I have had this book ‘One Hundred Illustrated Stories’ for some time and we dip in and out of it. Why is it so useful for having in a safe place in the house? What sort of stories does it have? Would I recommend this book for toddlers? This blog post looks at these questions.
Book Title
Usborne One Hundred Illustrtated Stories. This collection includes so many fairytales – 100 to be precise, including well known ones such as The Gingerbread Man and The Three Billy Goats Gruff, as well as some less well-known ones.
Suitable Ages
This Usborne big book is recommended for ages 8+ according to the Usborne website. I regularly dip in and out of it for my 2 year olds and 4 year old. We read about 1 or 2 of the stories at a time, and occasionally my child will request a certain fairytale, such as they asked for the boy who cried wolf when I mentioned it during a conversation. I didn’t have that particular story but thought it may be in this book, and it was. They are an ideal length for small children, being just 1-3 small pages each short story.
Main Messages or Lessons Conveyed
There are so many stories in this book that there are equally a vast range of learning and lessons conveyed. Just this morning I read ‘Calling Kallie’ in this book for the first time to my son, who’s less interested in reading than my daughters. It’s a lovely story about a brother and sister who were asked a series of questions by their father. The daughter replies with world and emotional responses – being what make us ‘human’. The son replied with physical, science and factual answers – being what schools teach us as necessary learning points. The father let the daughter win, which shows the depth of this story. I also personally related to this as it validates the prospect of homeschooling even more, where emotions and life experiences are just as valid (if not more) than scholarly lessons.
Value For Money
This book is listed on the Usborne site at only 16.99, which is incredible value for over 500 pages of stories for kids. I am sure this book will be a warm part of our family storytime for the many years to come, especially given Usborne recommend it for 8+ and my eldest is only 4 and we all get enjoyment out of it even now.
Gentle Parent 