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A perfect book. Let me count the ways. There's the prose, sweet and lyrical despite how simple it is. The rich dynamics of how the two personalities play off each other. The sly, gentle humor. The illustrations, which are restrained yet beautifully bring to life Frog and Toad's world. Most of all, there's the love these two friends have for each other, which runs through each story like a deep, strong current.

KID VERDICT: He loved it for a while. We even got a Yoto card with the audiobook read by the author (highly recommend) that the kid listened to every night at bedtime for months. Then suddenly he stopped wanting it and has largely refused to read it since. It's that a positive recommendation? I have no idea.

It has trucks. It has animal sounds. The villain learns a lesson about the importance of strong community ties. What more could you possibly want?

KID VERDICT: Well liked. I can usually sell him on this one if he's feeling indecisive. Learned the phrase "muck and mire" from it. He spent several weeks accusatorially telling me the toad was a frog, and was unswayed by my claim that it needed to rhyme with "road".

Klassen's Iliad. Feels like a novel despite the trademark minimalism, with all the twists and turns you might expect of a story with full chapter markers. Even though it's quite a journey, it still isn't all that long of a read, a real boon when you're trying to hit the mark on bedtime and have already suffered half an hour of foot-dragging. Has some genuinely funny moments, and some beautiful ones, and some surreal ones.

KID VERDICT: He only reaches for it once a month or so, but he's been happy to keep coming back to it. I think he enjoys the frisson of danger and we talk regularly about those parts. He also gets some of the sly humor around Turtle's ego, which is fun and not the kind of thing he always catches.

One of the books I can recite cover to cover from memory, and I'm not even mad about it. The language is delightful and funny, the illustrations are charming and just a little surreal, the story is about how picking berries is the best adventure.

KID VERDICT: One of his very favorites, for literal years. He's mostly grown out of it but we still read it occasionally.