100 books like Perspective Detective

By Cazzy Zahursky,

Here are 100 books that Perspective Detective fans have personally recommended if you like Perspective Detective. Shepherd is a community of 11,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Book cover of A Stone Sat Still

Leslie Barnard Booth Author Of A Stone Is a Story

From my list on rocks and geology for children.

Why am I passionate about this?

As a child growing up in the Pacific Northwest, my pockets were often full of rocks. Rocks are beautiful and soothing to hold. They are ubiquitous treasures, available to all. But even more than this, rocks are portals to the past—to a time before humans, before animals, before plants, before microbes. I am endlessly fascinated by the stories rocks tell and by the secrets they share with us through their form and structure. I still collect rocks, and now I also write picture books about science and nature for children. The books on this list are all wonder-filled. I hope you enjoy them!

Leslie's book list on rocks and geology for children

Leslie Barnard Booth Why did Leslie love this book?

Do stones sit still or do they constantly travel and transform? Both are true!

This lyrical work of fiction explores the stillness and permanency of a single stone. As the world around the stone whirls with activity, the stone remains in place. Though it may seem to change, appearing purple in the moonlight, for example, and though it is perceived and used in a wide range of ways by a wide variety of creatures, it doesn’t budge.

This soothing story invites children to think about the passage of time and to contemplate all a stone experiences as it sits in stillness.

By Brendan Wenzel (illustrator),

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked A Stone Sat Still 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?

The brilliant follow-up to the Caldecott Honor-winning and New York Times bestselling picture book They All Saw a Cat by Brendan Wenzel!

A Stone Sat Still tells the story of a seemingly ordinary rock-but to the animals that use it, it is a resting place, a kitchen, a safe haven...even an entire world.

This is a gorgeous exploration of perspective, perception, and the passage of time, with an underlying environmental message that is timely and poignant.

* Filled with stunning illustrations in cut paper, pencil, collage, and paint
* Soothing rhythms invite reading aloud and bedtime snuggles
* Introduces concepts…


Book cover of Ricky, the Rock That Couldn't Roll

Simon Mills Author Of The Secret of Scrufflewood Wood

From my list on children’s stories written in rhyme.

Why am I passionate about this?

I have written poetry since I was a little boy. Rhyme came naturally to me, and I found it to be a world to escape to. This led me to songwriting and touring in bands, and it grew into my vocation as a jingle writer in Australia. Eventually, I wrote the jingle that won the World’s Best Jingle award in Hollywood, and this, in part, inspired me to move to New York City from Australia. The other driving force was getting my first book, How To Steal From Banks—an autobiography—published in America. Writing and rhyming are deeply embedded in my soul and cells. 

Simon's book list on children’s stories written in rhyme

Simon Mills Why did Simon love this book?

I love an underdog story. Overcoming adversity against all odds.

Ricky is a rockstar. Plus, I’ve been a rocker all my life, playing in bands all over the world, so when it comes to rock n roll, I clearly identify. I like the subtle use of color in the illustrations in this book, as it gives the rhyming verse a little room to shine.

Ricky, the Rock that Couldn’t Roll also points loosely to overcoming a disability and gently navigates the emotion of living with such a burden. 

By Mr. Jay, Erin Wozniak (illustrator),

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Ricky, the Rock That Couldn't Roll 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?

These rocks can really roll! Well, most of them, anyway...

Get ready to meet a new rock group! From zippy, little pebbles to big strong boulders, the rocks get together to play and roll around their favorite hill, only to find that one of their friends, Ricky, can't roll with them. Unlike all of the others, who are all round, Ricky can't roll because he's flat on one side.

Except for poor Ricky, who quietly sat.
You see, Rick couldn't roll, because one side was flat.

His friends didn't get it,
"Come Roll!" they would chant.
So Ricky tried, but…


Book cover of Search for Silver Linings

Carli Valentine Author Of The Fun Thieves

From my list on that teach how perspective is everything.

Why am I passionate about this?

I've always believed in the power behind positive thinking, but it’s easy to get caught up in feelings of worry or disappointment. I picked this topic because I feel that perspective is the tool that can help us change a negative attitude into a positive one. We don’t always have control of various things happening in the world around us. However, we do have the power to try to change our perspective and look at things in a more positive way. I believe this skill is essential to find gratitude and happiness in life, and I love how each of these books approach the topic of the importance of perspective in different ways.

Carli's book list on that teach how perspective is everything

Carli Valentine Why did Carli love this book?

I love this book. It is so hard to see the good in situations and so important to find the “silver linings.” I relate to the message in this book because I am a mother to a child that has had many medical hurdles to get through. My son has had 2 heart surgeries, but yet he is still positive, brave, and strong. Sometimes it is the silver linings that help us see what we truly have. Finding the silver linings in difficult experiences was vital to allow us to continue to push us forward with a positive attitude. This book truly showcases that! Love the unique illustration style of the book and that it is written in verse!

By Etaine Raphael,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Search for Silver Linings as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Suddenly, Chloe had an idea:
“I think we should turn this all into a game—
And then we will never see bad days the same!
Let’s find all the good that came out of today—
I’m sure we will see it in such a new way!”

The Rhyme-Time Twins, Chloe and Zoey, are having a tough day at school – absolutely nothing is going well! Can learning about silver linings help turn this awful day around, or will it just continue to get worse and worse?
Join Chloe and Zoey on their next adventure as they process a whole range…


Book cover of Benny the Brave in The First Day Jitters

Carli Valentine Author Of The Fun Thieves

From my list on that teach how perspective is everything.

Why am I passionate about this?

I've always believed in the power behind positive thinking, but it’s easy to get caught up in feelings of worry or disappointment. I picked this topic because I feel that perspective is the tool that can help us change a negative attitude into a positive one. We don’t always have control of various things happening in the world around us. However, we do have the power to try to change our perspective and look at things in a more positive way. I believe this skill is essential to find gratitude and happiness in life, and I love how each of these books approach the topic of the importance of perspective in different ways.

Carli's book list on that teach how perspective is everything

Carli Valentine Why did Carli love this book?

In this book, a little girl named Sarah is worried about starting her first day at school. She can’t help but imagine all the terrible things that could happen. Her friend named Benny helps her to change her perspective by showing her all the things that could go right instead of wrong. I really enjoy this book because it’s so easy to let our minds wander to the negative possibilities. I like how this book reminds us to see the good that can happen in situations and also encourages us to find good positive friends like Benny that will help give us a boost when needed! 

By Julie Anne Penn, Darren Penn, Sergio De Giorgi (illustrator)

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Benny the Brave in The First Day Jitters as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

**From the best-selling Team Supercrew Series**
**First Place Winner - Purple Dragonfly Book Awards 2022 - New Author Fiction**

First day? New School? New experience? Feeling scared? Benny the Brave is here to help!

Meet Sarah. She’s about to start a new school that’s on a distant planet. She doesn’t have any friends yet. Her teacher may or may not be a swamp creature. And worse, lunch looks like it’s wriggling, slimy and alive! But just before the school bus arrives, Team Supercrew’s Benny the Brave comes to the rescue! Team Supercrew’s Benny the Brave reminds kids that they have…


Book cover of The Psychology of Interpersonal Relations

Richard E. Nisbett Author Of Thinking: A Memoir

From my list on thinking.

Why am I passionate about this?

Richard Nisbett is one of the world’s preeminent psychologists. His thinking is primarily about thought, but it is extremely wide-ranging – from biopsychology to social psychology to criminology to philosophy. His influence on philosophy has been compared to that of Freud and Skinner.

Richard's book list on thinking

Richard E. Nisbett Why did Richard love this book?

The book, written in mid-century, has some of the most powerful hypotheses of social psychology, which, along with the ideas of fellow émigré from Germany, Kurt Lewin, gave birth to the field of social psychology. Read Chapter 4 at least. I do every 5 years or so. The chapter gave rise to both dissonance theory and attribution theory, two of the major accomplishments of social psychology.

By Fritz Heider,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Psychology of Interpersonal Relations as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

First published in 1982. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.


Book cover of Vera Jewel Is Late for School

Lou Kuenzler Author Of Calm Down, Zebra

From my list on artistic expression.

Why am I passionate about this?

As a children’s writer I have to draw on my own creativity, celebrate my own ideas and quash self-doubt every time I work on a story. I teach creative writing, run workshops, and visit schools regularly – above all, I want to instill courage and the love of bold imagination in children. Picture book age children have such fantastic creativity and joyous wonder at the world around them. How wonderful to see that creative energy reflected back in a story which will hopefully spark more journeys into wonderful invented places, spaces, pictures, and tales. Imagination has brought me such great joy, I hope I can pass a spark of that onwards...

Lou's book list on artistic expression

Lou Kuenzler Why did Lou love this book?

When determined Vera is late for school, she uses her wild, funny, and inventive creativity to save the day.  This hilarious and original story is buzzing with resourcefulness and passion. It is perfect for learning about standing on your own two feet - and being rewarded for hard work and inventiveness along the way! 

By Nicola Kent,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Vera Jewel Is Late for School as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 3, 4, 5, and 6.

What is this book about?

When Vera Jewel's bike breaks one morning, she takes matters into her own hands and comes up with some ingenious - and very funny! - ways to get to school. From jumping on her space hopper to making her own catapult, Vera's ideas get more and more adventurous, but nothing seems to get her there on time. It's a good thing that she's one determined little girl who never gives up . . .

Vera Jewel is Late for School is a warm, funny and very original story about determination and creativity, perfect for learning about standing on your own…


Book cover of Creativity in Business: Based on the Famed Stanford University Course That Has Revolutionized the Art of Success

Matthew E. May Author Of Winning the Brain Game: Fixing the 7 Fatal Flaws of Thinking

From my list on creative thinking.

Why am I passionate about this?

For as long I can remember, I’ve been an ideas guy. I even like the idea of ideas…I guess that makes me a meta-idea guy. But not just any ideas. Ideas that achieve the maximum impact with the minimum means. Oliver Wendell Holmes once wrote, “I wouldn’t give a fig for simplicity on this side of complexity, but I’d give my life for simplicity on the other side of complexity.” Creative ideas are the main event of the imagination, and the simpler the better. I've written and published several books, hundreds of articles and blogs, and even had dozens of songs published. But by far my favorite creative accomplishment is winning the New Yorker cartoon caption contest in 2008.

Matthew's book list on creative thinking

Matthew E. May Why did Matthew love this book?

Creativity in Business was the book that started it all for me in terms of creativity in business. I had just graduated from The Wharton School with my MBA, and I had no idea that business creativity was even a thing. Or even a possibility. I thought they were entirely different worlds, and never the twain shall meet. In this book, authors Michael Ray and Rochelle Myers made me want to go take their course at Stanford. As soon as they started talking about business as art and silencing the “voice of judgment,” I was hooked.

By Michael Ray, Rochelle Myers,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

This exploration of innovative thinking in companies of all kinds "shows us how creativity in business can enrich us, and those who work with us." -- Spencer Johnson, co-author, The One Minute Manager


Book cover of Art Is a Way of Knowing: A Guide to Self-Knowledge and Spiritual Fulfillment through Creativity

Rachel Rose Author Of Creating Stillness: Mindful Art Practices and Stories for Navigating Anxiety, Stress, and Fear

From my list on helping you know through creativity.

Why am I passionate about this?

I've been making messes with paint, string, and words, as well as in love, mothering, and in virtually every other way imaginable my whole life. Eventually, an expertise began to grow, and the confusion in my life began to make sense through my creations, while at the same time, the seemingly irrelevant words and textures I was making started to tell me something about my life. Eventually, my lived experience and training in the Expressive Arts Therapies have led me to the roles of teacher, educator, and contemplative artist. If we pay attention to what we express and how we express things, we can find our way through any mess we find ourselves in.

Rachel's book list on helping you know through creativity

Rachel Rose Why did Rachel love this book?

As an anxious mother, I struggled to understand how my creative practice could help me through this trying stage of life.

This book was the first key to help me unlock how my creative practice could support my healing and help me learn more about myself. But most importantly, it gave me permission to proclaim that I could know and understand the world through my intimate creative expressions.

Part memoir, part instruction, this book provided the road map for who I am today: a woman who welcomes her suffering into the creative realm and watches it transform into insight.

By Pat B. Allen,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

An expert in art therapy offers this “wonderful” guide “for anyone, artistic or not, who is interested in using art to know more about himself or herself” (Library Journal)
 
Making art—giving form to the images that arise in our mind's eye, our dreams, and our everyday lives—is a form of spiritual practice through which knowledge of ourselves can ripen into wisdom. This book offers encouragement for everyone to explore art-making in this spirit of self-discovery—plus practical instructions on material, methods, and activities, such as ways to:

   •  Discover a personal myth or story
   •  Recognize patterns and themes in one's…


Book cover of The Art of Dreaming

Jenny Alexander Author Of Writing in the House of Dreams: Unlock The Power of Your Unconscious Mind

From my list on dreams for writers who want to boost creativity.

Why am I passionate about this?

I came to writing after twenty years of working with dreams, so I already had lots of techniques for coming and going easily between the everyday world and the inner worlds of imagination, and I’m sure that’s why I’ve never suffered from any creative blocks or anxieties. In a career spanning 30 years, I have written about 150 books, both fiction and non-fiction, for children and adults, and scores of articles including a monthly column in Writing Magazine. I have taught creative workshops for major writing organisations such as The Society of Authors, The Arvon Foundation, and The Scattered Authors’ Society, and I offer a varied programme of courses independently throughout the year.

Jenny's book list on dreams for writers who want to boost creativity

Jenny Alexander Why did Jenny love this book?

This book, like the previous one, is written by an anthropologist, and it describes the author’s experiences of learning dreaming techniques from a Toltec sorcerer. In that tradition, there are seven Gates of Dreaming, obstacles to be overcome if you want to achieve greater dream awareness and control, and the book looks at four of them. It’s thought-provoking but easy reading because it takes the form of a story, rather than a series of essays, and I enjoyed trying some of the ideas in my own dream practice.

By Carlos Castaneda,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

Bestselling author Carlos Castaneda introduces readers to the worlds that exist within their dreams.


Book cover of The Book of Mistakes

Claire A. B. Freeland Author Of What to Do When Mistakes Make You Quake: A Kid's Guide to Accepting Imperfection

From my list on accepting imperfection.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am a child psychologist and an award-winning author of several books for children and teens related to emotions, behavior, and the science behind them. I believe children love to see themselves in books and to learn about others. Making complex information clear and watching children light up with understanding is my goal for every book I write.

Claire's book list on accepting imperfection

Claire A. B. Freeland Why did Claire love this book?

As an artist, Corinna Luyken knows that mistakes happen. But some children crumple their papers and toss them with each perceived error. The Book of Mistakes demonstrates how mistakes are part of learning and growing. The illustrator takes each mistake and incorporates it into an expanding drawing until, voila, there is a magnificent two-page spread. But, she doesn’t stop there. The ending will surprise and delight and leave young children with the confidence to go make their own mistakes.

By Corinna Luyken,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Book of Mistakes 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?

Zoom meets Beautiful Oops! in this memorable picture book debut about the creative process, and the way in which "mistakes" can blossom into inspiration

One eye was bigger than the other. That was a mistake.
The weird frog-cat-cow thing? It made an excellent bush.
And the inky smudges... they look as if they were always meant to be leaves floating gently across the sky.

As one artist incorporates accidental splotches, spots, and misshapen things into her art, she transforms her piece in quirky and unexpected ways, taking readers on a journey through her process. Told in minimal, playful text, this…


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