Finding books that work well with a large group of kids is always a challenge. They need to have large, clear illustrations, and a text that kids can follow, even if they can’t see all of the details in the pictures. The text also needs to grab and hold their attention. This is especially true for preschool and school-aged classes, where the kids are all sitting together (without a parent or caregiver right next to them), and can be easily distracted by the kids around them. Finding a book that meets all of these criteria is rare, so I was excited to come across The Future Book by Mac Barnett and Shawn Harris.

The premise of the book is that the narrator is sharing surprising facts from the future. For example, in the future, instead of saying “thank you,” you put a fish on the other person’s head, and instead of saying, “Goodbye,” you say, “You smell like a baby!” After sharing a list of different things to know about the future, the narrator shares a simple story about going to the supermarket (now known as the “bolly bolly hoo hoo”) to buy some fruit for one bazillion dollars.

Originally, I wasn’t sure if this book would work for preschoolers, and only intended to try it with the second grade classes I read to regularly. But, on a whim, I ended up trying it with a transitional Kindergarten class, and they were practically shrieking with laughter from the very beginning. I don’t know if they all fully understood the idea of the book being set in the future, but I forgot how much kids that age love unexpected words or sounds (like when George the dog says “Meow” in the book Bark, George by Jules Feiffer). The “you smell like a baby,” line had them in hysterics.

I’ve since shared the book with several preschools (one of the teachers just asked me for the title, because the kids were still talking about it month later), as well as Kindergarten, first, and second grade classes. They have all loved it, and I love how it has become an inside joke when I run into any of those kids (they’ll say “I put a fish on your head!” or “you smell like a baby!”).

As a side note, I’ve been lucky enough to attend events with both Mac Barnett and Shawn Harris, and I love to tell kids about how they were childhood friends who ended up writing books together as adults. They also both still live in the Bay Area, and are wonderful with kids.

What are your favorite new picture books? Or your favorite books to share with classes? Please let me know in the comments.