Olivia
by Ian Falconer
Picture book · ages 3–7 · grades K–2 · 300L
A character study disguised as a picture book: Olivia's theatrical self-absorption is unapologetic, hilarious, and oddly affirming for kids who aren't the quiet type.
For a reader who just finished
Books like Chicka chicka boom boom
after Chicka chicka boom boom by Bill Martin Jr. · ages 2–5
Same style
Ella Sarah Gets Dressed
by Margaret Chodos-Irvine
Picture book · ages 3–7 · grades K–2 · 420L
A short, laugh-out-loud celebration of a young kid's right to look ridiculous—Chodos-Irvine's spot-on illustrations make the clashing prints funnier each reread.
Mother Goose and Nursery Rhymes
by Philip Reed
Picture book · ages 0–5 · grade K
Reed's 1970 illustrations are warm and inventive without being saccharine — a solid, classic-feeling collection that rewards repeated read-alouds for toddlers and early preschoolers.
Stretch them up
So You Want to Be President?
by David Small
Picture book · ages 4–8 · grades K–3 · 620L
A Caldecott winner that makes U.S. history genuinely funny — kids laugh at the absurdity while absorbing real facts about presidents in a format that's pure delight to reread.
Strega Nona
by Tomie dePaola
Picture book · ages 3–8 · grades K–3 · 560L
A masterpiece of visual storytelling that teaches cause-and-effect through pure comedy—kids remember Big Anthony's humiliation and the pasta flood for years, and the illustrations tell half the story.
Zin! Zin! Zin! a Violin
by Marjorie Priceman
Picture book · ages 4–8 · grades K–3 · 560L
A perfect marriage of onomatopoeia, rhyme, and instrument pedagogy—kids giggle at the sounds while actually learning orchestration, and Priceman's watercolors make each instrument a visual personality.
Complementing on language play
Alphabatics
by Suse MacDonald
Picture book · ages 2–5 · grade K
The die-cut concept is genuinely inventive and holds toddlers' and preschoolers' attention across multiple rereadings — alphabet books rarely deserve 5, but this one earns it through craft alone.
The Rooster Crows
by Maud and Miska Petersham
Picture book · ages 3–7 · grades K–2
A 1945 Caldecott winner that holds up — pure onomatopoeia and regional American animal sounds, illustrated with warmth; kids love the repetition and the Petershams' art rewards close looking.
When we were very young
by A. A. Milne
Picture book · ages 3–8 · grades K–3 · 550L
Century-old verse that still sounds alive—the rhythm carries kids through archaic vocabulary, and the humor is genuinely strange (not condescending), which keeps parents reading it aloud repeatedly without losing their minds.
We'd skip — for now
The Bad Guys in The Furball Strikes Back
by Aaron Blabey
A step up — ages 5–9 · grades K–4
Skip it if your child finds toilet humor or slapstick animal violence (hitting, crashing) genuinely upsetting rather than funny.