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The Moral Of The Story Is: Great Kids' Books Don't Always Need Morals

By Audie Cornish
Published December 7, 2018 at 4:21 PM EST
Click here to browse more than 300 recommended titles in NPR's 2018 Book Concierge.
NPR
Click here to browse more than 300 recommended titles in NPR's 2018 Book Concierge.

As a teacher, father and children's book author, Jon Scieszka avoids books full of lessons. "Since the beginning of kids' books ... it was like: learn your alphabet, learn the colors, or learn morals, learn proper behavior," he says. But the author of the kids' classic The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales says books for small readers don't need big lessons.

Ahead of the holidays, All Things Considered is inviting writers to talk about the books they'll be gifting to friends and family this year. Here's what Scieszka has for the kids on his list:

Potato Pants!, by Laurie Keller

Dog Man: Lord of the Fleas, by Dav Pilkey

The Big Book Of The Blue, by Yuval Zommer

Go, Dog. Go!, by P.D. Eastman

For more reading recommendations, visit the NPR 2018 Book Concierge — more than 300 titles, hand-picked by NPR staff and book critics, including lots of books for kids.

Copyright 2025 NPR

Audie Cornish
Over two decades of journalism, Audie Cornish has become a recognized and trusted voice on the airwaves as co-host of NPR's flagship news program, All Things Considered.
See stories by Audie Cornish

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SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.

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