Reading to your baby is one of the most important developmental experiences for your little one. It will teach them sounds, language, arts, cause and effect, object-word associations, counting, colors, emotions, social cues, and about love and friendship. Books are very important building blocks for your baby's brain development, and you'll be happy to know that there are tons of excellent, fun, colorful, and engaging books out there for you to read and enjoy.
Whether during the day or at bedtime, picking up one of the best baby books will leave you and your baby smiling and wanting more! We pulled together over 50 of the best baby books available on the market today, and listed them below. We included not only old classics, like Goodnight Moon, but also relative newcomers like the amazing line of children's books by Blue Dot, and timely topical books like The Color of Us. Some of our all-time favorites baby books are up at the top, but otherwise this list is in no particular order. They're all fantastic and highly recommended! We hope you enjoy!
Here are the Best Baby Books of 2020!
The Very Hungry Caterpillar
By Eric Carle
Eric Carle uses bright mixed-media collages with primary colors to illustrate a simple story about, you guessed it, a very hungry caterpillar! Great artwork, interactive book design, and delicious snacks!
Goodnight Moon
By Margaret Wise Brown
This is a classic baby book with adorable rhyming, and beautiful and simple illustrations. It's perfect for bedtime, and saying goodnight to the inside and outside world.
Press Here
By Herve Tullet
This interactive book is tons of fun, inviting your baby to press the dot and see what happens! Teaches cause and effect, with the dots moving, multiplying, and scattering with the touch of your baby's finger!
The Colors of Us
By Karen Katz
An important and timely celebration of diversity and the beautiful skin tone differences that characterize the world around us. Join 7-year old Lena as she explores the colors that paint ourselves, our cultures, and our neighborhoods. A great first read about race, belonging, and the power of differences.
Good Night, Gorilla
By Peggy Rathmann
This fun, lighthearted book tells the story of a mischievous gorilla who grabs a zookeeper's keys and lets all of his fellow zoo animals free for a secret night sleeping in the zookeeper's house!
The Pigeon Needs a Bath!
By Mo Willems
Mo Willems makes some of the cutest and most helpful books for babies and toddlers who are questioning their uncertain worlds, learning to express their emotions and independence, and navigating complex social relationships.
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you See?
By Bill Martin, Jr.
Another beautiful Eric Carle illustrated book, with bold primary colors and adorable animals, the brown bear answers the question "what do you see?" as it journeys through its world.
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
By Bill Martin, Jr.
This is a great book for teaching the alphabet in a fun-filled, rhythmic way. Watch as letters race each other up the coconut tree and fill up the top in an alphabet adventure!
Leafy Critters
By Yvonne Lacet
The author uses nature (leaves, twigs, flower petals) to make beautiful critters like lions, pigs, flamingos, and one of the most beautiful butterflies we've ever seen! Simple, creative, and inspiring interactions with nature.
Pajama Time!
By Sandra Boynton
Our all-time favorite bedtime book, this book will lull your little one to sleep with clever rhymes and a lot of silly fun. Pull on the bottoms, put on the top, and get yourself set to pajama-bee-bop!
Beautiful Oops
By Barney Saltzberg
We all make mistakes, and it's important for your baby to know that it's a natural and beautiful part of the learning process. This book turns tons of little mistakes into a beautiful and interactive collage of beauty!
Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site
By Sherri Duskey Rinker
This great bedtime baby book is a #1 New York Times Bestseller, for great reasons. It uses beautiful imagery of a construction site and its expressive equipment settling in for a good night's rest.
If Animals Kissed Goodnight
By Ann Whitford Paul
Animals kiss each other good night in this simple rhyming tale of mama and daddy animals kissing their little babies good night.
I Kissed the Baby!
By Mary Murphy
Bold contrasts and simple words guide babies through the magical experience of animals sharing their excitement over a new baby's arrival.
If you Give a Mouse a Cookie
By Laura Joffe Numeroff
This classic tale of cause-and-effect describes the chain reaction that happens if you give a mouse a cookie. Things quickly get out of hand as the mouse continues to ask for more!
Where the Wild Things Are
By Maurice Sendak
One of the best stories for kids, the hero Max goes on a rompus and gets himself in a little trouble, and ends up sent to bed without dinner. Watch and listen as Max explores an imaginary forest that grows in his room, and his adventures with the wild creatures fo the forest!
Under My Tree
By Tallandier & Fujisawa
Beautiful artwork combined with an inspiring story about Susanne and her exploration of the natural world around her, this book guides children through a multi-sensory exploration of the natural world all around them (ages 3-8).
The Day the Crayons Quit
By Drew Daywalt
Duncan opens his box of crayons to find a series of notes written by each crayon, telling him that they quit! What will Duncan do to get his crayons to come back!?
Little Blue Truck
By Alice Schertle
Blue is a muddy blue truck that gets into some fun misadventures while traveling down a bumpy country road with all his animal friends!
Corduroy
By Don Freeman
This book is a classic tale about a stuffed animal and his missing button, and the little girl who loves him, will make you feel good inside!
My Very First Mother Goose
By Iona Opie
This book of nursery rhymes and animal characters is a great introduction to rhyming, sing-song language, and some favorite nursery rhymes.
Close your Eyes
By Kate Banks
This bedtime story about a mother tiger settling down with her restless cub for a long and dreamy night of sleep, is one of our best baby books of all time!
Is your Mama a Llama?
By Deborah Guarino
Lloyd the Llama explores the forest and asks his friends if their mama is a llama. Their clues about their mama are a real treat, and teach babies about beautifully illustrated creatures.
Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed
By Eileen Christelow
One fell off and bumped his head! An exhausted mama monkey deals with her silly monkeys before bedtime, bathing, putting on pajamas, brushing teeth, and jumping on the bed.
Guess How Much I Love You
By Sam McBratney
A bunny and his dad try to out-do each other in expressing their love for one another. Illustrated with beautiful watercolors, this story will make you feel warm in your heart.
Busy Penguins
By John Schindel
This book has real photographs of penguins going about their daily business, including splashing, dashing, drooping, and even pooping! A fun delight with beautiful images from professional photographers.
Where is Baby's Belly Button?
By Karen Katz
This fun lift-the-flap baby book is a colorful first lesson about our bodies, revealing parts of the body hiding under hats, shirts, and bubble baths! A fun game of peek-a-boo for baby and parents alike!
More More More Said the Baby
By Vera B. Williams
Vera Williams tells the story of multiracial babies with a musical rhythm, with asian-american, african-american, and caucasian babies, showing the universality of love.
Gossie
By Olivier Dunrea
This book tells the tale of Gossie, an adorable yellow gossling who wears her signature red boots. In this tale, Gossie goes on a mission to find her lost boots.
Dear Zoo
By Rod Campbell
I wrote to the zoo to send me a pet… This book tells the tale of a child who requests a pet from the zoo, and the silly series of animals that were sent. Some too heavy, some too naughty, until the perfect pet arrives.
In the Tall, Tall Grass
By Denise Fleming
Beautiful and simple illustrations fill this fun book about animals and insects in your backyard. The story is told from the caterpillar's perspective, looking up at the big curious child peering down.
Are you my Mother?
By P.D. Eastman
A baby bird falls from the nest and goes on a journey to find his mother. Are you my mother? This book is a classic and story about devotion, love, and the animal kingdom.
Love you Forever
By Robert Munsch
A story about growing up and the special bonds between mother and son, from baby to adult. A lovely story about love, generations, and parenting.
Under My Tree
By Tallandier & Fujisawa
Beautiful artwork combined with an inspiring story about Susanne and her exploration of the natural world around her, this book guides children through a multi-sensory exploration of the natural world all around them.
Peek-a-Boo
By Roberta Grobel Intrater
This book has vibrant photographs of baby faces from all walks of life, with all emotions, and multiracial representation.
The Snowy Day
By Ezra Jack Keats
A story about the wonder and fun of a snowy day, with snow angels, snowmen, snowballs, and a ton of fun after a snowstorm blankets the neighborhood.
Time to Get Dressed
By Elivia Savadier
Baby Solomon decides to get himself dressed, but puts his clothes on in very silly ways. This book about the spirit and independence of toddlers will certainly resonate with parents!
Pat the Bunny
By Dorothy Kunhardy
This classic interactive baby book is a lot of fun, with multi-sensory interactions, including smelling flowers, feeling daddy's face, plating peek-a-boo, and touching the soft soft bunny.
Wheels on the Bus
By Raffi
All through the town… This popular children's song has been made into an adorable book that parents and babies can sing along with!
Runaway Bunny
By Margaret Wise Brown
This is a beautiful story about a mother's unconditional love for her baby bunny who wants to run away. A fun tale of make-believe chase, with a mother who is willing to travel to the lengths of the earth to stay with her baby.
Eyes, Nose, Fingers, and Toes
By Judy Hindley
Stand up and jump around with this fun book that gets your baby moving and identifying body parts. This book has cute illustrations and is super fun to follow along with!
Numbers, Colors, and Shapes
By Roger Priddy
Roger Priddy is back with another board book filled with bold colors and adorable pictures of everyday things, this one focusing on teaching about numbers, colors, and shapes.
My Heart is Like a Zoo
By Micheal Hall
This book is about the complex emotions characterizing each and every day of baby's and your life, and how love is a constant throughout. Find the hidden heart on every page for a fun interactive activity!
Opposites
By Xavier Deneux
With scooped-out die-cut pages that invite baby's fingers to explore, this is a great hands-on multisensory book that will get baby thinking about opposites, like day-night, small-big, and heavy-light.
Opposites
By Sandra Boynton
By one of our all-time favorite baby book authors, Sandra Boynton, this book involves serious silliness with beautifully illustrated animals that teach all about opposites, like big-small, short-tall.
Ivy Bird
By McCartney & Racklyeft
Another amazing book by the folks at Blue Dot Kids Press, Ivy spends an imaginative day with the birds, singing as they sing, eating as they eat, and flying as they fly. A rich and creative journey that is both creative and educational.
But not the Hippopotamus
By Sandra Boynton
This silly tale about a shy hippopotamus who doesn't want to participate in fun activities, ends with the hippopotamus making a big splash!
First 100 Words
By Roger Priddy
Roger Priddy is back with another learning board book with bold colors and adorable pictures. In this one, he focuses on 100 simple first words for baby, inviting baby to play along and find the objects.
Baby Signs
By Joy Allen
Baby signing can teach your baby to communicate basic needs with simple gestures, teaching baby and parents about the interactive nature of communication beyond the spoken word.
Fuzzy Fuzzy Fuzzy!
By Sandra Boynton
Another awesome Sandra Boynton book with interactive textures ranging from smooth, bumpy, fuzzy and rough. This is a great book for piquing your baby's curiousity and sense of touch.
Hoppity Frog
By Emma Parish
Your baby will love moving the slider to reveal the underwater creatures hiding in the pond, from tadpoles to swans, ducks, and fish, this book is fully of beautifully illustrated sea animals!
Moo Baa La La La
By Sandra Boynton
Learn all about animal noises in the cheerful and silly book with some amusing twists and turns. Keep your baby on her toes correcting all the silly errors in this baby book!
Trucks
By Roger Priddy
For the baby who loves all things automobile, this book about trucks and tractors is a sure hit! Slide open the doors to reveal all sorts of machinery, colors, and drivers!
Dr. Seuss's Sleep Book
By Dr. Seuss
In this classic Dr. Seuss book, a tired little bug is getting sleepy and his yawn sets off a chain event of yawns for some very silly looking creatures. Experience great rhymes and illustrations that are sure to get your child yawning!
A Book of Sleep
By Il Sung Na
This beautifully illustrated book takes your child on a journey through the wild to see how different creatures sleep. Except the owl!
Time for Bed
By Mem Fox
Beautiful watercolor illustrations make this book an instant classic. Follow along as all sorts of baby animals are tucked in for a restful night's sleep.
I'm Not Sleepy!
By Jonathan Allen
Baby owl does not want to go to sleep, but he sure is tired! A tale most parents can relate to, follow along as baby owl tries his best to resist the inevitable.
Hush Little Polar Bear
By Jeff Mack
This dreamy polar bear will guide you along through a vivid dreamscape, through lands of tall grass and the deep sea. Its rhyming and sleepy images will start your baby off for a great night!
Hey Sheep Let me Sleep!
By Sigal Adler
Counting sheep backfires in this silly book describing brightly colored sheep showing up to dance and party the night away!
Goodnight Darth Vader
By Jeffrey Brown
For the Star Wars fans, this book describes the silly shenanigans of Darth Vader's kids Luke and Leia who refuse to go to sleep.
A Sick Day for Amos McGee
By Philip C. Stead
Amos has great friends at the zoo, and every day he visits them to play a special game. What happens when he stays home sick and his animal friends miss him? They return the favor!
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