Hi all.

On Tuesday, my daughter came home from school with an assignment - to make a baby book with her own hands (an assignment on the surrounding world, they took book printing). The assignment is for a week, that is, it is due next Tuesday. At first they spent a long time deciding which work to take - the task was small, you can come up with your own, or you can take something well-known. We decided to make a book by B. Zakhoder “The Whale and the Cat”.

I’ll tell you what happened step by step, and in the middle, watch the master class on covers for notebooks/books and the like (I promised itoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooand even"? I'll tell you what happened step by step, and in the middle, watch a master class on covers for notebooks/books and the like (I promised itooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo" For those who have been with me recently, the book was sewn together with Coptic binding (aka a hand-made version of book binding), I had a manual for it somewhere in a magazine, or in the handicraft community, I don’t remember, I’ll have to look for it.

To begin with, I created a layout in Photoshop, printed out the text and pictures in a light gray font, because my daughter wouldn’t have written THAT amount of text entirely by hand, and it wouldn’t have been smooth at all.

Today, when she finished writing, we started creating the book itself, not forgetting to also print out additional illustrations.

We needed iris threads, a large gypsy needle, an awl and scissors.

To begin with, fold all three sheets in half, carefully ironing the folds.

After that they took another one Blank sheet paper, folded it in half, unfolded it, picked up a ruler and a pencil. We retreated 3 cm from both edges and placed marks every 2.5 - a total of 7 marks.

After this, we sequentially inserted a piece of paper with marks into each of the three sheets with text and pierced holes on the fold from the inside along the marks.

I inserted the needle only into the very first hole - then my daughter sewed it herself, I controlled the process and suggested which hole the needle should be inserted into next.

When we sewed all three “notebooks” (slang for “sheets folded together for stitching”), my daughter was very surprised and said “how is that all done???”

Not without a second, terribly disturbing “assistant”

As a result, after my request to smile, I had to take two dozen shots, of which one was more or less successful

This is what the “block” looks like - the inside of the book after stitching.

I’ll show you where to use the remaining tails later, but for now I’ll just show you what the same stitched book looks like from the inside.

It's inside the notebook.

And this is between the “notebooks” - gaps remain, there is no need to put them anywhere, they will not be visible later.

Since the block is stitched, let's start creating the cover. Well, and, accordingly, further there will be a detailed MK .

We choose what the cover will be made of. We had paper vinyl (such a special paper, you can google it), you can take thick paper, you can even take thick wallpaper, fabric - whatever your heart desires and what you have enough experience for - the easiest way is to start with ordinary thick paper (density from 180 g/m2 ).

We cut out 2 identical parts from cardboard, so that the cover is 1-2 mm larger than the inner block along the top, bottom and one of the sides (the density of the cardboard depends on your wishes, at least 300 g/m2 for sure, if you need straight hard cover - about 600-700 is needed only if it is not beer cardboard - I don’t remember the numbers for it, but it only comes in one density).

The third part should be equal in height to the first two, and its width is the thickness of the innermost part plus 1-3 mm (depending on how thick the inner part is, if 5 mm, then the middle of the cover is 6 mm, if the thickness is 5 cm, then the middle of the cover and 5.5 cm will do fine).

We lay the cardboard on the “fabric” (I remind you that I have vinyl vinyl, if you have a different material for the cover, just keep this point in mind), cut off the excess part of the “fabric” so that there is 1-2 cm for the hem on each side. And don’t forget to leave 1-3 mm between the middle cardboard and the sides.

First, we roughly lay out the cardboard so that the top and bottom are the same distance (a couple of mm won’t make a difference). We mark this out for ourselves with dots, remove the cardboard and draw the GREEN line using a ruler. It is important that the green line is straight, parallel to the top and bottom, otherwise everything will be skewed.

It is better to immediately glue the middle cardboard along this red line (if it is narrow, then by eye, if it is wide, we find its middle and combine the top and bottom points with the red line).

Next will be the most difficult thing, in which you can get confused, so I immediately recommend - attach cardboards - immediately label them and put the corresponding numbers/letters/signs on the “fabric” itself on which they were lying. Because if somewhere you made a mistake even by 1 mm and they are not exactly the same, then mixing them up when gluing them is almost like death. Therefore, I wrote the number 1 on a cardboard, removed this cardboard, wrote the number 1 under it on the “fabric”, and did the same with the second cardboard.

Next, we carefully combine the cardboard (first one, then repeat everything for the other) and the existing green line. We retreat 1-2 mm from the middle cardboard and outline the side cardboard on both sides - in the picture these are BLUE lines .

We remove the cardboards again. And mark the cutting lines. So that you don't get confused and don't move your mouse back and forth, I duplicate the picture that was above.

PINK lines

- just the places of the cuts between the side cardboards and the middle one - so that everything bends easily and there are no jams.

Via YELLOW lines we cut out the corners, this is unnecessary, we don’t need them (relative to the blue lines, the angle should be no more than 45 degrees, optimally about 30, but I do it by eye).

After cutting out the corners, we sequentially glue the side cardboards, focusing on the green and blue lines (in the photo below they are black, I was too lazy to switch colors).

By the way, the choice of glue depends entirely on what you use as “fabric” - it is best to glue leather and paper of any kind with PVA (just use construction grade - it’s thicker and dries faster), and the same fabric, especially dense ones, with glue the moment is transparent (for example, silicone). Just don’t take any instant glue - you’ll just ruin everything - you won’t even have time to apply it, but you also need to spread it evenly.

My daughter actively participated in all stages of the production of the book, so when the middle cardboard was sealed, the jamb at the bottom is very visible, but oh well, but almost herself)))

Actually, first the cardboards themselves are glued, then they are covered with “fabric” by folding it (if it is any type of paper, first press and iron it without glue, it’s easier to glue).

Moreover, the long sides are glued first - they can cause the most jambs, and only then we try to hide these jambs by gluing the short sides.

Actually, the MK can safely be finished here - all that remains is to put the cover under the press and leave it to dry.

Well, my daughter and I, while our cover was resting under the press, glued the inner block. This is done for several purposes:
- this way the block becomes stronger, pages cannot be torn out by accident,
- “notebooks” stop moving up and down relative to each other (you can sew them together more tightly, but then it turns out to be too tight and not beautiful after gluing)
- the holes between the “notebooks” are filled.

It is important to glue the block with the same glue that was used to glue the cover, so this time we use Moment Crystal glue.

Since our block is thin, I simply pressed the tails to the block, when the block is thick (at least 1 cm or more) - be sure to coat it with glue first, let it dry a little, coat it a little again, put gauze/bandage on top and coat it with glue again - like this the block becomes a single whole.

The main thing in this matter is not to overdo it - otherwise the glue may leak inside and partially glue the pages together.

This is what the block looks like from the inside after gluing (I didn’t open it wide, but it still needs to dry for much longer than 15 minutes).

This is between the “notebooks” - where there was emptiness - now there is glue.

Well, inside the notebooks I’ll show you how my daughter stitched it.

We waited until the adhesive dried and began the final “finishing off.”

This is what the book looks like if you put the inner block into the cover.

“Something is missing,” my daughter told me. That's right - the flyleaf is missing. So we took two more thick sheets of paper, folded them in half and put them on the cover.

It is very important that the endpaper recedes from the edge of the cover, that is, it completely coincides with the side of the side cardboard that is closer to the middle. Glue one side of each endpaper to the cover.

That is, so that the flyleaf would then open, but one side would hide all the fear and horror of the cover.

First, we mark a line beyond which the glue should not tread. I wrote the dimensions of this space above. Since our book size is A5, I made an indent from the edge of about 1.5 cm. On the other side, the same thing.

Then successively and very quickly apply glue to the already glued part of the block, to the middle cardboard of the cover and to the designated parts of the block (the same 1.5 cm from the edge). And we press the cover at the same time with the end against the cover and the endpapers against the block on the sides.

We hold it like this for a minute to 5 minutes (depending on the type of glue), and then again do your favorite press. Let the book dry under pressure. From half an hour to infinity - the longer the better.

Well, my daughter and I remembered that we had some illustrations left unused, so we had to urgently cut them out and glue them on with a glue stick (I hope they won’t fall off tomorrow).

And this is what happened in the end:

the book is closed (the inscription will appear on the cover tomorrow)

This is how the glued inner block “pulls” the endpaper and cover (this is how it should be for an “unread” book)

The first page (which is glued to the endpaper - the endpaper is smoothed a little by hand)

Pages 2-3

Pages 4-5 (formed by two different “notebooks”, this is almost invisible in the finished book)

Pages 6-7 (sorry, the whole picture didn’t fit, I just had to take the helicopter)

Pages 8-9 (pictures just begged to be here, but there was nowhere to put them, alas)

Pages 10-11

Page 12 (“imprint” and flyleaf)

Thank you all for watching)))

If you have any questions, ask, I will try to answer them to the best of my ability.

P.S. I’m incredibly happy with my daughter, she really did it herself under my strict guidance, I expected it to be in the spirit of “bring it, give it, don’t disturb it. It's nice to make SO mistakes in children))))

P.S.S. Inappropriate comments will simply be deleted - I have neither the energy, nor the time, nor the desire to listen to the nonsense of idiots.

Old fairy tales in a new way

Little book "Santa Claus's Mitten"

New Year's tales for children 4-7 years old

Description of work: On New Year's Eve, a family project “Santa Claus's Mitten” was organized in the kindergarten. Parents and children had to fantasize about the Ukrainian folk tale “The Mitten,” turning it into the fairy tale “The Mitten of Santa Claus.” Fairy-tale stories about amazing adventures and friendship of extraordinary characters turned out to be so interesting and entertaining that we wanted to publish our own book, which also included photographs of crafts made with soul. Parents showed creativity, imagination and skill. This material will be interesting not only for children, but also for teachers and parents. It can be used both at home and in kindergarten. Fairy tales for preschool children.

Santa's mitten

Santa Claus rode on a sleigh through the forest, delivering gifts to the children. A squirrel was running and saw the mitten lying there, and jumped into it to warm up. And at this time the bunny ran. He ran up to the mitten and asked:
- Who lives in a mitten?
- I'm the squirrel. And who are you?
- I’m a little gray bunny, let me in too!
- Come in quickly.
A little fox was running, my sister saw the little mitten moving, looked in and asked:
- Who lives in a mitten?
- It’s me, the little squirrel and the little hare. Come visit us, it will be more fun.
And the fox jumped towards them.
A clubfoot bear was running and saw a mitten, and he also wanted to warm up with the animals.
- Let me in here, warm and cheerful.
- Get in, there's enough room for everyone.
And they all began to live together.
Then Santa Claus realized that he had dropped his mitten, turned his sleigh around and rushed off to look for her.
He sees him lying under the Christmas tree in the snow and moving. Grandfather leaned over and asked:
- Who lives in my mitten?!
The animals looked out and rejoiced at Santa Claus.
They began to dance around the Christmas tree, recite poems, and Santa Claus gave them gifts.
Family of Maxim Boldarev

Santa's mitten

Before the New Year, Santa Claus collected gifts for the children in a large bag. There were a lot of gifts, it was a long way to go. I decided to go on a snowmobile. I dressed warmly and headed out into the night to be at the Christmas tree in the morning. It’s dark in the forest at night, the snow blizzard is howling, and your grandfather is on his way. Santa Claus straightened the bag with gifts and accidentally lost his mitten. At this time, a mouse was sitting under a tree and crying from the cold. Seeing the mitten, she quickly dived inside and fell asleep. In the morning, the boy Kirill and his dad went into the forest to get a Christmas tree. We saw the mitten, brought it home, and a mouse was sleeping there. She was put in a box, she began to live with Kiryusha, he had long wanted a pet to live with him. We thought and wondered who lost the mitten. Kiryusha went to the kindergarten for a matinee and at that time Santa Claus arrived for the New Year's holiday. Kiryusha immediately noticed that Santa Claus had only one mitten. Dad! Dad! He shouted, this is who the owner of the mitten is. Santa Claus was happy. I found out that a mouse was saved from the frost in his mitten. He gave Kirill a sweet gift and said: “Well done Kirill! Nobody gave me such gifts for the New Year!!!”
Family of Kirill Parfenov

Santa's mitten

Under New Year, like in a fairy tale, full of miracles. The wind whistles, the snowstorm sings, and Santa Claus walks through the forest with gifts. Together with Santa Claus, the forest animals came to congratulate the Snow Maiden and the Snowman. So they were walking through the forest, walking, and Santa Claus dropped his mitten.
A mouse runs and stops in surprise in front of a mitten:
- What kind of hut is it - not big? A sheepskin mitten is lying on the path, I will live in the mitten!
And hid in her mitten. A frog jumps past, sees a mitten and says:
- Kwa! Kwa! Kwa! How much snow has fallen. My paws and stomach are chilly! Who lives in a mitten?
The mouse answers:
- I'm a little mouse. And who are you?
- I am a frog, let me live in a mitten.
And the two of them began to live. The bunny came running and asked:
- Who is there? What people? Who lives in a mitten?
- I am a mouse - a little mouse, I am a frog - a frog. And who are you?
- I’m a runaway bunny, let me live with you.
- Come in.
The three of them began to live together. The little fox runs, sees the mitten and asks:
- And who is wearing this mitten, a small mitten?
They called themselves: mouse - norushka, frog - frog, bunny - runaway.
- And who are you?
- I am a fox - sister. Will you let me live with you?
- Come in.
The four of them began to live. A top, a gray barrel, is walking, he sees a mitten and asks:
- Whose house is this? Who lives in it?
- I am a little mouse, a frog is a frog, a bunny is a little runner, I am a little fox and a little sister. And who are you?
- I am a top - a gray barrel, let me live with you?
The mouse tells him:
- Where will we let you go, it’s so crowded.
And the wolf again:

Come on, let me in, I’ll fit in somehow.
- Okay, come in.
And the five of them began to live. A bear is walking, sees a mitten and asks:
- What's happened? Who lives in a mitten?
All the animals named themselves and invited the clubfooted one to come to them. And there were six of them.
Meanwhile, Father Frost, the Snow Maiden and the Snowman are looking for a mitten. They decided to split up, walked, zigzagged, zigzagged, and yet it was not in vain that they zigzagged. The snowman saw the mitten. It was Santa Claus's mitten. Snowman asks:
- Who lives there in the mitten?
And the animals answer him:
- There are six of us in a mitten, we live very happily and we will never leave here for the cold forest.
The snowman explains to them that this is Santa Claus's mitten and it must be returned. And then the Snow Maiden and Santa Claus came and brought gifts. Santa Claus began to give it to everyone in turn, and the mitten and bag of gifts were empty. The Snowman picked up his mitten and gave it to Santa Claus, and he said:
- We all have gifts, both gloves are here!
He put on his mittens, took his staff and went with his friends to another fairy tale.
Family of Maxim Shcherbak

Santa's mitten

Once on New Year's Eve, when many miracles happen, Santa Claus was flying across the sky on his sleigh with reindeer. He dropped his mitten. The wind picked her up and carried her to the house of one boy.
The squirrel noticed the mitten, ran into it and began to live. She really liked the new house.
But on New Year's Eve the squirrel did not want to be alone. She decided to call her forest friends. The animals were happy to come to the squirrel for the holiday. Everyone brought treats to the New Year's table.
They began to dance in circles and sing songs.
But then Santa Claus flew to the boy’s house to leave a gift under the Christmas tree. He sees his mitten lying there and moving. Grandfather Frost came up and just touched, when all the animals rushed in different directions.
“Wait, where are you going,” said Santa Claus, “Don’t be afraid, it’s me, Grandfather Frost.”
The animals approached. They began to recite poems, and Santa Claus gave them gifts.
Family of Igor Kachanov

Santa's mitten

Walked through the forest on New Year's party in kindergarten Santa Claus and his assistant Snowman. Santa Claus sees a squirrel sitting on a branch and singing songs. He felt happy. He took off his mittens and put them in his pocket. I treated the squirrel with nuts from the bag of gifts and moved on. One mitten fell out of his pocket and fell under a pine tree. A mouse crawled out from under the snow, climbed into a mitten, warmed up and sat there. A bunny runs past, sees a mitten, asks to visit the mouse, and the two of them begin to live there. A bullfinch flew past, saw a mitten from above, flew up and asked to be the third one to bask in it. A fox was running past, saw that the mitten was lying and moving, she became curious, and she asked the animals to warm up too. And then a squirrel jumped along the branches, saw the mitten, and remembered that it was Santa Claus who dropped it. So, jumping and jumping along the branches, she rushed along the path along which Santa Claus and the Snowman passed. Told them about the mitten. Santa Claus and Snowman returned, raised their mittens, and the animals jumped out. Grandfather gave them gifts and a house in which they began to live together.
Family of Vadim Khodorenko

Santa's mitten

On New Year's Day, Santa Claus walked through the forest. Grandfather was driving a cart with gifts, and he didn’t notice how he dropped his favorite mitten. A mouse was running through the forest, and lo and behold, there was a painted, large mitten. It was cold for the mouse, so she climbed in to warm up. A bunny jumped past, saw the mitten, he looked in, and a mouse looked out from there and asked:
- Who it?
- Let the bunny warm up!
“Come in,” answered the mouse.
Meanwhile, all the forest people gathered around the tree. Santa Claus noticed that he had lost his mitten. He was upset because it was a gift for his granddaughter. He told the Snow Maiden that he had lost her gift. The granddaughter ran into the forest to look for a mitten. He walks and sees a mitten lying there. She looked into the mitten, and there was a mouse and a bunny warming themselves. She called them to the Christmas tree and returned the mitten to grandfather.
Family of Kirill Kotov

Santa's mitten

Santa Claus was walking through the forest in red mittens. And behind him, a shaggy dog ​​guarded the gifts that Santa Claus was bringing to the children. Tired... Decided to sit down... Relax. I rested and went again. Suddenly I remembered that there were no mittens...
“How will I hold the staff?” - he thought, it won’t take long to freeze.
They returned to look for the mitten.
Meanwhile, a small mouse was running, saw a mitten and thought, “how good it will be for me to spend the winter in it, I won’t freeze.” And she began to live there. A frog ran behind them - a frog - asked to spend the winter, the two of them began to live together. A jumping bunny ran by... and stayed for the winter. Then a little fox ran - little sister... A top ran - a gray barrel - and they let him go. Out of nowhere, a wild boar wanders, and they let him in, somehow he got in. There were six of them. And then the branches began to crack... a bear crawls out... and the same thing asks here. They let him in, and there were seven of them. The mitten is about to tear!
And the dog was running forward, she saw the mitten lying there and moving, the dog barked, the animals got scared, and in all directions.
And then Santa Claus took the mitten, called the animals with him, and together with grandfather they went to the children and brought gifts.
Family of Zakhar Ivanov

Santa's mitten

One morning Santa Claus was walking around winter forest, and examined his possessions to see if all the Christmas trees in the forest were in place. And I didn’t notice how I lost my mitten.
And a bunny ran past and came across Santa Claus's mitten. He carefully walked around it and looked inside, but it was empty. And the bunny decided to return the mitten to Santa Claus at any cost.
Just at this time, a squirrel was jumping around the spruce tree, and when it saw a bunny with a mitten, it asked: “Oh, what do you have, scythe?”
- Looks like I lost Santa Claus, I need to return it to him! - answered the bunny.
“Let me help you,” the squirrel suggested.
Jumping through the fir trees, visiting my girlfriends before the New Year, I saw Santa Claus not far from here.
- Let's! - answered the bunny.
Taking the mitten from the bunny, the squirrel quickly set off on its way to look for Santa Claus. Having galloped to the outskirts of the forest in search of Santa Claus, the squirrel suddenly saw his grandfather, coming closer to the squirrel, he realized that it was Santa Claus sitting on a stump and grieving.
- I must have lost my magic mitten, how am I going to dress my Christmas trees in a winter outfit, they will freeze, my little ones, my green ones.
“Here’s grandpa,” said the squirrel, holding out the mitten to Santa Claus.
“Where did you find her, my little helper,” asked Santa Claus
“Not far from here, a bunny found her, and I offered him my help,” the squirrel answered.
- Thank you very much, my dears. You saved the Christmas trees from the cold. And for this I will give you New Year's gifts for the New Year.
This is how the squirrel and the bunny helped find Santa Claus's mitten.
Family of Valeria Malasic

Santa's mitten

Santa Claus was walking through the forest and lost his mitten. And then a Snowman was walking through the forest and saw Santa Claus’s mitten lying there. The snowman thought about how Santa Claus would be without a mitten, he would freeze. The snowman thought about how to give him the mitten and ran in the footsteps of Santa Claus. Suddenly a hare jumps out from behind a snowdrift and asks the Snowman: “Where are you going?”
- I urgently need to catch up with Santa Claus!
- Can I come with you? - says the hare.
- Let's go, just let's hurry up.
And they went together, the hare and the snowman. And then a fox meets them. It wags its tail, sweeps the snow, paddles its paws, nothing is visible. The fox decided to deceive the hare and the Snowman and steal the mitten. But they exposed her and caught her.
- Forgive me, have mercy on me, I won’t do it again. Where are you going?
- We are going to Santa Claus, he lost his mitten.
- I can come with you. Three is more fun.
Now a Snowman, a fox and a hare are running through the forest and reach Santa Claus. On the way to Santa Claus, they saw the Snow Maiden and greeted her.
- Can you tell me where to find Santa Claus?
“Why do you need him?” asked the Snow Maiden.
The snowman told a story that led them to Santa Claus. The Snow Maiden took her friends to Santa Claus. They gave the mitten to Santa Claus and told where they found it.
“Thank you, friends,” said Santa Claus, “You’re great!” Now let's start the celebration!
Lida Podgorny family

Santa Claus's magic mitten

Father Frost and his granddaughter Snegurochka were riding on a sleigh to his icy mansion to buy gifts for the children. And suddenly Father Frost’s mitten fell onto the white, fragrant snow.
And Baba Yaga ran out from behind the Christmas tree. And she liked the mitten so much that she decided to take it for herself. She put on a mitten and went to her hut on chicken legs. And Koschey the Immortal saw that Baba Yaga had taken the magic mitten for herself, and decided to take it away. After all, the mitten was not simple, but magical! You just need to put on a mitten and make a wish. Koschey the Immortal caught up with Baba Yaga and they began to argue about who would make a wish first.
Meanwhile, Father Frost and Snow Maiden arrived at the ice tower. And they noticed that his mitten was missing. Santa Claus was upset: “Oh-oh-oh! How can I live without a magic mitten!”
And then the Snow Maiden decided to help her grandfather Frost find his mitten.
She came to the place where the mitten had fallen. And there sits a bunny.
And the bunny said:
- I know the trouble of Santa Claus and I will help you find the mitten.
- Bunny, look, here are the footprints in the snow. Let's follow them and find out where Santa Claus's mitten is.
- Snow Maiden, these are the traces of Baba Yaga and Koshchei the Immortal!
And they followed the tracks to a hut on chicken legs. And there Baba Yaga and Koschey the Immortal cannot share the mitten. They pulled and pulled, almost breaking the magic mitten!
Koschey made a wish for himself and put his hand in his mitten. But the mitten did not fulfill my wish!
And the Snow Maiden told them:
- You know that the mitten fulfills the wishes of only kind and obedient children, adults and animals.
Koschey and Baba Yaga thought how badly they had acted. They felt ashamed.
And they asked the Snow Maiden and the bunny:
- Can we go with you and return the mitten to Santa Claus?
And they all went together. We came to the tower of Father Frost. Baba Yaga asked for forgiveness for not immediately returning the mitten, but taking it for herself. And Koschey the Immortal asked for forgiveness for starting to quarrel with Baba Yaga. Santa Claus forgave them. And Baba Yaga and Koschey promised to be kind and well-mannered. And the bunny asked Santa Claus:
- Is it true that the mitten is magic?
-Is it true! - answered Santa Claus. - Oma fulfills the wishes of only kind and well-mannered children and animals.
- So that’s why the mitten did not fulfill the wish of Koschen the Immortal!
“And now you have corrected yourself and can make wishes,” said Santa Claus.
Koschey the Immortal was the first to make a wish:
“I want a beautiful, painted and elegant cloak for myself, so that the children will be more afraid of me.”
And Baba Yaga wished:
“I want my big, crooked nose to become small and not scary, otherwise the kids are afraid of me, and I want them to be friends with me.”
Santa Claus asked:
- Well, now you, bunny, what do you want? Make a wish!
- Can I have carrots and cabbage? - asked the bunny.
And two huge bags of treats appeared for the bunny, a cloak for Koshchei and a beautiful nose for Baba Yaga!
- Well, now you, Snow Maiden, make a wish.
And the Snow Maiden said:
- And my wish can be fulfilled without a magic mitten. I want us all to go together and give gifts to the children! After all, the New Year has already arrived!!!
That's the end of the fairy tales, and well done to those who listened!!!
Family of Vadim Sobol.

In this review I give my impressions of more than 20 New Year and winter books in our library for children 1-2 years old. See the New Year's book review for children 3-4 years old.

While the majority are still planning to buy New Year's gifts, the most thoughtful ones have already begun to quickly buy up the best assortment of online stores. Everyone knows that one of the best gifts is a book. Last year I was unable to order many interesting books because they were out of stock. This year I have corrected myself and bring to your attention a large review of New Year's books for kids. Before starting the review, let me clarify that emotions from the book are very closely related to expectations. Since I live in a small town, I do not have the opportunity to see a book before purchasing it online, so I often encounter negative impressions of purchased books. Before purchasing, I usually read a lot of reviews about each book. Despite this, I still have disappointments. Typically, such purchases are made based on a biased review of the book. Therefore, in my review, I will try to point out points that can spoil the impression of specific books, so that when you receive them, you experience only pleasant excitement in anticipation of meeting new products.

New Year's books for kids|Principle of choosing books

Three main points that I rely on when choosing books:

• High-quality illustrations;
• Fascinating, atmospheric or educational content;
• Accessible meaning of text and illustrations.

From an early age I try to instill in Yana (she is now 2 years and 7 months old) a taste for talented, high-quality illustrations. WITH
I’m looking forward to when she starts showing negative emotions towards the author’s style of the illustrators of the Prof-Press publishing house 😈 . This is one of the emerging skills that I track and consider great progress in development. There are times when good texts are not published with high-quality illustrations. You have to close your eyes and buy what you have. But we must distinguish between the forced purchase of a tasteless book and the conscious reluctance to go to a store with a large assortment and choose a decent copy with high-quality illustrations. In the second case, there is a high probability that the home library will be swarming with monsters that will not allow your minds to become stronger and your consciousness to become clearer.

I know that there will definitely be those among readers who will say that books with high-quality illustrations are more expensive. This is true, because they require much more extensive and professional work by illustrators, and therefore more highly paid. For those who cannot afford expensive publications, I recommend taking note of the Makhaon publishing house, which produces a large assortment of inexpensive books for children of acceptable quality.

In terms of content, many go to extremes, some focus on toy books, others abuse developmental and highly cultural content. I think the best books are those with an interesting plot and images that can transport a child into their world. It is with this kind of reading that fantasy develops to the maximum, and with it thinking. This happens due to the fact that the child begins to imagine this world, its objects and construct it mentally. In fact, with exciting reading, the child receives regular, high-quality practice of mental operations.

Now that you have learned by what principle I selected books to celebrate the New Year and as gifts, it’s time to move on to the books themselves.

Fairy tales on the theme of winter, New Year and Christmas

“Little Christmas Tree” by Luke Koopmans (Labyrinth, My-shop,)

Description: This book is part of the Luke Koopmans trilogy, which also includes "Mitten" and " A snail, a bee and a frog are looking for snow"(they are described below). The format of the book is a square with sides equal to the length of a regular notebook. 28 coated pages. The peculiarity of the entire series of books by Koopmans is the gorgeous illustrations.

Plot: The Christmas tree wanted to become beautiful and chose outfits from inappropriate materials. The golden outfit was stolen. The crystal outfit broke. Of course, in the end, the best outfit turned out to be needles.

Impression: A very pleasant book. For two-year-old Yana, the book was ideal - accessible text + atmospheric illustrations, but did not cause any excitement. I guess the problem is the lack of bunnies, cats, etc. 😀 . Despite this nuance, I think books with such illustrations are necessary in a children's library, because it is better to cultivate a taste for beauty from early childhood.

Impressions 2017:

Photos of spreads:

Luke Koopmans: Mitten (Labyrinth, My-shop,)

Description: Another book in the Luke Koopmans trilogy. The format of the book is a square with a long side equal to the length of an ordinary notebook. 28 coated pages. The peculiarity of the entire series of books by Koopmans is his gorgeous illustrations.

Plot: The plot is based on Russian folk tale"Mitten." An analogue of a mansion, only the animals chose a mitten as their home. By the way, in this version of the tale the bear does not destroy the home. This can be important for emotional two-year-olds 😀 .

Impression: This book fully lived up to expectations. Beautiful illustrations, minimal text - an excellent combination for children aged one and a half years.

Impression 2016: excellent, long-lasting book. We are re-reading it again this winter.

Photos of spreads:

Luke Koopmans: A snail, a bee and a frog are looking for snow (Labyrinth, My-shop,)

Description: The last book in the Luke Koopmans trilogy. The format of the book is a square with a long side equal to the length of an ordinary notebook. 28 coated pages. The peculiarity of the entire series of books by Koopmans is his gorgeous illustrations.

Plot: Almost the entire plot is told in the title of the book :) We can only add that when the heroes found winter and were properly frozen, they were saved by nature in the form of a woman - she was transferred to warmth. Transfer methods are not specified. I assume this means hibernation.

Impression: It is worth noting that most of the action takes place in the summer. There are only two “winter spreads” in the book. The text is based on descriptions of snow and the sensations of animals. This book is of an educational type and its entertaining component is low. I think it’s a rare child who is interested in someone’s feelings when achieving goals. I would recommend this book for children at least two years old purely for variety. The illustrations, like other books in this series, are excellent.

Impressions 2016: This book, despite the small size of the text, is not accessible to a child, at least until 3-3.5 years old. This year we “tried” it. Book on correct examples introduces the child to the world around him.

Impressions 2017: masterpiece illustrations, high price, boring text.

Photos of spreads:

“Chelovetkin” Julia Donaldson (Labyrinth, My-shop,)

Description: This book is from the popular series “Machine Creations” with illustrations by Axel Scheffler and translation by Marina Boroditskaya. The text is in poetic form with a rhyme that is easy for children to understand. The usual format for this series: slightly larger in size than A4, 32 coated pages.

Plot: The fabulous human creature (apparently a cross between a person and a branch) was confused with an ordinary branch and got into a whole series of troubles. Events begin to unfold in the summer. Chelovetkin finds himself separated from his family. The story ends happily on Christmas Day, when the man helps Santa.

Impression: After Julia Donaldson's The Gruffalo, I had high expectations from her Human Man. Considering the large number of positive reviews and recommendations, I expected a miracle, but the book turned out to be the most ordinary. At the same time, I can’t call it uninteresting. I really like Axel Scheffler's illustrations and think they are just right for little ones. They have everything you need - clear contours, competent accents, overall harmony of the image. The book also did not arouse much enthusiasm for Yana. Perhaps this is due to my disappointment. Maybe the chain of events is still difficult to perceive and requires closer acquaintance. Although when reading, I always comment on difficult and unfamiliar moments. I think that over time this book will be loved and will become a full member of our library.

Impressions of 2016: I changed my opinion about this book in 2016. This strange book contains a very correct idea - read more about it and Donaldson’s other books.

Impression: Nowadays, there are quite a few books with meaning. Mostly there are direct teachings based on the text and it looks a little rude, such books are so pleasant to read, against the backdrop of the teachings the plot is lost. The second option is dummy books. In general, Donaldson books can be marked “caution” or “attention! books for those who like to think." All of Donaldson's books have meaning, and in some it is deeply hidden and you have to work hard to unravel it :-).

Impressions 2017: The overall impression is pleasant. But I am not a fan of overly bright, crude and cloying illustrations and strive to choose books with more harmonious images.

I no longer see this book in our library. Rough, rustic, empty.

Photo of the spread:

Description: New Year's cuttings from ROSMEN from the series “My merry friends” (My-shop) and “New Year’s book for the little ones” (My-shop) These are two very similar series . with colorful cardboard cut-outs containing New Year's rhymes Series"My funny friends" made of high-quality thick cardboard and contains 12 pages in each book. Our copy of this series, the book “Santa Claus,” contains 4 poems of classical poetry for children, a Russian folk nursery rhyme and a riddle. Series"New Year's book for the little ones"

simpler, it has thinner cardboard and fewer pages (8). Impression:

Impressions 2017: Since we are fans of reading avidly, such books are of no interest to Yana. Such books are relevant for those who are just beginning to instill a love of reading.

Photos of spreads (clickable):

New Year's cuttings by EKSMO publishing house

The books are not available in online stores, so I hide the description

Description: Another nice option for New Year's cardboards are cuttings from Eksmo:

• “Wonderful gift” (Labyrinth, My-shop,);
• “How friends decorated the Christmas tree” (Labyrinth, My-shop,).

They have unique cute illustrations. One book contains one poem. There are a couple of lines on each page. Books of 12 pages. The cardboard, like all the books listed above, is of excellent quality.

simpler, it has thinner cardboard and fewer pages (8). These cards seem to me to be more suitable for children under three years old than the two previous series from ROSMEN. Their illustrations have the right accents and subdued tones, which allows them to be viewed with interest. ROSMEN's illustrations are oversaturated and interest is quickly lost in them. They can be compared to sugary candies. It is much more pleasant to eat moderately sweet desserts with a whole range of different flavors.

Photos of spreads (clickable):

Fairy forest (Labyrinth)

The book is not available in online stores, so I am hiding the description

OpDescription: A5 size book with a plump cover and ties. With beautiful illustrations by the talented Olga Ionaitis. The book has 16 pages containing parts of one poem by Lyudmila Ulanova.

simpler, it has thinner cardboard and fewer pages (8). According to the description, everything is perfect, but I have a lot of complaints about this book :-D. When ordering, I didn’t pay attention to its small format. If you look at the photos of the spreads, it seems like a quite nice book. And this could well be the case if the book format was A4. But in reality it turned out to be tasteless, oversaturated with cute elements. Pay attention to the given spread. On it you can find: an illustration with many colorful objects, two types of frames, rabbits and squirrels, etc. I get the impression that a child was allowed near the graphics editor.

Puffy books that will tell kids about the New Year

Ideal for children under 2 years old, donut books about the New Year. They are easy to leaf through with small fingers and comfortable to hold in hands:

There are even gift donut books separately for girls and boys:

Gift books about the New Year with game elements

Books about the New Year with game elements will also appeal to the little ones. A book in the form of a rattle, a book with laces, a book in the form of a pair of mittens, a book with ribbon ties, a set of baby books that fit together like a puzzle - wonderful and useful gifts for a baby under the Christmas tree:

Cardboard books about the New Year for kids

Children can also be offered bright cardboard books with a New Year theme:

Books with poems for little ones on a New Year's theme

The days before New Year's are the right time to read good poems with your child dedicated to the wonderful New Year holiday.

The book “Christmas Night” by K. K. Moore can be purchased at Ozone.

Books with short tales about the New Year

For kids who like the image of Santa Claus, we recommend reading a series of picture books about him, only a little one. Surely the child will understand the thoughts and experiences of Little Santa Claus:

For children over 1.5-2 years old who already have favorite characters, publishing houses have prepared books about how popular book characters celebrate the New Year - Elmer the Elephant, Baby Lama, Karlchen the Bunny, Lulu the Turtle, Russell the Sheep:

Books dedicated to creativity with kids before the New Year

And of course, the New Year is an excellent theme for creativity together with the kids:

Books about the New Year are a pleasant and interesting part of preparing for this wonderful holiday. They will help you not only introduce your child to New Year’s traditions, but also provide topics for discussion, stimulate speech and intellectual development. And most importantly, books will give your child a joyful mood and a feeling of celebration!

Happy New Year to you and your family!