Why buy picture books?

A: Hours and hours of entertainment.

Last week I wrote about the entertainment value of novels. After my extensive research I proved that an average novel costs about $1.50 per hour of entertainment. Sounds good. But what about picture books?

On the 7th of August, we bought When Dinosaurs Came With Everything by Elise Broach and illustrated by David Small. I love this book and totally relate to the mom (and that's it for my review of this title). We paid $13.13 for the book but it lists for $17.99. My son and I can read this book in about 5 minutes.

And now the math...

$3.60 - Each minute of entertainment cost us $3.60 (assuming retail). Yikes!

I'll admit, I wish hard cover picture books cost four dollars. (And the author and illustrator split seventy-five percent of that list price.) I can't even begin to understand the costs of creating a picture book. But the difference is, of course, that a good picture book will be read dozens of time and a great picture book will be read thousands of times. And how do you know if a picture book is good or great? You read it in the store before you buy. The newest picture books only have around 500 words. Can't do that with a novel.

In our home, we have picture books that have been memorized by parent and child. These books are well worn and a few are on their second copy (like Monster at the End of This Book and Good Night Moon). When my children outgrow these, I will not be able to sell them--and not just because they look like they've survived an animal attack. They are links to magical times.

Unfortunately, too many parents are skipping over this magic. The moment a baby is born we are told 1-breastfeed and 2-read to your child. And good new mommies and daddies read Sanda Boynton and Doctor Seuss to their little bundles until the baby turns three or four, then they jump into chapter books, trying to give their kids a leg up (on other three and four years old). SLOW DOWN. Judy Moody and Captain Underpants can wait a bit for their moment to shine. Picture books are expensive. You need to read them to your child for a few years to get your moneys worth.

Personal Plug:
Dear Santasaurus by me (Stacy McAnulty) and illustrated by Jef Kaminsky will be available in Fall 2013.