One Frog Too Many

When we visited my parents recently, my mom pulled out a book that she'd saved from our childhood collection. The book is called One Frog Too Many and after looking it up, I learned that it is one in a series of wordless picture books written by Mercer Mayer. The series is significant in that it helped to start this genre of children's books.

It suited my mom's reading style quite well. Here's why - my mom doesn't usually read a book the way the rest of us do. Instead, she asks the kids questions about what they notice on each page - what a character might be doing, what might happen next, and so on. (The former teacher comes out, for sure.)

What was great about this book was that you had to do exactly that. Sarah and Eric "read" the book, based on the questions my mom asked and the clues the author gave. The kids loved it and I gained a greater appreciation for the way my mom reads with my children, rather than to my children.