A Costume Party Book List for Kids

When I was a little girl of about eight or nine or ten… we had the smallest library in the world in our town. It was a converted ranch style building. You entered the front door and turned right for the kids’ section and left for the adult section. The walls were lined with books. And there were so few, they sat on shelves facing OUTWARD so you could see their covers. I loved this!

I dreamed of becoming a librarian, because I thought that meant I could sit behind the counter and read books “for free” all day long.

One thing though, that would make me the world’s worst librarian (and no, I’m not going to say media specialist because I am talking about books, simply BOOKS! and librarian is such a lovely, lovely word!). Anyway… here’s why I wouldn’t be a great librarian (although I would have read a ton of books): I am completely useless when put on the spot for book recommendations!

Yes. Like deer in the headlights! Because… when someone says, “Oh you’re an English teacher! Tell me what books you recommend for my eleven year old daughter!”… I freeze!

Um, ba-dum, um, um… because a  million thoughts go through my head. Does she like to read? Does she like mysteries? Adventure? What’s her reading level? What has she already read!? Will she like some of my favorite classics or does she want to keep up with the latest releases?

And all these questions get jumbled up in my head along with the fifty-bajilion book titles that I have read over the years!

So. I’m pretty useless! Which is why I love creating these booklists from time to time. Not only does it let me record some of my kids’ favorite books (for twenty years from now when they say, “Mom, what did we read when we were three and five!”), but also in the quiet space of my own office, I can settle down the noise and recall some good titles based on a theme. And hopefully there’ll be a few in the mix that you will enjoy with your children as well!

Today’s theme: Costume Parties! I love a good costume party – in fact, have you seen my post about 10 Must Haves for the Dress Up Barrel!? You really should!

Last week, I had a good teacher friend of mine over with her two daughters. Each of her girls was born just six months after my boys, so they’re the perfect age match. We had a little costume party playdate together – you can read all about my ideas for hosting an EASY to set up Costume Party Playdate at the Melissa & Doug blog!

Anyway… of course, when two English teacher mamas get together, there MUST be books! Lots of books! Since our theme was costume party, I collected a bunch of books about dressing up. Not all of them have to do exactly with parties, but they all have to do with dressing up or costumes, and some have really funny twists!

So I will stop rambling for now and give you:

A Costume Party Book List for Kids!

• Maisy Dresses Up by Lucy Cousins
• You’re wearing THAT to school? by Lynn Plourde
• Annie & Snowball and the Dress up Birthday by Cynthia Rylant (if you love Henry & Mudge – they’re in this book too!) – a clever twist in this one!
• Crafty Chloe and the Dress up Mess up by Kelly DiPucchio
• Ladybug Girl and Bumblebee Boy by Jackie Davis AND
• The Amazing Adventures of Bumblebee Boy – I just discovered this series by the way and they’re just adorable characters!
• What can you do with a shoe? by Beatrice de Regniers and Illustrated by Maurice Sendak – while not really about a dress up or costume parties allows kids to think playfully about what items around the house could do with a little imagination!
• Whose Shoes? by Anna Grossnickle Hines AND
• Which Hat is That? – both this title and the above are great for the under 3 crowd. It discusses clothing items in a super simple and playful way!

Truthfully, there aren’t a lot of books dedicated to the concept of dress up play that aren’t extremely girl-focused. Since I have boys, I wanted to find characters who my boys could relate to, so these books will do great for a mixed-gender class or group of kids.

I’m sure that I have read other books where characters get into costume. One could argue Where the Wild Things Are would fit because the main character dons his wolf suit! But that may be a bit of a stretch! If I come across more, I will update this list!

Do you have any other titles to add!? 

This post is sponsored in part through my partnership as a guest blogger for Melissa & Doug. All opinions are my own.

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