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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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64 Items found Print
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Active Filters: Caldecott Books, Preschool (Ages 4-5), Trade Paperback
Alphabatics
by Suse MacDonald
Reprint from Aladdin Paperbacks
for Nursery-1st grade
1987 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Alphabet City
by Stephen T. Johnson
from Puffin Books
for Nursery-2nd grade
1996 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Always Room for One More
by Sorche Nic Leodhas
from Henry Holt and Company
for Preschool-3rd grade
1966 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$10.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Arrow to the Sun
by Gerald McDermott
Reprint from Puffin Books
1975 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
Biggest Bear
by Lynd Ward
from Sandpiper Books
Realistic Animal Stories for Preschool-1st grade
1953 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
Crow Boy
by Taro Yashima
from Puffin Books
Word Books for Preschool-2nd grade
1956 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
Desert Is Theirs
by Byrd Baylor, illustrated by Peter Parnall
from Aladdin Paperbacks
for Preschool-2nd grade
1976 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Duffy and the Devil
by Harve Zemach
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for Preschool-2nd grade
1974 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Egg Tree
by Katherine Milhous
from Aladdin Paperbacks
for Preschool-2nd grade
1951 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Fox Went Out on a Chilly Night
by Peter Spier
from Dragonfly Books
for Nursery-1st grade
1962 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Frederick
by Leo Lionni
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Animal Fantasy for Preschool-2nd grade
1968 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
Frederick
by Leo Lionni
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Animal Fantasy for Preschool-2nd grade
1968 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
Freight Train
by Donald Crews
from Mulberry Books
for Nursery-Kindergarten
1979 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99 $3.50 (1 in stock)
Funny Little Woman
by Arlene Mosel & Blair Lent
Reissue from Puffin Books
1973 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$5.99
Have You Seen My Duckling?
by Nancy Tafuri
from Greenwillow Books
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
1985 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$9.99
Hey, Al
by Arthur Yorinks
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
1987 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Hide and Seek Fog
by Alvin Tresselt, illustrated by Roger Duvoisin
from Mulberry Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
1966 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Hush!
by Minfong Ho & Holly Meade
Reprint from Scholastic Inc.
for Preschool-1st grade
1997 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.99
In the Forest
by Marie Hall Ets
from Puffin Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
1945 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
In the Small, Small Pond
by Denise Fleming
from Henry Holt and Company
Word Books for Nursery-Kindergarten
1994 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$3.00 (2 in stock)
Inch by Inch
by Leo Lionni
from Dragonfly Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
1961 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
It Could Always Be Worse
by Margot Zemach
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for Preschool-2nd grade
1978 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
It Could Always Be Worse
by Margot Zemach
from Scholastic Inc.
for Preschool-2nd grade
1978 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Jambo Means Hello
by Muriel Feelings, Tom Feelings (Illustrator)
from Puffin Books
Alphabet Books for Preschool-1st grade
1975 Caldecott Honor Book
in Alphabet & Counting Books (Location: PIC-ALPH)
$8.99
John Henry
by Julius Lester & Jerry Pinkney
from Puffin Books
for Nursery-2nd grade
1995 Caldecott Honor book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
Just Me
by Marie Hall Ets
Later Printing from Puffin Books
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
1966 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
King Bidgood's in the Bathtub
by Audrey Wood & Don Wood
Reprint from Sandpiper Books
for Nursery-1st grade
1986 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Little House
by Virginia Lee Burton
from Sandpiper Books
Personification Stories for Preschool-3rd grade
1943 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99 $4.00 (1 in stock)
Little Island
by Margaret Wise Brown, Leonard Weisgard
from Dragonfly Books
Picture Books for Preschool-2nd grade
1947 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Marshmallow
by Clare Turlay Newberry
from HarperCollins
for Nursery-1st grade
1943 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
Marshmallow
by Clare Turlay Newberry
from HarperCollins
for Nursery-1st grade
1943 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
May I Bring a Friend?
by Beatrice Schenk de Regniers
from Aladdin Paperbacks
for Preschool-1st grade
1965 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Moja Means One
by Muriel Feelings, Tom Feelings
from Puffin Books
for Preschool-1st grade
1972 Caldecott Honor Book
in Alphabet & Counting Books (Location: PIC-ALPH)
More More More, Said the Baby
by Vera B. Williams
from Greenwillow Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
1991 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.99
More More More, Said the Baby
by Vera B. Williams
from Scholastic Inc.
for Preschool-2nd grade
1991 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Mr. Rabbit and the Lovely Present
by Charlotte Zolotow
from HarperCollins
for Preschool-3rd grade
1963 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.95
My Friend Rabbit
Reissue from Square Fish Publishing
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Noah's Ark
by Peter Spier
from Dell Publishing
Bible Stories for Preschool-2nd grade
1978 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
On Market Street
by Arnold Lobel & Anita Lobel
from Greenwillow Books
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
1982 Caldecott Honor Book
in Alphabet & Counting Books (Location: PIC-ALPH)
Play with Me
by Marie Hall Ets
from Puffin Books
for Nursery-1st grade
1956 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99 $2.00 (1 in stock)
Puss In Boots
by Charles Perrault & Fred Marcelino
from Square Fish Publishing
for Nursery-2nd grade
1991 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.75
Rain Drop Splash
by Alvin Tresselt
from HarperCollins
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
1947 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Raven
by Gerald McDermott
from Harcourt Children's Books
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
1994 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Relatives Came
by Cynthia Rylant
from Aladdin Paperbacks
for Nursery-2nd grade
1986 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
Seven Blind Mice
by Ed Young
from Puffin Books
1993 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99 $4.50 (3 in stock)
Storm Book
by Charlotte Zolotow
from HarperCollins
for Nursery-3rd grade
1953 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
Story of Jumping Mouse
by John Steptoe
from HarperCollins
Native American Fable for Preschool-2nd grade
1985 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.99
Story, A Story
by Gail E. Haley
Reprint from Aladdin Paperbacks
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
1971 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Strega Nona
by Tomie dePaola
from Simon and Schuster
for Preschool-3rd grade
1976 Caldecott Honor book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
Strega Nona
by Tomie dePaola
from Simon and Schuster
for Preschool-3rd grade
1976 Caldecott Honor book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Swimmy
by Leo Lionni
from Dragonfly Books
for Nursery-1st grade
1964 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
Talking Eggs
by Robert D. San Souci
First Edition from Scholastic Inc.
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
1990 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
The Paperboy
by Dav Pilkey
from Orchard Books
for Preschool-1st grade
1997 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
The Treasure
by Uri Shulevitz
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for Preschool-2nd grade
1980 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
The Wave
by Margaret Hodges
1st edition from Harcourt Children's Books
for Preschool-2nd grade
1965 Caldecott Honor book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Time Flies
by Eric Rohmann
1st edition from Dragonfly Books
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
1995 Caldecott Honor book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Truck
by Donald Crews
from Scholastic Inc.
Picture-only Books for Nursery-Preschool
1981 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$1.50 (1 in stock)
Truck
by Donald Crews
from Greenwillow Books
Picture-only Books for Nursery-Preschool
1981 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99 $3.50 (1 in stock)
Umbrella
by Taro Yashima
Reprint from Puffin Books
for Nursery-1st grade
1959 Caldecott Honor book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Very Special House
by Ruth Krauss, illustrated by Maurice Sendak
Reprint from HarperTrophy
for Preschool-2nd grade
1954 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Way to Start a Day
by Byrd Baylor
Reprint from Aladdin Paperbacks
for Preschool-2nd grade
1979 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
What Do You Do With a Tail Like This?
by Steve Jenkins & Robin Page
from Houghton Mifflin
for Preschool- 3rd Grade
2004 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
What Do You Say, Dear?
by Sesyle Joslin, illustrated by Maurice Sendak
from HarperCollins
Humorous Book on Manners for Preschool-2nd grade
1959 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.95
Working Cotton
by Sherley Anne Williams
from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-6th grade
1993 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
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