Great Read-Alouds for Preschoolers

Here are some of the NPL Youth Services librarians' favorite read-alouds for preschoolers!

Updated December 27, 2023
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Paletero man
Diaz, Lucky
Paper Book
A vibrant picture book celebrating the strength of community and the tastes of summer from Latin Grammy-winning musician Lucky Diaz and celebrated artist Micah Player. Ring! Ring! Ring! Can you hear his call Paletas for one! Paletas for all! What's the best way to...
The button book
Nicholls, Sally
Paper Book
Tap the magic tree
Matheson, Christie
Paper Book
The acclaimed interactive picture book about the changing seasons. "Like Hervé Tullet's Press Here, Matheson's Tap the Magic Tree proves you don't need apps for interactivity," praised the New York Times. Every book needs you to turn the pages. But not every book needs you...
Stuck
Jeffers, Oliver.
Paper Book
From the illustrator of the #1 smash The Day the Crayons Quit comes another bestseller--a giggle-inducing tale of everything tossed, thrown, and hurled in order to free a kite! When Floyd's kite gets stuck in a tree, he's determined to get it out. But how? Well, by...
A big bed for Little Snow
Lin, Grace
Paper Book
A companion to the Caldecott Honor book A Big Mooncake for Little Star! A heartwarming and tender picture book introducing readers to their first snow, from award-winning, bestselling author-illustrator Grace Lin. ...
Noisy night
Barnett, Mac
Paper Book
A clever picture book about a multi-level apartment building's occupants and their many nighttime noises. It's a noisy night in this city building! The residents of each floor can hear their neighbors above them, and are wondering what's going on above their heads. Climb floor...
Jabari jumps
Cornwall, Gaia.
Paper Book
"This simple and sincere tale of working up courage to face fears makes quite a splash." -- Kirkus Reviews Jabari is definitely ready to jump off the diving board. He's finished his swimming lessons and passed his swim test, and he's a great jumper, so he's not scared at...
How do you dance?
Heder, Thyra
Paper Book
A playful picture book that urges readers to bop, bounce, and shake from the author of Fraidyzoo There are so many ways to dance! You can jiggle or wiggle or stomp.You can bop or bounce or go completely nuts. You can dance at the market or the bus stop, with your fingers or your face. You can dance...
My papa is a princess
Cenko, Doug
Paper Book
Cuddle up with Dad for this sweet book about a father as seen through his daughter's eyes. When Papa braids her hair, he's a hairdresser; when he hangs her drawings on the wall, he's an art collector. But no matter what happens, he is always her papa, and that's the most important thing of all!
I really want to see you, Grandma
Gomi, Taro
Ebook
Yumi and her grandmother have the same great idea: They want to see each other. So they each head out to do just that, only to completely miss each other along the way! No problem--they'll just head back home and wait for the other to return. The trouble is that they have the same great idea--again-...
From head to toe
Carle, Eric
Paper Book
This fun-filled interactive book features colorful collages that invite kids to exercise by imitating the movements of various animals. A new audience of young readers will now be wiggling, jiggling, and giggling-from their headsdown to their toes. Eric Carle's vibrant illustrations jump off the...
Sam & Dave dig a hole
Barnett, Mac
Paper Book
A 2015 Caldecott Honor Book With perfect pacing, the multi-award-winning, New York Times best-selling team of Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen dig down for a deadpan tale full of visual humor. Sam and Dave are on a mission. A mission to find something...
Your name is a song
Thompkins-Bigelow, Jamilah
Paper Book
Frustrated by a day full of teachers and classmates mispronouncing her beautiful name, a little girl tells her mother she never wants to come back to school. In response, the girl's mother teaches her about the musicality of African, Asian, Black-American, Latinx, and Middle Eastern names on their...
We're going on a bear hunt
Rosen, Michael
Paper Book
Go on a bear hunt and do the actions with this award-winning picture book classic. Follow and join in the family's excitement as they wade through the grass, splash through the river and squelch through the mud in search of a bear. What a surprise awaits them in the cave on the...
Tiptoe tiger
Clarke, Jane
Paper Book
A delightful interactive picture book, filled with vibrant neon artwork by award-winning Britta Teckentrup.
Monsters love colors
Austin, Mike
Paper Book
Did you know that monsters love to scribble, scribble, mix, dance, and wiggle! Why Because monsters love to make new colors! Celebrate along with the hilarious monsters in this wild and energetic picture book from author...
If you're a robot and you know it
Carter, David A.
Paper Book
From bestseller David Carter comes a favorite new robot twist on the classic children's song that pops to life. If you're a robot and you know it clap your hands, jump and beep, fly around, shoot laser beams out of your eyes! It's the classic...
I want my hat back
Klassen, J.
Paper Book
A New York Times Best Illustrated Children's Book of 2011! A picture-book delight by a rising talent tells a cumulative tale with a mischievous twist. The bear's hat is gone, and he wants it back. Patiently and politely, he asks the animals he comes...
Click, clack, moo : cows that type
Cronin, Doreen
Paper Book
The quirky, hilarious farmyard tale that started it all from New York Times bestselling duo of Doreen Cronin and Betsy Lewin! Now the inspiration for a new Christmas special, CLICK, CLACK, MOO: Christmas on the Farm. Farmer Brown has a problem. ...
Llama Llama red pajama
Dewdney, Anna
Paper Book
Baby Llama turns bedtime into an all-out llama drama in this rhyming read-aloud favorite! Llama Llama's tale of nighttime drama has charmed readers for over a decade and makes an ideal story for bedtime reading. With this board book edition, Anna Dewdney's infectious rhyming text...
There's a monster in your book
Fletcher, Tom
Paper Book
UH OH! There's a MONSTER in YOUR book! Shake, wiggle, and tickle the monster out in this interactive bedtime read-aloud that launched the Who's In Your Book series! With the irresistible pull of Hervé Tullet's Press Here and the charm of The Monster at the End of This...
Bear feels scared
Wilson, Karma.
Paper Book
Bad weather frightens Bear, but his woodland friends are there to help him in this sweet, reassuring Bear story from bestselling duo Karma Wilson and Jane Chapman! In the deep, dark woods by the Strawberry Vale, a big bear lumbers down a...
The very hungry caterpillar
Carle, Eric.
Paper Book
THE all-time classic picture book, from generation to generation, sold somewhere in the world every 30 seconds! A sturdy and beautiful book to give as a gift for new babies, baby showers, birthdays, and other new beginnings! Featuring interactive die-cut pages, this board...
Brown bear, brown bear, what do you see?
Martin, Bill
CD
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? and Polar Bear, Polar Bear, What Do You Hear? beginning readers: These beloved children's stories are now available in beginning reader format. With the important pre-reading concepts of rhyme, rhythm, and repetition, these...
Pete the cat : I love my white shoes
Litwin, Eric.
Paper Book
Don't miss the first and bestselling book in the beloved Pete the Cat series! Pete the Cat goes walking down the street wearing his brand-new white shoes. Along the way, his shoes change from white to red to blue to brown to WET as he steps in piles of strawberries, blueberries, and other...
Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus!
Willems, Mo.
Paper Book

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