Watty
69. The Tale of Peter Rabbit
Potter, Beatrix
70. Good Night, Gorilla
Rathmann, Peggy
71. Curious George
Rey, H. A.
72. We’re Going on a Bear Hunt
Rosen, Michael
73. The Relatives Came
Rylant, Cynthia (It wasn't bad, we just didn't get it... perhaps it was over our heads and really is phenominal)
74. Grandfather’s Journey
Say, Allen
75. Cars and Trucks and Things That Go
Scarry, Richard
76. Where the Wild Things Are
Sendak, Maurice
77. The Cat in the Hat
Dr. Seuss
78. Duck on a Bike
Shannon, David
79. Gregory, the Terrible Eater
Sharmat, Mitchell
80. It Looked Like Spilt Milk
Shaw, Charles
81. Caps for Sale
Slobodkina, Esphyr
82. Imogene’s Antlers
Small, David
83. Sylvester and the Magic Pebble
Steig, William
84. And the Dish Ran Away with the Spoon
Stevens, Janet
85. Joseph Had a Little Overcoat
Taback, Simms
86. Who’s Counting
Tafuri, Nancy
87. Pigsty
Teague, Mark
88. Polar Express
Van Allsburg, Chris
89. Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good Very Bad Day
Viorst, Judith
90. Lyle, Lyle Crocodile
Waber, Bernard
91. Farmer Duck
Waddell, Martin
92. Mouse Paint
Walsh, Ellen Stoll
93. Noisy Nora
Wells, Rosemary
94. Knuffle Bunny
Willems, Mo
95. I Went Walking
Williams, Sue
96. A Chair for My Mother
Williams, Vera B.
97. The Napping House
Wood, Audrey
98. Owl Moon
Yolen, Jane
99. Seven Blind Mice
Young, Ed
100. Harry, the Dirty Dog
Zion, Gene
And there you have it. I see that there are quite a few (too many perhaps), that I don't recall well enough to have a solid opinion of. And for the most part... they were all pretty good reads - There was only 1 of all 100 that we found to be a total waste of time, but perhaps that's because at this point "finding" colors is a wee bit below Soph. While looking through it I believe her words were "Mom, this is boring, I need something with some action". Alrighty then!
*side note* I have accomplished 1 of my goals. Yay me!