Welcome to Morningtown is exactly where kids 4-8 need to be

Welcome to Morningtown is exactly where our seven year old is now. By that I do not mean that prefers the morning. It’s just the opposite as he’s not exactly captain chipper in the AM. However, Welcome to Morningtown is exactly where our seven year old is in regards to his reading level. The book is aimed at ages 4-8 who; depending on their age, want a lovely illustrated book that they can read by themselves, a good-night book by an adult or somewhere in-between.

The book has a down-home, country vibe to it as we see all of the animals get a start on the day. Our main character is the bear family and we see a father bear eagerly waking up his cub and they’re rubbing the sleep out of their eyes.  From there our anthropomorphic community spreads out in a Tolkien inspired, Nordic universe populated with all things happy and soft.

Our young cub gets his socks, underwear, boots and fishing pole ready for a morning with dad. The beavers are brushing their teeth. The raccoons are flushing the toilet. Bonus points for readers who share the fact that raccoons really do wash their hands and food in the river before eating! We also see that there are lots of things to learn, some friends to play with a little work to be done.

The illustrations are by Steven Henry, with the text by Blake Lilian Hellman and the combination of the two adds up to more than the sum of its parts. Henry’s illustrations are soft, appear to be water color and are corner to corner with movement that illustrated book fans will want to see. The words are challenging enough for young readers to know some sight words and simple enough for older readers to be able to read the entire book by themselves.

That is where our 7 year old is. He wants to read, but gets himself all worked up when he doesn’t know a word or two. This book and those like it are perfect for him at this stage of his reading journey. We’re letting him build his confidence, all the while introducing slightly more challenging books that have a similar, fun vibe.

Do you remember our bear family that started things? The book ends in a way that gives kids a laugh and is short enough for it to be re-read more than once. That characteristic is one that makes it a great, good-night book.