Books by genre
Top 11 art books for kids
Art books for kids include picture books about artists, books that teach drawing, and stories that show how to look. The aim is to get a child to look at a painting longer. Many of these are picture books that adults also enjoy.
Titles were chosen from award winners, ALSC notable lists and long-running library favorites, then each title and author was checked against Open Library in Oct 2026. Checked 2026-10-25. Nobody paid to be here. The buy links are plain search links, not affiliate links, so Peabody earns nothing from them.
The Dot
Peter H. Reynolds · Ages 3-8
A teacher invites a doubting child to make her mark. A short book on creative courage.
Buy: Bookshop.org · Amazon
Ish
Peter H. Reynolds · Ages 3-8
Ramon learns that a drawing does not have to look 'right.'
Buy: Bookshop.org · Amazon
Linnea in Monet's Garden
Christina Björk · Ages 6-10
A girl visits Monet's garden in France and Paris museums.
Buy: Bookshop.org · Amazon
The Art Book for Children
Phaidon · Ages 6-12
Sixty artworks with short entries by Phaidon editors. A good first museum visit at home.
Buy: Bookshop.org · Amazon
Frida
Jonah Winter · Ages 5-9
Frida Kahlo's childhood, told in bold art by Ana Juan.
Watch for: Her bus accident is described.
Buy: Bookshop.org · Amazon
Getting to Know the World's Greatest Artists: Vincent van Gogh
Mike Venezia · Ages 6-10
One of a long series with cartoons and reproductions.
Watch for: Discusses his illness.
Buy: Bookshop.org · Amazon
Katie's Picture Show
James Mayhew · Ages 4-8
Katie steps into paintings in a gallery. First of a series.
Buy: Bookshop.org · Amazon
The Iridescence of Birds: A Book About Henri Matisse
Patricia MacLachlan · Ages 5-9
Henri Matisse's childhood and his love of color. Illustrated by Hadley Hooper.
Buy: Bookshop.org · Amazon
Ed Emberley's Drawing Book of Animals
Ed Emberley · Ages 4-9
Simple shapes build animals step by step. Many Emberley books exist.
Buy: Bookshop.org · Amazon
Art Fraud Detective
Anna Nilsen · Ages 7-11
Puzzles that teach how to spot a fake painting.
Buy: Bookshop.org · Amazon
Action Jackson
Jan Greenberg and Sandra Jordan · Ages 6-10
A day in the life of Jackson Pollock as he paints.
Buy: Bookshop.org · Amazon
More lists
Top 12 picture-book biographies for ages 6 to 9
Picture-book biographies tell one person's story in a few pages and often one defining event.
Top 12 music books for kids
Music books can introduce instruments, composers and jazz in a way a recording cannot.
Top 20 picture-book classics
These are the picture books librarians and teachers return to again and again, many for over fifty years.
Top 14 adventure books for kids ages 6 to 12
Adventure stories put a child in a hard place with a problem to solve: a wilderness, an island, a quest, a chase.
Top 12 fantasy books for ages 6 to 8
These are talking animals, magic doorways and small heroes, written plainly enough for new independent readers or good as a read-aloud.
Top 15 fantasy books for ages 9 to 12
The middle-grade years are the peak of fantasy reading.
Top 14 fantasy books for younger teens (ages 12 and up)
These are the bridge from children's fantasy to adult epic fantasy.
Top 11 fairy tale collections and retellings for kids
Fairy tales come in two kinds here: the old collections, and newer novels that retell or play with them.