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Picture Books

Once upon a time.... may be the oldest trick in the writer's bag, but we still fall for it—especially if it's accompanied by pictures. There's a sense in which all picture books are fairy tales (even the ones that take place in New York City or a log cabin) simply because they're able to transport us in a way words alone can't. We become part of the story viscerally, sensing the subtleties of mood and place and texture.

Not all picture books are created equal, of course. We don't go in for VeggieTales, or Disney, or Sesame Street (etc. etc.), preferring the more classic style (like Caldecott winners) and newer ones that are more artistic (as opposed to merely visual). The only thing a second-rate illustration can do is make you mourn the preeminence of Saturday morning cartoons, whereas a good one has the capacity to take you inside.

We're not trying to be snobs about this, but if we offer our children picture books to read and look at, we want them to be of the highest quality. We want the text to be excellently written, the plot well-crafted, the illustrations rich and vibrant. There's a very real sense in which a child's imagination is formed by the things he or she sees as a small human, and if they only get to look at poor drawings there's a pretty good chance their creative powers will end up severely limited.

If you've encountered the illustrations of Trina Schart Hyman, Robert McCloskey, Maurice Sendak, or Michael Morpurgo, you'll know what we're talking about. Good picture books have a way of showing us things we've always seen or imagined a little differently, tilting the canvas of the familiar to make it seem a little less so, more wild, more mysterious, more real.

Which is precisely why they're such a great way to introduce kids to reading. They don't have to know what the words say to get the gist of the story, yet when they do begin to learn what the words say, it's easier for them to grasp the meaning since they're already familiar with the basic premise. Many kids have learned to read this way, and we suspect many more will do so in the future.

That is, if they have access to quality picture books at a young age. We like them proliferating throughout the house like small landforms, squeezing out of bookcases, turning up beneath the couch and on top of dressers. Just remember—they aren't only for children. In fact, adults often need them more, to connect with their progeny, to recapture a sense of youth, or simply to rest when words stop making sense and only pictures are able to communicate.

When we say "picture book," there are a couple of things we aren't talking about: first, illustrated fiction. A great book, primarily text with illustrations here and there, are not the same as picture books, which focus on the artwork. Second, we don't include here non-fiction. There are lots of excellent science, math, biographical, and other types of picture books—we have plenty—but they are in separate sections (see below).

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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Picture Books
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61 Items found Print
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Active Filters: 3rd grade (Ages 8-9), Perfectbound, Used Books & Materials
Alvin Ailey
by Andrea Davis Pinkney; illustrated by Brian Pinkney
from Hyperion Books for Children
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Ancient Egyptians
History Opens Windows
by Jane Shuter
Revised and Updated from Heinemann-Raintree
for 1st-3rd grade
in Ancient Egypt (Location: HISW-ANEG)
$4.00 (2 in stock)
Back Home
by Gloria Jean Pinkney, illustrated by Jerry Pinkney
from Puffin Books
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Bald Eagle
by Gordon Morrison
from Walter Lorraine Books
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Birds (Location: SCI-BIRD)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Barefoot Book of Buddhist Tales
by Sherab Chodzin & Alexandra Kohn (retellers), illustrated by Marie Cameron
from Barefoot Books
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Bedtime for Francis
by Russell Hoban, illustrated by Garth Williams
from Scholastic Inc.
for 1st-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Birdie's Lighthouse
by Deborah Hopkinson, illustrated by Kimberly Root
2000 Paperback from Aladdin Paperbacks
for 1st-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Blueberries for Sal
by Robert McCloskey
from Puffin Books
Realistic Stories for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1949 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$9.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Buffalo Bird Girl
by S. D. Nelson
from Abrams Books for Young Readers
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$9.95 $6.00 (4 in stock)
Coral Reefs
by Jason Chin
from Square Fish Publishing
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Oceanography & Marine Biology (Location: SCI-OCEAN)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Dave's Down-to-Earth Rock Shop
MathStart Series Level 3
by Stuart J. Murphy, Illustrated by Cat Bowman Smith
from HarperTrophy
for 2nd-4th grade
in Math Picture Books (Location: MATR-PIC)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Do You Really Want to Meet a Weasel?
by Cari Meister, illustrated by Daniele Fabbri
from Amicus Ink
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Mammals (Location: SCI-MAM)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Extraordinary Mark Twain (According to Susy)
by Barbara Kerley, illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham
from Scholastic Inc.
for 1st-4th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Fossils Tell of Long Ago
Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science Stage 2
by Aliki
Revised from HarperCollins
for 2nd-3rd grade
in Dinosaurs & Fossils (Location: SCI-DINO)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Fun with Roman Numerals
by David A. Adler, illustrated by Edward Miller III
from Holiday House
for 1st-4th grade
in Math Picture Books (Location: MATR-PIC)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Girl Who Thought in Pictures
by Julia Finley Mosca, illustrated by Daniel Rieley
from The Innovation Press
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Go, Fractions!
by Judith Bauer Stamper, illustrated by Chris Demarest
from Houghton Mifflin
for 2nd-4th grade
in Math Picture Books (Location: MATR-PIC)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Grapes of Math
by Gregory Tang
from Scholastic Inc.
for 2nd-4th grade
in Math Picture Books (Location: MATR-PIC)
$4.00 (3 in stock)
Growing Frogs
by Vivian French, illustrated by Alison Bartlett
from Candlewick Press
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Reptiles & Amphibians (Location: SCI-REPT)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
If I Were In Charge of the World and Other Worries
by Judith Viorst, illustrated by Lynne Cherry
from Aladdin Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Poetry for Children (Location: POET-CHIL)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
If You Grew Up With George Washington
If You Were There
by Ruth Belov Gross
from Scholastic Inc.
for 2nd-5th grade
in Colonial America (1690-1765) (Location: HISA-17COL)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
If You Were a Kid in a Medieval Castle
by Josh Gregory, illustrated by Sebastian Gomez
from Scholastic Inc.
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Middle Ages (Location: HISW-MID)
$4.00 (2 in stock)
If You Were a Kid in the Thirteen Colonies
by Wil Mara, illustrated by Lluis Farre
from Scholastic Inc.
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Colonial America (1690-1765) (Location: HISA-17COL)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Jane on Her Own
A Catwings Tale Book 4
by Ursula K. Le Guin
from Orchard Books
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
King Who Rained
by Fred Gwynne
from Prentice Hall
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Little Polar Bear, Take Me Home!
by Hans de Beer
from Scholastic Inc.
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Louisa May Alcott: Her Girlhood Diary
by Louisa May Alcott
from Troll Medallion
for 2nd-5th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Mars Exploration 1960-2016
by Megan Noel
from The Good and the Beautiful
for 2nd-3rd grade
in Space Race & Exploration (Location: HISA-20SPR)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Millions to Measure
by David M. Schwartz
from HarperTrophy
for Kindergarten-6th grade
in Math Picture Books (Location: MATR-PIC)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Nativity
by Julie Vivas
from Voyager Books
for Preschool-4th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Paul and the Wolf
by Margo Lemieux, Illustrated by Bill Nelson
from Silver Press
for 1st-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Picture Book of Florence Nightingale
by David A. Adler, illustrated by John & Alexandra Wallner
Repackaged from Holiday House
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Poetry for Young People: Walt Whitman
Poetry for Young People
by Walt Whitman, edited by Jonathan Levin, illustrated by Jim Burke
from Sterling Publishing Co.
in Poetry for Children (Location: POET-CHIL)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Probably Pistachio
MathStart Series Level 2
by Stuart J. Murphy, Illustrated by Marsha Winborn
from HarperTrophy
for 1st-3rd grade
in Math Picture Books (Location: MATR-PIC)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Queen of Hearts
by John Peterson
from Merrimack Publishing Corp.
for 3rd-4th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Riding on a Caravan
by Laurie Krebs, illustrated by Helen Cann
from Barefoot Books
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Rikki-Tikki-Tavi
by Rudyard Kipling, adapted and illustrated by Jerry Pinkney
2004 Paperback from HarperTrophy
Realistic Animal Stories for 2nd-4th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Rosa
by Nikki Giovanni, illustrated by Bryan Collier
from Scholastic Inc.
for 1st-4th grade
2006 Caldecott Honor Book
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Roy Lichtenstein
Getting to Know the World's Greatest Artists
by Mike Venezia
from Children's Press
Picture Book Biography for 3rd-5th grade
in Artists & Illustrators (Location: ELE-ARTISTS)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Salmon's Journey and More Northwest Coast Stories
by Robert James Challenger
from Heritage House Publishing Company
for 1st-5th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Shark Swimathon
MathStart Series Level 3
by Stuart J. Murphy, Illustrated by Lynne Cravath
from Scholastic Inc.
for 2nd-4th grade
in Math Picture Books (Location: MATR-PIC)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
Shine-A-Light: Secrets of the Apple Tree
Shine-A-Light
by Carron Brown and Illustrated by Alyssa Nassner
from Quarto Knows
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Botany & Mycology (Location: SCI-BOT)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Smash!
by Mark Weakland, illustrated by Christian Cornia
from Capstone Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Physics (Location: SCI-PHY)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Snowflake Bentley
by Jacqueline Briggs Martin
from Houghton Mifflin
Biographies of Scientists and Inventors for 1st-3rd grade
1999 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Story of the Spirit of St. Louis
Cornerstones of Freedom
by R. Conrad Stein
from Children's Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Cornerstones of Freedom (Location: VIN-CORN)
$2.50 (1 in stock)
Sunshine Makes the Seasons
Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science Stage 2
by Franklyn M. Branley, illustrated by Michael Rex
from HarperCollins
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Meteorology (Weather & Climate) (Location: SCI-WEA)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Sylvester and the Magic Pebble
by William Steig
from Simon and Schuster
Animal Fantasy for Kindergarten-3rd grade
1970 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99 $5.00 (4 in stock)
Tea With Milk
by Allen Say
from Houghton Mifflin
for 1st-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
The Minpins
by Roald Dahl, illustrated by Patrick Benson
from Trumpet Club
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$3.00 (1 in stock)
The Ultimate Alphabet
by Mike Wilks
from Henry Holt and Company
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Alphabet & Counting Books (Location: PIC-ALPH)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Thud!
by Mark Weakland, illustrated by Christian Cornia
from Capstone Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Physics (Location: SCI-PHY)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Tom
by Tomie dePaola
from Scholastic Inc.
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Turn of the Century
by Ellen B Jackson
2003 paperback from Charlesbridge
for 3rd-6th grade
in Everyday Life in History (Location: HISV-EVERY)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Velveteen Rabbit
by Margery Williams
from Dragonfly Books
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Waiting for the Evening Star
by Rosemary Wells, illustrated by Susan Jeffers
from Puffin Books
for 1st-3rd grade
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Weather Clues in the Sky: Clouds
Bel the Weather Girl
by Belinda Jensen, Illustrated by Renee Kurilla
from Millbrook Press
for 1st-3rd grade
in Meteorology (Weather & Climate) (Location: SCI-WEA)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
When Washington Crossed the Delaware
by Lynne Cheney
from Simon & Schuster Macmillan
for Preschool-3rd grade
in American Revolution (1765-1783) (Location: HISA-18REV)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Where the Poppies Now Grow
by Hilary Robinson, illustrated by Martin Impey
from Strauss House
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Whoosh!
by Mark Weakland, illustrated by Alan Brown
from Capstone Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Physics (Location: SCI-PHY)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
You Read to Me, I'll Read to You (Fairy Tales)
by Mary Ann Hoberman, Illustrated by Michael Emberley
from Scholastic Inc.
for 1st-3rd grade
in Picture Book Treasuries (Location: PIC-TRE)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Zoom!
by Mark Weakland, illustrated by Paco Sordo
from Capstone Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Physics (Location: SCI-PHY)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
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