Caldecott Books

Click here for a complete list of Caldecott Medalists and Honor Books, organized by year with ratings, FLAWS, and links to book reviews.

In 1921, Frederic G. Melcher suggested the introduction of a children's book award prize. Adults had their literary prizes, he argued. Why not kids? Are not children's books worthy of serious consideration and applause? he might have urged, standing before the august assembly of the American Library Association's Executive Board, right arm flung across his chest, Hendrik Willem van Loon's The Story of Mankind clutched tightly in his left hand. What about the children?

The persons associated with the aforementioned Board thought Melcher was right and the Newbery Medal was born, but 15 years later he realized he hadn't gone far enough. What about the illustrators of children's books? he thought, snoozing at his desk late one evening. The television was not yet on to keep him awake because there was not yet television. What about the illustrators? The thought plagued him, it got into his bones, and again he took his case before the magisterial Executive Board.

Yes, they agreed, the writers are duly recognized; let also the illustrators be touted and awarded for their efforts! And so it was, in A.D. 1937 that the Caldecott Award was conceived and brought forth, an award for the best children's picture book of the year, named for famed 19th-century British illustrator Randolph J. Caldecott. Books that deserved attention but failed to attain the rank of single very best picture book of the year were to be given honorable mention.

Melcher's heroic efforts were not for naught. The Caldecott Award has consistently gone to books with beautiful, engaging, and/or very fun illustrations, even in recent years. Of course, there are plenty of wonderful picture books that are on no Caldecott list, either as winners or honorably mentioned (to whom, no one is quite sure), and the award is only given to books written and published in the United States of America. But the flame of quality diversion for children continues to burn brightly, and we thank ol' Freddy for his indefatigable efforts, and for the kindness of the Board's acceptance of them.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.
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Caldecott Medal winners and Honor books
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79 Items found Print
Active Filters: Preschool (Ages 4-5), Hardcover
Adventures of Beekle
by Dan Santat
from Little, Brown & Company
2015 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.99
All Falling Down
by Gene Zion, illustrated by Margaret Bloy Graham
from HarperCollins
for Preschool-1st grade
1952 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
All the World
by Liz Garton Scanlon, illustrated by Marla Frazee
1st edition from Beach Lane Books
for Preschool-3rd grade
2010 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Alma and How She Got Her Name
by Juana Martine-Neal
from Candlewick Press
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Animals of the Bible
by Dorothy P. Lathrop, text selected by Helen Dean Fish
from HarperCollins
for Preschool-3rd grade
1938 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Ball for Daisy
by Chris Raschka
from Schwartz & Wade
for Preschool-2nd grade
2012 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Bear Came Along
by Richard T. Morris
from Little, Brown & Company
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Berry Song
by Michaela Goade
from Little, Brown & Company
for Preschool-2nd grade
2023 Caldecott Honor Book
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$18.99
Big Snow
by Berta & Elmer Hader
Reprint from Macmillan
for Preschool-2nd grade
1949 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Biggest Bear
by Lynd Ward
from Houghton Mifflin
Realistic Animal Stories for Preschool-1st grade
1953 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Black and White
by David Macaulay
from Houghton Mifflin
for Preschool-3rd grade
1991 Caldecott Medal winner
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$6.00 (2 in stock)
Bremen Town Musicians
by Ilse Plume retelling Brothers Grimm
Tra from Dragonfly Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
1981 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Child's Calendar
by John Updike
from Holiday House
for Preschool-2nd grade
2000 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Color Zoo
by Lois Ehlert
1st edition from HarperCollins
for Nursery-1st grade
1990 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Color Zoo
by Lois Ehlert
1st edition from HarperCollins
for Nursery-1st grade
1990 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Dick Whittington and His Cat
by Marcia Brown
from Atheneum
for Preschool-2nd grade
1951 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins
by Barbara Kerley
from Scholastic Inc.
for Preschool-3rd Grade
2002 Caldecott Honor Book, NCTE Orbis Pictus Honor Book
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$19.99
Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!
by Mo Willems
from Hyperion Press
for Preschool-3rd grade
2004 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Du Iz Tak?
by Carson Ellis
from Candlewick Press
2017 Caldecott Honor Medal
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Ella Sarah Gets Dressed
by Margaret Chodos-Irvine
1st edition from HMH Books for Young Readers
for Nursery-Kindergarten
2004 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Finding Winnie
by Lindsay Mattick
First Edition from Little, Brown & Company
for Nursery-2nd grade
2016 Caldecott Winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Flora and the Flamingo
by Molly Idle
from Chronicle Books
for Nursery-Kindergarten
2014 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Flora and the Peacocks
by Molly Idle
from Chronicle Books
for Nursery-Kindergarten
2014 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Flotsam
by David Wiesner
from Clarion Books
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
2007 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Garden of Abdul Gasazi
by Chris Van Allsburg
from Houghton Mifflin
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
1980 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Hello, Goodbye Window
by Norton Juster
1st edition from Hyperion/Madison Press
for Preschool- 2nd Grade
2006 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.99
Henry's Freedom Box
by Ellen Levine
from Scholastic Press
for Nursery-1st grade
2008 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Henry's Freedom Box
by Ellen Levine, Illustrated by Kadir Nelson
from Scholastic Press
for Nursery-1st grade
2008 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Hot Air
by Marjorie Priceman
from Atheneum
for Preschool-3rd grade
2006 Caldecott Honor Book
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
Hot Dog
by Doug Salati
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for Preschool-2nd grade
2023 Caldecott Medal Winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.99
House in the Night
by Susan Marie Swanson
from HMH Books for Young Readers
for Nursery-1st
2009 Caldecott Medal winner
in Board Books (Location: PIC-BOARD)
John Henry
by Julius Lester & Jerry Pinkney
from Dial Press
for Nursery-2nd grade
1995 Caldecott Honor book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Joseph Had a Little Overcoat
by Simms Taback
from Viking Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
2000 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Journey
Journey Trilogy #1
by Aaron Becker
1st edition from Candlewick Press
for Preschool-4th grade
2014 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Journey Cake, Ho!
by Ruth Sawyer, illustrated by Robert McCloskey
from Viking Press
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
1954 Caldecott Honor Book
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
$8.00 (3 in stock)
King Bidgood's in the Bathtub
by Audrey Wood & Don Wood
Reprint from Scholastic Inc.
for Nursery-1st grade
1986 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Knight Owl
by Christopher Denise
from Little, Brown & Company
for Preschool-2nd grade
2023 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Last Stop on Market Street
by Matt De La Pena
1st edition from G.P. Putnam's Sons
Realistic Fiction for Preschool-3rd grade
2016 Newbery Medal, 2016 Caldecott Honor Book, Coretta Scott King Honor 2016
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Leave Me Alone!
by Vera Brosgol
from Roaring Brook Press
2017 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Lion and the Mouse
by Jerry Pinkney
from Little, Brown & Company
for Nursery-1st
2010 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.99
Locomotive
by Brian Floca
1st edition from Atheneum
for Preschool-5th
2014 Caldecott Medal winner, 2014 Robert F. Sibert Honor Book
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$19.99
Marguerite de Angeli's Book of Nursery and Mother Goose Rhymes
by Marguerite de Angeli
from Doubleday & Company
for Nursery-2nd grade
1955 Caldecott Honor Book
in Mother Goose & Nursery Rhymes (Location: PIC-MG)
$9.00 (5 in stock)
May I Bring a Friend?
by Beatrice Schenk de Regniers
from Atheneum
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Mei Li
by Thomas Handforth
Reissue from Doubleday & Company
1939 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Mei Li
by Thomas Handforth
from Doubleday & Company
1939 Caldecott Medal winner
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
$15.00 (1 in stock)
Moses
by Carole Boston Weatherford
1st edition from Hyperion/Madison Press
for Preschool-3rd grade
2007 Caldecott Honor Book
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$18.99
Mr. Rabbit and the Lovely Present
by Charlotte Zolotow, illustrated by Maurice Sendak
from HarperCollins
for Preschool-3rd grade
1963 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Nana in the City
by Lauren Castillo
from Clarion Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
2015 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
No, David!
by David Shannon
from Scholastic Inc.
Word Books for Preschool-2nd grade
1999 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Noah's Ark
by Jerry Pinkney
from Chronicle Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
2003 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Noah's Ark
by Peter Spier
1st edition from Dell Publishing
Bible Stories for Preschool-2nd grade
1978 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Officer Buckle and Gloria
by Peggy Rathmann
1st edition from Putnam Juvenile
for Preschool-2nd grade
1996 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.99
Olivia
by Ian Falconer
from Atheneum
Animal Fantasy for Preschool-1st grade
2001 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.99 $9.00 (1 in stock)
Outside Over There
by Maurice Sendak
from HarperCollins
for Preschool-2nd grade
1982 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$22.99
Owen
by Kevin Henkes
1st edition from Greenwillow Books
for Preschool-1st grade
1994 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Owl Moon
by Jane Yolen; illustrated by John Schoenherr
from Philomel Books
for Preschool-3rd grade
1988 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Polar Express
by Chris Van Allsburg
02nd edition from Houghton Mifflin
for Preschool-2nd grade
1986 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.00
Polar Express
by Chris Van Allsburg
from Houghton Mifflin
for Preschool-2nd grade
1986 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.00
Puss in Boots
by Charles Perrault, translated and illustrated by Marcia Brown
from Atheneum
for Preschool-2nd grade
1953 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Rain Makes Applesauce
by Julian Scheer, illustrated by Marvin Bileck
from Holiday House
for Preschool-3rd grade
1965 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.99
Red Book
by Barbara Lehman
1st edition from HMH Books for Young Readers
for Preschool-1st grade
2005 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Sam & Dave Dig a Hole
by Mac Barnett
from Candlewick Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
2015 Caldecott Honor Book, E.B. White Read Aloud Award
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Seven Simeons
by Boris Artzybasheff
from Viking Press
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
1938 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Sick Day for Amos McGee
by Philip C. Stead
First Edition from Roaring Brook Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
2011 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Sleep Like a Tiger
by Mary Logue, illustrated by Pamela Zagarenski
from Houghton Mifflin
for Nursery-2nd grade
2013 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs
by Wanda Gag
from University of Minnesota
for Preschool-2nd grade
1939 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs
by Wanda Gag
from Smithmark Publishers
for Preschool-2nd grade
1939 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Talking Eggs
by Robert D. San Souci
First Edition from Dial Books for Young Readers
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
1990 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
The Judge
by Harve Zemach
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for Nursery-1st grade
1970 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly
by Simms Taback
Illustrated from Viking Press
for Nursery-2nd grade
1998 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.99
They All Saw a Cat
by Brendan Wenzel
from Chronicle Books
2017 Caldecott Honor book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.99
This Is Not My Hat
by Jon Klassen
First Edition from Candlewick Press
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
2013 Caldecott Medal winner, 2014 Kate Greenaway Medal
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Three Pigs
by David Wiesner
1st edition from Clarion Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
2002 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.99
Tops and Bottoms
by Janet Stevens
from Harcourt Children's Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
1996 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Tuesday
by David Wiesner
from Clarion Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
1992 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Ugly Duckling
by Hans Christian Andersen, Jerry Pinkney
First edition from HarperCollins
for Preschool-2nd grade
2000 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Watercress
by Andrea Wang, illustrated by Jason Chin
from Neal Porter
for Preschool-2nd grade
2022 Caldecott Medal
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.99
We Are Water Protectors
by Carole Lindstrom, illustrated by Michaela Goade
from Roaring Brook Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
2021 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Where the Buffaloes Begin
by Olaf Baker
from Dover Publications
for Preschool-2nd grade
1982 Caldecott Honor Book
in Native Americans (Location: HISA-19NAT)
$16.95