Picture Books Adults Will Love As Much as Their Kids Do

It’s the end of a long day, and you are one story away from watching Real Housewives in your PJs with a glass can of wine. You anxiously await your kids’ book decision.

Will it be the borderline unbearable “5 Minute Stories” book that contains stories WAY longer than 5 minutes? Will it be the one of the worst children’s books ever written? Or will it be a book you actually LIKE?

You may not get to choose the book every night, but you can stack the deck in your favor by purchasing more books that are fun for YOU to read.  Here’s a list of picture books adults will love as much as their kids do.

This post contains affiliate links.  In addition, a giveaway copy of The Hug Machine has been provided by Simon & Schuster. As always, the thoughts and opinions expressed here are our own.  You can read more on our Legal & Disclosures page. Thank you!

Hug MachineHug Machine by Scott Campbell

This book is filled with cute, from the first page to the last (the last page is maybe my favorite page of any book ever. So sweet that I don’t dare spoil it for you). The illustrations are simple and clear, and there is just so much hugging.

The format of each page is just a little bit different than the others, which means the kids don’t I don’t get bored. And they just came out with a board book edition, which makes it manageable for kids of all ages.

BabyLit Board Books

These books are fun, baby-sized adaptations of novels that grown-ups know and love, which means there’s a Secret Garden version for me and a Sherlock Holmes for Michael. 

The same publisher also does a cultural series, of which we are big fans of Loteria. It’s always neat to get to share something you love with your child, and this series makes it possible to do so on a level that is fun for them, too.

Book With No PicturesThe Book With No Pictures by BJ Novak

Okay grown ups- this is a picture book adults will LOVE. It might be hard to sell your kids on this one based on the fact that- well, there’s no pictures. Clearly.

But once you start reading, the giggles are bound to come and there are plenty of silly words to keep everyone entertained. And I like that it keeps Lila focused on the story and not asking me 17 bazillion questions about the tiniest details in every single picture on every single page. I’m just saying, no pictures is FOR SURE not a bad thing.

Lisa Patricelli Board Books

All of her books are sweet with just the right amount of silly. They are short enough to make them easy to read to little ones, and engaging enough for multiple rereadings.  We are particularly fond of Potty and Quiet LOUD around here, but Yummy Yucky is high up on the list, too.

Dragons Love TacosDragons Love Tacos by Adam Rubin and Daniel Salmieri

This book has the right amount of grown up words, ridiculousness, and a cadence that makes it easy to read.  It is not so wordy that I have to skip over sentences whole paragraphs, but not so short that Lila feels gypped when it’s over. And also, who DOESN’T love tacos??

Penguin HiccupsLittle Penguin Gets the Hiccups by Tadgh Bentley

This little book is the CUTEST.  It could be a companion to Dragons Love Tacos in the gastric ailment department, but let’s face it, Hiccups are much cuter than breathing fire.  Be prepared though, this book can get a bit noisy towards the end if you go the interactive route, which can be problematic if you happen to have a littler one that is in bed by the time storytime for the oldest rolls around.  But it’s one of my favorites, so I’m always down to risk it.

Llama Llama Board Books

I just adore these books. I love the rhyming, the simplicity, the way there’s a section where the suspense builds and I get to act all overdramatic for a little while there.  And I think Llama’s relationship with Mama is so sweet (although Lila’s favorite is Llama Llama Mad At Mama, if that tells you anything).

They also sell board book versions for littler readers, and there are a lot on Holiday themes which makes them the perfect inclusion in an Easter Basket or a sweet Valentine’s Day Gift.

Iggy PeckIggy Peck, Architect by Andrea Beatty

I love all of Andrea Beatty’s books (we featured Ada Twist in our list of books with main characters of color and Rosie Revere will likely be making an appearance soon), but Iggy Peck has a soft spot for me in particular because the teacher’s name is Lila Greer. And if your own name is the sweetest sound in any language, your children’s names are likely to rank a close second. So yeah, we love Iggy- and his teacher, too.

Press HerePress Here by Herve Tullet

This book is so silly and interactive, and while Christine is not a huge fan of interactive books (the turn taking involved in a bedtime story for two- or three!- can be a challenge), we’re still in a fun spot with it over here. This book has fun instructions for ways to follow along and engage with the words, so the focus is off of me and my read-aloud abilities for once.

Little Blue TruckLittle Blue Truck by Alice Schertle

This book is sweet, fun to read, and kid LOVE it.  Chad especially loves it because it teachers about compassion and kindness, without the sappy overload you might find in some other books.  With bold, clear illustrations, and animal fun, there’s lots of ways to interact with this book if you want to. And if not? It’s not terribly long, so you’re okay either way.

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So go ahead and add a few of these not-annoying children’s books to your bookshelf. We promise you’ll love these picture books as much as your kids do!

Looking for more books to read? Head here next-

Looking for some books to read to your children that DON'T drive you crazy? Start with this list from thesaltymamas.com #childrensbooks #picturebooks

 

4 thoughts on “Picture Books Adults Will Love As Much as Their Kids Do”

  1. REAL glad I’m not the only one who skips sentences (paragraphs). I swear to you on my life that my kid once picked out the Bible to read as a bedtime story… Nothing against the Bible, but at bedtime I’m more in the Little Blue Truck kind of mood.

  2. My 3yo refuses to read Llama Llama Mad ar Mama because she doesn’t want to hurt my feelings so I win a ‘best mom ever’ mug, right?

    Also, I highly recommend anything by Steve Antony or Jon Klassen. My book rules are: not too many words, good pictures, and fun for ME. These do not disappoint.

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