Kids' Reading List: Infant to 2 Years

Recommended by the American Library Association

Children's books help newborn babies and toddlers up to 2-year-olds discover the joy of reading. Browse this list and a collection of classic titles .

Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes
By Mem Fox; illustrated by Helen Oxenbury

In rhyming verse that encourages participation, a mother tells her baby that babies all over the world have "10 little fingers and 10 little toes."

Harcourt, 2008. ISBN: 9780152060572

What's Up, Duck?: A Book of Opposites
By Tad Hills

Duck and Goose and friends use body language, facial expressions and quirky humor to demonstrate nine pairs of opposites (such as front/back, near/far and heavy/light) in this engaging concept board book.

Schwartz & Wade, 2008. ISBN: 9780375847387

Maisy's Nature Walk: A Maisy First Science Book
By Lucy Cousins

Maisy goes for a nature walk and observes plants and animals along the way. Pull tabs and pop-ups make a flower bloom, an egg hatch and rabbits and a frog hop and leap.

Candlewick, 2008. ISBN: 9780763634568

Global Babies
By Maya Ajmera

Colorful photos of babies from countries all over the world are matched with the message that babies are beautiful no matter where they are.

Charlesbridge, 2007. ISBN: 9781580891745

Baby Signs: a Baby-Sized Guide to Speaking with Sign Language
By Joy Allen

Basic signs, such as those for "milk," "more," "help me" and "book," are among the 13 presented here. The child-centered illustrations show a baby signing while the text presents how to make the sign.

Dial, 2008. ISBN: 9780803731936

Nibble Nibble
By Margaret Wise Brown; illustrated by Wendell Minor

Five bunny poems from Margaret Wise Brown's 1959 collection of the same title are re-illustrated with detailed, friendly-looking animals. Lots of onomatopoeia and large pictures with the right amount of white space make this book a good read-aloud for very young children.

HarperCollins, 2007. ISBN: 9780060592080

The Very Clumsy Click Beetle's Favorite Words
By Eric Carle

Learn a few of the beetle's favorite words in this beautifully illustrated book, which pairs new vocabulary with intricate representations.

Grosset & Dunlap, 2008. ISBN: 9780448448022

Baby! Baby!
By Vicky Ceelen

When is a baby like a bassett? How does a turtle resemble a tot? Perfectly paired photographs show how a pose, a gesture or an expression can create equally high levels of cuteness, whether the subject is an animal or an infant.

Random, 2008. ISBN: 9780375842078

My Animals
By Xavier Deneux

This mostly black-and-white board book introduces infants and toddlers to all sorts of animals—from cats to pandas to cows. A hole cut into each page leads the audience on to the next page.

Walker, 2008. ISBN: 9780802797872

A Good Day
By Kevin Henkes

How does a bad day turn into a good one? It can be as simple as a squirrel finding a nut, a bird flying high or a little girl finding a feather in this joyful picture book.

Greenwillow, 2007. ISBN: 9780061140198

Uh-Oh!
By Rachel Isadora

A dreadlocked baby has many opportunities to say "Uh-oh!" Toddlers will have fun anticipating the next "uh-oh!" and saying it along with the reader.

Harcourt, 2008. ISBN: 9780152057657

Hello, Day
By Anita Lobel

Each farmyard animal meets the sunrise with his own distinctive sound, but what they all mean is "Hello, Day!"

Greenwillow, 2008. ISBN: 9780060787653

Blue Goose
By Nancy Tafuri

Blue Goose, Red Hen, Yellow Chick and White Duck all combine their talents (and colors) to paint the barnyard and surprise Farmer Gray. A lesson on colors and color mixing.

Simon & Schuster, 2008. ISBN: 9781416928348

Try some classic books for infants to 2-year-olds.

Published 06/19/2009

Kids' Reading List: Infant to 2 Years

Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes By Mem Fox; illustrated by Helen Oxenbury

Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes
By Mem Fox; illustrated by Helen Oxenbury