How we read with children is just as important as how often we read with them.These books will keep your toddler engaged with stories and rhyme! There are butterflies and sheep and count. There are new friends to make. There are letters to learn and best of all there are lots of rhymes to read over and over and over!

Hug  by Jez Alborough
Bobo the chimp seeks hugs among various jungle animals and their young, but he does not get what he wants until he is reunited with his own parent.  

Move Over, Rover!   by Karen Beaumont,
When a storm comes, Rover expects to have his doghouse all to himself but finds that various other animals, including a skunk, come to join him.

Good night, Sweet Butterflies  by Dawn Bentley
Young ones will love learning to count backwards from nine to one as touchable, colorful butterflies disappear one by one as bedtime approaches.

Goodnight Moon, 1 2 3  by Margaret Wise Brown
A little bunny counts and bids goodnight to all the objects in his room before falling asleep.

Hurry Hurry   by Eve Bunting
All the animals of the barnyard community hurry to greet their newest member, who is just pecking his way out of an egg

Little Bear’s Little Boat   by Eve Bunting
When Little Bear can no longer fit into his boat he finds someone else who can use it

Ten in the Meadow   by John Butler
As a group of forest animals plays a lively game of hide-and-seek in a meadow, Bear finds them each in turn--except the elusive Mousey.

If You’re Happy and You Know It   by Jane Cabrera
An elephant, a monkey, and a giraffe join other animals to sing different verses of this popular song that encourages everyone to express their happiness through voice and movement.

Very Hungry Caterpillar  by Eric Carle
Follows the progress of a hungry little caterpillar as he eats his way through a varied and very large quantity of food until, full at last, he forms a cocoon around himself and goes to sleep.

Jesse Bear, Jesse Bear What Will You Wear?... by Nancy Carlstrom
Rhymed text and illustrations describe Jesse Bear’s activities from morning to bedtime.

Hooray For Fish! by Lucy Cousins
Little Fish has all sorts of fishy friends in his underwater home, but loves one of them most of all.

Llama, Llama Misses Mama   by Anne Dewdney
Llama Llama experiences separation anxiety on his first day of nursery school.

While the World is Sleeping  by Pamela Edwards
A sleepy child is flown through the night sky to see foxes hunting, rabbits playing, raccoons scrounging, and other animals that are active while people sleep.

Shout! Shout It Out! by Denise Fleming
Mouse invites the reader to shout out what he or she knows as they review numbers, letters, and easy words.

Corduroy  by Don Freeman
A toy bear in a department store wants a number of things, but when a little girl finally buys him he finds what he has always wanted most of all.

Don’t You Feel Well, Sam?  by Amy Hest
When Sam has a cough, Mrs. Bear tends to him all through the cold night.

Duck and Goose   by Tad Hills
Duck and Goose and learn to work together to take care of a ball, which they think is an egg

A Monkey Among Us   by Dave Horowitz
Illustrations and brief text follow the antics of a mischievous monkey and his animal friends

Sea, Sand, Me! by Patricia Hubbell
A young girl enjoys building sandcastles, splashing in the sea, and making a new friend during an afternoon at the beach.

Mommy Hug  by Karen Katz
A loving mother counts the hugs she gives her baby throughout the day.

I’m Dirty  by Kate McMullen
A busy backhoe loader describes all the items it hauls off a lot and all the fun it has getting dirty while doing so.

Lola At the Library    by Anna McQuinn
Every Tuesday Lola and her mother visit their local library to return and check out books, attend story readings, and share a special treat.

Brown Bear, Brown Bear   by Bill Martin
Children see a variety of animals, each one a different color, and a mother looking at them.

My Friend Lucky  by David Milgrim
A dog named Lucky demonstrates opposites such as slow and fast, dry and wet, cold and warm, and here and there

When Sheep Sleep   by Laura Numeroff
Rhyming text suggests other options when one tries to count sheep but discovers that they are all asleep.

Looking For a Moose  by Phyllis Root
Four children set off into the woods to find a moose.

Raccoon Tune  by Nancy Shaw
A family of raccoons prowls around a neighborhood making a ruckus until they find supper.

Little Quack’s New Friend  by Lauren Thompson
When a frog invites five ducklings to play, four refuse because he is too little and green, but Little Quack has so much fun with his new friend that the other ducklings soon join in.

Read to Your Bunny   by Rosemary Wells
A celebration of the pleasures of reading that will have more appeal to adults than to preschoolers. Using a multicolored cast of bunnies, Wells shows that reading can be done anywhere: on a plane or a boat, or even in a bathtub.

Bear’s New Friend    by Karma Wilson
Bear and his friends persuade a bashful owl to play with them. Bear is going to the swimming hole, but first he must find his friends.

The Napping House   by Audrey Wood
In this cumulative tale, a wakeful flea atop a number of sleeping creatures causes a commotion, with just one bite.

How Do Dinosaurs Eat Their Food?   by Jane Yolen
Describes how a dinosaur eats, with no rude noises and while sitting very still.