If you spend any time in internet kidlit communities, you’re likely inundated with new releases. Picture book Bookstagram, where I often hang out, is chock-full of them — and for good reason! There are tons of incredible picture books coming out every month, many of them stories about LGBTQ+ and BIPOC kids written by LGBTQ+ and BIPOC creators. As book bans continue to proliferate across the country, these picture books, which celebrate diverse cultures, experiences, and identities, are absolutely essential.
While many of these wonderful new releases are unlike anything that’s been published before, and it is definitely important to celebrate progress, it’s also important to remember the groundbreaking books that came before it. Focusing only on the books that have not aged well erases the existence of so many picture books that still deserve to be read and celebrated, including many diverse books published decades ago. Here are eight of my favorite picture books from the 20th century, spanning over 70 years.
Millions of Cats by Wanda Gág (1928)
This picture book is almost 100 years old and it is delightful from start to finish. It’s about an lonely old couple who want a cat. The man goes out in search of one and returns with millions of cats…which has complicated consequences. Gág’s simple, evocative illustrations are at once hilarious and just a little bit dark; there’s a wonderful edge of eeriness to this silly, rhyming story, which makes it perfect for kids and adults alike.
Gladiola Garden by Effie Lee Newsome & Lois Mailou Jones (1940)
Effie Lee Newsome was a Harlem Renaissance writer and one of the first African American poets known for writing children’s poems. Lois Mailou Jones was an artist and educator who also worked during the Harlem Renaissance. Newsome’s poems are simple and direct, depicting the everyday happenings of children’s lives with humor, curiosity, and warmth. Jones’s illustrations are utterly captivating; they evoke the essence of each poem in a way that enhances the words. This is a thick book, and every page is worth it.
Umbrella by Taro Yashima (1958)
There are a lot of wonderful picture books about rain; this one from 1958 is easily in my top five (and I really love picture books about rain). Momo lives with her parents in New York City and for her birthday one year, she gets a brand new pair of red rain boots and an umbrella. She can’t wait to use them — but the sun is relentless, and she has to wait a long time for it to rain. When it finally does, she celebrates by splashing to school in the puddles, listening to the music the rain makes on her umbrella. It’s perfect.
Anno’s Journey by Mitsumasa Anno (1977)
Don’t make the mistake of thinking you can read this wordless picture book quickly! There is so much to look at on every page — it’s as complex and detailed as any book with words. The premise is simple: Anno sets off on a journey through northern Europe. He travels through farmland, tiny villages, quiet towns, and a huge, bustling city. The illustrations are packed with stories — not just drawings of people going about their lives, but references to fictional characters, jokes and puns, and little puzzles to solve.
Freight Train by Donald Crews (1978)
This classic from the 1970s is a book I can’t explain: why is it so good? A rainbow freight train zooms along the tracks. Each page has just a few words describing what the train is doing. That’s it. No story: just a freight train doing its thing. What’s amazing is how delightful it is — not just for train-loving kiddos but for full-grown adults. There’s something utterly magical in Crews’s whirring illustrations of motion and in the satisfying simplicity of following this one train on its individual journey.
Do Not Open by Brinton Turkle (1981)
Look, I’m not saying this is my favorite picture book of all time, but I’m not saying it’s not my favorite picture book of all time. Miss Moody lives by the sea with her cat. Her favorite pastime is searching the beach for treasure that washes up after storms. One day, she finds a bottle marked with the words “DO NOT OPEN,” but Miss Moody does what she wants and opens it (of course)…and if you want to know what happens next, you’ll have to read the book. I promise you will not be disappointed.
Maples in the Mist: Children’s Poems from the Tang Dynasty by Minfong Ho & Jean Tseng & Mou-Sien Tseng (1996)
I love children’s poetry, and this collection is one of my all-time favorites. Minfong Ho grew up memorizing poems from the Tang Dynasty in Chinese; when her children didn’t show any interest in doing the same, she started translating them into English. Her translations are simple; she explains in the author’s note that instead of trying to recreate the rhyme schemes and syntax, she tried to capture the quiet, meditative beauty of the poems. They are about bridges and birds and long journeys, about changing seasons and missing home. The illustrations are gorgeous full-page spreads that feel a little bit like stepping back in time.
Grandmother’s Pigeon by Louise Erdrich & Jim LaMarche (1996)
Did you know Louise Erdrich has written picture books as well as adult novels (and middle grade novels)? This is a soft and beautiful story about mysteries and being connected to the earth and each other. After their grandmother rides away on a porpoise and doesn’t return, her grandchildren go through her things and find a bird’s nest with three eggs inside. They hatch into birds that should be impossible, and as the kids raise them, they learn a lot about wonder — and their grandmother. This book is a little bit strange and a little bit sad, but mostly it’s a story about wisdom and wonder and paying attention to the things that matter.
If you’re interested in the history of children’s books, check out this list of 30 of the most influential children’s books of all time and this list of the best children’s books of all time. You might also be interested in this piece about children’s books that contextualize, correct, or challenge classic kid lit.
This post was originally published on here
