The best books for children featuring whimsical and fun Illustrations

Why am I passionate about this?

I am a Graphic Illustrator, Muralist, and Educator, serving as an adjunct professor at the Cleveland Institute of Art and I love birds! I was born and raised in the Chautauqua Lake Region of Western, NY and I find myself very much at home with our feathered friends. My passion for color, shape, and nature enables me to draw the viewer's eye to things that otherwise might go unnoticed. Letter Birds was created when my children were 5 and 7 and I would draw while they slept. When they awoke they would find a colorful drawing of a feathered friend along with a new letter to learn. My children continue to be my creative muses - even as teenagers!


I wrote...

Letter Birds

By Pam Spremulli,

Book cover of Letter Birds

What is my book about?

Enjoy learning the alphabet and the natural world of birds via simple and colorful graphic illustrations. Each letter has a corresponding bird from the well-known C for Cardinal to the more exotic L for Lapwing. Children and parents will discover a wondrous array of birds from A to Z (yes, including X and U!).

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of It's Spring!

Pam Spremulli Why did I love this book?

This lovely book captures the beautiful sounds, sights, and smells of Spring with charming and whimsical illustrations by Melissa Sweet. Her charming work transports you into the book, flying through each colorful spread with glee  A celebration of community and mother nature and an absolute favorite of my children, not only growing up but to this day!

By Samantha Berger, Pamela Chanko, Melissa Sweet (illustrator)

Why should I read it?

1 author picked It's Spring! as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 3, 4, and 5.

What is this book about?

StoryPlay (TM) Books -- the best new way to engage with your little one during story time -- continues with four new stories!

StoryPlay Books is the smart way to read and play together! StoryPlay Books offer fun ways to engage with little ones during story time and playtime with prompts and activities that everyone will love! Each quality story will delight readers while building early literacy skills for ages 3-5 by helping them develop: problem-solving abilities, reading comprehension, social development, pre-reading skills, memory strength and more! Each book includes story-related games and crafts to extend the reading experience. Teachers…


Book cover of Beetle Bop

Pam Spremulli Why did I love this book?

Color, color, color! A feast for the eyes as you buzz through this brightly illustrated book! Flemming's illustrations explode off the pages with vibrant color and contrast all the while sharing a different vantage point of the world around us. Be reintroduced to our six-legged friends in this delightful and energizing tale! 

By Denise Fleming,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Beetle Bop as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

They crawl up walls, they hide in cracks, they flip, they fly, and sometimes...Crrrash. Beetles some in all shapes and sizes, and they are everywhere in this thoroughly buggy, beautifully designed book. There are striped beetles, spotted beetles, all-over-dotted beetles - and don't forget the noisily gnawing beetles! Whether you love bugs or whether the sight of them makes you itch, you will adore this infested offering from the beloved Denise Fleming.


Book cover of Art

Pam Spremulli Why did I love this book?

Anyone who loves kids' art can relate to Art 😉. McDonnell captures the freedom and love of creating from a child's perspective and beyond. A beautiful portrait of the rawness and whimsy that comes from children's artwork – where there are no boundaries. This sweet book brings us back to that simple artistic joy where there are no limits, where we can create as we feel, play, sleep, and create some more!! 

By Patrick McDonnell,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Art as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

A young artist, Art, is your lively guide into this captivating and dynamic book. ART celebrates art (and Art) with a simple text that's full of life, creations that practically dance off the pages and a surprisng and heartwarming ending. An expression of pure joy.


Book cover of The Easter Egg Artists

Pam Spremulli Why did I love this book?

This book touches the soul and imagination of all artists. Following a young (bunny) Artist as they make their mark within an adventurous creative family that travels the world. Each spread transports you to a world of chance where art brings together not only communities but families. An absolute joy for creative minds!

By Adrienne Adams,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Easter Egg Artists as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 4, 5, 6, and 7.

What is this book about?

The Abbotts, established Easter egg artists, let their son develop a style of his own when he shows interest in painting.


Book cover of Where the Sidewalk Ends: Poems & Drawings

Pam Spremulli Why did I love this book?

This is an absolute staple to this day! The pages are frayed because of my many rereads and trying to master Shel's whimsical and effortless drawings. Countless tales of silly adolescent nonsense but all with that hidden knowledge of greater wisdom. His words echo the innocence and rawness of childhood on an endless journey of ignorance and adventure.

By Shel Silverstein,

Why should I read it?

6 authors picked Where the Sidewalk Ends as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 4, 5, 6, and 7.

What is this book about?

Shel Silverstein, the New York Times bestselling author of The Giving Tree, A Light in the Attic, Falling Up, and Every Thing On It, has created a poetry collection that is outrageously funny and deeply profound. Come in...for where the sidewalk ends, Shel Silverstein's world begins. This special edition contains 12 extra poems. You'll meet a boy who turns into a TV set, and a girl who eats a whale. The Unicorn and the Bloath live there, and so does Sarah Cynthia Sylvia Stout who will not take the garbage out. It is a place where you wash your shadow…


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Split Decision

By David Perlmutter,

Book cover of Split Decision

David Perlmutter Author Of The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows

New book alert!

Why am I passionate about this?

I am a freelance writer from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, specializing in media history and speculative fiction. I have been enchanted by animation since childhood and followed many series avidly through adulthood. My viewing inspired my MA thesis on the history of animation, out of which grew two books on the history and theory of animation on television, America 'Toons In: A History of Television Animation (available from McFarland and Co.) and The Encyclopedia of American Animated Television Shows (available from Rowman and Littlefield). Hopefully, others will follow.

David's book list on understanding the history of animation

What is my book about?

Jefferson Ball, the mightiest female dog in a universe of the same, is, despite her anti-heroic behavior, intent on keeping her legacy as an athlete and adventurer intact. So, when female teenage robot Jody Ryder inadvertently angers her by smashing her high school records, Jefferson is intent on proving her superiority by outmuscling the robot in a not-so-fair fight. Not wanting to seem like a coward, and eager to end her enemy's trash talking, Jody agrees.

However, they have been lured to fight each other by circumstances beyond their control. Which are intent on destroying them if they don't destroy each other in combat first...

5 book lists we think you will like!

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