35 Favorite Picture Books for Kids

Though Laurel and Violet differ in many ways, one characteristic they most definitely share is their love of books. While I was collecting their beloved but outgrown board books to hand down to my sister, I made a list of the picture books that have received request upon request by both girls. These picks will be wonderful for your library; they shine in wording, messaging, and illustration. Enjoy! And feel free to add your favorites in the comments below!

1. Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

2. A Birthday for Frances

3. Bread and Jam for Frances

4. Caps for Sale

5. The Cat in the Hat

6. Doctor DeSoto

7. Duck on a Bike

8. Ella Takes the Cake

9. The Further Tale of Peter Rabbit

10. George & Martha: Best of Friends

11. The Gigantic Turnip

12. Great Day For Up

13. Guji Guji

14. Harold and the Purple Crayon

15. I’ll Teach My Dog 100 Words

16. The Kissing Hand

17. The Little House

18. Llama Llama Red Pajama

19. Make Way for Ducklings

20. Madeline

21. Miss Nelson is Missing

22. Miss Rumphius

23. Olivia

24. Penguin

25. Penguin and Pinecone

26. Pigs Aplenty, Pigs Galore

27. A Pocket for Corduroy

28. The Shape of Me

29. The Snail and the Whale

30. Stone Soup

31. Swimmy

32. Tillie and the Wall

33. Toot & Puddle

34. Where is the Cake?

35. Zen Ties

Image credits: book jackets via Amazon; compilation graphic by Christine Koh