Rarely do I come across a book that inspires me just as much as my kids. However, Whats Your Red Ball is that book. This book is like no other book you’ve ever seen.  It is about how to overcome adversity and find your true passion.  As an adult, we all need to do this too, so this book, while geared at kids, can certainly get you thinking as an adult.  The author of this book, Kevin Carroll, went from an abandoned child with a love of sports to working for the Air Force, Philadelphia 76ers, and Nike.  His story, which is how the book starts, makes you want to be all you can be.  The book itself gives you the material to make your own “box of magic”.  This box is all about your gifts, your talents, your aspirations, your interests, and your hopes.  The rest of the book tells you how to figure out how to decorate and fill your box.  There are questions you need to answer and excercises you need to do, but by the end, you will have figured out whats your red ball.

Your age does not matter for this book.  At 31, I find inspiration in it.  This book is perfect for anyone who has lost their path in life and for those who are just finding it now.

Are your kids a fan of the movie Cars? If so, World Of Cars is a must have book in your house. This book tells you the back story of all the cars in the movie Cars. The illustrations are awesome and just like the movie, so they pull your kids right in. The stories are very engaging.  If you were ever wondering how Mater lost his hood, this book will tell you!  There is even a map showing  Guido and Luigi’s crazy road trip across the United States!  The stories are broken down into five chapters, so you can easily read one a night for a bedtime story.  This book makes a great accompaniment to the movie, and I highly recommend it.

Im Not Santa! is a cute book about a case of mistaken identity.  It takes a visit from the Jolly Old Man himself to sort this out.  This book is perfect for any little kids that have short attention spans.  It is simple and to the point.  The illustrations are great too.   I would actually say that this is more of a picture book than a story book.  This is under a series of books by the author.  Some other great choices would be Im Not Cute! and Im Not Scared!

I love The Whistle on the Train!  This is a must have book for everyone!  Remember the “wheels on the bus” song?  Well, this book is just like that!  You’ll read (sing) the “the whistle on the train goes whoo whoo whoo” and “the wheel on the train go clackety clack” and “the gates at the crossing go ding ding ding”.  Not only does it teach your child about trains, it is a pop up book!  They get to see in a 3D format what the train looks like and how they operate (to a degree).  My one year old giggle and says “ohhhhhhhh” every time you turn the page in the his book.  It is one of the most unique books out there.  My four year old likes it, because well, we sing the story.  She knows the “wheels on the bus” song, so changing the words a bit hasn’t phased her at all.  This book is hours of fun, so I hope you’ll be putting it under your tree this Christmas.

Every since Madison saw the Alice in Wonderland play in her Kiddie Kamp over the summer, she has fallen in love with the story.  Until recently, we only had the movie.  However, now we have the book, and it is one of her most favorite books now.  She loves how they emphasize words by making them bigger than the rest and have them go in different directions.  She laughs and asks what those works say.  It makes the book more fun.  Every other page has an illustration which allows your little one to make their own side stories.  The story is just retold and still has the favorite lines like “I’m late, I’m late for a very important date and the queen of hearts yelling “off with her head”.  Alice in Wonderland is a classic that everyone should have in their home.

Sugar Plum Fairies is a book the will resonate with little kids of all ages. It is about a little girl named Alexandrea Petrakova Johnson. She does not want to be a beautiful ballerina, and she does not want to leave her friends in Apple Creek. However, her mother feels differently and moves them to Harlem and enrolls her at the Nutcracker School of Ballet. Once at the school, she gets picked as the the Sugar Plum Fairy in the school recital! She’s a terrible dancer and has stage frights, so you will have to read the book to see how it ends!  Having moved 8 times before I was in second grade, I call tell you that this story is believable.  The illustrations are great too.  They truly add to the story.  This is the first book out of a series, and the author, Whoopi Goldberg, did a great job, because I want to read more!  This book is great for anyone who has moved around a lot (or is going to) and really any kids that are just trying to fit in.

Are You Ready to Play Outside? is a book about two unlikely friends: a pig and an elephant.  This book is excellent for the beginning reader.  Each page has about a line on it, and it is a fairly short book.  It definitely will hold the attention of any child even if they have a short attention span.  The illustrations, while simple, definitely add to the story.  The book starts off with the two friends wanting to play outside.  Then it starts raining, and they learn to make the best of the situation.  I would highly recommend this book to anyone with young children.