Top 10 Tuesday – Favorite Picture Books of 2023 for Gifting and Sharing!

Thank you to everyone for following my blog as I count down my favorite books from the past year. In case you missed any of my lists – here they are again!

Click HERE for my favorite beginning chapter books of 2023.

Click HERE for my favorite middle grade novels of 2023.

Click HERE for my favorite nonfiction picture books of 2023.

I end my lists with my favorite picture books of 2023. This was probably the hardest list to create because there were just SO many amazing books that were published this year! But I have tried my best to focus on my favorites. What makes a “favorite”? Now that is a question I have been asked a LOT! But my answer is always the same – the book speaks to me in some way: touches my heart, invites me to think, includes characters, experiences, or feelings I connect to, or illustrations that take my breathe away and stick with me long after I close the book. But more than my personal lens, these books have made my list becuase they are the ones I hope will find their way into your classrooms and libraries and into the hands and hearts of your students. 

Here are my favorite 10 picture books from the past year. (As always, I can’t count very well!)

Big – Vashti Harrison

If you have not yet read this book, it is a must for your classroom or library – and really has become one of my very favorite picture books not just of this year but ever! It is a deeply moving story that weaves in valuable lessons about fitting in, standing out, and the beauty of joyful acceptance. The illustrations are breathtaking. It’s on my mock Caldecott list for sure!

I love books that give us a new lens with which to view something we thought we understood – in this case – wishes. The book has such a dreamy, enchanting tone that flows beautifully through this story as readers learn how people in various countries make wishes. Paired with the gorgeous illustrations by Khoa Le, this book is breath taking. FULL book love for this one! 

I just fell in love with this book by the great team of Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen when I read it in a local book store last month. The book asks the age-old question that every child wonders at one point in their life – just how does Santa get down the chimney? Does he go feet first? What if he gets stuck? What if I don’t have a chimney – then what? Such a great book for stimulatiing rich wonderings and class conversations! 

There are some books I just want to hold close to my heart for a while – and this is one of them. John Schu and Caldecott Honor recipient Lauren Castillo join together to celebrate the power of finding the perfect book. A joyful celebration of books and libraries that every child should read (or listen to!).

Just Like Grandma – Kim Rogers illustrated by Julie Flett (Can)

I love everything Julie Flett does – whether it’s writing or illustrating – I’m a huge fan. I’m also a huge fan of intergenerational books and this one is absoluately beautiful. Firmly rooted in the author’s Indiengous culture and community, this story a young girl who wants to be just like her grandma and a grandma who wants to be just like her granddaughter. It’s so touching and so many connections to grandparents will be made from this book. The language is poetic but not “rhymey” and the illustrations stunningly signature Julie Flett! 

Evergreen – Matthew Cordell

I was late to the party on this book but now can’t stop talking about it! It is a little gem of a book about a timid little squirrel named Evergreen who bravely sets off with a pot of soup her Mama made to help her sick granny. Evergreen is afraid of everything but she sets of on an adventure full of twists and turns and a few surprises. The illustrations are soft and sweet and the variety of animal characters will make this a fun read-aloud. 

Beneath – Cori Doerrfeld

This is a beautiful and heartfelt story of a child, Finn, and her grandfather taking a walk in nature and noticing that there is always something beneath what is visible. Together the pair are able to begin to acknowledge their grief and understand that they are both feeling the same way. This book is quiet, profound, and so beautiful. A must read and be sure not to miss important details on the jacket, case cover, and endpages. I will just be crying for ever over here. 

Mine!  – Candace Flemming

Oh this book is so cute and such a perfect connect book about sharing for early primary students. It is perfect rhythmic read-aloud and features a seires of hilariouly selfish forest animals!  Absoultely delightful story and playful illustrations by the great Eric Rohmann.

This is a little gem with a positive message for both children and adults by the great poet Amanda Gorman. Dealing with environmental issues can seem overwhelming, but this book promotes the important impact we can all have by creating small acts of kindness in our community and bringing people together. So inspiring and a great book to launch helping in your local community.

Our Pool – Lucy Ruth Cummins

I just loved this book when I chose it for one of the books in the Brain Pocket Writing GearPicks Pack this year!  It is a delightful first-person narrative detailing a hot summer day spent at the city pool. Simple event story filled with beautiful langauge, relatable details, vibrant illustrations and a book that so many students will make “memory pocket” connections to! LOVE this one!

Little gasp. That’s what I did when I first read this book. Then I read it again. Then I had a little cry. After moving from a home in the country to an apartment in the city, a young boy and his mother talk about their memories–some happy, some sad. I love that the author doesn’t spill out the storyline and leaves lots of space for our thinking! Perfect book for for inviting your students to ask questions and make inferences. I can see many class conversations flowing naturally after reading this aloud. Oh, and did I mention stunning illustrations?

This book tells the true story of how Indigenous girls at a Canadian residential school sewed secret pockets into their dresses to hide food in order to survive. It’s heartbreaking but hearing the author’s mother’s story of her time in the Lejac residential school is such an amazing example of resilience — little girls using the sewing skills their mothers, aunties and grandmothers taught them, to sew secret pockets in their clothing to hide and share food. I know that this book was widely shared earlier this fall leading to Orange Shirt Day.  A beautiful afternote is that the story has been placed in specially sewn pockets in the graduation robes of indigenous graduates of University of Fraser Valley, Chilliwack Senior Secondary school and Mission school District.

Written and illustrated by Vancouver elementary teacher Mavis Lui, this book is a GEM! With adorable illustrations, a loveable alien named Frank, this book is a true celebration of diversity with a lovely message about embracing our differences. I love how this book encourages readers to think about what unique aspects they love about themselves. Would make a perfect anchor book for writing and I have already added this to my Powerful Understanding “SELF” book list!

And there you have it! My favorite picture books of the year! What are your favorites? Would love to hear about them! Thanks for stopping by and hoping you found one or two new books that caught your eye!

This will be my last post of the year. I will be back in early 2024 with new books to start the new year! Wishing you all a very happy holiday with loved ones filled with magic, wonder, laughter, rest, and a lot of books!