13 Kids’ Books to Get Your Children Excited About Reading

13 Kids’ Books to Get Your Children Excited About Reading

by Toni Woodruff, Joe Walters, and Jaylynn Korrell

Kids’ books are like windows to a new world.

These little people are just trying to figure out this life on earth thing. They know only what they know, and we see why they know what they know, even how it differs or connects with our own understanding of the world.

That’s why it’s so important to read kids’ books.

Sometimes it can be difficult to talk about certain subjects. Other times, they just never arise naturally enough for our little one to grow curious about it. Some books include topics we don’t even want to talk about to our kids yet, like death or brattiness, so which books are the ones you should get for your little one and the little ones around you?

This list includes picture books and board books, some suitable from ages 2-9. Some are nonfiction while others are about as fantastical as they come (I’m looking at you, Rainbow Goblins!).

If you’re looking to expand your little library or give an awesome kids’ book for your best friend’s baby shower, this list has you covered. And in true IBR fashion, they’re all indie books!

Here are 13 kids’ books that little ones love.

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1. The Rainbow Goblins

Welcome to my absolute favorite purchase of 2024!

My daughter picked up The Rainbow Goblins in the Odyssey Bookstore in Ithaca, NY, and I was amazed with her quality control. And once you pick this thing up, you’ll see why.

The paintings are breathtaking, and it tells an oddly creepy (but not scary!) story about goblins who are trying to drink up all the colors of the rainbow until there’s nothing left. Everyone lives in fear of them, except for the Valley of the Rainbow. But when the goblins gather up their lassoes and set their sights on that, the roots of the trees and plants communicate to the nature around them that it’s time to fight back. And how!

Watch in absolutely gorgeous color as nature fights back against the rainbow goblins and ensures that rainbows are safe from their wrath once and for all.

It’s creative and long but not too long, and the pictures are a wonder to look at. A particularly good choice for book-loving, imaginative 3-year-olds all the way up to 9-year-olds.

–Joe Walters

2. Immune Heroes

In Immune Heroes, siblings Mayu and Nimi are out riding bikes and enjoying the day when Mayu suddenly hits a rock and tumbles to the ground. His sister runs to comfort him while reminding him that the pain he’s currently feeling is a good thing, as it signifies the beginning of the healing process. And the beginning of the healing process couldn’t be cooler than the way that Gandhi tells it. 

This book packs in a lot of action in its 30 or so pages, as the process of healing isn’t always completed on the first try. Bacteria find their way in despite the tacky platelets creating a protective seal. Macrophages are called in to devour said bacteria as new intruders find other ways to wreak havoc. Gandhi’s story transforms healing into an epic battle that is sure to entertain. 

Parents who want to introduce big concepts like immunology to their kids in a way that they’ll understand will love this book. Gandhi writes about the experience in such a fun way that kids may not even realize they’re being taught a valuable, relatable science lesson. She explains things in an accessible way and pairs the prose with beautiful graphics that will keep little eyes glued to the page. I loved watching each new group of characters rush to the scene whether it be to attack or defend Mayu’s wound. 

–Jaylynn Korrell

3. My Father Once Told Me

Not often do I encounter kids’ books quite as beautiful as this one. I don’t want to exaggerate; don’t want to overdo it, make you think I’m being untrue for the sake of hyperbole. I just really want you and your kids to read this book. 

It’s a creation story that’s passed down from father to son about how the Great Spirit reached into the nothing of the universe and turned it into a Something. A big blue ball that his children—the animals of the sky—are enamored of. Oh, please, please, can we go in?

Salmon and Whale are the first to dive into the unknown blue. They are followed by Eagle and Crow taking to the skies, Tortoise and Turtle carrying mud on their backs from the ocean to build land to stand on. Moose, Water Snake, Wolf, beyond—the animals play and form the land in ways that are natural to them. Who else but Water Snake would form the rivers; who else but Beaver would create lakes and waterfalls? 

My Father Once Told Me is poetic but not in the sing-song way you’ve come to expect of children’s books. There are no rhymes here. But the story that the unnamed narrator father tells uses poetic techniques like repetition—“little” on the first page to contrast the one human against the big world—and personified language that floats through fire and air, up to sky, and moves stars around. 

The illustrations are equally magical. The animals and the land are freely flowing, like fluid movements akin to moving water, and the trees rise high and tall. Imprints of the animals’ bodies are even long like the trees. The water and the land and the lifeforms all flow together in soft palettes and pleasing tones of blue and green. And on the off-chance it’s not blue or green, orange and reds pop in eye-catching, still-fluid contrasts.

ut this isn’t all. It’s also got a deep conversation going on about myth as history. This story is passed down like all important stories are. It’s a father talking to a son like his father talked to him. Kids can gain access—maybe with a little help from their mom or dad—to the understanding of how history works. 

–Joe Walters

4. Fly High, Baby Dragon

Fly High, Baby Dragon checks all the boxes. It has a good story, good kids, good parenting, a good moral, great eye-popping illustrations, and, most importantly, it has actually captivated my little one. She wants to read it, and I’ll gladly open it again, knowing she’ll be learning about something relevant and encouraging while getting pulled in by the story. 

A baby dragon emerges from his shell excited to learn that he will soon be able to fly. But not before a little practice and a lot of patience after flying doesn’t come easily. Baby Dragon jumps off a cliff and falls and kerplunks and splats. He’s frustrated—he wants to give up—but he’s got one cool mom on his side, cheering him on when he gets back up again and taking him away to give him space and distract him from the problem at hand. She’s wonderfully patient, dances with him, feeds him delicious, big-bellied breakfasts, and allows him to make the decision to get back out there. To keep trying.

Riding a bike. Steering a scooter. Jumping at the trampoline park. Climbing the rock wall at the playground. My kid experiences failure at first attempt all the time. All I’ve ever wanted to communicate with her is in this book. Yes, you’re going to fall. Yes, it hurts to get hurt. But also yes, it can be worth it if you keep trying. And yet at the same time, it’s not worth panicking over. If you’re not ready to conquer it, try something else. Dance, eat. But don’t be afraid to try again when you feel ready.

–Toni Woodruff

Need more space for kids’ books? Here are our favorite kids’ bookshelf ideas!

5. Alphabreaths

It’s easy to take breathing for granted. It comes naturally and happens without us even thinking about it. But what about our little ones?

Breathing is one of my favorite parenting techniques: showing my babies that I’m focusing on breathing while they’re crying. This book brings the physical activity of breathing to the forefront and makes an alphabet game out of it.

Open your arms like an alligator on the in-breath, snap those jaws shut on the exhale. Flap your wings like a butterfly and breathe your way around the room. Envision you’re blowing out your birthday cake.

A great book to start your day with, one or two or three breathing and imagination activities to remind us that we are here on this earth and capable of conquering anything as long as we just keep breathing.

–Joe Walters

6. A Very Chilling Mystery

There’s a party going on in the fridge, and Erickson lets you in on it. It starts with an illustration of a little girl eyeing up the fridge from afar as the narrator invites us on a journey of confirmation that those delectables aren’t just lying around waiting to be enjoyed in there. 

Soon we’re taken through the shelves as foods and beverages go about their daily business, which includes things like playing baseball with a carrot bat, potatoes watching tv on a meatloaf couch, and beets rocking out on a drum set. In fact they’re doing everything but the nothing most people assume, and it’s awesome! 

The illustrations are what truly bring the book to life. As it takes place predominantly in the fridge, readers can look forward to a colorful display of fruits, vegetables, leftover dinners, and mysterious forgotten foods on each page. The illustrations are so inviting and professional but also look as if they’ve been done with crayon or colored pencil, giving them a youthful touch that matches the reading level perfectly. 

Children will enjoy Erickson’s rhythm and rhyme style of storytelling while adults will appreciate some of the more detailed aspects of the vegetable characters, like the half and half who can’t make up their mind or the beet who plays in a band called “The Beets,” written in the same font as “The Beatles.”

–Jaylynn Korrell

7. Over and Under the Pond

Part of a wonderful series, Over and Under the Pond follows a boy and his mother as they kayak over the water and talk about the life going on underneath them.

Talking about frogs, turtles, fish, beavers and even the animals who visit the water to get their meals and wash up (like moose!), this book is a trove of helpful information for kids who like to kayak and swim in natural waters.

While it can be enjoyed by younger audiences like 3 year olds, it can stay relevant in your bookshelves for years to come, maybe even as old as 12. Since it follows a mom and her son, it gives your story-loving little one something to cling to as they learn the nature lessons of the book.

–Toni Woodruff

8. The Boogie Barn Band

To me, the best kids’ books are the ones that entertain and teach. The Boogie Barn Band does both. On top of that, it gives kids the opportunity to be vocal and active. It’s a positive, upbeat story about musical barn animals and how they bring their community together. 

In the beginning, music beckons animals from all around town to a local farm. Soon the Boogie Barn has quite an audience on their hands—all excited to jam out. 

To get the concert underway, readers are introduced to each member of the band and the instruments they play. Each character has their own flare, and they do a great job explaining the role they play and the sounds each instrument makes.

The vibe is upbeat, exciting, and fun, and it’s reflected well in vivid illustrations and an array of your kids’ favorite animals. The happiness exudes off each character so the positive experience can be had by all. You won’t be able to resist smiling after witnessing how much fun they’re having and the audience is having. Backed by a beautiful barn on a bright sunny day, this book seems the epitome of positivity. 

The authors of The Boogie Barn Band do an excellent job of adding in informative bits about the technical pieces of each instrument as well as its role in the music-making process. The drummer of the band, Reggie the dog, is described as the one in charge of keeping the beat with his instrument. From guitar to piano to bass, we learn about how the instruments are played and are given examples of the sounds they make. It inspires an activity too—I can just imagine how many kids will be laughing as they try to sound out how the instruments are supposed to sound.

–Jaylynn Korrell

9. Blink and Glow

Leo and Lilly have show-and-tell at school tomorrow, and they want to have the best things to show off. And what better items than living ones!

Leo bottles up a firefly. While Lilly can’t catch her own, she spots another glowing creature—a salamander—near the pond! If you didn’t know that salamanders can glow in the dark, you do now.

But their light starts to diffuse the longer they’re kept in the jar. With the help of their grandmother, they learn that these animals, including the lunar moth flapping nearby, need to be free in order to shine their brightest light.

So while it feels special to have their own little bottled-up magic, they discover how important it is to let them live their own lives out in nature. Grandma keeps the fun going by showing them how they can make art inspired by these amazing critters. The book even lets you in on the fun by walking your kids through the steps of making their very own firefly suncatcher with tissue paper and a picture frame.

The art is lovely, natural, and magical. Parents who like to pair their books with art activities will relish what Blink and Glow has to offer.

–Joe Walters

10. Purple Ina

Ina lives on a beautiful purple island. It’s all she knows, until a fierce gust of wind sends her flying to new islands, all splashed in their own color. And along with the new colors, she meets new people, all appreciative of the way they do things on their island and sharing some of the magic with Ina before she takes off for the next.

Each page is clean with a minimal art, and yet there’s still so much beauty to look at. It entertains with just enough magic and fully-fleshed characters in a short amount of time. Experience a forever summer with Adonis on the pink island, shine bright at night with Light on the orange island, and play music with Esteban on a land draped in color.

It’s a subtle story of the lives of other people and other cultures, and it doesn’t state any morals overtly. Just shares the truth that there are other people and other places out there to love.

–Toni Woodruff

11. Ricky, the Rock That Couldn’t Roll

I don’t know how you make being a rock look so fun, but this rhyming picture book does it in droves. Author Mr. Jay and illustrator Erin Wozniak team up to turn this group of rocks into personality-rich critical thinkers who see a friend being left out for the make-up of his body and do something about it.

While all his friends are rolling up and down a hill, Ricky can’t join in on the fun because one of his sides is flat. I absolutely love the parallels being discussed in this book of a rock and kids with disabilities of any kind.

This book is a stellar introduction to showing kids what they can do to help their friends, and it’s a warmhearted reminder to those with disabilities that people care about them and that they can achieve their goals.

–Joe Walters

12. Baby Loves Science (The Five Senses)

Bombarding your kids with fun stories is a good thing. But no children’s library is complete without this resourceful & relevant 5-book series.

The five senses—hearing, sight, smell, touch, and taste—are a wonderful kid-friendly science topic. Not only can they count the senses on one tiny hand, but they have experience with each of them, whether they’re equipped with it or not.

This series does an excellent job of including those kids without the ability to see or hear in addition to discussing the science of how each of them work. From tiny molecules to their big, developing brains, this series could stick with your little one for years. Even by the time they hit school-age, they’ll be able to return to these educational resources in their bookshelf.

–Toni Woodruff

13. Fifteen Animals

What an absolute treasure it’s been to watch my tiny human learn the (not-so-hard) names of these pets. If you’re looking for a little bit of audience participation, this book is a hilarious choice that’ll have you both giggling.

Come along with the protagonist who has 15 animals and who has given each one a special name: Bob. He’s got a dog named Bob and a cat named Bob and three rabbits named Bob and Bob and Bob. There’s a fun little twist at the end too that’ll have your actively engaged and participating toddler struggling and laughing their way through pronouncing the final name in the book.

Out of all of Sandra Boynton’s books, this one is my favorite.

–Toni Woodruff

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What are your favorite kids’ books of all time? Let us know in the comments!

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