Special Collections
Top 100 Picture Books
Description: Chosen by the readers of School Library Journal as their favorite picture books of all time, we proudly present this collection of classic books to share with youngest readers. Each title has original pictures and image descriptions available. #kids
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Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
by Judith Viorst and Ray CruzAlexander knew it was going to be a terrible day when he woke up with gum in this hair. And it got worse... His best friend deserted him. There was no dessert in his lunch bag. And, on top of all that, there were lima beans for dinner and kissing on TV! Judith Viorst's classic picture book is sure to charm readers of all ages. Images and image descriptions available.
Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!
by Mo WillemsWhen a bus driver takes a break from his route, a very unlikely volunteer springs up to take his place-a pigeon! But you've never met one like this before. As he pleads, wheedles, and begs his way through the book, children will love being able to answer back and decide his fate. In his hilarious picture book debut, popular cartoonist Mo Willems perfectly captures a preschooler's temper tantrum. Images and image descriptions available.
Knuffle Bunny
by Mo WillemsTrixie, Daddy, and Knuffle Bunny take a trip to the neighborhood Laundromat. But the exciting adventure takes a dramatic turn when Trixie realizes somebunny was left behind. Using a combination of muted black-and-white photographs and expressive illustrations, this stunning book tells a brilliantly true-to-life tale about what happens when Daddy's in charge and things go terribly, hilariously wrong.
The Carrot Seed
by Ruth Krauss and Crockett JohnsonThis book teaches the patience and technique of planting a seed and helping it grow. First published in 1945 and never out of print, this timeless combination of Ruth Krauss's simple text and Crockett Johnson's eloquent illustrations creates a triumphant and deeply satisfying story for readers of all ages. When a little boy plants a carrot seed, everyone tells him it won't grow. But when you are very young, there are some things that you just know, and the little boy knows that one day a carrot will come up. So he waters his seed, and pulls the weeds, and he waits... Supports the Common Core State Standards
Where Is the Green Sheep?
by Mem Fox and Judy HoracekThere are red sheep and blue sheep, wind sheep and wave sheep, scared sheep and brave sheep, but where is the green sheep? The search is on in this cozy, sheep-filled story from acclaimed author Mem Fox and popular Australian cartoonist Judy Horacek. Complete with sleepy rhymes and bright illustrations, this book is sure to delight children of all ages, from the very young to those just beginning to read. Images and image descriptions available.
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs
by Judi Barrett and Ron BarrettLife is delicious in the town of Chewandswallow where it rains soup and juice, snows mashed potatoes, and blows storms of hamburgers--until the weather takes a turn for the worse. Images and image descriptions available.
Bear Snores On
by Karma Wilson and Jane ChapmanBear's cave fills with animal friends as he sleeps in this classic book from New York Times bestselling team of Karma Wilson and Jane Chapman. One by one, a whole host of different animals and birds find their way out of the cold and into Bear's cave to warm up. But even after the tea has been brewed and the corn has been popped, Bear just snores on! See what happens when he finally wakes up and finds his cave full of uninvited guests--all of them having a party without him! Images and image descriptions available.
The Mysteries of Harris Burdick
by Chris Van AllsburgAn inspired collection of short stories by an all-star cast of best-selling storytellers based on the thought-provoking illustrations in Chris Van Allsburg's The Mysteries of Harris Burdick. For more than twenty-five years, the illustrations in the extraordinary Mysteries of Harris Burdick by Chris Van Allsburg have intrigued and entertained readers of all ages. Thousands of children have been inspired to weave their own stories to go with these enigmatic pictures. Now we've asked some of our very best storytellers to spin the tales. Enter The Chronicles of Harris Burdick to gather this incredible compendium of stories: mysterious, funny, creepy, poignant, these are tales you won't soon forget. This inspired collection of short stories features many remarkable, best-selling authors in the worlds of both adult and children's literature: Sherman Alexie, M.T. Anderson, Kate DiCamillo, Cory Doctorow, Jules Feiffer, Stephen King, Tabitha King, Lois Lowry, Gregory Maguire, Walter Dean Myers, Linda Sue Park, Louis Sachar, Jon Scieszka, Lemony Snicket, and Chris Van Allsburg himself. Van Allsburg's Harris Burdick illustrations have evoked such wonderment and imagination since Harris Burdick's original publication in 1984; many have speculated or have woven their own stories to go with his images. More than ever, the illustrations send off their eerie call for text and continue to compel and pick at the reader's brain for a backstory--a threaded tale behind the image. In this book, we've collected some of the best storytellers to spin them. Images and image descriptions available.
The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear
by Audrey Wood and Don WoodThe Little Mouse and the Big Hungry Bear are known and loved by millions of children around the world. Little Mouse loves strawberries, but so does the bear... How will Little Mouse stop the bear from eating his freshly picked, red, ripe strawberry?
Grandfather's Journey
by Allen SayA picture book masterpiece from Caldecott medal winner Allen Say. Lyrical, breathtaking, splendid--words used to describe Allen Say's Grandfather's Journey when it was first published. At once deeply personal yet expressing universally held emotions, this tale of one man's love for two countries and his constant desire to be in both places captures readers' attention and hearts. Images and descriptions available.
Rhyming Dust Bunnies
by Jan ThomasThree dust bunnies, Ed, Ned, and Ted, rhyme all the time. They say that far, jar, and tar rhyme with car, but a fourth dust bunny, Bob, just does not seem to get it; he says, "Look!" When they try and teach him that rug, hug, and mug rhyme with bug, he says, "Look out!" Of course, the smug majority is wrong. Bob's warnings come true and when a broom and then a vacuum cleaner prove him right, the rhyming trio ask Bob what rhymes with "How do we get out?"
With thick black lines and neon colors, the dust creatures on the bright colored pages look like the huge monsters that they think they are--until the big, powerful human tools take over. Preschoolers will recognize how it feels to be just a mite in a grown-up world, and they will enjoy the playful rhymes and simple wordplay as much as the bold scenarios of the tiniest creatures in danger from giants, and one hero who sees it coming.
But Not the Hippopotamus
by Sandra BoyntonA shy hippo is hesitant to join in the fun that the other animals are having. But little by little, she finds her courage. A fine and funny book, with over two million copies in print, But Not the Hippopotamus is a classic favorite anytime book for little kids and their parents. Images and image descriptions available.
A Sick Day for Amos McGee
by Philip C. Stead and Erin E. SteadTHE BEST SICK DAY EVER and the animals in the zoo feature in this striking picture book debut. Friends come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. In Amos McGee's case, all sorts of species, too! Every day he spends a little bit of time with each of his friends at the zoo, running races with the tortoise, keeping the shy penguin company, and even reading bedtime stories to the owl. But when Amos is too sick to make it to the zoo, his animal friends decide it's time they returned the favor A Sick Day for Amos McGee is a 2011 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year and the winner of the 2011 Caldecott Medal. Images and image descriptions available.
The Snowy Day
by Ezra Jack KeatsNo book has captured the magic and sense of possibility of the first snowfall better than The Snowy Day. Universal in its appeal, the story has become a favorite of millions, as it reveals a child's wonder at a new world, and the hope of capturing and keeping that wonder forever. Images and image descriptions available.
Go Away, Big Green Monster
by Ed EmberleyCaldecott Award-winning author-artist Ed Emberley has created an ingenious way for children to chase away their nighttime fears. Kids can go through the pages of this die-cut book and watch the Big Green Monster grow. Then, when they're ready to show him who's in charge, they'll go through the remaining pages and watch him disappear! Images and image descriptions available.
Caps for Sale
by Esphyr SlobodkinaCaps for Sale is a timeless classic, in print for over fifty years, and beloved by generations of readers. This easy-to-read story about a peddler and a band of mischievous monkeys is filled with warmth, humor, and simplicity. Children will delight in following the peddlers efforts to outwit the monkeys in this new, enlarged, and redesigned edition, and will ask to read it again and again.
The Story of Ferdinand
by Munro Leaf and Robert LawsonFerdinand is the world's most peaceful--and--beloved little bull. While all of the other bulls snort, leap, and butt their heads, Ferdinand is content to just sit and smell the flowers under his favorite cork tree. Leaf's simple storytelling paired with Lawson's pen-and-ink drawings make "The Story of Ferdinand" a true classic.
The Tale of Peter Rabbit
by Beatrix PotterThe story of a naughty young rabbit who decides to disobey his mother by trespassing into Mr. McGregor's garden. Images and image descriptions available.
There Is a Bird on Your Head!
by Mo WillemsGerald and Piggie are best friends. In There Is a Bird On Your Head!, Gerald discovers that there is something worse than a bird on your head--two birds on your head! Can Piggie help her best friend?
Winner of the Theodore Seuss Geisel Medal
The Three Pigs
by David WiesnerThis Caldecott Medal-winning picture book begins placidly (and familiarly) enough, with three pigs collecting materials and going off to build houses of straw, sticks, and bricks. But the wolf's huffing and puffing blows the first pig right out of the story... and into the realm of pure imagination. The transition signals the start of a freewheeling adventure with characteristic David Wiesner effects--cinematic flow, astonishing shifts of perspective, and sly humor, as well as episodes of flight.
Satisfying both as a story and as an exploration of the nature of story, The Three Pigs takes visual narrative to a new level. Dialogue balloons, text excerpts, and a wide variety of illustration styles guide the reader through a dazzling fantasy universe to the surprising and happy ending.
The Mitten
by Jan BrettA bestselling modern classic that has been a family favorite for over 25 years.
When Nicki drops his white mitten in the snow, he goes on without realizing that it is missing.
One by one, woodland animals find it and crawl in; first, a curious mole, then a rabbit, a badger and others, each one larger than the last. Finally, a big brown bear is followed in by a tiny brown mouse and what happens next makes for a wonderfully funny climax.
In her distinctive style, Jan Brett brings the animals to life with warmth and humor, and her illustrations are full of visual delights and details faithful to the Ukrainian tradition from which the story comes.
The Little House
by Virginia Lee BurtonVirginia Lee Burton won the Caldecott Medal in 1943 for her memorable picture book The Little House, a poignant story of a cute country cottage that becomes engulfed by the city that grows up around it. The house has an expressive face of windows and doors, and even the feelings of a person, so she's sad when she's surrounded by the dirty, noisy city's hustle and bustle: "She missed the field of daisies / and the apple trees dancing in the moonlight. " Fortunately, there's a happy ending, as the house is taken back to the country where she belongs. A classic!
The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales
by Lane Smith and Jon ScieszkaA revisionist storyteller provides his mad, hilarious versions of children's favorite tales in this collection that includes Little Red Running Shorts, The Princess and the Bowling Ball, Cinderumpelstilskin, and others.
Madeline's Rescue
by Ludwig BemelmansNothing frightens Madeline—not tigers, not even mice. With its endearing, courageous heroine, cheerful humor, and wonderful, whimsical drawings of Paris, the Madeline stories are true classics that continue to charm readers even after 75 years!
When Madeline falls into the river Seine and nearly drowns, a courageous canine comes to her rescue. Now Genevieve the dog is Madeline's cherished pet, and the envy of all the other girls. What can be done when there's just not enough hound to go around?
Thank You Mr. Falker
by Patricia PolaccoThe real-life, classic story of a dyslexic girl and the teacher who would not let her fail. A perfect gift for teachers and for reading students of any age.
Patricia Polacco is now one of America's most loved children's book creators, but once upon a time, she was a little girl named Trisha starting school. Trisha could paint and draw beautifully, but when she looked at words on a page, all she could see was jumble. It took a very special teacher to recognize little Trisha's dyslexia: Mr. Falker, who encouraged her to overcome her reading disability. Patricia Polacco will never forget him, and neither will we.