Earth Day: Picture Books for Early Childhood & Beyond

Celebrate Earth Day with picture books!

Updated March 21, 2024
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What's new, Daniel?
Archer, Micha
Caldecott Honor winner Micha Archer's gloriously detailed collages invite readers into Daniel's blossoming world, encouraging them to appreciate all the wonderful new things in their own lives, big and small. "What's new?" We casually say this to each other all the time, but when...
Wonder walkers
Archer, Micha
A Caldecott Honor winner! Micha Archer's gorgeous, detailed collages give readers a fresh outlook on the splendors of nature. Cover may vary. When two curious kids embark on a "wonder walk," they let their imaginations soar as they look at the world in a...
Un Baño de Bosque (Bathing in the Forest)
Ayats, Marc
Winner at the 2020 Independent Publisher Book Awards. A heartening story about connecting to nature and its healing properties. The little girl of the forest embraces you, takes you by the hand, and invites you to immerse yourself in her magical world. The...
Look what I found in the woods
Butterfield, Moira
Open your senses to a world of wonder by taking a walk through the woods! Set off on an outdoor adventure and find natural treasures, from prickly pine cones to swirly snails' shells, then learn more about the plants and creatures of the forest in this fact-filled guide to the outdoors.
My First Book of Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle
Duopress Labs.
Introducing the third title in Terra Babies at Home, a board book series that presents plants, animals, and the environment to early readers from the intimacy of their home and helps them connect to the natural world. My First Book of Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle is a beautiful introduction...
Where wonder grows
Gonza?lez, Xelena
Pura Belpré Illustrator Award Winner 2023 - American Library Association (ALA) A 2023 Pura Belpré Illustrator Award Winner From the creators of the award-winning picture book All Around Us comes another lyrical intergenerational story exploring our connections to...
I'm a volcano!
Heos, Bridget
In the second installment of the Science Buddies series, a volcano takes young readers through the fascinating formation and life of an active volcano--cool! I mean, hot! How do volcanoes form? What makes them erupt? Are there different kinds? Hi, I'm Volcano! And I...
Log life
Hevron, Amy
Discover the tiny, fascinating world of nurse logs in this first book in an illuminating picture book series that explores how even the smallest habitats play big roles in nature. Once there stood a giant fir tree that stretched to the sun. One stormy day, a great gust came....
The last straw : kids vs. plastics
Hood, Susan
"Thoughtful and thought-provoking, this book will plant the seeds of environmental activism in young readers." --Kirkus (starred review) "I encourage everyone to read this book." --Dr. Jane Goodall There's no doubt about it--plastic is in almost...
Only one
Hopkinson, Deborah
This lyrical, environmentally focused picture book showcases the unique beauty of our one and only universe--its galaxies, stars, and planets--as well as our one and only Earth and the precious life it contains. Join one girl as she leads her friends to a tree-planting...
The planet we call home
Isaac, Aimee
A lyrical and loving ode to Planet Earth and the ways in which its many features are interconnected--to each other and to us--told in the cumulative style of "This Is the House that Jack Built." This is our Earth, the planet we call home. These...
A garden called home
Lee, Jessica J.
Mama was born in a country far away from here. I love her stories about warm rain in winter and green mountains. And now Mama's taking me there! When a young girl and her mother go to visit her family, the girl notices a change. At home, her mother mostly stays inside. Here, her mother likes to...
We are water protectors
Lindstrom, Carole
From author Carole Lindstrom and illustrator Michaela Goade comes a New York Times bestselling and Caldecott Medal winning picture book that honors Indigenous-led movements across the world. Powerfully written and gorgeously illustrated, We Are Water Protectors,...
The tree in me
Luyken, Corinna
A stunning and sensitive portrait of the strength within each of us and the nourishment we receive from the natural world, by the New York Times bestselling creator of the acclaimed My Heart and The Book of Mistakes Through poetic text and exquisite...
Climbing the volcano : a journey in haiku
Manley, Curtis
Through haiku, a young boy narrates his family's invigorating hike to the peak of Oregon's South Sister volcano. For centuries, haiku has offered meditation on the grace and majesty of nature. In Climbing the Volcano, old meets new as a young protagonist uses the poetic...
Brave baby hummingbird
Montgomery, Sy
From the beloved New York Times bestselling, Sibert Honor-winning author of the National Book Award finalist The Soul of an Octopus author comes a "beautiful...captivating" (Booklist, starred review) nonfiction picture book about the most exquisite and...
We planted a tree
Muldrow, Diane.
We planted a tree and it grew up, While it reached for the sky and the sun. . . . In this simple poem illustrated by award winner Bob Staake, two young families in two very different parts of the world plant a tree. As the trees flourish, so do the families . . ....
The EARTH book
Parr, Todd.
"I take care of the earth because I know I can do little things every day to make a BIG difference..." With his signature blend of playfulness and sensitiviy, Todd Parr explores the important, timely subject of environmental protection and conservation in this eco-friendly picture...
Thank you, Earth : a love letter to our planet
Sayre, April Pulley
Winner of the Green Prize for Sustainable Literature "A splendid marriage of poetry and photography." --School Library Journal (starred review) Acclaimed children's book author and photographer April Pulley Sayre's love letter to Earth is a stunning exploration of the beauty and...
Compost stew : an A to Z recipe for the earth
Siddals, Mary McKenna.
Teach kids to compost and help them develop life-long habits to protect the Earth. From apple cores to zinnia heads, readers will discover the best ingredients for a successful compost pile in this fun picture book perfect for Earth Day! Kids everywhere are seeking knowledge...
Home
Simler, Isabelle
"Stunning . . . An exceptional exploration of a delightfully diverse roundup of natural dwellings and their equally intriguing inhabitants." -- Booklist (STARRED REVIEW) A spectacular tour through the dwellings of twenty-seven different animals, from a...
The wind and the trees
Stewart, Todd (Illustrator)
A gentle meditation on the cycle of life, told by two trees One day, a tiny pine seedling strikes up a conversation with a nearby tree. As the seedling grows larger, the older pine shares what it has learned about the strong wind that blows through the forest...
Lights out : a movement to help migrating birds
Stremer, Jessica
Based on the real-life Lights Out movement, this inspirational picture book shows how even the smallest of actions, like flipping a switch, can make a big difference in helping migrating birds. When the seasons change and it's time for a flock of sparrows to move on, a map made...
Little Land
Sudyka, Diana
Inspire a love of nature in young readers with this gorgeous, simple guide--and learn how, through millennia of transformations, life and land have always found a way to begin anew, for nature-loving fans of Kate Messner's Over and Under series.  Do you know...
Fatima's great outdoors
Tariq, Ambreen
An immigrant family embarks on their first camping trip in the Midwest in this lively picture book by Ambreen Tariq, outdoors activist and founder of @BrownPeopleCamping Fatima Khazi is excited for the weekend. Her family is headed to a local state park for their first camping...
Tree : a peek-through picture book
Teckentrup, Britta.
Watch the tree change with the seasons as each page is turned in this beautiful and educational picture book for curious young minds.  New York Public Library's 100 Best Books for Kids 2016 Through a hole in the book's cover, an owl invites...
Greta and the giants : inspired by Greta Thunberg's stand to save the world
Tucker, Zoe?
All that grows
Wong, Jack
From Boston Globe-Horn Book Award winner Jack Wong, a story of a boy who discovers that the more he learns, the more there is to know! On their neighborhood walks together, a boy learns from his older sister all about the plants they see -- magnolias that smell like lemon cake, creeping...

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