Coquette Maman

The Kokeshi World: Yumi and Aoki

I have a major love affair with Japan from the food, technology, fashions, and all things kawaii (cute). Last summer, Chloe and I started a weekly ritual to our favorite Japanese restaurant to have udon and sushi. That was all she knew about Japan, until Yumi and Aoki arrived.

Yumi ($10.32) and Aoki ($10.32) by Annelore Parot (published by Chronicle Books) brings an imaginative glimpse into the world of the Kokeshi dolls. With sneak-peak flaps and super kawaii illustrations, each detail-filled page is a little discovery into this secret world. Chloe and I like to spend time on our favorite pages such as Yumi's sushi-filled page or Aoki's packed suitcase. If you wanted you could realistically spend so much time on each page just discussing every little detail. (Yes you can also still speed read through it if you have to at night too!) It's definitely fun for both of us.

We read these two books at least a few times a week. From them, I've discovered that Chloe has incorporated the Kokeshi world into her own play time. She brings her stuffed animals on the "train" to go to Tokyo to visit Yumi and Aoki. Then they go have sushi at the Japanese restaurant. She's already mentioned to me that she wants to make her own little Kokeshi dolls. Not all of the books we read together open up her imagination like these, so it's extra special to me that she has connected with the Kokeshi's so much.

The author Annelore Parot is a French illustrator living in France. Personally I have always loved that French-Japan connection with how each culture illustrates and interprets the other. I love to collect little Japanese craft/style books that showcase Paris or French country kind of projects. You can also join her site, Club Kokeshi (in French).

Speaking of Japan, for the hipster baby or toddler, you can pick up these Sushi Touch-and-Feel Stroller Cards ($9.99), a delicious way to teach them about different textures. (This makes a great gift!) Chloe uses her cards as her sushi menu when we play Japanese restaurant. She already knows that the bumpy roe is Papa's favorite.

Organic Handmade Soft Books for Babies

Chloe had Wee Gallery's black and white art cards when she was a baby. Now, there are cute organic handmade soft books with the same adorable black and white drawings that stimulate a baby's brain. Choose from Jungle Animals, Black & White Animals, and Garden (not available on web site yet). All books are just $22 and come with a handy tote. These books make a great baby shower or newborn gift.

Gilt City SF Event: Kiki & Coco in Paris Afternoon Tea + Book Signing 12/9

If your little girl has a special friend and loves tea parties you won't want to miss this special afternoon tea & book signing at Crown & Crumpet Tea Salon in SF. This event is being run by Gilt City SF where you can purchase tickets for this exclusive event. (Sign up to be a member of Gilt City if you aren't a member yet!) Photographed by Stephanie Rausser, the book Kiki & Coco in Paris chronicles her daughter Kiki’s trip to Paris with her beloved doll Coco. Stephanie will be there for the signing, Nina Gruener (who wrote the book) will do a reading, and Jess Brown, owner of the children’s shop Maude in Petaluma and who designed the doll will also be on hand selling dolls. Tea, champagne, crumpets, scones, tea sandwiches and sweet treats will be served and little girls will be able to have their faces painted.

Tickets for the exclusive Gilt City SF event are available now and will be limited 60 people. Tickets are $48 for adults (which includes a copy of the book and gift bag), $10 for children. Each ticket includes a selection of tea sandwiches, sweet treats and hot pots of tea—plus clotted cream and jam to spread on housemade scones.

Kiki & Coco in Paris Afternoon Tea and Book Signing
Crown & Crumpet Tea Salon
207 Ghirardelli Square
900 North Point
San Francisco, CA 94109
Friday, December 9, 2011
4pm-6pm

See more photos from this adorable book, Kiki & Coco in Paris.

Book Review: Candy 1 to 20

I'm still on a sugar high from all the Halloween candy I've been eating (both leftovers and candy from my daughter, Chloe's stash). Who knew candy could also be educational too? Candy 1 to 20 ($8.99 at Amazon) by Laurie Wolf, Pam Abrams, and Bruce Wolf (published by Chronicle Books) is a simple numbers board book that helps teach children to count using clever layouts of candy. I've been working with Chloe on her counting, especially when it starts to get confusing for her around twelve through ninteen. She'll often forget those higher up numbers or mix them up, so we take our time with those pages and slowly count each little candy that makes up the number shape.

The candies featured in this book are all so colorful and iconic, it's fun to also name off kinds of candy as well as favorite colors. Chloe knows that green gummy bears are mama's favorite so she'll count out how many green ones she sees for number 13.

The photos are simply gorgeous. Who wouldn't want to lick all four of the lollypops that make up number 4? This seemingly simple book is a really engaging tool to teach your kids how to count.

Crepes By Suzette

Last weekend Chloe and I headed to the library because she was obsessed with getting her own library card (just like Cailliou). I found a few books I thought she would like. Our favorite of the small stack by far is this book, Crepes by Suzette by Monica Wellington. (The book seems to be out of print now but there are a few available from independent sellers off Amazon.) The book mixes a few of my favorite things: illustration along with photo collage. The story is about Suzette and her Crepes cart which she wheels all around famous Paris landmarks. I love the easy French words that are peppered throughout the story. The illustrations of Suzette's various customers are also based off of famous paintings. In the back of the book is a glossary of the French terms used, a background of each Paris location, a list of each illustration/painting, and even a crepe recipe!

My Top 5 Animal Books for Toddlers

Animal books are always loved by kids. I mean who could resist the cute and cuddly, right? I've collected here the ones that Chloe and I read over and over all the time. For the tiniest members of the animal world, Bugs! Bugs! Bugs! by Bob Barner (published by Chronicle Books) started it all. It's is a classic now in our household. I love the paper collage illustrations so much and Chloe loves reading about all the bugs, especially the roly-polies. The "actual size" chart is a fun way to show just how small these little creatures are too. It was because of Bugs! Bugs! Bugs! that I moved on to Bears! Bears! Bears!, Barner's recent follow up to his great series of kids books (published by Chronicle Books). I love that kids learn all about different kids of bears all over the world and what they do – from fishing to eating honey. I def

Just One Bite by Lola M. Schaefer and illustrated by Geoff Waring (published by Chronicle Books) is one of those books that is so fun to read as a parent. The book goes through what animals eat starting from a simple worm all the way up to a giant sperm whale. As you get closer to the end, pages fold how to show you just how big some of these animals are and what they are eating. But throughout the book, no small detail is over looked. From tiny beetles hanging out near a frog to an ant carrying a sliver of a leaf near a giraffe, I love being able to point them out as we go through the book.

Kids love "lift the flap" books so why not have a big book full of little flaps? Out of Sight by Pittau & Gervais (published by Chronicle Books) captures our little readers with "boxes" of patterns from foot prints, animal prints, all the way to silhouettes. Chloe loves lifting each flap especially the really big ones and finding out what animal is behind it. The variety of animals and the realistic illustration style goes beyond what typical kids books do. Even for my young toddler who is 2, she loves knowing that there are different kinds of mice and monkeys. I can really see her understanding it all much better thanks to this wonderful book. And I'll be honest here, this one is a nice one when you want to take a break from typical book reading. It's a big book so you can lay it out on the floor and it's almost like a game. The kid is the book driver here and it's nice to enjoy the ride with them on this one!

A great book for babies and young toddlers is Who's Baby Am I? by John Butler (published by Penguin Group). Every child and adult will not be able to resist the wonderful illustration style of John Butler. They really do come to life. In fact, Chloe always hugs the page when we get to the mama polar bear with baby and goes "awww!", which is not easy thing to do with a hardcover book! She can't help it! I love the page at the end showing all the baby animals and their names as well as the fun mama + baby matching game. It's one of our favorite books to unwind with at night. You can even play the Whose Baby Am I? online game on the Jon Butler site. We started reading this book at 18 months but I wish I knew about it earlier.

Baby by the Numbers

When I was pregnant with Chloe, I inherited a few books from my girlfriends. One of the books I bought myself was Baby by the Numbers: A parent's quick reference for essential baby facts and figures by Richela Fabian Morgan (published by Chronicle Books).If there's something I need a question answered such as how much food should she be eating for her age or is her fever too high, I turn to this book.

The paperback spiral bound book has category tabs on the side so you can quickly get to the information you need. Categories are: Growing Baby, Basic Baby, Active Baby, Interactive Baby, Heathy Baby, and Booboo Baby. Beautiful and handy charts and illustrations round out the book. Considering how heavy most of those baby books are, this one is so light and useful, you really won't need anything else. This also makes a great baby shower gift!

The Future of Children's Books

With the iPad to launch in a few weeks on April 3rd, it's exciting to see how books will adapt to the new medium. Watch this video by Penguin (via Gizmodo) showing how their books turn interactive, especially children's books. Anyone with a toddler knows how they already love the iPhone or any mobile phone for that matter. I'm so happy that Chloe has a deep love for books and can be entertained with them by herself, but I also love it even more when we read together the most. (She recently started to pick books from her shelf for me to read to her.) Having this kind of new technology doesn't mean that it's an automatic babysitter, although inside I know something like this will make a long drive or plane ride more entertaining and educational for a fussy little one!

Just think of it as another medium for you to interact and engage your child. Ask him/her questions about what else you see on the screen, just like you do with a regular printed book. Chloe loves it when I point out all the different colors, animals, or call out numbers.

Whatever happens, in the next year or so books are in the process of being redefined and I'm excited to see how it all pans out!

Petit Collage Art & Books

Petit Collage is by San Francisco based designer and illustrator Lorena Siminovich. I first came across her work while working at a craft fair a few years ago and purchased one of her wood prints for Chloe while I was pregnant. Since then, I've become a huge fan. A few months ago, I bought this ABC print called My Favorite Things ($30 at Petit Collage). I bought the framed version to save time and it's hanging now near her crib. These days to calm her, we found ourselves going over each letter of the ABC's by pointing to each of the fun letters and objects or just simply singing the ABC song. There's also a boy version or some of her classic ABC posters.

(Coming soon are her My Favorite Things Flash Cards!)

Chloe also loves the finger puppet/board books, In My Tree, In My Den, and In My Nest by Sara Gillingham and illustrated by Lorena Siminovich from Petit Collage (published by Chronicle Books). I just realized there's another book, In My Pond that I need to get to complete her collection. It's so fun to read these books because I've fallen in love with all the illustration myself!

If you're looking for a modern baby book that's beautiful and affordable, I suggest the Petit Collage Deluxe Baby Book and Memory Box ($50 at Chronicle Books) for it's beautiful designs and room for lots of photos, as well as the adorable box to fill your baby keepsakes. Makes a great baby shower gift!

Little Finger Puppet Books

I got a few of these Little Finger Puppet Books ($6.99 each at Chronicle Books) from my friends Christina and Nancy at my baby shower last year. Who knew how much Chloe would love these! By the time she was 3 or 4 months, she was fascinated by them when we were reading them to her. My husband and I ended up buying the whole set at the Chronicle Books store at the Metreon in SF. Now she has her own little collection in her bookshelf that she goes to play with each day. I like them because they are smaller than most board books and were one of the easiest books for her to grab and hold right away.