Photo of Ivan with “Gold Dragon” which he requested from Santa this year. Gold Dragon has been proving particularly useful this weekend in using his fire breath to help defeat the Krang bots who have a not-so-secret lair in our basement.

It’s been awhile since I’ve stopped to think about Ivan’s favorite books. Here are some we’ve read repeatedly.

Rex Wrecks It! by Ben Clanton
This story of building with blocks and wrecking fits perfectly with Ivan’s love of building, wrecking, and dinosaurs. It also has a unicorn bunny named Sprinkles and a robot named Gizmo.

Ivan the Terrier by Catalanotto
This story about a dog who pops up in fairy tales and wrecks them by doing things like eating the Gingerbread Boy before he can run away is another Ivan favorite. The fact that one must say, “No, Ivan!” and make barking noises is an obvious win.

The Book with No Pictures by B.J. Novak
This one continues its reign of hilarity causing my kids to sing,”glug glug glug my face is a bug. I eat ants for breakfast right off the rug,” from the backseat of the car often and at high volume. It has also led to Ivan calling people “Ba-DOOONGY-Face.” Pluses and minuses to introducing great literature to the young.

Where is that Cat? by Carole Greene
Simple story about a stray cat finding a home and not wanting to leave so whenever someone comes to look at the cat, he hides. Ivan loves finding the cat on each page and the warmth of the story.