The gift the kids will love to ruin

With the kids heading back to school , the birthday party circuit will be starting up again. If your kid is old enough to read, you may understand my temptation to give other kids books rather than more toys. The problem is that while th…

The gift the kids will love to ruin
With the kids heading back to school, the birthday party circuit will be starting up again. If your kid is old enough to read, you may understand my temptation to give other kids books rather than more toys. The problem is that while their parents might love you for it, not every kid is delighted to receive a book. Except that every kid will be delighted to receive this book: Keri Smith's Wreck This Journal. It's a masterpiece manual of embracing creativity and bucking the ordinary, and entirely made to be destroyed. Really! So yes, by all means, write in it, create art in it, but also follow the prompts to rip out pages, take it into the shower, even use the designated page as your dinner napkin to document your meal. It's the perfect gift for young and old alike, for the truly  destructive and those with just a little mischievous creative streak in them. Check out the Keri Smith's website to learn more, or buy it from our affiliate, Amazon.

More in KidsView all picks →

shannon hale princess in black book and author

Q&A with children’s book author Shannon Hale

Shannon Hale is the bestselling author behind The Princess in Black series. It's a favorite early chapter book series for kids ages 5–8 and boys love it as much as girls do. Her newest book, Princess in Black and the Trick or Treating Trouble, comes out just in time for Halloween. We talked with her about it as part of our Q&A author series and asked about a few of her favorite things too.

Explore Build-a-Bear

Some Not-So-Spooky Fun this Halloween

How can Build-A-Bear be used for Halloween costumes? Let kids create a spooky Build-A-Bear sidekick to incorporate into their costume, which can help the costume be enjoyed beyond Halloween.

OMG, have you tried Popsmith yet?

OMG, have you tried Popsmith yet?

Popcorn has officially graduated from “movie night snack” to something we’d actually be happy putting out when friends come over. Popsmith takes the familiar salty-sweet favorite and gives it a more elevated, giftable feel—because yeah, …