Picture This: National Children’s Picture Book Day!

April 7th, 2022 – Alli Boyer, Youth Services

April 2nd was National Children’s Picture Book Day, so the Youth Services staff wanted to share some of our favorite books with you!

Dinosaur vs. The Library by Bob Shea: Alli If you’ve been to any of my preschool storytimes, you know I love dinosaurs! I love this whole series, but especially the library. Not only are these books good for teaching manners and volume control, but they also encourage readers to ROAR like a dinosaur!

Go Away, Big Green Monster! by Ed Emberley: Alli This one has been a favorite of mine since before I could read! I love building and deconstructing this monster. Growing up, I would read this 5 or 6 times each night before bed.

The Gruffalo by Julia Donaldson: Alli Not only do I love the rhymes and illustrations in this one, but I find this mouse so inspiring! He’s so brave and clever.

The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats: Renee A Book that I loved as a child: I remember getting it through a Scholastic book form. Remember the book forms?  Do they still do those in schools? (We will have a Scholastic Book Fair in June.  Just saying)  This book came in a set of three books: The Snowy Day, Whistle for Willie and Pet Show.  I loved all three, but this one was my favorite.  I was fascinated by the colorful snow (not just white) and the patterns made by Peter in the snow.

Tumble Me Tumbily by Karen Baicker: Renee A book I love because of how it makes me feel: My daughter was given this book by her doctor after she was born. The book is set up with three parts to it – Waking up, Eating, and Going to Bed. It has a wonderful rhyme scheme, wordplay, and it’s fun to read aloud. I would read this at bedtime and it still gives me all the feels when I see it. I’m not crying. You are!

Because Amelia Smiled by David Ezra Stein: Renee A book that I have read to thousands of people at the library and in schools and…: This book has a wonderful cause and effect plot AND a “ when you give out good vibes, you receive good vibes” feel to it. I read this with older preschoolers and elementary school kids. There is another book with the same message, but targeted to a younger audience called…

Miles of Smiles by Karen Kaufman Orloff Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de la Peña: Renee The first time I saw this book was when it came into the library and Sharon read it to me. I had to re-read it a few times that day and I will read it every time I see it. It is a book I give to people when I buy books for their kids. The message is sweet and the love of the grandma to her grandson is palpable. Back to the Future by Kim Smith: Ryan One of my all-time favorite movies is Back to the Future! So obviously I was super excited to see it made into a picture book for kids. Not only does it introduce a new generation of kids to the movie, it does so with fun and kid-friendly dialogue and illustrations. The Karate Kid by Kim Smith: Ryan Keeping in the same genre and series, Pop Classics, I also love the movie The Karate Kid and its follow-up series Cobra Kai. The timeless story of overcoming the odds is always a favorite of everyone. This book will not only introduce kids to the Karate Kid world but delight them, their parents, and anyone else who has ever had that one special teacher. Batman: The Story of the Dark Knight by Ralph Cosentino: Ryan My last favorite picture book would have to be Batman: The Story of the Dark Knight by Ralph Cosentino. It does a wonderful job of showing all the different things he studied and learned in order to become The Dark Knight. It’s the perfect way to introduce kids to Batman! A Sick Day for Amos McGee by Phillip C. Stead: Sharon A Sick Day for Amos McGee almost didn’t happen. Artist Erin E. Stead had grown disillusioned with making art–she had quit drawing for three years. Her husband, Philip C. Stead, wrote this gentle story with Erin in mind, hoping that he could talk her into illustrating it. He and a family friend, publisher Neal Porter, took Erin out to dinner one night to try to talk her into illustrating the book. I’m so glad they succeeded! The resulting book went on to win the 2011 Caldecott Medal, the honor given for “the most distinguished American picture book for children.” It is a lovely homage to the way friends take care of each other. It’s a perfect book to snuggle up and share at the end of the day.    Guji Guji by Chi-Yuan Chen: Sharon Guji Guji by Chih-Yuan Chen starts with a crocodile egg rolling into a duck’s nest (Mother Duck is too busy reading to notice). When the eggs hatch, she is such a proud mama. She doesn’t care that one of her ducklings looks a little odd–she loves them all the same. But when a group of nasty crocodiles show up and try to convince Guji Guji that he’s just like them, he realizes what they are up to and comes up with a plan to save his family. Chih-Yuan Chen’s book is a story of love, acceptance, and self-discovery that I enjoy sharing with young readers and their families.

Saturday by Oge Mora: Sharon Saturday by Oge Mora is a celebration of spending time with someone special. The mother and daughter look forward to their special day all week long. But not everything goes according to plans and the mother worries (needlessly) that the day has been ruined. This book is a lovely reminder that spending time together is the very best gift we can give to the ones we love.

Fry Bread by Kevin Noble Maillard: Sharon Fry Bread: A Native American Family Story by Kevin Noble Maillard shows how family, food, and culture shape who we are and who we become. It is richly illustrated and filled with additional information that helps readers understand the diversity of indigenous peoples today. I love picture books that make the world bigger when you read them–books that show you other cultures, other lives, and other experiences. This is a perfect example of that type of book.  It won the 2020 Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal and was an American Indian Youth Literature Picture Book Honor Winner the year it was published. There is so much to learn from this great book.