Best illustrated books all over the world
In Bug City, a family of insects goes about their day. Mama is a ladybug and Papa is a daddy longlegs. They shop for calico moths and velvet ants, visit the zoo with rhinoceros beetles and ant lions, and meet friends along the way. Everywhere they go, little adventures happen, […]
World Full of Horses is a children’s picture book by Dahlov Ipcar that celebrates the enduring presence and charm of horses through generations. The book opens with a look back at “grandfather’s day,” when horses were everywhere, pulling carriages, streetcars, fire engines, plows, and even soldiers into battle. Ipcar then […]
The Egg Tree is a quiet, classic picture book built around a family memory. Katy and Carl arrive at their grandmother’s Pennsylvania farm for Easter, and during the egg hunt Katy ends up in the attic. The six painted eggs she discovers there become the center of the story. They […]
In A Halloween Happening, a community of witches invites children to a Halloween party full of magical mischief. The witches build a giant tower of jack-o’-lanterns, complete with a batwing glider platform at the top, while preparing toad tarts, worm waffles, and candy bats. Adams’ dark, muted palette and detailed […]
A Tree Is Nice is a small book about something we usually walk past without thinking. Janice May Udry simply lists what a tree gives us — shade, fruit, a place to sit, branches to climb, leaves to play with. There’s no moral spelled out, no dramatic message. Just everyday […]
Charles Perrault’s Puss in Boots has attracted generations of illustrators since its first publication in 1697 — and yet Fred Marcellino’s version still feels completely new. His cover alone breaks every convention: a witty feline face dressed in Renaissance finery stares straight at the viewer, without a single word of […]
Alison Lester began illustrating books in 1986, and just four years later her Imagine broke all sales records in Australia, becoming the number-one children’s bestseller. And I can completely understand why. To my taste, this is exactly how an educational, illustrated children’s book should be. Lester seamlessly combines several techniques […]
Sylvester loves collecting pebbles — small treasures that usually don’t change anything. But one day he finds a red one, and the world shifts just a little: suddenly any wish can take shape. In a moment of fear things go wrong, and Sylvester ends up quite literally out of reach. […]
Vladimir Kanevsky was known not only for his art but also for his warmth and presence. Friends and readers remember him as generous, playful, and attentive, sharing his world through drawings, personal notes, and stories.
A timeless picture book where poetry, color, and kindness meet. Beni Montresor’s jewel-like illustrations turn a simple story into a royal celebration — full of rhythm, wit, and a touch of absurd charm. Every page glows with rich, theatrical color, as if lit from within by stage lights. You can […]
Leonid Vladimirsky illustrated Cipollino in his recognizable, lively style. His drawings are full of movement and humor, turning the story into a vivid and engaging visual tale. The familiar warmth of his characters makes this version one of the most beloved among his works.
Original title: Сказки дядюшки Римуса These illustrations are among Kalinovsky’s most distinctive works. They earned him two major international awards — a silver medal at the Leipzig Book Fair and the Golden Apple at the 1977 Biennial of Illustration Bratislava. Kalinovsky approached the American folktales of Joel Chandler Harris not […]
Original title: Приключения Чиполлино Gianni Rodari — The Adventures of Cipollino (illustrated by Yevgeny Galey, Detgiz, 1960) was the first of Rodari’s books to be published in a foreign language and quickly became one of the most beloved stories among children in the Soviet Union. Translated under the supervision of […]
Original title: Приключения Чиполлино In 1956, Detgiz published the first Russian edition of Gianni Rodari’s The Adventures of Cipollino, illustrated by Vladimir G. Suteev. For generations of readers, the charming vegetable characters from Rodari’s beloved tale remain inseparable from the images created by Suteev’s hand. Later illustrators of Cipollino rarely […]
A Story, a Story is a children’s picture book written and illustrated by Gail E. Haley. It retells an African tale about how the trickster Anansi, the Spider Man, obtained stories from Nyame, the Sky God, so that children on Earth could hear them. To succeed, Anansi must capture three […]
A Bear, a Bobcat, and Three Ghosts — a slightly surreal Halloween poem written in loose blank verse, follows the wandering trader Timothy Todd on his nocturnal adventure. On the eve of Halloween, Todd sets out to visit old friends — to sell a bit, buy a bit, and share […]
Original title: Собачки This book was both written and illustrated by Vera Mikhailovna Ermolaeva (1893–1937), one of the most remarkable figures of the Russian avant-garde. A practicing artist as well as a leading theorist, she headed the Laboratory of Color at the State Institute of Artistic Culture (GINKhUK) in Petrograd, […]
Hilary Knight brings Cinderella to life with characters endowed with the same humor, zest, and personality that made readers adore his most famous creation, Eloise. His version includes delightful touches: house cats, a blue fairy godmother, and a slightly plump Prince Charming, that dance across the pages and into readers’ […]
Original title: Сказы Павла Бажова Oleg Korovin, a gifted Russian artist and illustrator, became closely associated with the legendary Ural folktales of Pavel Bazhov. In the late 1940s, he began working on illustrations for Bazhov’s stories, participating alongside other artists in the 1949 edition of The Malachite Box. Korovin gained […]
The story centers on an old woman who lives alone by a river and prefers it that way. Her house is tidy, filled with old lamps, odd treasures, and not a trace of anything – or anyone – she hasn’t personally approved. She dislikes visitors, and animals even more. But […]