Read Aloud with Mommy & Maggie

Family Feast! by Carole Boston Weatherford

When it comes to a family feast, it’s all hands on deck! Big Ma and Pops have been up early in anticipation of everyone’s arrival. Aunts, uncles, and cousins gather from all over to help prepare their big meal. Clanging pots, chopping vegetables, sharing recipes, and swiping little treats are part of the fun! After the cooking is done, all of the relatives come together to pray, eat, and enjoy their special moment as a family.

Cranberry Thanksgiving by Wende Devlin

Every year Grandmother invited a guest for Thanksgiving dinner and allowed Maggie to do the same. “Ask someone poor or lonely,” she always said. Thanksgiving was Grandmother’s favorite day of the year. The cooking was done and her famous cranberry bread was cooling on a wooden board. But she wasn’t happy to find out Maggie had invited the unsavory Mr. Whiskers to dinner. Would her secret cranberry bread recipe be safe with him in the house?

I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pie by Alison Jackson

I know an old lady who swallowed a pie, a Thanksgiving pie, which was really too dry...

All for Pie, Pie for All by David Martin

What's left over after cats, mice, and ants have had their fill?

How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World by Marjorie Priceman

An apple pie is easy to make...if the market is open. But if the market is closed, the world becomes your grocery store. This book takes readers around the globe to gather ingredients for a delicious apple pie.

The Apple Pie Tree by Zoe Hall

Two young sisters follow the progress of their apple tree through the seasons, from a bare tree in the winter, through the pink blossoms of the spring, to the apple picking in the autumn.

Balloons Over Broadway: The Inspiring True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade by Melissa Sweet

Meet the master puppeteer who invented the first balloons for the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Melissa Sweet brings to life the inspirational story of the puppeteer who invented the giant balloons floating in the sky during the annual parade celebrating Thanksgiving.

In November 🍁 by Cynthia Rylant

In November, the air grows cold and the earth and all of its creatures prepare for winter. Animals seek food and shelter. And people gather together to celebrate their blessings with family and friends.

The Very First Thanksgiving Day by Rhonda Gowler Greene

Join author Rhonda Gowler Greene and illustrator Susan Gaber on a journey back to the very first Thanksgiving Day, when two societies came together to feast and honor the earth's bounty in peace.

The Memory Cupboard a Thanksgiving Story 🦃 by Charlotte Herman

For Katie, nothing compares to Thanksgiving at Grandma's. There are the aunts and uncles, whom Katie loves to see each year. But a cherished object is broken at dinner, and Katie blames herself for spoiling the day.

Bear Says Thanks 🐻 by Karma Wilson

What better way for Bear to say thanks, than to have a big dinner with all his friends!

Goody O'Grumpity 🥧 a poem by Carol Ryrie Brink

A timeless lilting poem

Pumpkin Day, Pumpkin Night by Anne Rockwell

From drawing jack-o-lantern faces to choosing a pumpkin and carving it, this treasured childhood ritual is joyfully captured in an accessible and lively book.

Spooky Hour 💀 by Tony Milton

"Listen! Hush! Oooh, what's that sound? The midnight spooks are coming round." Tony Mitton and Guy Parker-Rees team up again to create another fun-filled book. Halloween is the setting as kids rhyme their way through the night and to a spook-filled birthday party. Emphasized sounds such as "CLICKETY CLACK" and "HISSSSS!" will allow younger children to enjoy the fun of reading.

The Halloween Tree 🎃 by Susan Montanari

Everyone knows most young saplings dream of becoming Christmas trees. But one grumpy, old tree who doesn't like lights, decorations, or people is determined to be different. Get ready to meet the Halloween Tree!

Creepy Pair of Underwear! (Creepy Tales!) 🩲 by Aaron Reynolds

Jasper Rabbit is NOT a little bunny anymore. He’s not afraid of the dark, and he’s definitely not afraid of something as silly as underwear . But when the lights go out, suddenly his new big rabbit underwear glows in the dark. A ghoulish, greenish glow. If Jasper didn’t know any better he’d say his undies were a little, well, creepy . Jasper’s not scared obviously, he’s just done with creepy underwear. But after trying everything to get rid of them, they keep coming back!

Creepy Crayon! (Creepy Tales!) 🖍️ Book by Aaron Reynolds

Jasper Rabbit has a problem: he is NOT doing well in school. His spelling tests? Disasters. His math quizzes? Frightening to behold. But one day, he finds a crayon lying in the gutter. Purple. Pointy. Perfect. Somehow…it looked happy to see him. And it wants to help.

Creepy Carrots! (Creepy Tales!) 🥕 by Aaron Reynolds

Jasper Rabbit loves carrots—especially Crackenhopper Field carrots. He eats them on the way to school. He eats them going to Little League. He eats them walking home. Until the day the carrots start following him...or are they? Celebrated artist Peter Brown’s stylish illustrations pair perfectly with Aaron Reynold’s text in this hilarious picture book that shows it’s all fun and games…until you get too greedy.

Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin by Lloyd Moss

When this book begins, the trombone is playing all by itself. But soon a trumpet makes a duet, a french horn a trio, and so on until the entire orchestra is assembled on stage. Written in elegant and rhythmic verse, this unique counting book is the perfect introduction to musical groups.

Little Nino's Pizzeria by Karen Barbour 🍕

This book tells the story of Tony, a little boy who helps his father in the family pizzeria.

Follow the Drinking Gourd by Jeanette Winter

"Follow the Drinking Gourd" sounded like a simple folk song sung by slaves, but it was really a map to freedom--for hidden in the lyrics were directions to the escape route known as the Underground Railroad. In glowing paintings and simple text, Winter tells the story of one brave family who followed the drinking gourd north to freedom.

Grumpy Monkey Oh, No! Christmas by Suzanne Lang 🐵

It's Christmas time in the jungle, and Jim just can't get into the holiday spirit. Then Jim eats a "festive" green banana that makes him feel sick. Now everything seems worse. While all the other animals in the jungle are ready and eagerly awaiting Christmas, Jim can't stop feeling that this time of year stinks. But with his good friend Norman's help, Jim discovers that focusing on the good things around him instead of his own problems, is a reason to celebrate.

Bear Stays Up for Christmas by Karma Wilson 🐻

Bear’s friends are determined to keep Bear awake for Christmas! So they wake Bear up and have him help them find a Christmas tree, bake cakes, hang up stockings, and sing Christmas songs. Bear stays up—by discovering that giving is one of the best Christmas presents of all!

Pick a Pine Tree by Patricia Toht 🌲

Part of the magic of the Christmas season stems from the traditions that families and friends take part in every year: hanging up stockings; putting lights in the windows; and, one of the most important of all, picking out and taking home the Christmas tree.

The Night Before Christmas by Clement C. Moore

The classic Christmas poem!

A Star So Bright by M. Christina Butler 🌟

The bear cubs awake from their deep winter slumber. What can it be? they cry, breathless with wonder. Where has the mysterious start come from? What can it be? The animals follow the star through the pages of this magical story to find a very special surprise at the end.

Dasher by Matt Tavares 🦌

Dasher is an adventurous young reindeer with a wish in her heart. She spends her days with her family under the hot sun in a traveling circus, but she longs for a different life — one where there is snow beneath her hooves and the North Star above her head. One day, when the opportunity arises, Dasher seizes her destiny and takes off in pursuit of the life she wants to live. It’s not long before she meets a nice man in a red suit with a horse-drawn sleigh — a man named Santa. And soon, with the help of a powerful Christmas wish, nothing will be the same.

Mice Skating by Annie Silvestro 🐭⛸️

For most field mice, winter means burrowing down and snuggling in. But not for Lucy! She loves snow crunching under her paws and wearing a fluffy wool hat. And most of all, Lucy loves to skate, and she’s just ACHING to show off her new skill with her friends. After all, a winter wonderland is twice as nice when you have friends to enjoy it with. But the other mice just don’t understand—and after a disastrous indoor snowball fight, it looks as if they never will. Can Lucy find a way to make the other mice come out and “mice skate” too?

One Snowy Night by M. Christina Butler 🦔

One snowy Christmas, a cold little hedgehog wakes from his winter sleep to find a present from Father Christmas. It’s a snug, woolly red hat – just what he needs. But when Little Hedgehog tries to wear the hat his prickles get in the way and it won’t fit. Then Little Hedgehog has a wonderful idea . . .

Little Snowflake by Suzanne Fossey ❄️

Have you ever wondered what happens to a snowflake when it falls to the ground? Embark on a whimsical journey of snowflake formation from the sky to the ground in Nature Stories: Little Snowflake.