Wir freuen uns auf Weihnachten is a delightful Christmas book. It has countless cutout shapes in each page, cleverly turning colors and pictures into another item on the next page. The story begins in a Kindergarten class preparing for Weihnachtsmarkt. The room is full of crafts and a hanging advent calendar. The next page introduces us to Julia and her family. They are getting ready to go to the Weihnachtsmarkt. At the Weihnachtsmarkt Papa buys a Christmas tree and Julia rides on a carrousel.
The background picture shows a few Weihnachtsmarkt booths. At home, Julia bakes Plätzchen with her mom and little brother. She also helps to decorate the tree, listens to a Blaskapelle on Marktplatz with her family, and on Christmas day she and her brother receive their Christmas gifts!
The text is a great length for toddlers. The illustrations are the highlight though! It is fun to find the details in the pictures, such as signs, household items lying around and what people and animals are doing in the background. The cutouts are by far the most impressive. The front cover has sparkled-gold coloring and a couple Weihnachtsmarkt signs. This makes a beautiful family book that celebrates Christmas.
Age recommendation: 2-4
Fluency recommendation: Beginner
Submitted by: Rebecca Bluemel
My two year old son loves Caillou, and he particularly enjoyed being able to experience Caillou in German!
Caillou und der kleine Hund tells the story of Caillou’s adventures helping his grandmother take care of a dog named Albert. In doing so, Caillou discovers that he wants a dog all of his own. When his parents won’t let him get a dog, Caillou discovers that his stuffed toy dog can be his very own pet.
This story is wonderful for encouraging children to use their imaginations. I liked the fact that, while Caillou did not get what he wanted, he was still happy with his pretend dog. This book provides a gentle reminder to children that they can still have fun even when they don’t get their way.
Age recommendation: 2-6
Fluency recommendation: Intermediate
Submitted by: Melissa M.
Caillou und der kleine Hund is available from Alphabet Garten
Die kleine Hexe feiert Weihnachten tells the story of Lisbeth, the little witch, who is busily trying to prepare for Christmas. She keeps getting delayed by unexpected visitors. In the end, she is able to get her Christmas tree decorated and cookies baked in time to host her Christmas gathering, which is made extra special by a visit from the Weihnachtshexe.
While the story itself is lovely, perhaps the most appealing aspect of this book is the beautiful illustrations. Lieve Baeten, the Flemish author and illustrator, took great care in crafting each page to create an inviting scene, which draws children (and grown-ups) into its enchanting world. Several pages of the book have flaps that open up to reveal even more of Lisbeth’s world.
This edition of the book comes with a DVD edition of the story as well. The story is read in voice-over by a narrator with quiet music playing in the back ground. The main focus of the DVD is showing the story’s illustrations.
I hope your family will enjoy this story as much as mine has!
Age recommendation: 2-6 years
Fluency recommendation: Intermediate
Submitted by: Melissa M.
Die kleine Hexe feiert Weihnachten is available from Alphabet Garten
Ein besonderes Kind: Die Geschichte von Jesu Geburt
This is a book you want to study the cover layout closely before presenting to your child, for the cover harbors the puzzle pieces which makes the book “Ein besonderes Kind” a very special book as far as my three and five year old were concerned.
The story itself is simple and in ten sentences recounts the story of an angel appearing to Maria to the shephards praising God’s glory at the birth of his son. Each page has the opportunity to add another puzzle piece with some being used more than others.
Another special touch to this book is that under the cut-out opening, the authors have placed a reinforcing question. For example, on the page which begins ‘Marias Mann, der Josef heisst, sagt’ it includes in small typeset under the cutout to match the puzzle piece for Joseph the question: Wer ist Marias Mann?
All of the six puzzle pieces come out on the last page for the grand finale.
This is very much a book your child will want to participate in.
But the layout of the puzzle pieces is worth remembering to be able to close up the sliding flap correctly and keep all the pieces together!
The construction of this large book seems very sturdy and of high quality.
The puzzle pieces have held up to play from my children as well as exploration from a 14 month old who was clearly drawn to the very colorful and large illustrations.
Although considered a puzzle book, it is really the cut-outs of the main characters which the children can insert into the correct areas. I include two pictures from a seqence of my 3 year old son trying various cut-outs until he found the right one.
In addition to naming animals and characters of the Christmas story, the book lends itself to a great teaching opportunity
for nouns such as Mann, Frau, or Tier, plus questions such as ‘ist dies zu klein? zu gross? It really made me smile as my son provided his own grimaces followed by obvious satisfaction when he finally placed in the correct one. Sure enough, he was providing commentary in German as to which pieces were too big or too small.
This book is geared for younger children still very much interested in the tactile characteristics of a book and the feeling of accomplishment of ‘reading’ a book. The puzzle of fitting the pieces back into the front cover is great for the older children and parents!
Review by: Veronica Dzugan
Age recommendation: 2-6 years
Fluency recommendation: Beginner
Leo Lionni, one of my favorite children’s authors, ceases to disappoint in Das Gehört mir!
I love his illustrative style, which is rough yet charming. The translation is by Fredrik Vahle, who is also a talented children’s author.
The story features three frogs, Milton, Rupert and Lydia that children can completely relate to.
They play in the lake, on land and even in the air, but they all seek possession of the lake or land, so they argue all day long. One day a toad comes to their side of the island and tells them that because of their constant bickering, there is no peace on the island. Nothing changes after the toad disappears until it begins to rain. The rain and thunder become so great that they need to rely on each other to weather out the storm. I absolutely adore the clever ending!
There is so much to this simple book. Besides Lionni’s illustrations, his stories are full of depth. The ending is typical for a children’s book, but it’s how the frogs learn the lesson that makes this an impressive book to read. The vocabulary is also more scientific describing the rise and fall of tides as well as rainy and warm days.
Das Gehört Mir! contains the entire package: attractive illustrations, strong sentence structure, classic moral, and a witty plot!
Ages: 3-6
Fluency recommendation: Intermediate
Review by: Rebecca Bluemel
Das gehört mir! is available from Alphabet Garten.
| Es Weihnachtet sehr bei Familie Bär is a fun book that allows the readers to peek into the Bears’ home to see all their Christmas preparations. The first page introduces us to all the members of the family, including their three pets.
The flap windows are a huge plus for the little ones. There are a lot of surprises hidden behind them! The book is written out in a way that includes some pictures instead of words. This style of book may appeal to many readers, especially those with older children. However, it is lacking a glossary defining the pictures! This is a huge minus, but natives and those familiar with German won’t have any problems identifying the pictures.
The house-shaped book is unique and sets it apart from other Christmas books. The first few pages ask questions about the Bears’ home:
- What are family members doing or can you find this hidden object?
- What is the family doing in the kitchen?
- What is everyone making in the family room?
The middle pages enlarge the rooms, in order to have a closer look.
There are also many fun activities to do outside! The Bear family enjoys the freshly fallen snow. Finally, it is Christmas and everyone, including the pets, opens their gifts. The illustrations are bright and clearly depict all the festive preparations.
Although it is longer than most books for toddlers, it reads quickly and entertains them as well.
Es weihnachtet sehr, bei Familie Baer is available from Alphabet Garten
Recommended Ages: 2-4
Proficiency Level: Beginner
Submitted by: Rebecca Bluemel |
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A while back we offered a very popular set of books called the Mini Lesemaus set for young children. Unfortunately they went out of print. Now I am very pleased to announce we have new versions of these books in boardbook format for the baby and toddler crowd!
These books are so cute. All my kids have enjoyed them as two and three year olds. Now Jack can “read” them to the baby.
This set is great for everyday vocabulary, with scenes from a child’s room, the goings on in a kitchen, at the doctor and with some friendly pets. It also makes a great gift for a new baby.
Ask your child to find objects in the pictures and read the simple story that accompanies each book.
View details for Mini Lesemaus Boardbook Set
What are your favorites books for baby?
Written and illustrated by German-American Eric Carle, Kleine Wolke tells the story of a cloud who veers away from the others and creates his own shapes.
On each page, Little Cloud playfully morphs into a different shape. We see him become a clown, a lamb, and an airplane, among other shapes. There is little text on each page, and the text that is present refers directly to the illustrations. Even if your child is not fluent in German, he/she will likely be able to comprehend the story.
Kleine Wolke demonstrates the virtue of being an individual.
Little Cloud is quite content to play by himself, but he is also happy being a part of the larger group. At the end of the book, Little Cloud joins up with the other clouds to create a rainstorm. Young readers will see the importance not only of being themselves, but also of being part of a larger community.
My 19-month-old son enjoys reading this story.
I only wish we had started reading this book at a warmer time of year. When we’re out traipsing across icy parking lots and snowy sidewalks, I often find my son looking up at the sky naming different clouds he sees. “Little Cloud” is an enjoyable story that certainly stimulates a young child’s imagination!
Age Recommendation: 1-4 years old
Fluency Recommendation: Beginner
Submitted by: Melissa M.
Kleine Wolke: Find it at Alphabet Garten
Weißt du eigentlich, wie lieb ich dich hab? shares a message that every child will love to hear.
This is the German translation of “Guess How Much I Love You,” written by Sam McBratney with illustrations by Anita Jeram.
In this adorable story, a father rabbit is getting ready to put his child to bed. The child (known in the story as der kleine Hase) initiates a guessing game in which the father must guess how much the child loves him. Each time der kleine Hase proclaims how much he loves his father, the father (der große Hase) pronounces his love as well. The father, in proclaiming his love, always seems to love the child more than the child loves him.
In the end, the child goes to sleep after having made his final proclamation of love bis zum Mond (to the moon).
After the child is asleep, the father whispers, “Bis zum Mond und zurück haben wir uns lieb” (we love each other to the moon and back). This is sweet, because the child contentedly goes to sleep believing that he won the guessing game. Only after the child has drifted to sleep does the father make his final proclamation.
Before I had children, I may have perceived this guessing game, in which the father always one-ups the child, to be unnecessarily competitive.
I would have wondered why the father always had to out-do the child. Now that I have a child of my own, I completely understand this. No matter how much my adoring toddler loves me, as a parent, I will love him more. Perhaps this is the nature of parent-child love.
My son, who is 19 months old, absolutely loves this book.
Each time we read this story together, he wants to hear it at least three times. He loves the sweet illustrations. While he is too young to initiate a guessing game of his own, I know many toddlers who have been inspired to do just that based on this story.
This is an ideal book for babies, toddlers, and young children.
However, no one is too old to appreciate this story of boundless and unconditional love.
Age Recommendation: Birth – age 8
Fluency Recommendation: beginner/intermediate
Submitted by: Melissa M.
Weißt du eigentlich, wie lieb ich dich hab? Find it at Alphabet Garten!
Christmas would be nothing without the tree and the music. The selection of traditional German Christmas carols here is familiar– Lasst uns froh und munter sein, O Tannenbaum, Ihr Kinderlein, kommet, Alle Jahre wieder, and Leise rieselt der Schnee– and it makes a perfect Christmas gift for young ones so they can begin to absorb the songs on their own to be reinforced when they hear the adults and older siblings singing.
Within the few days I’ve had this book out for my 2 year old, he is able to point to the page on which we are singing and chime in with his angelic voice. My four year old picks her favorites by the illustrations. She loves the illustration to ‘O Tannenbaum‘ which shows two angels swaying holding the tree. ["Why didn't angels bring us our tree? Next year, I want the angels to bring us our tree!"].
It’s the perfect book for bedtime since my little one can hold it (boardbook with festive velvet binding) and turn pages while we sing. It generously includes guitar chords for those fortunate enough to play. Music is such a germane component of German culture
you can never start them young enough seeing musical notations and hearing- to then be able to sing along- the classics. This is definitely a book they’ll be turning to Alle Jahre Wieder.
Age recommendation: Baby-3
Fluency recommendation: Beginner and up
Review by: Veronica Dzugan
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