Best illustrated books all over the world
On the edge of the village, Sophie lives in a small house with her cow and her hens. Days pass slowly, marked by the simple routines of village life: fetching water, tending the animals, moving through familiar paths. Yet behind the quiet surface, traces of another life remain—a life of […]
King Kilian is convinced he’s the cleverest man alive — and that his daughter is just as clever. So clever, in fact, that she’ll only marry someone even smarter than she is, which means: no one at all. The princess despairs over a life of loneliness until she meets Kit, […]
Mighty Herman is a little man who keeps failing at invention after invention, but he’s not giving up. He builds big things that flop, makes bold machines that backfire, until at last he comes up with something everyone actually uses — the safety pin. Henstra’s illustrations feel old-timey but sharp: […]
Very Far Away is Maurice Sendak’s second picture book as both author and illustrator, following Kenny’s Window. The story is about a little boy who, after getting in trouble at home, decides to run away in search of “very far away.” Along the way, he meets talking animals and a […]
This cumulative rhyme is a translation of a well-known Russian children’s poem. It follows a lady traveling by train with an assortment of belongings: a pan, a divan, a basin, a box with three locks, a valise, and a small Pekingese. By the end of the journey, the little pup […]
This book isn’t a straight biography. It’s more like a riff — short bursts of words and pictures that try to catch the feeling of Sun Ra and his music. Raschka shows him as both a boy from Alabama and a man who claimed he came from Saturn, carrying sounds […]
William Shakespeare’s World in Angela Barrett’s Illustrations Angela Barrett is among the most renowned British book illustrators of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Her works for The Wild Swans and Beauty and the Beast gained wide recognition and attracted great interest from collectors. Barrett’s style is characterised by […]
Original title: Про гонцов-молодцов A playful rhymed tale about hapless messengers sent on an important mission, only to find themselves in the most amusing predicaments. Libin’s lively verses together with Kabakov’s expressive illustrations make this book a vivid and memorable reading experience for children.
Mysterious Thelonious is Raschka’s tribute to jazz pianist Thelonious Monk. The book uses just twelve colors, lined up like the twelve notes of the scale. The short, repeating text and loose, abstract images follow the shape of Monk’s music — playful, surprising, and a little strange at first, but full […]
Today, kitties will plant an entire vegetable and herb garden, showing and explaining everything along the way! You will need to find a good sunny spot, get rid of weeds, sow the seeds, and don’t forget to take a break to admire the fireflies. Just imagine how much can be […]
Ludwig Folbeda is a young Dutch artist, and “De Vogels” (“The Birds”), made in collaboration with the Hague Municipal Museum, is his first children’s book. Ludwig lives in Amsterdam, draws strips, makes illustrations for books, magazines and music albums and loves working in sketchbooks, where he creates entire micro-universes from […]
“There was a girl in the village who loved horses… She led the horses to drink at the river. She spoke softly and they followed. People noticed that she understood horses in a special way.” And so begins the story of a young Native American girl devoted to the care […]
Space Cats is a quirky sci-fi/animal mash-up: Perry befriends a cat that’s not just domestic but cosmic. The feline comes from another planet, and before long Perry is swept into an adventure far beyond backyard fences. On a distant world he encounters not only friendly cats but also their fierce […]
A tiny masked figure quietly wanders across the rooftops of a large city. He’s a ninja, but not a dangerous one; his mission is not revenge or battle, but love. The little ninja has fallen in love with the Moon and is now trying with all his might to reach […]
Have you noticed the world is full of weird people? Someone says words nobody understands. Someone dresses funny. Someone always does things “just in case,” even when they don’t make sense. Someone laughs when it isn’t funny. Someone always thinks about others instead of themselves. Everyone around me is weird. […]
The Giant Story is a tender and playful tale about an unlikely friendship between a little boy and a gentle giant. Written by Beatrice Schenk de Regniers and brought to life with Maurice Sendak’s warm, expressive illustrations, the book explores themes of kindness, acceptance, and the joy of companionship. One […]
This book tells the story of how Duke Ellington grew from a boy who wasn’t sure he even liked piano into one of the most important figures in jazz. Andrea Davis Pinkney writes in a voice that has rhythm and swing, almost like the music itself, while Brian Pinkney’s pictures […]
The Bat-Poet is about a small bat who stays awake while the others sleep. He listens, watches, and begins to make poems about what he notices — the animals, the world, even himself. The other bats don’t really understand why he does this, and he sometimes feels unsure. But little […]
Original title: Русалочьи сказки The collection of fairy tales written by the young Alexey Tolstoy in the 1910s based on Slavic folklore is not particularly well known: it is perhaps a bit scary for children, and adults have not long ago made it a rule to read all sorts of […]
A classic picture book biography of the 16th President of the United States. With luminous lithograph illustrations and a warm narrative, the d’Aulaires bring to life Lincoln’s childhood on the frontier, his love of learning, and his journey toward leadership. Winner of the 1940 Caldecott Medal, this book remains a […]