Picture Books that passed the test at our house:
Don't miss these great books just because you think your kids are "too old" for picture books!! A truly wonderful picture book will be enjoyed by ANY age. These books are in alphabetical order by author. Some are definitely better suited for girls and others for boys. I have put an asterisk beside the book titles that have a masculine figure as the main character. (May have missed a few) The books listed here are only ones we have read, enjoyed, and/or find them helpful for learning. Some we like just for the pictures. I have also included some non fiction and historical fiction picture books that you may find in my other lists.
BE SURE TO SEE AMERICAN HISTORY BOOK LIST. IT CONTAINS MANY OF OUR ALL TIME FAVORITE PICTURE BOOKS!
The Snail House, The Baby in the Hat, The Treasure Hunt, The Little Cat Baby- Ahlberg
The Story of Johnny Appleseed- Aliki
Billy and Blaze* (all stories)- Anderson
The Nightingale*- Anderson retold by Mitchell (illus. by Ibatoulline)
Degas and the Little Dancer- Anholt
Otters Under Water, Turtle in the Sea, A Manatee Morning, Come Out, Muskrats, Beaver Pond Moose Pond, Rabbits and Raindrops, Every Autumn Comes the Bear, Raccoon on His Own, Raccoons and Ripe Corn- Jim Arnosky (His animal illustrations alone are worth checking these out. There are many, but I have listed only the ones we have read.)
A Seed is Sleepy, An Egg is Quiet- Aston, Long
The Dove's Letter- Baker
Summer Story, Winter Story (Brambly Hedge)- Barklem
Emily (Dickinson) - Michael Bedard
Madeline stories- Bemelmans
The Five Chinese Brothers- Bishop
Stone Soup*, Cinderella (my favorite version to read)- Brown
Grandpa- Borack
Flannel Kisses- Brennan
Fritz and the Beautiful Horses*- Brett
Rabbit Inn- Brewster
Rachel Carson- Preserving a Sense of Wonder- Bruchac and illus. Thomas Locker
The Quiltmaker's Gift, The Quiltmaker's Journey- Brumbeau
Dandelion Hill- Bulla
The Memory String (for older children-divorce/ stepmother addressed), The Wednesday Surprise, A Day's Work- Bunting
The Little House, Choo Choo*, Mike Mulligan and the Steam Shovel*, Katy and the Big Snow- Burton
Does God Know How to Tie Shoes?, Wishing Dawn in Summer- Carlstrom
The Princess and the Pea- Lauren Child
Molly's Pilgrim- Cohen
See the Ocean- Condra
Abbie in Stitches- Cotten
Miss Rumphius- Cooney
Giggle, Giggle, Quack- Cronin
The Two Cars*, Too Big*, Children of the Northlights- d'Aulaire (see Favorite Children’s Biographies)
Yonie Wondernose*- de Angeli
Nana Upstairs, Nana Downstairs*, Now One Foot, Now the Other*, The Clown of God- dePaola
Louise, the Adventures of a Chicken- DiCamillo
Petunia, Veronica, Donkey-Donkey-Duvoisin
Simeon's Gift*- Edwards
Nine Days to Christmas (A Story of Mexico)- Ets and Labastida
The Story About Ping, Angus and the Ducks- Flack
Muncha, Muncha, Muncha, Tippy-Tippy-Tippy, Hide* A Big Cheese for the White House: A True Tale of a Tremendous Cheddar, Boxes for Katje- Fleming
Wilfred Gordon McDonald Partridge*- Fox
Will's Quill, Corduroy- Freeman
Leah's Pony- Friedrich
The Hatmaker's Sign- Fleming
The Animal Hedge*, Shadow Play, The Scarebird*, Weslandia*- Fleischman (some of these are by the Fleischman son)
The Happy Lion, The Happy Lion Roars- Fatio (illus. Duvoisin)
Tanya's Reunion- Flournoy
The Man Who Walked Between the Towers*- Gerstein
Little Toot*- Gramatky
My Mama Had a Dancing Heart- Gray
Mrs. Rose’s Garden- Greenstein
The Musicians of Bremen- Grimm (retold and illustrated by Puttapipat)
Bess and Bella- Haas
The Lady Who Put Salt in Her Coffee-Hale
Ox-Cart Man*- Hall
Fancy That- Hershenhorn
When Jessie Came Across the Sea, The Dog Who Belonged to No One- Hest
Redcoats and Petticoats- Kirkpatrick/Himler
A Song for Lena- Hippely
The Kitchen Knight (A Tale of King Arthur) - retold by Hodges
Saving Strawberry Farm-Hopkinson
The Rumpoles and The Barleys Series*- Hunt
Yonder- Johnston
Reading with Dad- Jorgenson
The Hello Goodbye Window- Juster
The Snowy Day*, Whistle for Willie*- Keats
Emma- Kesselman
Let Me Hold You Longer*- Kingsbury
From Dawn Till Dusk, When Spring Comes- Kinsey-Warnock
Queen of the May- Kroll
The Raft*- LaMarche
This is [City or State- New York, Texas, San Francisco etc.] - Lasek
They Were Strong and Good*- Lawson
Papa Small*, Cowboy Farm, The Little Fire Engine, The Little Auto, The Little Farm, The Little Sailboat*, The Little Train*, Policeman Small*, On a Summer Day, The Little Family - Lenski
Always Room for One More (Scottish nursery tale)- Leodhas
Floss, Friends- Lewis
Our Nest- Lindbergh
Applesauce Season*- Lipson
Crow Call- Lois Lowry
The Way Home, You Are Special*, You Are Mine*-Lucado
The Little Island- MacDonald
Three Names, What You Know First, Painting the Wind, All the Places to Love- MacLachlan (see also Favorite Chapter Books)
Julia Morgan Built a Castle- Mannis
Starlight Sailor*- Mayhew (illus. by Jackie Morris)
I’ll Always Be Your Friend- McBratney
Make Way for Ducklings, A Morning in Maine, Time of Wonder, Blueberries for Sal- McCloskey
The Escape of Oney Judge (A Slave Finds Freedom)- McCulley
The Amazing Felix*, Mirette on the High Wire, Mirette and Bellini, Mirette and Bellini Cross Niagra Falls, The Bobbin Girl (appropriate for older children)- McCully
Ma Dear's Aprons- McKissack
Roxaboxen, The Year of the Ranch-McLerran
The Teddy Bear*, Boy on the Brink*, The Train*, Edward and the Pirates, The Party, Tinker and Tom and the Star Baby*- McPhail
Across the Alley*- Michelson
The Rag Coat- Lauren Mills
At Ellis Island, A History in Many Voices- Peacock
Pilgrim Cat- Peacock
The Cock, the Mouse and the Little Red Hen- Percy
A Rooster Crows: A Book of American Rhymes and Jingles- Petersham
The Keeping Quilt, Just Plain Fancy, When Lightening Comes in a Jar, The Lemonade Club, Ginger and Petunia, Thundercake, Pink and Say, The Bee Tree, John Philip Duck, Something About Hensley's, Babushka's Doll, Thank You, Mr. Falker, Chicken Sunday, Mr. Lincoln's Way, The Junkyard Wonders- Polacco (I LOVE ALL of these books, but a couple of them are definitely older subject matter so read the summary to see if it is appropriate for your kids.)
Song of the Swallows- Politi
The Glorious Flight- Provenson
Sailing Home: A Story of a Childhood at Sea- Rand
The Secret Seder- Rappaport
My Mother is the Most Beautiful Woman in the World- Reyher
ish- Reynolds
Testing the Ice- A True Story About Jackie Robinson- Robinson
When Marian Sang- Ryan
When I Was Young in the Mountains, The Relatives Came, Bunny Bungalow, The Old Woman Who Names Things, Let's Go Home, Long Night Moon- Rylant
Grandfather's Journey*, The Bicycle Man*, Tea with Milk and Sugar (older subject matter)- Say Can You Hear it Inside ?, Can You Hear it Outside?- Schulte (wonderful introductions to fine art paintings published by the Metropolitan Museum of Art)
The Blizzard's Robe- Sabuda (similar to the D'Aulaire classic Children of the Northlights) a bit mystical but intriguing
May I Bring a Friend- Schenk De Regniers
Duck on a Bike- Shannon
How I Learned Geography- Shulevitz
When I Wore My Sailor Suit- Shulevitz
Caps for Sale*- Slobodkina
Daddy Played Music for the Cows- Sorenson
Polar- The Titanic Bear- Spedden
The Fox Went Out on a Chilly Night- Spier
Sylvester and the Magic Pebble, Yellow and Pink*- Steig
The Gardener, The Friend, The Journey, The Library, The Money Tree- Stewart
The House in the Night- Swanson
The Little Red Lighthouse and The Great Gray Bridge*- Swift, Ward
Many Moons- Thurber
The Treasure Tree*- Trent, Smalley (beginner chapter book with LOTS of pictures)
Around the Year- Tudor
Rachel and Obadiah- Turkle
A Tree is Nice- Udry
Probuditi!, Two Bad Ants- Van Alsburg
The Circus Ship- Van Dusen
The Biggest Bear-Ward
Champions on the Bench*- Weatherford
Waiting for the Evening Star*, Night Sounds Morning Colors*, The Gulps*- Wells
Goat’s Trail, Circus- Wildsmith (illustrations alone make these worth it)
Full Moon-Wilcox and David
Remember Me- Wild
Leonardo and the Terrible Monster*, Knuffle Bunny, Knuffle Bunny Too- Mo Willems
Grandma Essie's Covered Wagon- Williams
A Chair for My Mother- Vera B. Williams
Abe Lincoln- The Boy Who Loved Books*- Winters
Scrabble Creek- Wittman
The Napping House*- Wood
Every Friday*- Yacccarino
Umbrella- Yashima
Daisy's Taxi- Young
Rapunzel- Zenlinsky
Sarah's Questions, A Coat for Anna- Ziefert
The Seashore Book, This Quiet Lady, A Father Like That- Zolotow
