Our Favourites: Books For Toddlers (18 Months)

If you’re looking for the perfect gift for a toddler, why not go for a book? Sure, you could spend hours trawling through the Argos website looking for the latest toy but we all know toddlers. They have the attention span of a baby gnat. And that’s doing gnat babies a disservice. Toddler toys are often messy, usually loud and quite often hated by their parents.

But what if I told you there was a gift that avoided this? An item that toddlers would return to time and time again? One where parents would actually get to spend quality (quiet) time with their child? A gift that would genuinely last? You need to give the gift of reading my friend. Or more specifically, a book.

Not sure what tickles and tempts a toddler these days? Here are some of our favourites, guaranteed to please both parent and child alike whilst earning you some major brownie points.

Books For Toddlers (18 months)

Yoga Babies – Fearne Cotton

When I first saw this book, I wanted to hate it. I did. There’s something about celebrities who turn to children’s book writing that just irritates me. But, this book is actually a firm favourite in our household. Whether it’s the gentle rhyme that runs through it, the babies (give any toddler a photo of other children and they’re hooked) or the fact that there are plenty of other items to point out in the illustrations, this book is a real pleasure to read. Culminating in the yoga babies sleeping (spoilers sorry!), it’s a great one for bedtime. To take it one step further, try getting your toddler to practice some of the positions. So far we’ve mastered the downward dog. And that’s it.

The Tickle Book – Ian Whybrow

Definitely not one for bedtimes, this lift the flap book follows the Tickle Monster as he hides in and around everyday situations. At first, it was a little overwhelming but now the flaps are flung open with joy and squeals of anticipation ring out as the Tickle Monster attacks on every page. Lighthearted with pages packed full of detail, The Tickle Book is a fun tale for any time of day. So long as you want a slightly hyped toddler afterward. Be warned: some of the rhymes don’t quite rhyme. Which drives me crazy every single time but he loves it!

This Royal Baby – Zita Newcombe

This Royal Baby is a pull the tab style book that encourages your child to join in. With clever mechanisms on every page, they can make the baby drink their milk, wiggle their ears and even cuddle their mummy. There’s not much of a story line but it encourages little ones to understand their actions (pulling, rotating, sliding etc). Each page has a different baby face on, making it instantly appealing to your toddler who wants to make things happen!

Fox’s Socks – Julia Donaldson

You’ll recognise the author as one of the greats of children’s literature and this book shows you exactly why. Fox’s Socks is part of the Tales From Acorn Wood series and follows poor old Fox as he attempts to find his socks around his house. It rhymes wonderfully, there are flaps to lift and the story helps associations with clothing and parts of the home. It’s such a hit that our copy is almost completely flap free now thanks to some rather enthusiastic ‘reading’ and having to take it everywhere with us. We’ve also given it as a gift to so many people. A real classic book.

Where’s My Teddy? – Jez Alborough

It reminds me of stories such as ‘We’re Going On A Bear Hunt’ from my own childhood. We’ve read it a number of times and it’s only more recently that my son has started to respond to it well. Eddy has lost his teddy (whose name is Freddy). There’s lots of -eddy rhyming which initially caused some confusion but now allows him to join in as we go. I can definitely see it being a story that will continue to entertain him as he grows older and will entertain him throughout. Plus, it’s really fun to read. Almost like a giant tongue twister. Bonus points for that!