The Most Underrated Genre

Let's talk about board books for a minute

A cow says MOO.

A sheep says BAA.

Three singing pigs say. . .

If your mind instantly replaced those ellipses with “LA LA LA,” then you have probably read board books to a toddler.

Moo, Baa, La La La was on constant rotation when my kids were little. We had baskets of board books around the house, set at kid height. The most chewed-and-loved-upon titles included We’re Going on a Bear Hunt, Baby Beluga, Barnyard Dance, and pretty much every book Sandra Boynton had published.

The obvious difference between board books and picture books is the thickness of the pages — all the better for toddlers and their developing fine motor skills. Board books are also shorter than most picture books, matching toddlers’ attention spans.

But beyond the physical differences, board books offer a runway into reading. Toddlers learn about covers, turning pages, and shutting the book with a satisfying “THE END.” Kids can begin to associate reading with warmth and wonder, as they snuggle with a parent or caregiver and ask to be read their favorite book over and over (and over) again.

The best board books are not simply “short” picture books. Like poets, board book authors know that every word counts. No filler words. No casually-chosen adverbs. I know, because I have spent the last two years crafting six board books — a task I found more difficult (in a satisfying way) than writing my picture books.

I often thought about the rhythm of lullabies while writing the “I See You” series. Because even if a baby or toddler can’t understand all the words in a book, rhythmic language will support their early literacy skills.

Rhythm is directly linked with learning how to read. In fact, school-age children who struggle with keeping a beat are more likely to have reading challenges. (You can read more about that here). Rhythms and rhymes are building blocks of literacy. Think about the way we instinctively bounce or rock fussy babies.

I think that’s why writers like Sandra Boynton and Dr. Suess and Shel Silverstein have such staying power — and why the most transfixing moment of the 2020 inauguration was a young woman reading a poem (Amanda Gorman has since written a wonderful picture book). The beat of their language drums into our minds, a comforting thump thump thump thump thump thump.

And that’s why I do not love board books that are simply publisher-condensed picture books. I want more board books that take toddlers seriously as a distinct audience, worthy of their own genre of literature.

Why "I See You”

The first two board books in my “I See You” series release on July 9 (squee!). The phrase “I see you” has been close to my parenting heart since I interviewed Dr. Susan David about her book “Emotional Agility” a few years ago.

Dr. David was born and raised in South Africa and notes that Sawubona — the Zulu word for “hello” — literally means I see you. She told me “Every single one of us wants to be seen. For me, ‘I see you’ means creating a space in your heart and in your home or classroom where [a child] is seen. When children and adolescents are very upset, literally just the presence of a loving person helps to de-escalate and creates the space where calm is invited in.”

Everyone wants to be seen. That includes our toddlers, who crave the loving attention of adults. When we say “I see you” to toddlers, whether by our words or by our actions, what we are really saying is: “I’m paying attention to you. You are important to me. I like you just the way you are.”

That’s the heart of this series. Each book follows a toddler through a single day, with a loving adult (not pictured) seeing and saying comforting words about the child’s emotions, kindness, curiosity, physical growth, and self-expression. The first three books come out in 2024. In 2025, you can look out for I See You Wonder, I See You Play, and I See You Sing.

I hope you’ll consider picking up one or more of these titles for a toddler in your life. And perhaps pull out some old favorite stories to read with the older children in your life. See if they remember that “The pigs say oink all day, all night.”

Gratefully,

Deborah

Deborah Farmer Kris * www.parenthood365.com