Advice History

Dr. Harvey Karp, author of The Happiest Toddler on the Block , suggests reading with your child not at her. Board books are great for toddlers especially the destructive types who want to rip paper pages out of books. Kids love rhyming stories, books with lots of pictures, colors and touchy-feely books. And don't be surprised at how well your child is really listening to her stories. Despite the rolling around and gabbing throughout, they really do pick up every word, memorize them and read along out-loud with you.

Now that my daughter's two and a half, she has certain books that she wants to hear over and over and certain books that don't appeal to her at all. One thing I've found that really helps her find new books to treasure without automatically spending twenty-four bucks on one she's not into is to go to the library. We go every other week and while she runs herself ragged through the stuffed animals with the other kids, I look for new books she may like. We take home five new ones and see what she responds to. If she really falls in love with one, I may end up buying it new so it becomes a staple, the others go back and only get rechecked out if she asks for them.