Outstanding International Children's Books for Grades 3-5

The Outstanding International Books list recognizes outstanding books published or distributed in the United States that originated or were first published in a country other than the United States. Titles are selected annually by the United States Board on Books for Young People, the U.S. national section of the International Board on Books for Young People.

Updated December 18, 2024
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CU CatalogChampaign Children's Team
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Too small Tola and the three fine girls
Atinuke
Paper Book
Too Small Tola is back--and as determined as ever--in a second trio of winning stories about a diminutive heroine with a big-big heart. Acclaimed author and storyteller Atinuke reunites with illustrator Onyinye Iwu for a follow-up to their highly acclaimed first chapter...
The invisible elephant
Anisimova, Anna
Paper Book
A 2024 USBBY Outstanding International Book From beloved Finland-based children's author Anna Anisimova comes a heartwarming, beautifully illustrated chapter book about a blind girl who joyfully explores her environment using her senses and vivid imagination, inviting young readers to...
With a butterfly's wings
Lp̤ez ℓvila, Pilar
Paper Book
Winner of the 2023 Independent Publisher Books Award and awarded at the 2023 Cuatro Gatos Foundation Awards With a Butterfly's Wings is a tender story about a girl who loses her beloved grandmother and finds comfort in remembering her...
Three tasks for a dragon
Colfer, Eoin
Paper Book
With wit and gorgeous art, New York Times best-selling author Eoin Colfer and multi-award-winning illustrator P.J. Lynch team up again for a quest story of knights, dark magic, and a maiden with powers of her own. Studious Prince Lir is next in line to become the Wolfhound...
On the edge of the world
Desnitskaya, Anna
Paper Book
The United States Board on Books for Young People (USBBY) Outstanding International Books List - Grades 3-5 (2024) A uniquely formatted book about dreams, loneliness, and the universal longing for connection.  Vera and her family live on Russia's...
The gift of the Little People
Dumas, William
Paper Book
I don't recall seeing books when I was a little boy. But the old people, they grew up listening to stories. And so, every night, when the old people were done their evening prayers, they would sit and they would tell us stories too. At the time of the spring thaw, the Rocky Cree...
When the sky falls
Earle, Phil
Paper Book
A boy and a gorilla create an unbelievable bond in this powerful WWII tale for young readers, for fans of Alan Gratz and Michael Morpugo. "A wonderful story of hurt, kindness, and what it means to be human in an inhumane world." -The Times of London, Children's Book...
The walking school bus
Friedland, Aaron
Paper Book
A "moving tale of two enterprising siblings determined to find a safe way to get to school" (New York Times), this singular picture book celebrates the creativity, ingenuity, and passion of children all over the world. Features an afterword from Julian Lennon,...
It's so difficult
Nieto Guridi, Raúl
Paper Book
A school day can be so overwhelming: so many people, so many noises, so many things to remember. Grown-ups say it'll get easier with time, but even saying hello is incredibly hard. Thank goodness for comforts like math, for anything that can relax a restless mind. Maybe this time a few words will...
The moon tonight : our moon's journey around earth
Jung, Chang-hoon
Paper Book
"Exquisite." -- New York Times Follow our moon as it waxes and wanes across the night sky in this informative and stunning nonfiction picture book by an astronomer and award-winning illustrator. Everyone on Earth can look up and marvel at our...
The art and life of Hilma af Klint
Hillström, Ylva
Paper Book
The first children's picture book on Hilma af Klint and her pioneering work. Hilma af Klint (1862-1944) began painting her abstract and highly symbolic images as early as 1906, long before Kandinsky and Malevich arrived at what is generally regarded as the birth of modern...
The house of the lost on the cape
Kashiwaba, Sachiko
Paper Book
A 2024 Mildred L. Batchelder Award Honoree A 2024 USBBY Outstanding International Book One of Kirkus Reviews' 10 Essential Middle-Grade Books for Fall 2023 -- Starred Review One of Kirkus Reviews' Best Middle-Grade Family Stories of 2023 A 2023 Cybils Awards Finalist...
A Kunwinjku counting book
Maralngurra, Gabriel
Paper Book
One crocodile with many sharp teeth, two snake-necked turtles swimming in a billabong, three water goannas soaking up the sun... Learn to count with the animals of Australia's West Arnhem Land and the traditional art of indigenous Kunwinjku culture. A Wall Street Journal...
The pebble
Marcinkevicius, Marius
Paper Book
A deeply moving story about hope and friendship in one of the darkest times in history. Eitan and his best friend Rivka live in a place where children laugh, dogs bark, and neighbours chat. But no one can leave, and once you go through the gates, you never come back......
Different : a story of the Spanish Civil War
Montañés, Mónica
Paper Book
A resonant, captivating book about a brother and sister caught in a dark chapter of world history. Between 1936 and 1939, a civil war raged across Spain. For almost three years, ordinary citizens lived in fear of bombs dropping from the sky. When fascist dictator Francisco Franco...
The circles in the sky
Mountford, Karl James
Paper Book
With luminous illustrations, this original folktale about the discovery of a lifeless bird offers a sympathetic exploration of grief, loss, and hope. One morning, Fox is drawn toward the forest. There, in a clearing, he sees something small and silent, perhaps forgotten. It's a...
Saving H'non : Chang and the elephant
Nguyễn, Trang
Paper Book
From the creators behind the Eisner-nominated Saving Sorya: Chang and the Sun Bear comes another gorgeously-illustrated graphic novel adventure based on a true story, in which young conservationist Chang overcomes the odds to save and return an elephant to its natural habitat. ...
What feelings do when no one's looking
Oziewicz, Tina
Paper Book
An unruly cast of emotions come alive in this romping dreamworld, a place Maurice Sendak's Wild Things could call home Curiosity, a lithe and floppy-eared creature, perches above the open world and gazes out with a zippy blend of hope, wonder, and longing. From the tip of a...
Who will make the snow?
Prokhasʹko, Mar'i︠a︡na
Paper Book
Twin moles, Purr and Craw, are born on the first day of spring. The newest members of their woodland world, they're curious about everything. What is swimming? Why does mother speak French as she makes pancakes? What does father scrawl in his notebook? Do animals live in the sea? Why do grownups eat...
The queen in the cave
Sardà, Júlia
Paper Book
In her debut as author-illustrator, Júlia Sardà spins an enthralling and evocative tale, rich with layers of meaning to be discovered. One night, Franca has a dream about a marvelous queen who lives in a dark cave, deep in the forest. She cannot sit still until she knows if her...
The summer of diving
Stridsberg, Sara
Paper Book
The award-winning and beautiful story of a child coping with her father's absence. The book tackles a difficult subject with great tenderness, validating a child's experience of a parent suffering from depression. Zoe's dad isn't home. She still sees him in photographs, laughing and playing tennis,...
My grandma's photos
Sunar, Özge Bahar
Paper Book
Ali's grandma can't hear or see very well these days, and she doesn't remember very much anymore. But Ali likes hanging out with her. So when Ali's mom takes out a wooden trunk full of Grandma's old photos, he sits with his grandmother, trying to figure out who is in all the old pictures. At...
Wolfstongue
Thompson, Sam
Paper Book
2023 USBBY Outstanding International Books "As in George Orwell's "Animal Farm," the dynamics of oppression and resistance that play out between animals mirror those between humans." The New York Times "The best animal adventure since Watership Down" -- The Times (The Times Children...
Letters in charcoal
Vasco, Irene
Paper Book
In the pueblo of Palenque in Colombia, hardly anybody knows how to read. Curious about the letters her older sister Gina receives from a young doctor each month--letters that she is sure contain promises of love--one young girl makes a decision that will change her life, and the lives of every...
The baker by the sea
White, Paula (Printmaker)
Paper Book
A lyrical, richly illustrated story explores a child's relationship with his sleepy seaside fishing town. If you keep walking over the hills and across the fields, you will come to the edge, where the land meets the sea. And on this edge lies a village. This is my home.
Dreams of near and far
Widmark, Martin
Paper Book
A poignant and uplifting story of hope, friendship, and finding happiness USBBY2023 Outstanding International Books List Noah and Mia have never met. They live far, far apart but look out upon the same sea. Noah is heartbroken when his old dog Gus dies. He slips into...
Dounia and the magic seeds
Zarif, Marya
Paper Book
When fleeing her war-ravaged home, a young girl brings four magic seeds to help her family on their difficult journey Dounia loves her home in Aleppo, Syria, and all of its wonderful smells, sights, and traditions. But when war breaks out, Dounia and her grandparents must flee their home...
Corner
Zo-O
Paper Book
A quirky and relatable story about balancing creativity and connection A crow finds itself in an empty corner and begins to make the space its own. First, it furnishes the corner with a bed, a bookshelf, a rug, even a potted plant. In the newly decorated space, the crow reads and eats,...

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