One Word Picture Books

Eek! I haven't blogged in a month....woops. Sometimes I just feel like I don't really have anything to say, and I haven't been reading much lately to do any reviews. I really need to get it together. After looking at the new books cart, I did finally brainstorm an idea for a blog post.....one word picture books.

As someone who reads a fair amount of picture books aloud on a weekly basis, I really love when I come across books that allow me to use my “acting chops.” Technically I was a theatre major once upon a time, but I mainly focused on design work and working behind the scenes. I’m not saying I’m Meryl Streep, but I have the most fun reading stories in which I can really play with tone and inflection.

One word picture books are my favorite books to do this with. Now, I don’t mean simple pictures books that have one word and each page like Apple, Book, Car, etc. I mean the same singular word repeated over and over but used in different ways to tell a story. The results can be quite humorous or even heartwarming.

Below are some of my favorite one word picture books that I have had success with in storytime or that I just think are adorable.

First on the list is Moo! By David LaRochelle. I make it a point to read this book any time I do a cow-themed storytime. It is always a hit! Kids and adults alike were laughing out loud at this simple, ridiculous story. This is the story of a cow who steals a car and goes on a brief joyride before things take a turn for the worse. My favorite part was the cow explaining what had happened to a police officer, all while only speaking in cow of course.

Ball by Mary Sullivan is about a singularly minded dog waiting for his kid to get home from school. I think anyone who has ever had a dog will recognize their own lovable pup in this story. All he wants to do is play ball, so all he thinks and dreams about is his shiny red ball. It’s fun to watch his day unfold and it gives us a glimpse into what our own pets may be doing while we’re away all day.

Apparently cats feel the same way about yarn as dogs do about balls. In Meow! by Victoria Yang, a young kitten desperately tries to get his family to play with him and his ball of yarn. Unfortunately everyone is too busy to pay any attention and the kitten goes into full blown toddler tantrum, causing a yarn catastrophe. After cooling down, the kitten realizes his mistake and helps everyone with their tasks. When they are done, everyone is free to play with the yarn together and kitten curls up with his beloved yarn ball and falls fast asleep with a contented purr.

So including, Banana! by Ed Vere may be cheating a little bit. Technically it has two words, “banana” and “please”, but “banana!” is really used to tell the story. Two monkeys learn that sharing is caring in this funny, simple picture book. This one is especially great for toddlers who are going through the “mine” phase.

What are some of your favorite one word picture books?