New York Times Bestsellers Children's Picture Books

Beaty, A., & Roberts, D.  (2017). Rosie Revere, engineer. New York: Abrams Books for Young Readers.                                                                                                           The only true failure can come if you quit. Rosie is a curious child who invents things and has dreams of becoming the greatest engineer. After having other people including family laugh at her inventions she starts to doubt herself until another family member encourages her to continue inventing does she understand the concept of persevering. This book demonstrates the importance of not giving up and to continue learning from failed experiences.

Carle, E. (2015). Love from the very hungry caterpillar. New York: Grosset & Dunlap.  This is a simple and slow paced read where a caterpillar gives positive expressions on showing love. This book spreads the love and lets children know they are loved. This is a delightful book with bright and distinctive artwork brings the caterpillar to life. This book can be used for a short story time or given as a gift to that special someone.

Clinton, C., & Boiger, A. (2017). She persisted: 13 American women who changed the world. New York: Philomel Books.                                                                 Inspirational stories of thirteen American women who went against the norm and rose above adversity to make change happen. They continued to go against the naysayers to get the job done and fought for what they believed. These women give an empowering message to young girls that your dreams can make things happen you just need to keep pushing the limits.

Daywalt, D., & Jeffers, O. (2013). The day the crayons quit. New York: Philomel Books. Duncan decides he wants to color however instead of seeing his crayons he receives a stack of letters from them. The majority of the crayons are complaining that he uses them too much and that they need a break. The green crayon doesn’t have much to complain about, the blue one is tired of being used for water and the pink one is upset that she never gets used. The orange and red crayons are not speaking to each other because they want to be the color of the sun. So Duncan decides to color a picture using all the colors to make them all happy!

Martin, E. W. (2015). The wonderful things you will be: a growing-up poem. New York: Random House Children’s Books.                                                                              This book captures the love; thoughts and feelings parents have for their child. Some children in the book are dressed as animals others are not. This book engages children with the colorful and humorous illustrations. There is a rhythm in this book which makes it calming and relaxing to read. A child has the freedom to become what they want to in life and this book portrays that.

 

Moore, C. C., & Bell, B. (2011). The night before Christmas. New York: Sky Pony Press.   A classic Christmas poem that needs to be read to young children every year. Set in New England village St. Nick with eight reindeer goes to a house and awaken the parents. The father of the household goes downstairs and sees St. Nick in front of his tree dropping off presents. He is amused on how St. Nick looks and describes him the funniest way. The illustrations in this version of the book are very colorful and vivid.

O’Reily, B., & Patterson, J. (2016). Give please a chance. New York: Jimmy Patterson Books.                                                                                                                       This book is great for introducing the idea of saying “please” to young children when they are asking for something or for help. Each page has a simple statement said by a child then shows when you should say please. The illustrations are very eye catching throughout and each picture has a different illustrator.

Rinker, S. D., & Lichtenheld, T. (2011). Goodnight, goodnight, construction site.  California: Chronicle Books.                                                                                    As the sun sets in a construction site several big trucks are shutting down for the day. They are hard at work throughout the day so they need to rest.  The pictures are very detailed and interesting with the personified construction equipment.  This book has a nice rhythm making it easier to read. Children who are fascinated with work sites will definitely love this book.

Rubin, A., & Salmieri, D. (2012). Dragons love tacos. New York: Dial Books for Young Readers.                                                                                                                      A young boy decides he is going to host a taco party for dragons. He researches on what they like and dislike. He prepares everything for them however he forgot one little thing, jalapeño peppers! Dragons cannot eat spicy tacos. They start having smoke come out their noses, their throats get scratchy and they blow out fire. The dragons accidentally burn the house, but hey help him fix it especially when the boy serves tacos during their breaks.

Yamada, K., & Beseom, M. (2013). What do you do with an idea? Seattle, WA: Compendium Inc.                                                                                                        An inspiring story of a child who has an idea but does not know what to do with it.  When he tells people about it they laugh at him, it isn’t until he realizes that it is his own idea that he starts to believe in it.  He gains confidence and so his idea grows until something amazing happens. The child realizes that you can change the world with a simple idea even when nobody believes in it.