Todd Parr

This is my fifth post in a series of posts about adoption themed children's books. If you would like to know more about why I am writing about this topic, go here.

My first post was about A Mother for Choco.

My second post was about Horace.
My third post was about I Wished For You.
My fourth post was about How I was Adopted.

I love Todd Parr's children's books.

Do's and Don'ts is so funny. The pictures are the best part.

Some of my favorite lines are:

Do change your socks every day. Don't make anyone smell them.

Do have lunch with a monkey. Don't eat his bananas.

Do wear clean underwear. Don't wear it on your head.

Do brush your teeth after every meal. Don't brush with peanut butter.

The kids and I love Zoo Do's and Don'ts.

Some of our favorite lines:

Do take a nap with a hippo. Don't let him steal all the covers.

Do go to the movies with a skunk. Don't make her mad.

Do take dance lessons with a porcupine. Don't slow dance with him.

Do brush your hair with a lion. Don't braid his mane.

Do wash your clothes with a rhino. Don't hang them on his horns to dry.

Do take a drive with a giraffe. Don't drive under a bridge.

The Peace Book is my favorite.

Peace is making new friends.

Peace is keeping the water blue for all the fish.

Peace is listening to different kinds of music.

Peace is saying you're sorry when you hurt someone.

Peace is helping your neighbor.

Peace is reading all different kinds of books.

Peace is thinking about someone you love.

Peace is giving shoes to someone who needs them.

Peace is planting a tree.

Peace is sharing a meal.

Peace is wearing different clothes.

Peace is watching it snow.

Peace is keeping the streets clean.

Peace is offering a hug to a friend.

Peace is everyone having a home.

Peace is growing a garden.

Peace is taking a nap.

Peace is learning another language.

Peace is having enough pizza in the world for everyone.

Peace is keeping someone warm.

Peace is new babies being born.

Peace is being free.

Peace is traveling different places.

Peace is wishing on a star.

Peace is being who you are.

Todd Parr wrote a book specifically about adoption. A few of the lines are:

We belong together because...you needed a home and I had one to share.

We belong together because...you needed someone to kiss your boo-boos and we had kisses to give.

We belong together because...you needed someone to read to you and we had stories to share.

We belong together because you needed someone to say, "I love you" and we had love to give.

Now we all have someone to kiss good-night.

The way it is written, it can sort of come across like you are doing the child a favor by adopting them. Obviously that is not at all how I feel about adoption and not the idea you want to express to your child, so I recommend skipping this book and using his book The Family Book instead.

The Family Book does a great job talking about all different kinds of families. It uses human and animal families in the pictures. It talks about how some families look like each other and others do not. Some are small, some are big, some are noisy, some are quiet, some eat the same food, some eat different food, etc.

It even speficially mentions that some families adopt children. It also says that some families have step parents and step sisters and brothers. Some families have one parent instead of two. Some families have two moms or two dads.

This is a book that works for any child or family and is great because it not only make them feel good to read about a family like their own, but it helps them to understand other types of families.