20 Books Your Toddler Will Love

Lists and GuidesGiftingMothering
Written By Brittany Trayah
 

At our baby shower, we asked for books instead of cards, and so we grew a sizable stack before Rin was even born. We started reading to our daughter literally while in the womb, so it came as no surprise to us when Rin loved to read books.

Of course, we know that every child is different and has their own unique taste, but if you are looking for tried and tested beloved favorites to add to your home library, here are 20 of my daughter’s favorite books. I’ll be sharing some more detail on each book below and why we think your toddler will love it!

 
 

*DISCLOSURE: This post may contain affiliate links, meaning I get a small commission if you decide to make a purchase through my links, at no cost to you. Please read my terms of use policy for more info.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 

Hush Little Polar Bear was the first book we made a part of our nighttime routine, and Rin was *obsessed*. It's calming and melodic, and the illustrations are beautiful. When my hubby and I got tired of reading it over and over again, we would use funny accents or voices, and even rap it!

Sally Loyd Jones's The Jesus Storybook Bible is a one-of-a-kind retelling of many of the most known Bible stories. It's a great introduction to the Bible that meets the child at their level and makes big concepts easy to understand. Rin and I have incorporated reading her Bible as part of our morning routine, in which we read hers together and then each read our own Bibles separately.

My 2-year-old is obsessed with Love From the Crayons, so much so that she has memorized it. Bonus, it's helped her with her colors too! It is such a whimsical and fun read for any age.

I attribute Rin's proficiency with her alphabet to A is for Apple. It's interactive, with little flaps on every page, plus a space for them to trace each letter with their finger as they get older and start learning how to write. It also helps with object recognition. This one's perfect for your baby, toddler, and kindergartner!

Guess How Much I love You is a classic, and must of course be on this list. The sweetest little love story between parent and child is a tale worth telling - over and over again.

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom is another fan favorite! We actually got 3 copies of this book from our baby shower before Rin was even born! And it's no surprise why–rhyming, bold colors, simple illustrations, and letters are everything kids are fascinated with! After Rin started memorizing parts of it, I came up with a way to make it more interactive! I made a fun little felt board with the exact tree from the book, coconuts and all. As we read through the story, I would ask Rin to add one letter at a time to the felt board, and she loved it! 

The Kingdom of Heaven: A Gardening Primer is one of our current favorites! Every page bursts with richly colored scenes that breathe Biblical truths through metaphor. My daughter’s  favorite parts are when we see the “little wuh-mee” (wormy) and the “maaannn” (said in a long island accent for some reason). 

You cannot go wrong with the beautiful tales of Beatrix Potter. Her stories are known worldwide, and they earned their spot on the list of most beloved classics, at least in our book (wink, wink). The Tale of the Flopsy Bunnies and The Tale of Miss Moppet are our girl's favs.

Corduroy was a thrifted find, and when we first introduced it to Rin, she would ask me to read it to her multiple times a DAY. I shuffled it to the bottom of the stack after 3 days. This funny little bear's journey is so heart-warming that it charms even the littlest of readers.

Goodnight Numbers is a great “night-night” book that's so full of numbers it makes my head spin. It is so impressively thought out, and it's another great one that grows with your child as their comprehension grows. This has been a night-time staple for the better part of a year, and I don’t think that is likely to change soon.

 
 
 

If you just can’t keep reading the same books over and over again, I recently learned about Dolly Parton’s imagination library. If you aren’t familiar with the program, the Imagination Library is a *free* book gifting program that mails high-quality books to children from birth to age five (no matter your family’s income) once a month. It took literally 3 minutes to register my daughter, and I got an email saying she was accepted into the program within an hour. This is a resource that everyone should be taking advantage of, and you can do so right now by clicking here. (I am not an affiliate with this program, I just love free books.)

 
 
 

Adam Raccoon and the King’s Big Dinner is another Christian parable book with a great lesson to learn about who's invited into God’s kingdom (spoiler alert: it’s everyone), at a level they can understand. I was so tickled to find out that it was written by one of my favorite Disney animators, Glen Keane, who has written several other children’s books!

Dragons Love Tacos has been a long standing favorite for my toddler. It is just a fun and quirky tale about how—you guessed it—dragons love tacos. As an added bonus, there is also a sequel and prequel that you and your toddler are sure to giggle through.

A School of Fish is a great interactive touch-and-feel book that is funky and informative. What two-year-old doesn’t love animals? So obviously this has been a favorite. We actually kept this one in the diaper bag at all times for when we needed a playful distraction if Rin got in a mood. 

Where is Fuzzy Penguin? is a rhyming “eye spy” book that is so fun for little ones! The touch-and-feel “fuzzy penguin” is a little more challenging for toddlers to find, making it a perfect exercise for developing minds. 

The World of Winnie-the-Pooh is a renowned classic, so obviously it demands a spot on our list. We received a thick chapter book of A.A. Milne’s beloved characters from the 100 Acre Wood and I was pleasantly surprised that it kept Rin’s attention when she was only 8 months old. Reading an entire chapter almost daily, it brought me back to my younger years and reminded me of the beautiful gift of childhood.

A wonderful “night-night” book, ABCs of Love has a melodic rhythm perfect for lulling your littles to sleep. The poems are precious, and it warms my heart to hear Rin now reciting the book from memory!

Oh my goodness, Stand Tall, Molly Lou Melon is *special*. Right around when Rin turned 2, she rediscovered this book and it has been among the battered nap-time favorites for months. For me in particular, this is a very special book with an absolutely beautiful message about being different. I wish someone had read this book to me when I was younger, at a time when I needed to hear it. 

I Want to Dance is for every Mama who grew up wanting to be a ballerina, or for every little girl who dreams of being one herself. It’s about a little bunny who wants to dance with the big girls. The illustrations are beautiful, and the ending is super sweet.

Giraffes Can’t Dance is another animal-themed rhyme book your toddler’s gonna love. We LOVE this book. It’s fun and silly at face value, but its hidden meaning is heart-warming to your core. 

A Loud Winter’s Nap tells the tale of a grumpy turtle who just wants to sleep all winter long. Throughout the book, he moves from place to place in search of that *perfect* nap spot, but discovers instead just how wonderful winter can be! We haven’t read the original to this series (Too Many Carrots), but that’s on our own reading list!

P.S., if you’re looking for more winter or holiday books, check out our list of Christmas books for Toddlers blog post!

 
 

Related Posts

We seek to inspire imagination and beautiful play in mother and child by bringing you mom and money hacks, essential guides, inspiring interiors, and - of course - beautiful little play things. If you want more of this, head this way…

 
Brittany Trayah
Previous

The Ordinary Little Playroom
Next

7 of Our Favorite Christmas Books