Re-Reading a Child’s Favourite Book Again, and Again, and Again, and Some More … and Then Again
The inspiration for this post came, from all places, a friend’s recent Facebook status, which read:
Now hiring: someone to read Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb 4500 times a day. Pay is much higher than you'd think.
The sentiment behind this appeal is universally shared by anyone who has spent some time around a toddler. The repeated re-reading of a child’s favourite book can indeed be grating for the reader, but for the child, it offers a whole host of benefits, besides just annoying an adult figure.
Repetition is the frontier where gains in understanding language and narrative structure are made. Many an article has been written to assure paren'ts of the benefits of re-reading a book to a child. They point to the fact that repetition contributes to: a child’s sense of security; their growing confidence; and their understanding of the relationships between words, letters, and the everyday things they represent.
This love of repetition seems to really take off in the pre-school years. The need to re-read the same book over and over is intertwined with the development of other pre-literacy skills including: letter knowledge, phonological awareness, vocabulary, an awareness of print and narrative structure, and with that, a motivation to enjoy books in the first place.
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Right now my daughter is clamoring to hear Jerry Smath’s But No Elephants (1979) about 10 times a day. At every reading she seems to notice something new: she points out the bird character on every single page for one session, then moves onto the turtle at another. She delights in anticipating the refrain but no elephants! one day, and enjoys flamboyantly turning the pages on the next. My favourite moments are when I find her quietly “reading” to herself, reveling in the illustrations: she thoroughly scans the image of Grandma’s adopted home upon one sitting, while studying the image of her old home at another. Each and every time she’s exposed to the story, she seems to be experiencing new and different insight.
At first I was surprised that my daughter gravitated towards this book specifically. I was unfamiliar with it before receiving it as a gift, and lord knows that I tried to push my own favourites on her, hoping they’d stick instead. But what can I say? The heart knows what it wants, and hers wanted elephants! As a paren't, you hope that your child will form an attachment to a book that is only mildly annoying. There is nothing worse than a terribly written children’s book and trust me, there are many out there. Below is a short list of books that can stand to hold the attention of a reluctant adult reader again and again and again:
Where the Wild Things Are story and pictures by Maurice Sendak
I swear I can repeat Max's phrase let the wild rumpus begin forever and ever without tiring of the joy it elicits when read out loud. Besides his writing, Sendak’s illustrations are a treat to behold, becoming deeper, more haunting, and dare I say, more magical, upon every repeat viewing.
Where is the Green Sheep? by Mem Fox and Judy Horacek
The beauty of Mem Fox’s repetition is brought out by the lyrical rhythm of her rhymes, which at first seem simple enough, but upon the 10th reading, you begin to appreciate just how expertly they have been put together.
Each Peach Pear Plum by Janet and Allen Ahlberg
There is always another visual detail to behold in this popular picture book. A literary Where's Waldo, the format istelf encourages interaction, while the content imparts knoweldge of classic nursury rhymes in an oh-so-subtle way.
Goodnight Moon by Margaret Brown Wise and pictures by Clement Hurd
Many a paren't has memorized this canoncial children's book. For me, its celebration of ritual should be treated more as a meditation than as a chore – a practice that will allow you to withstand the thousandth reading.
Mortimer by Robert Munsch illustrations by Michael Martchenko
Just like Max's phrase above, Mortimer's refrain of clang clang rattle-bing-bang is fun to say out loud every single time you're forced to read it. Munsch's storytelling panache oozes out of the book, guiding the reader towards a sense of inner merriment, while at the same time fulfilling a very adult role: satisfying the whims of a child.
One thought on “Re-Reading a Child’s Favourite Book Again, and Again, and Again, and Some More … and Then Again”
My son was completely enthralled with “Where the Wild Things Are” and routinely would act out the wild rumpus. His was a noisy going to bed experience. My daughter, on the other hand, liked a quieter reading experience, and “Grandfather Twilight” by Barbara Berger was her special night time read. She kept it in her bed with her and would quietly re-read the book to herself once the lights were out (my mother provided the flashlight).
All of my children are grown-up now, and they are all voracious readers. There is a pay-off for all of the times we re-read the favourite books to them. I would do it again in a heartbeat.