At the beginning of the year, I was reading picture books to my four-year-old grandson, who was living with us at the time. Since he’s moved across the country, November saw me scrambling to fulfill a couple of challenges and enjoying these picture books on my own.

Harry the Dirty Dog by Gene Zion and Margaret Bloy Graham

I’m very fond of Harry, the little white dog who wants to do ‘dogly’ things and ends up so dirty that his family doesn’t recognize him. How can he make them see it’s him?

Harry, of course, appears in several books, including No Roses for Harry!, a copy of which still sits on my book shelf.

A Few Blocks by Cybele Young

When I hear the title of this book, I think of building blocks. Don’t you? But it’s actually referring to the few city blocks that Ferdie and his older sister Viola have to walk on their way to school.

The illustrations in A Few Blocks are lush pastels, complex drawings of Ferdie’s imaginary adventures, within the cut-out shapes of every day. Very clever and should appeal to ages 4-8.

Eloise By Kay Thompson

Eloise is six years old and lives in the penthouse at the Plaza Hotel. She is ‘precocious’ which means that she is spoiled and causes all kinds of trouble.

I don’t remember reading Eloise when I was young: maybe my mother decided she wasn’t a good role model!

Gimme-Jimmy by Sherrill S. Cannon

Jimmy is a boy whose favourite phrase is “Gimme”. One day, Jimmy’s hand starts to grow every time he says that, and he must learn how to reduce its size by sharing and using manners.

Told in rhyme, it hits the nail on the head, even if perhaps it does it a few too many times.