It’s the start of August 1st and that means NaBloPoMo! The theme for the month is Fiction! Yes! Fiction! The topics, the titles, are endless, and should keep my blogging until the wee hours of summer. The prompt for today is, “What is your  favorite book?”

My mind reeled, I scoured the book shelves, I have a million favorite books and it’s tough just to pick one!  I could ramble on and on. But the one that stays close to my heart and has become a family favorite is “Toes in My Nose” by Sheree Fitch. This book still resonates with me because Sheree Fitch was the first author I ever heard speak or met.

She came to visit our school, read her poems, and answered a wily bunch of grade 3 kid’s questions.  I sat in awe listening to  her and amazed with my grade 3 eyes that she had written this book. A real author had come to our school, was reading her book to us,  and answering our questions!

A book of children’s poems that I can recite from heart:

I stuck my toes

in my nose,

And I couldn’t get them out.

It was those first three lines I could relate too as a kid because let’s face it. Life is about trial and error if we do anything that silly it’s when we are a kid.

Once you stick something up your nose you are definitely never going to do it again!

It looked a little strange

And People began to Shout

“Why would you ever?

My goodness – I never”

They got in a terrible snit

As a parent I’m now the one in a snit and asking “Why? Would you do that?” Every time one of my children attempts a death-defying stunt  or comes home covered in a cloud of dust.

It’s simple, I said

As they put me to bed

I just wanted to see

If they fit.

Of course as a child they wanted to see if it would fit, it’s the perfect simplistic answer of a child full of curiosity and life.

The unique poems of Toes in my Nose reminds us to look through the eyes of a child with their imagination and deep wonderment of the world around them. As you turn the page of the book each poem offers a new delight or chuckle from William Worm to Pocketful of Rocks.

Toes in My Nose was one of the first books that opened a world of reading and creative writing for me. It is also the book that reminds us it’s okay to be silly, and it’s even better sometimes to be a big kid at heart.

It is a book that I relish with my children as they roll over in stitches over each poem and rhyme. My signed copy is worn but my toes are still happy every time I see my children’s eyes light up with a smile.

What is one of your favorite books from childhood? Does it still resonate with you today?