Best Board Books for Toddlers

Books That Won’t Bend

Want to encourage your little one to develop a lifelong love of reading? Not quite ready to graduate to picture books and paper pages yet, but still want books they can enjoy time and time again? Look no further than these classic tales made just for little hands to hold. With sturdy pages and illustrations that appeal to the youngest of listeners, these books will be enjoyed for years to come.

Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?: Bill Martin’s classic book uses repetition and a question and answer format to delight readers of all ages. From the whimsical illustrations of Eric Carle to the simple text, kids respond to the familiarity of the repeated words and the friendly animals pictured.

Byron Barton Books: These board books mainly focus on different types of vehicles, and have been loved by all of my kids in turn. The bright cartoon images accompany minimal text that describes the action on each page. From trucks and boats to planes and other machines, these board books will continue to enchant little ones over and over again.

Sheep in a Jeep: This sextet of sheep finds all sorts of trouble, from their debut in a jeep and beyond. From the original vehicle that gets stuck in the muck, these rhyming books with the friendly flock will delight adults and toddlers alike. My kids still love Sheep in a Jeep and all the accompanying books in the series.

Boynton Board Books: You can buy Boynton board books individually or in sets of four and more, and for good reason. Kids have migrated to these rhyming tales, from But Not the Hippopotamus to Moo, Baa, La La La, for generations. The iconic characters from Boynton cover a wide range of animals and activities that entertain readers.

Bright Baby Books: These books rely on one word and realistic photo per page to capture the attention of the littlest listeners. Great for building vocabulary as well as learning to flip pages and explore the world of related words and pictures, each page features a solid colored background or actual photo that makes the images and simple text pop.