Best illustrated books all over the world
Thomas Handforth was not Chinese, but that did not stop him from publishing one of the most iconic children’s books of the time in 1939, dedicated to the peculiarities of Chinese culture and tradition. A successful American engraver and artist, Handforth traveled a lot, having traveled almost half the world. […]
The neighbor’s house has been empty for a long time. Looking at it from her window, Stella sighs. She has already stopped hoping for a neighbor her age, when suddenly a miracle happens: Moon itself descends from the sky, and moves in next door! A friendship quickly blossoms between them […]
Original title: Доктор Айболит A hundred years ago, in 1920, Hugh Lofting’s The Story of Doctor Dolittle was published. Just a few years later, in 1923–1924, Korney Chukovsky adapted it into Russian and soon created his own verse tales about Doctor Aybolit. In 1936, the fairy tale Doctor Aybolit was […]
Original title: Вниз по волшебной реке This fairy tale introduces readers to Mitya, a boy who spends his summer in the countryside and unexpectedly crosses into the world of Russian folklore. Alongside characters such as Baba Yaga, Vasiliisa the Wise, the Gray Wolf, and the Tsar, he faces Koshchei the […]
Original title: Добрый день Good Day is a collection of poems and tales by Lev Kuzmin. His writing combines simplicity and warmth, with themes that speak directly to children. Everyday situations turn into playful verses and short stories, full of humor and rhythm. The book is illustrated by Viktor Chizhikov. […]
A beautiful, slightly dark book that reinterprets the plots of well-known fairy tales, with authentic illustrations by Anthony Brown that rhythmically fit the poetry of Gwen Strauss. The characters familiar to us from childhood find themselves in a metaphorical dark forest, where they face their fears, experiencing moments of love, […]
This picture book is a warm collection of short verses and little stories about children playing, pretending, and figuring out the world together. Ruth Krauss’s text is simple and playful, and Maurice Sendak’s drawings capture the small, everyday dramas and joys of childhood. It’s an early example of how well […]
My Dolly is based on a song by Woody Guthrie and features illustrations by Vladimir Radunsky. The book uses collage techniques and incorporates elements of children’s drawings. The text follows the song, describing the doll singing, dancing, eating, and sleeping, while the illustrations create a playful visual context. Radunsky’s approach […]
Original title: Откуда берутся сны Every day, a boy in a striped cap named Didis works tirelessly. He catches fluffy clouds and shadows of rainbow butterflies in his magic net. Sometimes he manages to catch the bright tail of a big rainbow and add the buzzing of bees and croaking […]
Original title: Двадцать лет под кроватью Twenty Years Under the Bed by Viktor Dragunsky is a humorous short story from the Deniska’s Stories cycle. The children decide to play hide-and-seek in a communal apartment. Denis hides under a neighbor’s bed, but the game ends before anyone remembers about him. Left […]
Waffle shows a small character who wants something but moves with uncertainty. Each hesitant action meets a crowd of tiny laughing faces, forming patterns and shapes across the pages. Typography and symbols wobble and shift, echoing the tension and movement. Words and faces interact, responding to each step, reflecting hesitation […]
The books in the E. H. Minarik series about the Little Bear are practically classics of American children’s literature. The series of six collections, the first appeared in 1957, is addressed to beginning readers and consists of simple stories from the life of a mother bear and her Little Bear […]
Animali in città (2019) by Bruno Cignini, illustrated by Andrea Antinori, is an exciting journey into the secret lives of animals living in the heart of cities. From familiar pigeons and seagulls to unexpected visitors like foxes, parrots, and crabs, zoologist Bruno Cignini and illustrator Andrea Antinori invite readers to […]
Peter and the Wolf is Chris Raschka’s retelling of Sergei Prokofiev’s classic musical tale. The story follows Peter as he ventures outside, meets animal friends, and finally comes face to face with the wolf. Raschka doesn’t just illustrate — he also plays with the text. His words are short, rhythmic, […]
This is a lullaby book, a song book that the river sings with its mother. The mother takes the baby on an evening boat ride, and together they watch what lives along the banks and in the water, listen to the splash of the waves and the rustle of the […]
Dear Mili is a little-known fairy tale written by Wilhelm Grimm, the younger of the famous Brothers Grimm, in 1816. The story was sent as a letter to a young girl named Mili but remained unpublished for over 170 years. It tells of a mother sending her child into the […]
A spirited Halloween picture book about a group of children who set out for trick-or-treating and stumble into a spooky surprise. With bold, atmospheric illustrations and playful suspense, Dirk Zimmer captures both the thrills and fun of Halloween night.
Table Manners is a collaboration between Vladimir Radunsky and Chris Raschka. The book takes a subject usually handled with stiff seriousness — etiquette — and turns it into a playful, theatrical performance. The story follows two friends as they attempt to understand the rules of polite dining, a process that […]
In Like Likes Like, Chris Raschka uses both words and images to quietly draw us into the world of a lonely white cat. The text is minimal, almost like a whisper, letting each word carry feeling. Meanwhile, the illustrations do a lot of the work: open spaces, subtle shifts in […]
Woodcut illustrations and brief text from an American folk song relate the story of the animals on Noah’s ark.