100 Must-Read Picture Books For Kids and Adults

If there is one thing I’ve learned from being a youth librarian, it’s that picture books are some of the most wonderful things in the world. I’m not just talking about for children, either. As an adult I have found joy, inspiration, comfort, sadness, and growth by reading picture books. From rhyming tales of books lost in zoos to death parables that refuse to sugarcoat, from surreal abstract collages to breathtaking classical art – there is nothing you can’t find in this simple, quick, beautiful form. I’ve covered a few categories, hoping to honor the classics while exposing a whole world of possibility to readers of any age. “There are some themes, some subjects, too large for adult fiction; they can only be dealt with adequately in a children’s book.” – Philip Pullman Icons Corduroy Don Freedman Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown, Clement Hurd Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Suess The Mitten by Jan Brett Madeline by Ludwig Bemelmens Make Way for Ducklings by Robert McCloskey Llama Llama by Anna Dewdney The Little Engine That Could by Watty Piper, George Hauman, Doris Hauman The Essential Classics The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf, Robert Lawson We’re Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen, Helen Oxbury Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de la Plena, Christian Robinson Stellaluna by Janell Cannon Alexander and the Terrible Horrible No Good Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst, Ray Cruz Caps for Sale: A Tale of a Peddler, Some Monkeys and Their Monkey business by Esphyr Slobodkina Olivia by Ian Flaconer Curious George by H.A. Rey The Runaway Bunny by  Margaret Wise Brown, Clement Hurd Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Jr. Martin, John Archambault How Do Dinosaurs Say Goodnight by Jane Yolen, Mark Teague Paper Bag Princess by Robert Munsch, Michael Martchenko Kitten’s First Full Moon by Keven Henkes Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats Strega Nona: An Old Tale Retold by Tomie dePaola Eloise by Kim A Nelson, Hilary Knight Knuffle Bunny by Mo Willems Too Much Noise by Ann McGovern, Simms Taback Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel by Virginia Lee Burton The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear by Don Wood, Audrey Wood Lesser Known Gems The Enormous Crocodile by Roald Dahl The Sign On Rosie’s Door by Maurice Sendak Bartholomew and the Oobleck by Dr. Suess Here is the World: A Year of Jewish Holidays by Leslea Newman, Susan Gal Joseph Had a Little Overcoat by Simms Taback Cherries and Cherry Pits by Vera B Williams A Hole Is To Dig by Ruth Krauss, Maurice Sendak The Grouchy Ladybug by Eric Carle That is Not A Good Idea by Mo Willems Bark, George by Jules Feiffer Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type by Doreen Cronin, Betsy Lewin Jingle Dancer by Cynthia Leitch Smith, Ying-Wha Hu, Cornelius Van Wright International Titles Shi-shi-etko by Nicola I. Campbell, Kim La Fave Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters by John Steptoe Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears: A West African Tale by Verna Aardema, Diane Dillon, Leo Dillon Ganesh’s Sweet Tooth by Emily Haynes, Sanjay Patel The Cazuela That the Farm Maiden Stirred by Samantha R. Vamos, Rafael Lopez Drum Dream Girl: How One Girl’s Courage Changed Music by Margarita Engle, Rafael Lopez Baba Yaga and Vasilisa the Brave by Marianna Mayer, Kinuko Y. Craft Padmini is Powerful (Bharat Babies) by Amy Maranville   History & Biography I Have a Dream by Martin Luther King Jr, Kadir Nelson Freedom Summer by Deborah Wiles, Jerome Lagarrigue All Different Now: Juneteenth, the First Day of Freedom by Angela Johnson, E.B. Lewis Oskar and the Eight Blessings by Tanya Simon, Richard Simon, Marc Siegel Nelson Mandela by Kadir Nelson Little Melba and Her Big Trombone by Katheryn Russel-Brown, Frank Morrison Finding Winnie: The True Story of the World’s Most Famous Bear Lindsay Mattick, Sophie Blackall Viva Frida by Yuyi Morales, Tim O’Meara Brave Girl: Clara and the Shirtwaist Makers’ Strike of 1909  by Michelle Markel I Dissent: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Makes Her Mark by Debbie Levy, Elizabeth Baddeley   Wordless Emily’s Balloon by Komako Sakai Journey by Aaron Becker Flotsam by David Weisner The Lion and the Mouse by Jerry Pinkney Chalk by Bill Thompson The Arrival by Shaun Tan Zoom by Istvan Banyai Wave by Suzy Lee Unspoken: A Story from the Underground Railroad by Henry Cole Tuesday by David Weisner LGBTQIA Red: A Crayon’s Story by Michael Hall Morris Micklewhite and the Tangerine Dress by Christine Baldacchino, Isabelle Malenfant I Am Jazz – Jazz Jennings, Jessica Herthel, Shelagh McNicholas And Tango Makes Three by Justin Richardson, Peter Parnell, Henry Cole Worm Loves Worm by J.J. Austrian, Marc Curato Heather Has Two Mommies by Leslea Heather Has Two Mommies, Laura Cornell Donovan’s Big Day by Leslea Newman, Mike Duncan Uncle Bobby’s Wedding by Sarah S. Brannen Personal Favorites Heart in a Bottle by Oliver Jeffers The Princess and the Pony by Kate Beaton Instructions by Neil Gaimen, Charles Vess In The Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak Wild About Books by Judy Sierra, Marc Brown Dear Zoo by Rod Campbell Dinosaur vs Bedtime by Bob Shea The Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig by Eugene Trivizas, Helen Oxenbury The Curious Garden by Peter Brown Tap the Magic Tree by Christie Matheson A is for Activist by Innosanto Nagara 2016 Picks Don’t Call Me Grandma by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson, Elizabeth Zunon Cry Heart But Never Break by Glenn Ringtved, Charlotte Pardi, Robert Moulthrop Thunder Boy Junior by Sherman Alexie, Yuyi Morales Du Iz Tak by Carson Ellis The Bear and the Piano by David Litchfield Best In Snow by April Pulley Sayre Who Wants a Tortoise? by Dave Keane, K.G. Campbell King Baby by Kate Beaton Ada Twist, Scientist by  Andrea Beaty, David Roberts Maybe Something Beautiful: How Art Transformed a Neighborhood by F. Isabel Campoy, Theresa Howell, Rafael López Leave Me Alone by Vera Brosgol