I will base it on age 4-6ish as well, my 7 yo has added a lot of new graphic novels this year but I think I can be more accurate if I look back at his kindergarten year when he was still being read to the majority of the time.
Go Dog Go! is one of ours- we spent a year quoting “Do you like my hat? I do not! Goodbye! goodbye!”
Are You my Mother is another P.D. Eastman that’s up there!
Love the World by Todd Parr
The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt
I Love You to the Moon and Back by Amelia Hepworth
On the Night You Were Born by Nancy Tillman
The Rabbit Listened by Cori Doerrfeld
How Do Dinosaurs Play with their Friends by Jane Yolen
Llama, Llama Red Pajama by Anna Dewdney
No David and It’s Christmas David by David Shannon- they were both very popular with my kids when they were learning first words and the last page of No David when he hugs his mom, my oldest at 2ish would say he sleeping, Mommy hug, Mommy love. But we read this one like 2 nights ago to my 5 yo so it’s still a good crowd pleaser!
I saw Old Mother Hubbard by the Provensens-it is identical to the one you have-at the used bookstore and on instinct tossed it on my pile. Over the years my instincts have gotten quite good! We hadn't read it yet but will tonight on your strong recommendation:)
I love that book! Not least because it depicts some very old-fashioned professions -- and the words that go with them. My youngest still loves it, even now at almost 8. Good books just have that lasting appeal.
Baby goes to market, doctor desoto, tasty baby belly buttons (that we found out about from you!) and Jamberry are all major re-read favorites in our house. Some others (see how I bought myself more space in my list of ten? 😆) include the Journey series by Aaron Becker, shh we have a plan by Chris Haughton, Pete’s a pizza by William Steig, Saturday (and Thank you Omu!) by Oge Mora, Nannette’s baguette by Mo Willems, Something from Nothing by Phoebe Gilman, Mystery on the Docks by Thacher Hurd, Heckedy Peg by Audrey Wood, Fin M’Coul by Tomie DePaola, and Daisy comes home by Jan Brett. Some of those I know we heard about from you Sarah (definitely something from nothing and mystery on the docks!). What a fun prompt!
Isn’t the Journey series so cool? We don’t have it but we’ve checked it out and we love them! Also Shh and Thank You, Omu. What a great list. Aaaaand Jamberry! We’ve read it one thousand times
Oh my goodness, I know a Sophie (who does get really, really angry) and I just saw Molly Bang has a few more in that vein. Totally snatching some of those up for my best friend, who has a daughter with Big Feelings <3
My kids really gravitated towards books that are wildly like who they are NOW as teenagers, which is so interesting.
My son's favorite book we read over and over was BOOM Bah! A musical adventure with a LOUD orchestra parade of animals. He's now a phenomenal musican (piano, violin, learning drums and guitar) and loves FAST music and LOUD music.
Another one he always chose was "Rugby and Rosie" - a story about a family training a puppy to be a service dog. It's no wonder that our own family pet finds his bed every night to sleep <3
My daughter's favorite book was "Kitten's First Full Moon", which is quiet, sweet, a little bit scary with a lovely ending. She has always loved cats, and is a pretty quiet and gentle soul. She also loved Ponyella (think Cinderella, but horses), and she now volunteers many hours at a horse farm each week.
That was fun to reflect on - I don't know that I've ever made that connection before.
There's lots here I've never heard of, so I'm off to put some on hold...
You know what book could have easily made this list, but I had to cut it off somewhere (even when I wrote this, years ago?) Miss Maple's Seeds. My husband's all-time favorite picture book to read to/with our children. It's beloved in our house, and one I will never part with 💛
Bee Bim Bop! We don’t read it because we don’t own it but we love it! I was also so impressed with Mrs Biddlebox. Reread books from our shelf? I feel like my kids and me have different tastes and I usually let them lead the way which means I read a lot of The Pout Pour Fish & Little Blue Truck. lol. Some that are favs with both the littles and the bigs: All the World, Kitten’s First Full Moon, Simple Pictures are Best, Hogwash, Oh,no!, and Crabcake….uh oh, now I’m looking at our bookshelf and I want to read them all!!!! lol like ALL of these are good! Except that adaptation of the movie Cars…skip it 😜 😂
I have definitely read The Little Blue Truck 3245908 times, so you're not alone there (also worth saying, I love that book). Lots of great ones on your list!
Hahah omg we had the CARS COMIC TREASURY checked out from the library for so long. And he kept going back for it. I stand by my “let them choose” but whew, I was glad when that phase ended!
I have loved reading everyone's lists! Thanks for this post. My kids are grown and I have two-year-old grandson, here are ten that have risen to the top again after all those years, plus a few more recently published:
Come Along Daisy (Jane Simmons)
Wolf's Chicken Stew (Keiko Kasza)
All the World (Liz Garton Scanlon/Marla Frazee)
Tacky the Penguin (Helen Lester/Lynn Munsinger, a dream team)
The Three Bears (Byron Barton)
Let's Go Visiting and I Went Walking (Sue Williams/Julie Vivas, such a dream team)
A Ball for Daisy (Chris Raschka)
Grandfather Twilight (Barbara Berger)
The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear (Don Wood)
I Want My Teddy (Jez Alborough)-I still chant his perfectly rhymed lines, "Help," said Eddie, "I'm scared already. I want my bed. I WANT MY TEDDY!"
I have so much nostalgia for those books that we have re-read and really enjoy reading everyone's lists. We have read and re-read all of the Chirri & Chirra books on repeat, and for Claire it was all of the dinosaur books all the time. The Brownstone's Mythical Collection books are all regularly requested (by both girls) and the Seven Silly Eaters.
Blythe had LittlePeople "What Do People Do" and she was OBSESSED when she was 1-2 years old. We finally hid it because her nanny and I couldn't take reading it anymore.
I love A MOTHER FOR CHOCO! I need to think about our list. My 3 yr old really loves the novelty of new books from the library but I know we also have a ton of rereads.
We live in Vietnam so while we have a few American kids books (Llama Llama and Grumpy Monkey) most of the ones my kids request the most are Korean or Japan translated kids books (there are surprisingly few native Vietnamese childrens books, especially at the toddler end of the spectrum) that no one here has probably ever heard of. Their favorite one is a series on how to behave. Like to take off your shoes when you get to school, bow to the teacher, etc. I have no idea why they like it so much!
That's actually been my biggest takeaway from buying kid's books is that so far at least (they are 3.5) it is completely impossible for me to predict what they will and won't like. The lack of public libraries here hurts because you buy a book without really knowing whether they will like it or it will just gather dust for a few years until you get rid of it.
I think very young children gravitate to the "how to behave / what to do" books because they genuinely don't know, the world is still so new, and life is interesting. That's why there's such a big market for concept books -- they're enjoyable for that age group.
Sounds like maybe you need to write a native Vietnamese children's book for toddlers... 😉
The problem is there is no market for it. I don't think I've ever seen a Vietnamese board book. (Too expensive to print.) Most books are $2-3. And even then I don't personally know anyobe other than foreigner friends who has ever bought a book for their kids. (Presumably someone is buying the books I see but no one in my neighbourhood or at preschool.) Reading is a very very low priority thing here. However rare reading in America is, it is probably 10x less common here.
I will base it on age 4-6ish as well, my 7 yo has added a lot of new graphic novels this year but I think I can be more accurate if I look back at his kindergarten year when he was still being read to the majority of the time.
Go Dog Go! is one of ours- we spent a year quoting “Do you like my hat? I do not! Goodbye! goodbye!”
Are You my Mother is another P.D. Eastman that’s up there!
Love the World by Todd Parr
The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt
I Love You to the Moon and Back by Amelia Hepworth
On the Night You Were Born by Nancy Tillman
The Rabbit Listened by Cori Doerrfeld
How Do Dinosaurs Play with their Friends by Jane Yolen
Llama, Llama Red Pajama by Anna Dewdney
No David and It’s Christmas David by David Shannon- they were both very popular with my kids when they were learning first words and the last page of No David when he hugs his mom, my oldest at 2ish would say he sleeping, Mommy hug, Mommy love. But we read this one like 2 nights ago to my 5 yo so it’s still a good crowd pleaser!
A great list! Thanks for sharing, Elizabeth.
(During our Go Do Go! phase, I spent so much time telling my children, WHO CARES IF HE LIKES HER HAT?! DOES *SHE* LIKE HER *OWN* HAT?! 😂😂
I saw Old Mother Hubbard by the Provensens-it is identical to the one you have-at the used bookstore and on instinct tossed it on my pile. Over the years my instincts have gotten quite good! We hadn't read it yet but will tonight on your strong recommendation:)
I love that book! Not least because it depicts some very old-fashioned professions -- and the words that go with them. My youngest still loves it, even now at almost 8. Good books just have that lasting appeal.
Dr. De Soto was up there for us too!
A classic -- I loved it deeply when I was a kid and my kids feel the same. One of those small, unexpected joys of reading aloud.
Looove FEAST FOR 10!!
Truly a 10/10, absolutely perfect book in every way.
Everything in your list is new for us and there are so many treats in there that I'm looking forward to trying!
So difficult to narrow it down to 10 but based on sheer numbers of reads/requests ours is:
What we'll build by Oliver Jeffers
Coco tout nu by Dorothée de Monfried (French)
Are you a cow? by Sandra Boynton
Under the sea by Fiona Patchett (non-fiction)
Miffy's garden by Dick Bruna
Barbara Throws a Wobbler by Nadia Shireen
Robot Rumpus by Sean Taylor and Ross Collin
Goodnight Veggies by Diana Murray
Le théâtre de Barbapapa by Annette Tison and Talus Taylor (French)
Shhh! We have a plan by Chris Haughton
Wow, I love that you've never heard of any of these! Thanks for sharing your list -- a lot of these are new to me, too.
Baby goes to market, doctor desoto, tasty baby belly buttons (that we found out about from you!) and Jamberry are all major re-read favorites in our house. Some others (see how I bought myself more space in my list of ten? 😆) include the Journey series by Aaron Becker, shh we have a plan by Chris Haughton, Pete’s a pizza by William Steig, Saturday (and Thank you Omu!) by Oge Mora, Nannette’s baguette by Mo Willems, Something from Nothing by Phoebe Gilman, Mystery on the Docks by Thacher Hurd, Heckedy Peg by Audrey Wood, Fin M’Coul by Tomie DePaola, and Daisy comes home by Jan Brett. Some of those I know we heard about from you Sarah (definitely something from nothing and mystery on the docks!). What a fun prompt!
Yesssssssssssss 🙌
It makes me so happy that you heard of some of them from me -- makes my day!
Oh my goodness 💯. So many favorites thanks to Can we read? (!)
Isn’t the Journey series so cool? We don’t have it but we’ve checked it out and we love them! Also Shh and Thank You, Omu. What a great list. Aaaaand Jamberry! We’ve read it one thousand times
Ok I need to check out Feast for 10. And all the others on this list! I'm appalled at myself for how many I've not heard of, and I gotta fix that!
You've got some fun reading ahead.
Oh my goodness, I know a Sophie (who does get really, really angry) and I just saw Molly Bang has a few more in that vein. Totally snatching some of those up for my best friend, who has a daughter with Big Feelings <3
My kids really gravitated towards books that are wildly like who they are NOW as teenagers, which is so interesting.
My son's favorite book we read over and over was BOOM Bah! A musical adventure with a LOUD orchestra parade of animals. He's now a phenomenal musican (piano, violin, learning drums and guitar) and loves FAST music and LOUD music.
Another one he always chose was "Rugby and Rosie" - a story about a family training a puppy to be a service dog. It's no wonder that our own family pet finds his bed every night to sleep <3
My daughter's favorite book was "Kitten's First Full Moon", which is quiet, sweet, a little bit scary with a lovely ending. She has always loved cats, and is a pretty quiet and gentle soul. She also loved Ponyella (think Cinderella, but horses), and she now volunteers many hours at a horse farm each week.
That was fun to reflect on - I don't know that I've ever made that connection before.
There's lots here I've never heard of, so I'm off to put some on hold...
I love hearing about when gravitations as children pan out into adulthood, it’s so neat. Your kids are were uniquely themselves and still are!
Oh, I love that connection -- isn't it interesting how the books we choose reflect who we are?
These lists are super fun to hear as a children’s book maker!
You know what book could have easily made this list, but I had to cut it off somewhere (even when I wrote this, years ago?) Miss Maple's Seeds. My husband's all-time favorite picture book to read to/with our children. It's beloved in our house, and one I will never part with 💛
Awww, Sarah, that's so lovely to know. I'm always hoping to appeal to both the adult and child reader. 💖
We've got a 2.8 year old so it varies but we've read Goodnight Moon every night since day 3 of his life, so that certainly tops the list.
Right now our favorites are:
Space Case by Edward and James Marshall
Quick as a Cricket by Audrey Wood
A, B, C, D, Tummy, Toes, Hands, and Knees by B. G. Hennessy
The Library by Sarah Stewart
Sharing the Bread by Pat Zietlow Miller
Dragons Love Tacos by Adam Rubin
Dragon Shirt/Bunny Money/Yoko by Rosemary Wells
ISpy books
Richard Scary's Best First Book Ever
Sharing the Bread is so gorgeous, I never get tired of it. And Quick as a Cricket it so great for that age! Thanks for sharing your list.
Bee Bim Bop! We don’t read it because we don’t own it but we love it! I was also so impressed with Mrs Biddlebox. Reread books from our shelf? I feel like my kids and me have different tastes and I usually let them lead the way which means I read a lot of The Pout Pour Fish & Little Blue Truck. lol. Some that are favs with both the littles and the bigs: All the World, Kitten’s First Full Moon, Simple Pictures are Best, Hogwash, Oh,no!, and Crabcake….uh oh, now I’m looking at our bookshelf and I want to read them all!!!! lol like ALL of these are good! Except that adaptation of the movie Cars…skip it 😜 😂
I have definitely read The Little Blue Truck 3245908 times, so you're not alone there (also worth saying, I love that book). Lots of great ones on your list!
I do love Little Blue Truck! And his Springtime is so fun too. Tbh I also love the movie cars…even if I don’t love reading book adaptations of movies.
Hahah omg we had the CARS COMIC TREASURY checked out from the library for so long. And he kept going back for it. I stand by my “let them choose” but whew, I was glad when that phase ended!
Right? The perks of library books! lol BYEEEEEEE
I have loved reading everyone's lists! Thanks for this post. My kids are grown and I have two-year-old grandson, here are ten that have risen to the top again after all those years, plus a few more recently published:
Come Along Daisy (Jane Simmons)
Wolf's Chicken Stew (Keiko Kasza)
All the World (Liz Garton Scanlon/Marla Frazee)
Tacky the Penguin (Helen Lester/Lynn Munsinger, a dream team)
The Three Bears (Byron Barton)
Let's Go Visiting and I Went Walking (Sue Williams/Julie Vivas, such a dream team)
A Ball for Daisy (Chris Raschka)
Grandfather Twilight (Barbara Berger)
The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear (Don Wood)
I Want My Teddy (Jez Alborough)-I still chant his perfectly rhymed lines, "Help," said Eddie, "I'm scared already. I want my bed. I WANT MY TEDDY!"
So many gems here!
This is so fun! I love seeing everyone’s!
Currently (12mo and 4yrs):
1. WE FOUND A HAT
2. JAMBERRY (the word for me to randomly call out: RAZAMATAZZZZBERRY!)
3. STREGA NONA
4. THE WILD ROBOT (just random chapters bc we’ve memorized the whole thing)
5. DORY FANTASMAGORY (see above; usually TINY TOUGH bc of Tubtown and George’s volcano pajamas)
6. Any SPOT book
7. GOODNIGHT MOON
8. LITTLE BLUE TRUCK LEADS THE WAY
9. MIGHTY MIGHTY CONSTRUCTION SITE
10. THE POUT POUT FISH
RAZAMATAZZZZBERRY! 🍓🫐😂
I have so much nostalgia for those books that we have re-read and really enjoy reading everyone's lists. We have read and re-read all of the Chirri & Chirra books on repeat, and for Claire it was all of the dinosaur books all the time. The Brownstone's Mythical Collection books are all regularly requested (by both girls) and the Seven Silly Eaters.
Blythe had LittlePeople "What Do People Do" and she was OBSESSED when she was 1-2 years old. We finally hid it because her nanny and I couldn't take reading it anymore.
I love A MOTHER FOR CHOCO! I need to think about our list. My 3 yr old really loves the novelty of new books from the library but I know we also have a ton of rereads.
We live in Vietnam so while we have a few American kids books (Llama Llama and Grumpy Monkey) most of the ones my kids request the most are Korean or Japan translated kids books (there are surprisingly few native Vietnamese childrens books, especially at the toddler end of the spectrum) that no one here has probably ever heard of. Their favorite one is a series on how to behave. Like to take off your shoes when you get to school, bow to the teacher, etc. I have no idea why they like it so much!
That's actually been my biggest takeaway from buying kid's books is that so far at least (they are 3.5) it is completely impossible for me to predict what they will and won't like. The lack of public libraries here hurts because you buy a book without really knowing whether they will like it or it will just gather dust for a few years until you get rid of it.
I think very young children gravitate to the "how to behave / what to do" books because they genuinely don't know, the world is still so new, and life is interesting. That's why there's such a big market for concept books -- they're enjoyable for that age group.
Sounds like maybe you need to write a native Vietnamese children's book for toddlers... 😉
The problem is there is no market for it. I don't think I've ever seen a Vietnamese board book. (Too expensive to print.) Most books are $2-3. And even then I don't personally know anyobe other than foreigner friends who has ever bought a book for their kids. (Presumably someone is buying the books I see but no one in my neighbourhood or at preschool.) Reading is a very very low priority thing here. However rare reading in America is, it is probably 10x less common here.
This is fascinating. Do you have any insight into why that might be? All of it, I mean.