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Big Names, Little Books

And you thought Frank McCourt was just for grown-ups. Here are authors who offer the best of both worlds: engaging reads for you as well as clever stories for your kids.

Lorrie Moore: FOR THE KIDS
The Forgotten Helper
Moore brings her distinct sense of irony to the story of Aben, a grumpy elf who refuses to mingle with his toymaking colleagues, "whose brains he felt were full of strawberry jam." (Ages 5 to 8)

FOR MOM AND DAD
Anagrams
In all her books, but especially in this one—her first—Moore has an inimitable way of capturing the everyday absurdity and melancholy of adult life.

Steve Martin: FOR THE KIDS

The Alphabet Book from A to Y with Bonus Letter Z!
Martin and Roz Chast, who did the illustrations, bring new life to the alphabet. (Ages 2 to 5)

FOR MOM AND DAD

Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life
A serious look at why Steve Martin is so funny. "I have heard it said that a complicated childhood can lead to a life in the arts," he writes. "I tell you this story ... to let you know I am qualified to be a comedian."

Donald Hall: FOR THE KIDS

The Oxford Illustrated Book of American Children's Poems
It takes time to comprehend the power of poetry. Start teaching your child now what you yourself are still trying to understand. (Ages 7 and up)

FOR MOM AND DAD

White Apples and the Taste of Stone: Selected Poems 1946–2006
The former poet laureate distills the mysteries of life in his steady, concise verse.

Frank McCourt: FOR THE KIDS

Angela and the Baby Jesus
McCourt returns to the memory of his mother, with her memory of wanting, as a child, to save the baby Jesus from catching cold. (Ages 4 to 8)

FOR MOM AND DAD

Angela's Ashes
Who better represents triumph than McCourt, the Pulitzer Prize–winning English teacher who spent his Limerick, Ireland, childhood wondering where his next meal would come from?

Alice Walker: FOR THE KIDS

Why War Is Never a Good Idea
Walker: "Though War is Old/It has not Become wise/It will not hesitate/To destroy/Things that/Do not/Belong to it/Things very/Much older/Than itself." (Ages 6 to 9)

FOR MOM AND DAD

The Color Purple
The novel won a Pulitzer Prize and inspired a Tony Award-winning Broadway musical and the 1985 Spielberg movie. Any other questions?

George Saunders: FOR THE KIDS

The Very Persistent Gappers of Frip
The tale of a little girl who fights the gappers, those pesky, burrlike animals. The lesson? Just because a lot of people are saying the same thing loudly over and over doesn't mean it's true. (Ages 5 to 7)

FOR MOM AND DAD

Pastoralia
Nothing is sacred—especially cheesy American culture—in this superbly hilarious collection of stories.

Maira Kalman: FOR THE KIDS

Max Deluxe
These three stories about the dreams of a dog-poet are so imaginative, you'll beg to read them at bedtime. (Ages 3 to 8)

FOR MOM AND DAD

The Principles of Uncertainty
Kalman's drawings and meditations embrace everything with exuberance. "If you are ever bored or blue," Kalman writes in typical life-loving fashion, "stand on the street corner for half an hour."

Ian Fleming: FOR THE KIDS

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang: The Magical Car
Who knew it was Fleming, the creator of the infamous spy and ladies' man, who also brought us this famous car? (Ages 12 and up)

FOR MOM AND DAD

The James Bond novels
Sure, you've seen the movies, but did you know that the books they were based on (Dr. No, From Russia with Love, Goldfinger) are actually literary page-turners?