Priced from $2.99 to $15.90, at least one of these kids' books should be on your gift list.

Here's an interesting factoid about Daily Cheapskate readers:  based on my summary reports from Amazon, you guys buy a ton of children's books.  You buy far more children's books than video games or children's DVDs.  That tells me that Daily Cheapskate parents and grandparents have different priorities from the rest when it comes to their kids' upbringing, and it makes me smile.

I post a large number of children's book recommendations on Daily Cheapskate, and not having a child myself, I base my postings on 1) reviews 2) ratings and 3) price.  These are the standouts.  

Each of the seven books below has appeared on Daily Cheapskate over the last year.  Not a single one is priced above $16 or rated below 4.3 out of 5 stars.  What else do they have in common?  A week or two after I posted these outstanding books, I received emails from grateful parents and grandparents telling me how happy they were with these wonderful (and frugal) recommendations.  So while I'm not a parent myself, please allow me this conceit; here is the Daily Cheapskate Recommended Children's Book List for the Chanukah holiday gift season.

(I know I'm all over the place here in terms of recommended age categories, but I'll let you sort out which of these is age-appropriate for your kid.)

Amazon has got the Time for Kids, Big Book of Why; Crazy, Cool & Outrageous in hardcover for $15.90 with free Prime/SuperSaver shipping.  This highly-rated book got 4.8 out 5 stars over 48 customer reviews.

TIME For Kids The NEW BIG Book of Why Crazy, Cool & Outrageous answers the questions that kids commonly ask and adults can rarely answer. Why are our eyes different colors? Why do we put candles on a birthday cake? Why do we high five our friends? Why do elephants have big ears?

Packed with hundreds of new brain busting questions with easy to understand answers that made the first Big Book of Why a best seller. The book is divided by subject area - humans, animals, environment/nature, technology and space - and written in an upbeat manner, each answer is accompanied by either a photo or an illustration to show the reasons why. 

TIME For Kids The NEW BIG Book of Why Crazy, Cool & Outrageous is a must-have book to satisfy the most curious of kids. Kids will be desperate to share what they've learned with their parents, teachers, and friends...and anyone else who will listen!

Q. What is a duck on the Fourth of July?
A. A fire quacker!

Q. Why did the credit card go to jail?
A. It was guilty as charged!

Q. What is a reptile's favorite movie?
A. The Lizard of Oz!

I used to love joke books when I was a little girl; I would read them for hours.  My friends with young kids tell me it's not easy to find clean joke books that are appropriate for kids nowadays.

Laugh-Out-Loud Jokes for Kids (in paperback) by Rob Elliott is $2.99 with free Prime/SuperSaver shipping at Amazon. (4.5 out of 5 stars over 643 customer reviews.)

Knock Knock Jokes for Kids (in paperback) by Rob Elliott is $4.39 with free Prime/SuperSaver shipping.  (4.3 out of 5 stars over 393 customer reviews.)


Has your child been bitten by the LEGO bug?  Count yourself lucky; building and creating with LEGOs are a great creative outlet for young kids.

• The LEGO Ideas Book, hardcover, $14.09, 4.3 out of 5 stars over 703 customer reviews. You have what it takes! Did you ever wonder what you can do with all of those LEGO bricks after you have created the project they came with? Now with The LEGO Ideas Book, you can take what you already have and make something new! The book is divided into six themed chapters — transportation, buildings, space, kingdoms, adventure, and useful makes — each with basic templates of key models and spreads to inspire you to create your own.


• LEGO Play Book, hardcover, $14.87, 4.5 out of 5 stars over 186 customer reviews. Featuring more than 200 different builds, this fun guide inspires readers with LEGO ideas to bring their bricks to life while encouraging them to use their imagination and play in new ways, creating amazing LEGO models of their very own. Featuring a mixture of simple, medium, and complex models, LEGO Play Book will teach builders tips and tricks to get the most out of their blocks. All-new models along with all-new photography spark new play ideas and LEGO creations. There are "ten-minute builds" for quick play sessions, a "cool brick" feature with ideas for using key LEGO bricks, and a "handful of bricks" section exploring what can be done with a limited collection of LEGO bricks. This book is fantastic for any LEGO builder looking to be inspired to build and create.

We own The Elements, and we love it.   It's just a wonderful and beautiful book.  Each of the elements on the Periodic table is visually represented and explained.  Whether you or your child is a science junkie, or perhaps it's just the opposite, you're allergic to chemistry, you'll be fascinated by The Elements.  An Amazon #1 Best Seller.

With 4.8 out of 5 stars over 325 customer reviews (and 275 of those are 5 stars), Amazon has got The Elements: A Visual Exploration of Every Known Atom in the Universe at its lowest price ever, $11.27 with free Prime/SuperSaver shipping.

I first saw the video of BJ Novack reading The Book with No Pictures to a group of children on my friend Chaviva G.B.'s Facebook feed.  Rather than describe it to you, please take two minutes and watch the video below.  You will want to read this special book with your kids, trust me.  4.8 out of 5 stars over 256 customer reviews.

Amazon has got the NY Times #1 Children's Book Bestseller, The Book with No Pictures at its lowest price ever posted, $10.79 with free Prime/SuperSaver shipping.

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