Monday, January 12, 2009

Books to Read to My Baby Girl

Just because babies have a very limited grasp of language doesn't mean that reading to them is a waste of time. I've decided to use some of my free time with the baby reading educational books to her:

The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli







The Art of War by Sun-Tzu







How to Build a Robot Army by Daniel H. Wilson







How to Rule the World: A Handbook for the Aspiring Dictator by Andre de Guillaume






I Love You, Little One by Nancy Tafuri





Any suggestions to add to the list?

15 comments:

Divers and Sundry said...

Just realize that whatever you pick may become a favorite that'll be requested over and over and over... Don't start things _you_ don't like.

How old (about) is this precocious child?

Anonymous said...

You are leaving at the zombie wars books. Do you no want her to be ready?

Or did you give up zombie fighting, too?

Art said...

I'd start with the Summa Theologiae but since your kid is going to be pretty screwed up no matter what, I'd add The Tin Drum, Outer Dark, Lord of the Flies, The Shining and (more for you, John) Watership Down.

Of course The Giving Tree would work too...

bob said...

Anything by Dr.Seuss is always good

Dan Trabue said...

I Love You, Little One???

What kind of sicko are you? Reading that sort of stuff to a baby girl...

John said...

She's four months old.

Anonymous said...

Alinsky's "Rules for Radicals" has specific and practical advice that Machiavelli and Sun-Tzu lack. For everything else, there's "The Sneetches and Other Stories."

rocksalive777 said...

Catch 22 by Joseph Heller and Dr. Seuss's classics The Butter Battle Book. Heller's classic about the horrors of World War II makes the perfect sequel to Seuss's treatise on the escalation of the Cold War arms race.

Or, maybe, just stick with the Seuss.

Anonymous said...

Between The Prince and The Art of War, you may have one very crafty toddler on your hands. ;)

doodlebugmom said...

I read to my kids as babies (not the titles you have chosen) and had plenty of books for them growing up. And, not to brag, but I have really smart kids. I really think all the reading gave them a great jump start.

Dan Trabue said...

Dan said:

I Love You, Little One???

What kind of sicko are you? Reading that sort of stuff to a baby girl...


John replied:

"She's four months old."

You know I was just joking, right?

John said...

Yes, Dan, I knew that. I was actually addressing Divers and Sundry's question.

John said...

John -- I figure that by the time that she's old enough to hold a rifle, she won't need to read about zombies. All she'll have to do is look over the barricade wall.

Divers and Sundry said...

"All she'll have to do is look over the barricade wall."

Are the Foxfire books still in print? They have pictures.

Anonymous said...

You've forgotten The Anarchist's Cookbook.