100 books like The Tale of Peter Rabbit

In a sense, our new title Babies, Babies Everywhere! Is a homage to this lovely book, which the Ahlbergs made when they realised that their baby, Jessica, was much more interested in the Mothercare catalogue than in the picture books aimed at her age group. We wanted to update it with a more typical 21st-century bunch of babies and their diverse families.

This is my very favourite children’s book. I have read it hundreds of times and it still brings tears to my eyes.

It is a great book to read to children who are starting preschool, or nursery, or school. It is about 3 owl babies whose mother goes away to find food. They worry that she might not come back but of course she does. It helps children understand that their parent will come back at the end of the day.

The page where the mother owl comes back to the baby owls makes me cry every time!

A story I read so often in my childhood that I could recite it nearly verbatim. I read it frequently to my son. Then my grandchildren. Although they were inexplicably drawn to Bartholomew and the Oobleck by Dr. Seuss and, of course, their grandmother’s books, smart boys.

Here, a naughty boy, Max, runs away and enters a world of wild creatures and becomes their king. Max has a blast being king until he misses home. The transition from foe to friend to king moves quickly but is a topic worth exploring more in-depth.

Kids love the Wild Things dance scene done with rhythmic grunts and book shaking. I love its unique view on a child’s desire for independence and simultaneous need to come home. 

E.B. White wrote this book to explain death to children, and while death may be impossible for anyone to understand or accept fully, Charlotte the Spider makes a pretty good attempt.

If you read this book to your kids, you will all have Charlotte (and Wilbur and the rest of the farm animals) in your hearts forever. 

The Snowy Day is, at its heart, a beautiful book about playing alone.

When I was reading this book to my kids, we had just moved to the mountains of Ketchum, Idaho and my son had started third grade at a new school. He spent a lot of time playing alone in the snow and could relate to Peter’s solo adventures in the book.

The bright, graphic collage illustrations add a liveliness that reflects the joy of discovery, while the cool snow tones bring a silent reflectiveness. The book’s history is rich as well: It was published in 1963 and was the first color picture book to feature a black character.

As the book gently led readers into Jack’s quiet and joyful world, it was also a message of inclusiveness that broke through a wall in children’s publishing.

This is a cute children’s story great for bedtime, or anytime! It follows the story of little Lisbon as she is hunting for a snack. All her animal friends have suggestions that work great for them, but Lisbon is a human! She doesn’t want to eat bugs or any of their animal food!

This is a great read-aloud book for parents with children, but the font was specifically chosen to make it easier for children to read as well.

Readers who like cat protagonists, steampunk, or both, will love Calico Cogg, the main protagonist of this story. I liked the spunky little cat from the moment I met her, and did not want to put this story down. Clever Calico Cogg began life as an ordinary cat but after she was saved from the streets of Ticswyk, a city in an exciting steampunk world, by Lionel Cogg, a kindly inventor, he enhances her with implants that make her stronger and more agile than a regular cat. I found her talents as impressive as her audience did at the beginning of the book. What can Calico Cogg not do, right?  But then, when her beloved human Lionel is kidnapped, Calico's skills are put to the ultimate test! Even with her enhanced skills, it’s a race against time if she’s going to rescue her human! I was on the edge of… show more.

I really enjoyed reading this fun book for young kids about Detective Trigger, a Chihuahua hired to find a missing collar. Written in the style of a classic gumshoe mystery, but with animal characters, this story is certain to entertain young kids; even adults who can appreciate the playfulness of animals characters going about their business instead of human characters, would like this book. Struggling to make a living and do his part to restore order in a city run by corrupt cats, Detective Trigger sets out to uncover the mystery, and I found myself as invested in finding out the answers as I imagined Trigger was, himself.

Arnold Lobel’s masterpiece series about friendship is labeled an I Can Read book on the cover, Reading Level 2, With Help. “With help” is the key phrase because if you’re the one who’s helping a child read these books, that means you’ll get to read them, too.

Lobel writes so beautifully and with so few words. I think his work is right up there with Dr. Seuss.

After reading this captivating story, I was overwhelmed with the desire to embark on a grand adventure, flying in an open-air cockpit.

Coming from Ohio, not far from where the Wright Brothers took to the skies, flight has always fascinated me, from observing birds to marveling at airplanes. The vivid pictures within the pages of this book ignited a fire within me, giving me wings to soar through the air.

With its delightful portrayal of Louis Blériot's historic flight across the English channel in 1909, this picture book beautifully brings the world of first flights and eccentric contraptions to life. Its clever illustrations, filled with wit and whimsy, truly captured the essence of the extraordinary journey.