Favorite Kids Books Gift Guide

Children’s books are the perfect non-toy gift idea and are wonderful gifts for any occasion. Here are some of our family’s favorite books for kids! (PLUS, a list of beloved Christmas books!)

It’s That Time Again!

Time to start thinking about Christmas presents! (Or, maybe you’re one of those moms that already has all her shopping done. I hear they’re out there, though I’m definitely not one of them!)

And let me tell you, ever since I became a mom — especially a mom of more than one child with more than one set of belongings — I have been a HUGE fan of non-toy gifts. Because toy clutter is ugh, and kids stop playing with 90% of them by February, anyway.

So, last year, I created two gift guide posts FULL of (mostly) non-toy gift ideas that wouldn’t be a waste of money. There was a list for toddlers and a list for preschoolers since those are the ages I currently have. And they were wildly popular!

25 Gifts for Toddlers (That Won’t Be a Waste of Money )

25 Gifts for Preschoolers (That Won’t Be a Waste of Money)

This year, I’m building on that non-toy idea with a book-buying gift guide!

In this post, you’ll find a list of some of the board books, picture books, and early chapter books (for read-aloud sessions) that my kids are currently loving. At the end, you’ll also find a list of beloved Christmas books that would be perfect for starting a 25 Days of Christmas Books tradition.

I almost guarantee that any of these books would be sure to please, and would make excellent gifts for Christmas (or birthdays, or “just because”)!

**Links in this post may be affiliate links. This means that if you click that link and purchase the product, I may receive a small compensation. I am, however, committed to honestly assessing the products mentioned. Please read my disclosure policy for more details. **

FAVORITE BOOKS FOR KIDS

Board Books

All the Colors That I See — Little Words Matter

Little Blue Truck — Alice Schertle

Barnyard Dance — Sandra Boynton

Moo Baa La La La — Sandra Boynton

Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb — Al Perkins (Bright & Early Board Books)

Mr. Brown Can Moo, Can You? — Dr. Seuss

Sheep in a Jeep — Nancy E. Shaw

Giraffes Can’t Dance — Giles Andreae

Where Do Diggers Sleep at Night? — Brianna Caplan Sayres

Steam Train, Dream Train — Sherri Duskey Rinker

Corduroy — Don Freeman

Picture Books

Elephant & Piggie books — Mo Willems

Our favorites are:
Elephant & Piggie: Let’s Go For a Drive!
Elephant & Piggie: Listen to My Trumpet

Dragons Love Tacos — Adam Rubin

The Cool Bean — Jory John & Pete Oswald

The Day the Crayons Quit — Drew Daywalt

What Should Danny Do? — Ganit & Adir Levy

Lexie the Word Wrangler — Rebecca Van Slyke

Pete the Cat books

Our favorites are:
Pete the Cat and His Four Groovy Buttons
Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes

Jamberry — Bruce Degen

Caps For Sale: A Tale of a Peddler, Some Monkeys, and Their Monkey Business — Esphyr Slobodkina

We’re Going on a Bear Hunt — Michael Rosen

Purple, Green, and Yellow — Robert Munsch

Goodnight, Goodnight Construction Site —Sherri Duskey Rinker

Llama Llama Red Pajama — Anna Dewdney

The Book With No Pictures — B.J. Novak

Press Here and Let’s Play — Herve Tullet

Duck on a Bike — David Shannon

Non-Fiction Books

Who Would Win? series — Jerry Pallotta

Children’s Illustrated Animal Atlas — DK

Ordinary People Change the World series — Brad Meltzer

Brave Heroes and Bold Defenders: 50 True Stories of Daring Men of God — Shirley Raye Redmond

Courageous World Changers: 50 True Stories of Daring Women of God — Shirley Raye Redmond

Early Chapter Books

Geronimo Stilton series

Stuart Little — E.B. White

Charlotte’s Web — E.B. White

A Bear Called Paddington — Michael Bond

The Mouse and the Motorcycle — Beverly Cleary

Nate the Great — Marjorie Weinman Sharmat

Here are more of our favorite early read-aloud chapter books!

**Update: Here are some of our favorite chapter books now that my oldest is getting older!

Psst… Don’t want to do all the read-aloud reading yourself? Audiobooks totally count! Try Audible and Get Two FREE Audiobooks today!

Christmas Books

Room for a Little One: A Christmas Tale — Martin Waddell

The Crippled Lamb — Max Lucado

I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas — John Rox

Polar Express — Chris Van Allsburg

Llama Llama Holiday Drama — Anna Dewdney

One Small Donkey — Dandi Daley Mackall

Home for Christmas — Jan Brett

Gingerbread Christmas — Jan Brett

The Wild Christmas Reindeer — Jan Brett

Humphrey’s First Christmas — Carol Heyer

‘Twas the Evening of Christmas — Glenys Nellist

The Pine Tree Parable — Liz Curtis Higgs

The Night Before Christmas — Charles Santore

How the Grinch Stole Christmas — Dr. Seuss

Bear Stays Up For Christmas — Karma Wilson

Christmas in the Big Woods — Laura Ingalls Wilder

The Smallest Gift of Christmas — Peter Reynolds

Pete the Cat 12 Groovy Days of Christmas — James Dean and Kimberly Dean

Those are some of my kids’ current favorites. Are any of them favorites at your house, too? What are some other books your kids enjoy that aren’t on my list? Share with us in the comments below!