Our All-Time Favorites Kids Book List

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If you’re looking for a list of great classic and contemporary children’s books you’ve come to the right place! These are our all-time favorite books for kids 3-10 years old.

Whether you’re using this as a children’s summer reading book list, or love to read year round, take this list with you to the library and used book sales – we find great classics there!

We are always seeking out more rich literature, so come back often for new additions!

Table of Contents

Picture Books

  1. The Seven Silly Eaters – Mary Ann Hoberman (amzn.to)
  2. Escargot – Dashka Slater (amzn.to)
  3. King Jack and the Dragon – Peter Bently (amzn.to)
  4. Building our House – Jonathan Bean (amzn.to)
  5. The Star Child – The Brothers Grimm (Illustrated by Bernadette Watts) (amzn.to)
  6. We’re Going on a Bear Hunt – Michael Rosen (amzn.to)
  7. Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel – Virginia Lee Burton (amzn.to)
  8. Choo Choo – Virginia Lee Burton (amzn.to)
  9. Maybelle The Cable Car – Virginia Lee Burton (amzn.to)
  10. Big Machines – The Story of Virginia Lee Burton – Sherri Duskey Rinker (amzn.to)
  11. Hubert’s Hair-Raising Adventure – Bill Peet (amzn.to)
  12. Zella, Zack, and Zodiac – Bill Peet (amzn.to)
  13. Buford the Little Bighorn – Bill Peet (amzn.to)
  14. The Ant and the Elephant – Bill Peet (amzn.to)
  15. Wump World – Bill Peet (amzn.to)
  16. The Empty Pot – DEMI (amzn.to)
  17. Doctor DeSoto – William Steig (amzn.to)
  18. Sylvester and the Magic Pebble – William Steig (amzn.to)
  19. Little Bear’s Little Boat – Eve Bunting (amzn.to)
  20. Owl Moon – Jane Yolen (amzn.to)
  21. Giant Island – Jane Yolen (amzn.to)
  22. The Curious Garden – Peter Brown
  23. How to Dig a Hole to the Other Side of the World – Faith McNulty
  24. Paris in the Spring with Picasso – Joan Yolleck
  25. We are the Gardeners – Joanna Gaines
  26. Dumpy and the Firefighters – Julie Andrews Edwards
  27. The Story of Ferdinand – Munro Leaf
  28. Corduroy – Don Freeman
  29. Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain – Verna Aardema
  30. Winnie-the-Pooh – A.L. Milne
  31. Finding Winnie – Lindsay Mattick
  32. Old Mikamba Had a Farm – Rachel Isadora
  33. Mighty, Mighty Construction Site – Sherri Duskey Rinker
  34. Three Cheers for Kid McGear – Sherri Duskey Rinker
  35. Up in the Garden and Down in the Dirt – Kate Messner
  36. Tractor Mac – Billy Steers
  37. Danny and the Dinosaur – Syd Hoff
  38. Albert the Albatross – Syd Hoff
  39. The Rose in my Garden – Arnold Lobel
  40. Owl at Home – Arnold Lobel
  41. Shark Lady – Jess Keating
  42. Ox-Cart Man – Donald Hall
  43. Oceans of Love – Janet Lawler
  44. The Little Island – Golden MacDonald and Leonard Weisgard
  45. Big Red Barn – Margaret Wise Brown
  46. Little Toot – Hardie Gramatky
  47. A New Coat for Anna – Harriet Ziefert
  48. The Little Engine That Could – Watty Piper
  49. Mae Among the Stars – Roda Ahmed
  50. A Dream of Flight – Jef Polivka
  51. Henri’s Scissors – Jeanette Winter
  52. Monet’s Cat – Lily Murray
  53. Tomo Explores the World –Trevor Lai
  54. Tomo Takes Flight – Trevor Lai
  55. A Sick Day for Amos McGee- Philip C. Stead
  56. The Jungle Book –  Rudyard Kipling (retold by Laura Driscoll)
  57. Emma and the Whale – Julie Case
  58. Little Bear’s Little Boat – Eve Bunting
  59. Zarafa: The Giraffe Who Walked to the King – Judith St. George
  60. Robby’s Big Flying Adventure – Adele Corso Paxton
  61. Tops and Bottoms – Janet Stevens
  62. Blueberries for Sal – Robert McCloskey
  63. One Morning in Maine – Robert McCloskey
  64. Make Way for Ducklings – Robert McCloskey
  65. Nesting – Henry Cole
  66. Map into the World – Kao Kalia Yang
  67. What Do You Do With an Idea? – Kobi Yamada
  68. Mr. George Baker – Amy Hest
  69. Turtle in the Sea – Jim Arnosky
  70. Johnny Appleseed – Steven Kellogg
  71. Mike Fink: A Tall Tale – Steven Kellogg
  72. Sally Ann Thunder Ann Whirlwind Crockett – Steven Kellogg
  73. Little Excavator – Anna Dewdney
  74. Over in the Forest – Marianne Berkes
  75. The Littlest Airplane – Brooke Hartman
  76. Fern and Otto – Stephanie Graegin
  77. Big Truck Little Island –  Chris Van Dusen
  78. A Gift for Mama – Linda Ravin Lodding
  79. Swimmy – Leo Lionni
  80. Thunder Cake – Patricia Polacco
  81. The Hike – Alison Farrell
  82. Locomotive – Brian Floca
  83. The Very Cranky Bear – Nick Bland
  84. How the Queen Found the Perfect Cup of Tea – Kate Hosford
  85. Otto and Pio – Marianne Dubuc
  86. A Summertime Song – Irene Haas
  87. Mr. Ferris and His Wheel – Kathryn Gibbs Davis
  88. Twice Upon a Time – Irwin Shapiro
  89. Island Boy – Barbara Cooney
  90. Flight for Freedom – Kristen Fulton
  91. Too Many Carrots – Katy Hudson
  92. Imogene’s Antlers – David Small
  93. Iron Hans: A Grimms’ Fairy Tale – Stephen Mitchell
  94. Rechenka’s Eggs – Patricia Polacco
  95. Otis and Will Discover the Deep – Barb Rosenstock
  96. The King and the Seed – Eric Maddern
  97. The Caterpillar and the Polliwog – Jack Kent
  98. All Aboard!: Elijah McCoy’s Steam Engine – Monica Kulling
  99. The Yellow Star: The Legend of King Christian X of Denmark
  100. Brave Bitsy and the Bear –  Angela McAllister
  101. Terrible Storm – Carol Otis Hurst
  102. What’s Your Angle, Pythagoras? – Julie Ellis
  103. The Flying Bed – Nancy Willard
  104. Katy No-Pocket – Emmy Payne
  105. Knight Owl – Christopher Denise
  106. Nobody Hugs a Cactus – Carter Goodrich
  107. The Field of Buttercups – Alice Boden
  108. John Ronald’s Dragons: The Story of J.R.R. Tolkien – Caroline McAllister
  109. The Country Bunny and the Little Gold Shoes – DuBose Heyward
  110. Hugo and the Impossible Thing – Renee Felice Smith
  111. Mossy – Jan Brett
  112. Sir Cumference and the First Round Table: A Math Adventure – Cindy Neuschwander
  113. The Boy Who Was Followed Home – Margaret Mahy
  114. The Three Billy Goats Gruff – Mac Barnett
  115. The Windchild – Cheryl Harness
  116. The Storybook Knight – Helen Docherty
  117. Many Moons – James Thurber
  118. A Visitor for Bear – Bonny Becker
  119. Library Lion – Michelle Knudsen
  120. The Lady with the Ship on Her Head – Deborah Nourse Lattimore 

First Reader Books

  1. Frog and Toad – Arnold Lobel
  2. Mouse Tales – Arnold Lobel
  3. Frog and Friends – Eve Bunting
  4. The Lighthouse Family – Cynthia Rylant
  5. Henry and Mudge – Cynthia Rylant
  6. Poppleton – Cynthia Rylant
  7. Little Bear – Else Holmelund Minarik
  8. Mouse and Mole Fine Feathered Friends – Wong Herbert Yee
  9. Zack’s Alligator – Shirley Mozelle
  10. Tales of Oliver Pig – Jean Van Leeuwen
  11. Arthur’s Honey Bear
  12. Hattie and the Wild Waves – Barbara Cooney

Chapter Books/Series

  1. Little House Series – Laura Ingalls Wilder
  2. The Chronicles of Narnia – C.S. Lewis
  3. Little Pilgrim’s Progress – Helen L. Taylor (illustrated by Joe Sutphin)
  4. Charlotte’s Web – E.B. White
  5. Trumpet of the Swan – E.B. White
  6. The Mouse and the Motorcycle – Beverly Cleary
  7. The Little Prince – Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
  8. Sophie Mouse – Poppy Green
  9. The Secret of the Hidden Scrolls – M.J. Thomas
  10. The Chocolate Touch – Patrick Skene Catling
  11. Pippi Longstocking – Astrid Lindgren
  12. The Wonderful Wizard of Oz – L. Frank Baum
  13. The Moffats – Eleanor Estes
  14. The King’s Equal – Katherine Paterson
  15. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – Roald Dahl
  16. My Father’s Dragon – Ruth Stiles Gannett
  17. The Boxcar Children – Gertrude Chandler Warner
  18. The Wind in the Willows – Kenneth Grahame
  19. Sydney & Taylor Explore the Whole Wide World – Jacqueline Davies
  20. The Enormous Egg – Oliver Butterworth
  21. The Sword in the Tree – Clyde Robert Bulla 

Poetry/Story Collections

  1. Fables – Arnold Lobel
  2. Over the Hills and Far Away: A Treasury of Nursery Rhymes
  3. James Herriot’s Treasury for Children
  4. The Book of Virtues – William Bennett
  5. Random House Book of Poetry for Children
  6. Sing a Song of Seasons
  7. Aesop’s Fables

Orthodox Christian Books

  1. Philo and the Superholies – Mireille Mishriky
  2. Anastasis: The Harrowing of Hades – Creative Orthodox
  3. Why Did God Make Beasts and Bugs – Zoe Doukakis
  4. From I-Ville to You-Ville – Mersine Vigopoulou
  5. What is an Icon? – St. Anthony’s Greek Orthodox Monastery
  6. Saint Anthony the Great – John Chryssavgis & Marilyn Rouvelas