Unearth a Story: 2026 Summer Reading Early Literacy Book List

The books are this list are to align with our 2026 summer reading slogan "unearth a Story". It was chosen to align with our high-interest theme of dinosaurs, paleontology, archaeology. This book list was created for our youngest patrons. They include board books and fiction and nonfiction picture books for babies, toddlers and preschoolers and are available at the Sussex County Library System.

Updated April 2, 2026
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Sussex County Library System (NJ)
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The fossil whisperer : how Wendy Sloboda discovered a dinosaur
Becker, Helaine
Paper Book
Wendy has an eye for the unusual and is skilled at finding things that others don't see. On a middle school field trip, she spots one of those unusual things - it's fossilized coral 100 million years old! Wendy's thrilled! And soon, she gets hooked on hunting fossils. She decides to turn her passion...
I met a dinosaur
Wahl, Jan.
Paper Book
What is a stegosaurus doing at the gas station? Why is an apatosaurus on its way to the park? After a visit to the Museum of Natural History, a young girl takes the memory of those prehistoric beasts with her and begins to see the creatures in the most unexpected places. Creative Editions is...
Peekaboo Rex!
Boynton, Sandra
Paper Book
Join a T. rex who loves playing peekaboo in this surprising board book from bestselling and beloved Sandra Boynton! Follow a lovable T. rex throughout its day as it plays peekaboo with a tiny dinosaur friend. A story only Sandra Boynton could dream up, featuring two adorable...
Sam & Dave dig a hole
Barnett, Mac
CD
A New York Times bestseller! 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...

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