The Eensy-Weensy Spider


Mary Ann Hoberman - 2001
    This favorite nursery rhyme illustrated with bright, irresistible pictures will delight babies and toddlers. The board book format is perfect for little hands to hold and young children will enjoy seeing all the imaginative adventures the spider has after sliding down the waterspout--including hugging a baby bug, meeting a frog in a pond, joining a bug parade, and buying shoes--before settling down to sleep with mama in a cozy spiderweb hammock. With its playful rhythm, rhyme, and repetition, this is a perfect read-aloud for little ones and ideal for tucking into a stroller.

The Wonderful Things You Will Be


Emily Winfield Martin - 2015
    . . now and forever!   From brave and bold to creative and clever, Emily Winfield Martin's rhythmic rhyme expresses all the loving things that parents think of when they look at their children. With beautiful, and sometimes humorous, illustrations, and a clever gatefold with kids in costumes, this is a book grown-ups will love reading over and over to kids—both young and old. A great gift for any occasion, but a special stand-out for baby showers, birthdays, and graduation. The Wonderful Things You Will Be has a loving and truthful message that will endure for lifetimes.

I Know a Rhino


Charles Fuge - 2002
    She spins round with her hippo, blows bubbles in the bath with giraffe, and picnics on brown bread and honey with her bear when it's sunny. And, did you ever meet a leopard in top hat and tail? He's simply the best, as anyone can see. It's the most delightful menagerie imaginable, and the sweetest story--with a little twist at the end.

I Went Walking


Sue Williams - 1989
    The boy sees a black cat, then a brown horse, then a red cow, and so on, and before he knows it, he’s being trailed by the entire menagerie! The Australian illustrator Julie Vivas brings the parade to life in lovely, lively watercolors—when the pink pig looks at the boy, for example, the boy sprays off his muddy body with a hose. Big type, repetition, friendly art, clean design—and the visual guessing game created by introducing each animal only partially at first—make this beloved tale a winner at story time.

Mama's Kisses


Kate McMullan - 2017
    Their mamas set out to look for their wayward little ones, calling them to bed with a soft lullaby. But look! The baby animals are crawling, creeping, hiding, and giggling, playfully staying just one step ahead of their loving mamas.

Jesse Bear, What Will You Wear?


Nancy White Carlstrom - 1986
    At lunchtime, celery crunch and sprouts in a bunch, and juice from a pear and rice in his hair. And at night, his pjs with feet and face on the seat, and sleep in his eyes and stars in the skies, as he dreams of the fun he'll have tomorrow. In lilting verse and exuberant paintings, the first of Nancy White Carlstrom's and Bruce Degen's celebrated Jesse Bear books creates a special day not only for Jesse Bear, but for young children everywhere.

Close Your Eyes


Kate Banks - 2002
    His mother reassures him that once he closes his eyes, he will dream of magical places. And when he awakens, she will be right there, waiting for him.Alternating between real-life scenes with the baby tiger and his mother and enchanted dream scenes of sleep's possibilities, Kate Banks's simple, comforting text and Georg Hallensleben's bright, colorful illustrations make this a charming bedtime story for small children.Close Your Eyes is a 2002 New York Times Book Review Best Illustrated Book of the Year and a 2003 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.

The Goodnight Train


June Sobel - 2006
    Roll that corner, rock that curve, and soar past mermaids, leaping sheep, and even ice-cream clouds. You won't want to miss a thing, so whatever you do, don't . . . close . . . your . . . eyes!            With soothing, lyrical words and magical illustrations, June Sobel and Laura Huliska-Beith have created a nighttime fantasy that's guaranteed to make even the most resistant sleeper snuggle up tight.Ready to keep rolling?The companion books Goodnight Train Rolls On and Santa and the Goodnight Train are now available!

10 Hungry Rabbits: Counting & Color Concepts


Anita Lobel - 2012
    Caldecott Honor Book artist Anita Lobel combines learning to count with color concepts in this mouth-watering celebration of good things to eat. One big purple cabbage, two white onions, three yellow peppers, and so on through 10—garden vegetables have never looked so appetizing! Here Anita Lobel makes a delightful story for preschoolers with the two most basic early learning concepts, counting and color. And her beautiful illustrations of vegetables might even tempt picky eaters into new adventures in eating!

Gossie & Gertie


Olivier Dunrea - 2002
    They splash in the rain, play hide-and-seek, and they dive in the pond together. Everywhere Gossie goes, Gertie does too. Or does she? With charming illustrations and gentle text, Olivier Dunrea has created two lovable, sweet characters that will appeal to the youngest listeners.

Don't Blink!


Tom Booth - 2017
    Think you can win a staring contest against an elephant? What about a gorilla, a cheetah, a fox, or an alligator? What about all them AND a bunch of their other animal friends at the same time? You're about to find out!Whatever you do DON'T BLINK!

Five Fuzzy Chicks


Diana Murray - 2020
    But the dog is so snuggly and the hay is so comfy, and these five fuzzy chicks can't help but fall asleep one by one.Before long, the sleeping chicks are scattered all over the farm! What will Mama Hen do?

The Lady with the Alligator Purse


Nadine Bernard Westcott - 1988
    These outrageous rhymes will appeal to reluctant readers, eager readers, silly readers, and the whole family together!

A Good Day


Kevin Henkes - 2007
    But then something good happens to each of them, turning a bad day into a good one.What makes a good day? What makes a bad day? And how can bad be transformed into good? This exploration of opposites and emotions was described as "a deceptively simple picture book, expertly tuned to the emotions and imaginations of young children" by ALA Booklist in a starred review.

Gallop!: A Scanimation Picture Book


Rufus Butler Seder - 2007
    It's impossible not to flip the page, and flip it again, and again, and again. A first book of motion for kids, it shows a horse in full gallop and a turtle swimming up the page. A dog runs, a cat springs, an eagle soars, and a butterfly flutters. Created by Rufus Butler Seder, an inventor, artist, and filmmaker fascinated by antique optical toys, Scanimation is a state-of-the-art six-phase animation process that combines the "persistence of vision" principle with a striped acetate overlay to give the illusion of movement. It harkens back to the old magical days of the kinetoscope, and the effect is astonishing, like a Muybridge photo series springing into action—or, in terms kids can relate to, like a video without a screen. Complementing the art is a delightful rhyming text full of simple questions and fun, nonsense replies: Can you gallop like a horse? giddyup-a-loo! Can you strut like a rooster? cock-a-doodle-doo!Every child who opens the book will be amazed—and so will every parent.