Growing a Reader: Kids' Books, Tips and More

July 24 is "Cousin's Day", a day where we are encouraged to celebrate the special bond that we have with our cousins...

...but I wrote about that last year.

So for this year's celebrations instead of writing more about family members, I'm going to honour a different type of "Cousins" – author and illustrator Lucy Cousins!

Now you may not have heard of Lucy Cousins before but I am pretty sure that you do know her most famous creation: Maisy Mouse.

Play Time Maisy (DVD)

Maisy is an adventurous little mouse with a lovable spirit, wonderful friends and over six million copies of her books sold worldwide. She even has her own YouTube Channel! 

In the "Maisy" books, many of which you can borrow from the Library, Lucy Cousins's little mouse goes on all kinds of adventures and Ms. Cousins takes the reader right along with her. Young readers can experience all of the fun that Maisy has with Eddie, Cyril, Talullah, Charley and all of their friends.

Maisy Mouse is never bored. She's always finding somewhere new to go to like the museum, the movies and, of course, the library.

Maisy Goes to the Library by Lucy Cousins (Ages 2-5)

And there's always a new way for her to get where she's going too. Maisy has traveled by bus, plane and even by race car (in one of her board books)!

In fact, Maisy and her friends have fun all summer long – going swimming, camping or on vacation.

Maisy Goes on Vacation by Lucy Cousins (Ages 2-5)

There are also Maisy books about ordinary and extraordinary life experiences such as taking a bath or going to the hospital. 

Of course, Maisy Mouse isn't the only literary creation by Lucy Cousins. She also writes and draws stories about many different kinds of animals such as Jazzy the little lemur and a proud dog who thinks he's the best. Ms. Cousins even celebrates an entire group of animals as she shouts a loud "Hooray!" for both fish and birds in two more of her books.

Hooray for Fish! by Lucy Cousins (Ages 2-5)

Hooray for Birds! by Lucy Cousins (Ages 2-5)

(Hmmm...I wonder which bird is my favourite?!)

And this British author and illustrator has made even more contributions to the world of Children's Literature with such things as various nursery rhyme books that might be of particular interest to caregivers with very young children.

So let's celebrate Lucy Cousins on this "Cousin's Day"! Read one of her books and then let Maisy and her friends inspire you to take your family on a new adventure. Use crayons or coloured paper and try to create your own pictures in Ms. Cousin's signature style. Or go online and join the fun as part of "Maisy's Fun Club". And remember, whatever you do to celebrate, don't forget to shout out: "Hooray for Lucy Cousins!"