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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293 Items found Print
Active Filters: Nursery (Ages 2-4), Hardcover
"Stand Back," Said the Elephant, "I'm Going to Sneeze!"
by Patricia Thomas
from HarperCollins
for Nursery-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.99
10 Hungry Rabbits
by Anita Lobel
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for Nursery-1st grade
in Alphabet & Counting Books (Location: PIC-ALPH)
3 Little Golden Books Classic Collection
from Golden Books
for Nursery-Kindergarten
in Little Golden Books (Location: PIC-GOLD)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
ABC Book
Books of Wonder
by C. B. Falls
from William Morrow & Company
for Nursery-1st grade
in Alphabet & Counting Books (Location: PIC-ALPH)
Adventures of Tom Thumb
by Marianna Mayer, illustrated by K. Y. Craft
First Edition from HarperCollins
for Nursery-2nd grade
Alexander
by Harold Littledale, illustrated by Tom Vroman
from Purple House Press
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.95
Alphabet From A to Z
Facsimile from Western Publishing
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Little Golden Books (Location: PIC-GOLD)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Alphabet Soup
by Scott Gustafson
from Greenwich Workshop Press
Realistic Fiction for Nursery-1st grade
1987 Newbery Medal winner
in Alphabet & Counting Books (Location: PIC-ALPH)
Angels' Alphabet
by Hilda Van Stockum
from Bethlehem Books
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
Annie and the Old One
by Miska Miles; illustrated by Peter Parnall
Reprint from Little, Brown & Company
for Nursery-2nd grade
1972 Newbery Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Annie and the Old One
by Miska Miles; illustrated by Peter Parnall
from Little, Brown & Company
for Nursery-2nd grade
1972 Newbery Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Appley Dapply's Nursery Rhymes
Book 22
by Beatrix Potter
from Frederick Warne & Company
for Nursery-1st grade
in Peter Rabbit & Friends (Location: FIC-PETER)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Appley Dapply's Nursery Rhymes
Book 22
by Beatrix Potter
from Frederick Warne & Company
for Nursery-1st grade
in Peter Rabbit & Friends (Location: FIC-PETER)
$7.99
Are You My Friend Today?
by Gyo Fujikawa
from Sterling Publishing Co.
for Nursery-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
B is for Beaver
by Marie & Roland Smith, illustrated by Michael Roydon
from Sleeping Bear Press
for nursery-3rd grade
in Alphabet & Counting Books (Location: PIC-ALPH)
$18.99 $8.50 (1 in stock)
Babar's Book of Color
by Laurent de Brunhoff
from Harry N. Abrams, Inc.
for Nursery-1st grade
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Babar's Picnic
by Laurent de Brunhoff, translated by Merle Haas
from Random House
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
$32.00 (1 in stock)
Baby's Book of Animals
by Roger Priddy
from DK Publishing
for Nursery-1st grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Beginner's Bible
by Karyn Henley, Kelly Pulley (illustrator)
from Zonderkidz
for Nursery-Kindergarten
in Bible Stories for Kids (Location: BIBR-STO)
$22.99
Beginner’s Gospel Story Bible
Beginner's Gospel Story Book
by Jared Kennedy, Illustrated by Trish Mahoney
from New Growth Press
for Nursery-Kindergarten
in Bible Stories for Kids (Location: BIBR-STO)
Benjamin Dilley's Thirsty Camel
by Roger Bradfield
from Purple House Press
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.95
Beware! Museum Bears
by Jacqueline Karas, Illustrated by Malcolm Ashman
First Ed 1st Printing from Bridgewater Books
for Nursery-1st grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Big Book of Nursery Rhymes
Calla Editions
by Charles Robinson
Calla from Dover Publications
for Nursery-Kindergarten
in Picture Book Treasuries (Location: PIC-TRE)
Big Picture Story Bible
by David Helm
from Crossway Books
for Nursery-Kindergarten
in Bible Stories for Kids (Location: BIBR-STO)
$23.99
Boy, a Dog, a Frog
by Mercer Mayer
from Dial Books for Young Readers
for Nursery-Kindergarten
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Boy, a Dog, a Frog, and a Friend
by Mercer & Marianna Mayer
from Dial Books for Young Readers
for Nursery-Kindergarten
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.99
Brambleberrys Animal Book of Big & Small Shapes
Brambleberrys Animal Book
by Marianna Mayer, illustrated by Gerald McDermott
from Boyds Mill Press
Word Books for Nursery-Kindergarten
Brambleberrys Animal Book of Colors
Brambleberrys Animal Book
by Marianna Mayer, illustrated by Gerald McDermott
from Boyds Mill Press
Word Books for Nursery-Kindergarten
Brother Sun, Sister Moon
by Katherine Paterson, Saint Francis of Assisi; illustrated by Pamela Dalton
from Chronicle Books
for Nursery-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Bubble Gum Bubble Gum
by Lisa Wheeler, illustrated by Laura Huliska-Beith
from Purple House Press
for Nursery-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.95
Bushels of Bears
by Sue Hegarty, illustrated by Alice Shaw
from Zon International
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Alphabet & Counting Books (Location: PIC-ALPH)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Cat in the Hat Comes Back
by Dr. Seuss
from Random House
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Beginner Books (Location: EAR-BB)
$9.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Cecily Parsley's Nursery Rhymes
Book 23
by Beatrix Potter
from Frederick Warne & Company
for Nursery-1st grade
in Peter Rabbit & Friends (Location: FIC-PETER)
$6.99
Cecily Parsley's Nursery Rhymes
Book 23
by Beatrix Potter
from Frederick Warne & Company
for Nursery-1st grade
in Peter Rabbit & Friends (Location: FIC-PETER)
$3.50 (1 in stock)
Child of Books
by Oliver Jeffers, Sam Winston
from Candlewick Press
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$17.99
Child's Garden of Verses
by Robert Louis Stevenson, illustrated by Ruth Mary Hallock
from Barnes & Noble
for Nursery-3rd grade
in Poetry for Children (Location: POET-CHIL)
Christian Mother Goose Book
by Marjorie Ainsborough Decker
Eighth Printing, July 1982 from Decker Press
for Nursery-1st grade
in Mother Goose & Nursery Rhymes (Location: PIC-MG)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Christmas Alphabet
by Robert Sabuda
from Orchard Books
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Christmas & Advent (Location: HOLIDAY)
$11.00 (1 in stock)
Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey
by Susan Wojciechowski, illustrated by P. J. Lynch
20th Anniversary from Candlewick Press
in Christmas & Advent (Location: HOLIDAY)
City Seen from A to Z
by Rachel Isadora
from Greenwillow Books
for Nursery-1st grade
in Alphabet & Counting Books (Location: PIC-ALPH)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Classic Bedtime Stories
by Scott Gustafson
from Greenwich Workshop Press
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$14.00 (1 in stock)
Color Kittens
by Margaret Wise Brown
from Golden Books
for Nursery-1st grade
in Little Golden Books (Location: PIC-GOLD)
$4.99
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)
Complete Mother Goose
by Ethel F. Betts
1st edition from Dilithium Press, Ltd.
for Nursery-Kindergarten
in Mother Goose & Nursery Rhymes (Location: PIC-MG)
Complete Mother Goose
by Ethel F. Betts
from Longmeadow Press
for Nursery-Kindergarten
in Mother Goose & Nursery Rhymes (Location: PIC-MG)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Cupid and Psyche
by M. Charlotte Craft & K. Y. Craft
from Morrow Junior Books
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$19.99
Curious Garden
by Peter Brown
from Little, Brown & Company
for Nursery-2nd grade
E.B. White Read Aloud Award
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$18.99
Daddy is Home!
by David Blomquist, illustrated by Aliki, music by Larry Grossman
from Holt, Rinehart and Winston
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
$14.00 (1 in stock)
David and Goliath
by Barbara Shook Hazen
from Golden Books
for Nursery-1st grade
in Little Golden Books (Location: PIC-GOLD)
Day at the Seashore
by Kathryn Jackson, Byron Jackson
from Golden Books
for Nursery-Kindergarten
in Little Golden Books (Location: PIC-GOLD)
Day on Skates
by Hilda van Stockum
from Bethlehem Books
for Nursery-2nd grade
1935 Newbery Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$19.95
Digger Dan
Tell-A-Tale Books
by Patricia Lynn, illustrated by Si Frankel
from Whitman Publishing Company
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
$15.00 (1 in stock)
Does a Kangaroo Have a Mother, Too?
by Eric Carle
from Scholastic Inc.
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Don't Let the Pigeon Stay Up Late!
Don't Let the Pigeon...
by Mo Willems
from Union Square Kids
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Donkey's Dream
by Barbara Helen Berger
First Edition from Philomel Books
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Draw!
by Raul Colon
from Simon and Schuster
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Du Iz Tak?
by Carson Ellis
from Candlewick Press
2017 Caldecott Honor Medal
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Easter Egg Artists
by Adrienne Adams
from Charles Scribner's Sons
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
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)
Eloise Wilkin Stories
by Eloise Wilkin
from Golden Books
Nine Beloved Classics for Nursery-1st grade
in Little Golden Books (Location: PIC-GOLD)
$12.99
Elves And The Shoemaker
by John Cech, illustrated by Kirill Chelushkin
from Sterling Publishing Co.
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Elves and the Shoemaker
Tip-Top Elf Book
by Illustrated by Manning De V. Lee
from Rand McNally
for Nursery-1st grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
Family-Time Bible in Pictures
by Kenneth N. Taylor
from Tyndale House
in Bible Stories for Kids (Location: BIBR-STO)
$12.99
Farmer's Dozen
by Sandra Joanne Russell
Stated First Edition from Harper & Row
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Favorite All-Time Classics
by Various Anthology
from Rand McNally
for Nursery-1st grade
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$48.00 (1 in stock)
Favorite Nursery Tales
by Jo Turner
1970 Edition from Golden Press
for Nursery-1st grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Finding Winnie
by Lindsay Mattick
First Edition from Little, Brown & Company
for Nursery-2nd grade
2016 Caldecott Winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
First Poems of Childhood
by Tasha Tudor
from Grosset & Dunlap
for Nursery-3rd grade
in Poetry for Children (Location: POET-CHIL)
Fish Out of Water
by Helen Palmer
from Random House
Animal Fantasy/Rhyming Stories for Nursery-1st grade
in Beginner Books (Location: EAR-BB)
$9.99
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
Flora and the Penguin
by Molly Idle
from Chronicle Books
for Nursery-Kindergarten
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.99
Flying to Neverland with Peter Pan
by J. M. Barrie, Betty Comden, Adolph Green and Carolyn Leigh
from Blue Apple
for Nursery-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Foot Book
Bright & Early Books
by Dr. Seuss
from Random House
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Beginner Books (Location: EAR-BB)
$9.99
Foot Book
Bright & Early Books
by Dr. Seuss
from Random House
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Beginner Books (Location: EAR-BB)
$3.00 (4 in stock)
Frog Prince
by Ulf Stark, illustrated by Silke Leffler
IKEA from KVACK!
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
From One to Ten and Back Again
by Ken Wagner
from Golden Books
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Alphabet & Counting Books (Location: PIC-ALPH)
Funny Thing
by Wanda Gág
from University of Minnesota
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Funny Thing
by Wanda Gag
from Smithmark Publishers
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
George and Martha
by James Marshall
from HMH Books for Young Readers
in Picture Book Treasuries (Location: PIC-TRE)
$29.99
George and Martha Rise and Shine
by James Marshall
from HMH Books for Young Readers
in Picture Book Treasuries (Location: PIC-TRE)
Giant John
by Arnold Lobel
Weekly Reader Book Club Ed. from Harper & Row
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$7.50 (1 in stock)
Giant Treasury of Beatrix Potter
by Beatrix Potter
from Derrydale Books
for Nursery-1st grade
in Peter Rabbit & Friends (Location: FIC-PETER)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Gift of the Magi
by O. Henry
from Picture Book Studio
Realistic Fiction for Nursery-2nd grade
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
Gingerbread Friends
by Jan Brett
from G.P. Putnam's Sons
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Gingerbread Man
by Jim Aylesworth; illustrated by Barbara McClintock
from Scholastic Inc.
for Nursery-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
God's Story for Me Bible
by Cheryl Nobens, illustrator
from David C. Cook
for Nursery-Kindergarten
in Bible Stories for Kids (Location: BIBR-STO)
Good Morning, Farm
A Whitman Giant Tell-A-Tale Book
by Betty Ren Wright, illustrated by Fred Weinman
from Whitman Publishing Company
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Goodnight Moon
by Margaret Wise Brown, illustrated by Clement Hurd
from Weekly Reader
for Nursery-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Goodnight Moon
by Margaret Wise Brown, illustrated by Clement Hurd
from Harper & Row
for Nursery-Kindergarten
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Grandma and Grandpa
by Helen Oxenbury
from Dial Books for Young Readers
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Great Circus Parade
by Evelyn Malone Curro
from Holt, Rinehart and Winston
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Guess How Much I Love You
by Sam McBratney, illustrations by Anita Jeram
from Candlewick Press
for Nursery-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.99
Gullywasher
by Joyce Rossi
from Luna Rising
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Gus was a Friendly Ghost
by Jane Thayer, illustrated by Seymour Fleishman
from Purple House Press
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.95
Gus was a Friendly Ghost
from William Morrow & Company
for Nursery-2nd grade
in Vintage Picture Books (Location: VIN-PIC)
$16.00 (1 in stock)
Hand Rhymes
by Marc Brown
from Dutton Children's Books
for Nursery-1st grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb
Bright & Early Books
by Al Perkins
from Random House Books for Young Readers
for Nursery-Kindergarten
in Beginner Books (Location: EAR-BB)
$9.99 $5.00 (2 in stock)
Hawaiian Mother Goose
by Debra Ryll; illustrated by Alexis America
from Island Heritage Publishing
for Nursery-Kindergarten
in Mother Goose & Nursery Rhymes (Location: PIC-MG)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
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