booksforbabies – Read With River

When I was pregnant with my first child, I bought all the things. Anything I didn’t buy, other people bought for us. Most of it was completely unnecessary and I try my best to block the entire thing out of my head.

I’m not unusual in these mistakes, when you’re waiting for a baby, whether you’re the parent or the aunty or just a very good friend you want to show your love and excitement and buying everything in sight is an easy and fast way to do it. The trouble is most of the stuff gathers dust, takes up space, creates waste, and at the end of the day it was money better spent on a RESP for school or diapers!

With Christmas coming, people don’t want to gift boring things like diapers and school money. It’s unfortunate but it’s true they want something they can wrap with a bunch of ribbons and watch the baby open. That’s just a fact, unfortunately when it comes to toys for babies-it’s basically all useless. Your baby really just wants to chew on your tv remote, or old water bottle. They’ll be more excited by the wrapping tissue than any fancy electronic rattle.

So here’s my solution for everyone. Buy books. You can wrap books. They’re made of paper instead of crap plastic. You can read to the baby you give it to, and that’s an experience you can enjoy together with actual value. And you can write a little message in it that will be kept for years to come. Books are relatively easy to store, and they’re not annoying. If everyone could just call up their local independent bookshop and order a ton of books for all their babies this year, the world would be a much calmer more literate place!

Now I know, you’re like, ‘but WHICH books?’ the baby might already have it? Well don’t worry I got you, I have two lists for you, one of active play books that babies and toddlers can experience and destroy with great joy over time, and a second list of beautiful books that are sure to be future classics in a child’s library. All of them new books of the last two years! So it’s unlikely they’ve got it already.

Click on the photos of the books to check out their publisher website, and place an order with a local independent book shop and support your local economy!