We have lit the first Chanukah candle, Frida’s beautiful advent calendar is being gleefully opened by excited little fingers, elderberry syrup is being dutifully poured out each morning, and I have stocked up on thick yellow beeswax candles to light our meals on these slow, cozy days. Each night Frida’s bed is warmed by hot water bottles, her pyjamas toasting on the radiator, awaiting her as she gets out of her bedtime bath. Tiny rituals which feel huge in meaning and steeped in love.
This weekend felt like the right time to put out our winter books and change the decorations on our celebration ring, a nod to the seasonal shift inwards we are feeling as we slowly creep towards the colder, darker weather.
Changing our books each season has become such a beloved ritual for me as well as for Frida. After being put away for three seasons, these books and stories them within feel like old friends (and I can never resist adding a couple of new ones to our collection). These seasonal rhythms bring us comfort and predictability, a sense of “this is what we do”. I’ll be writing more about our winter rhythm in a couple of days.
This winter, we will be enjoying these seasonal books:
Top shelf L-R:
Ice Is Nice!: All about the North and South Poles. This is not the best in the series, but it’s a fun rhyming book about the polar regions.
Winter. This sweet wordless book is still very much loved here at 3.5.
The Tomten. This is possibly my favourite of all of our winter books (trumped only by The Tomten and the Fox below!)
Flower Fairies of the Winter. I love this collection and Frida and I have both learnt a lot from it. We have all of the other seasons but didn’t have winter, so Frida will be finding this in her stocking this year.
Winter (Shirley Hughes Nursery Collection). Perfect for younger children, Shirley Hughes’ illustrations are second to none.
The Mitten. Another favourite, I love this beautifully illustrated tale. It’s perfect for recreating with toy animals too.
Mog on Fox Night. Mox does not want to eat her supper… but someone else does. We get a lot of foxes in London so this book is great!
Devine qui fait quoi. A lovely little wordless picture book inviting you to follow tracks in the snow.
Middle shelf L-R:
The Polar Bear. Such a beautiful non-fiction book. It would make a wonderful gift.
The Winter Hedgehog A really lovely tale about a hedgehog who wants to find out about winter.
Winter: A Collection of Poems, Songs and Stories for Young Children. We have these for every season, they’re packed full of songs and stories and poems and are perfect for sharing over a candlelit breakfast.
Alaska’s Three Bears. A great story about three bears, filled with facts too.
The Tomten and the Fox. There’s something so quiet about this atmospheric book that makes me want to read it really softly and slowly, almost in a whisper. Frida and I both love it.
Ice Bear. From the Nature Storybooks series, this is excellent.
Bottom shelf L-R:
Coming Home. A beautiful winter / Christmas story.
The Snowy Day . A classic sweet, simple book.
Winter Story. I love the Brambly Hedge books – this one is just dreamy and another firm favourite in our home.
Robin’s Winter Song. A sweet gentle story for young children.
T’choupi fait un bonhomme de neige. Great for any children learning French!
The Emperor’s Egg. Also from the Nature Storybooks series, this is a wonderful book all about Emperor Penguins.
The Snowman. The classic winter wordless picture book.
Not pictured is The Story of the Snow Children. This is a sweet Waldorf-friendly tale about a little girl who notices that snowflakes are tiny snow children. We didn’t own a copy so Frida will be finding this in her stocking alongside a snowflake fairy.
What will you be reading this winter? Do you spot any of your winter favourites on this list?
PS. Rhythm in the Home opens again for booking on Thursday the 6th December at 08:30. You can read more about this sell-out course and to find out how to book your space here.
