20 Must-read Picture Books of 2022

There are so many negative messages kids (and adults) receive about their bodies. This book combats those pervasive cultural messages with a celebration of all bodies. It discusses different ways we can show love to our bodies like playing, hygiene, and friendship. It also acknowledges that sometimes our bodies don’t feel good. The book also isn’t just about accepting and loving our own bodies. It also emphasizes loving and respecting children with bodies that are different from ours. This is represented through a variety of races, genders, disabilities, body sizes, hair types, religious garments, birthmarks, and more. The sheer amount of diverse representation within this book is a triumph that supports its core message.

Unicorn stories are plentiful in the picture book world. But the kids I know are still enchanted by them. And this unique, humorous take definitely stands out. A one horned calf, perhaps feeling self-conscious about being different from the other cows, decides they are a unicorn after reading about the magical creatures in a book. After all they have just one horn. And even if they don’t poop rainbows or shimmer under the moonlight, they still want to feel like they belong. A chance run in with some “real” unicorns will decide the issue one way or another. Along with some big laughs (did I mention the rainbow poop?) this book has a powerful message of openness and acceptance of differences.

Owl dreams of becoming a knight one day, even though he’s a bird and a tiny one at that. With fun medieval details and lots of humor, the story shows him finally getting his chance when lots of knights go missing. After knight school, where he is adorably too small to wield weapons and has trouble staying awake in the daytime, he’s assigned to the night watch. Other human knights underestimate him. But his small size and cleverness save the day when a dragon attacks one night.

This wordless picture book is beautifully-illustrated and has an important message. Panels show a monster dragging a stick down the beach and creating a line in the sand. A group of other monsters who were playing on the beach now wonder what this line that divides them into different sections means. They debate if they can cross the line and even physically stop each other from doing so. But the arrival of a bee leads to the line being erased and their friendship restored. The metaphor inherent in this story is subtle, but a great way to start meaningful conversations with adult guidance.

This beautiful love story is intriguing for children and adult readers. It is based on the the true love story of the author’s grandparents who met and fell in love in the library of a Japanese Internment Camp during WWII. The story shows the extreme injustice of this time in American history where just being Japanese American became a crime. But it also shows the power of books to get people through unimaginably hard times and the optimism of finding love in the middle of extreme hardship.

This multicultural book takes place in a kindergarten English as a second language class. To combat the quiet classroom, 5 year old Luli decides to host a tea party. She calls the yummy, hot drink “Chá!” and her classmates respond with the words for tea in their languages ranging from Russian to Arabic to Swahili. While they all speak different languages and many come from different countries, tea is something they can all recognize and enjoy.

In this beautiful picture book, Kendi adapts a short story Hurston wrote in 1925 to make it accessible to young readers. In the book a river tells a story to a brook about a young Afro-Indigenous girl named Magnolia Flower. She is the beloved daughter of an escaped enslaved person and a Cherokee woman who escaped the Trail of Tears. She craves the freedom to love whoever she wants and makes the brave choice to follow her heart. The story is gripping and a unique love story to see in a picture book. And notes at the end give context to the elements of Black folklore preserved in this adaptation and the importance of stories showing Black and Native resistance from American History.

The young girl in this story loves being sandwiched between her two mothers. When Mommy has to go on a work trip, she stays with Mama who takes care of her. But it’s still hard for the girl and for Mommy to be apart from each other. Luckily, at the end of the week there is a happy reunion of the trio. Even though there are a few weird feelings at first when Mommy returns, eventually things feel just right again.

This book was always going to be a slam dunk for me. Firstly, because I love Kate Messner and Christopher Neal’s previous Over and Under picture books. And secondly, because I grew up near Monterey Bay, where this book is set. Stunning illustrations mixed with scientific information about the biodiversity and interdependence of ecosystems. From sea kelp to sardines and whales to wolf eels, this book covers so many interesting organisms!

A nonfiction picture book on the history of pizza narrated by an adorable mouse! From just the premise alone, I knew I’d fall in love with this picture book. There are theories on where and when pizza was first invented, including a fanciful one featuring Queen Margartia. The book also includes fun facts about how pizza is eaten in different parts of the world, like how green peas are a common pizza topping in Brazil. Vivid and bright illustrations accompany this lively text. This is a longer picture book, coming in at 56 pages. But for pizza loving young readers, the pages will fly by.

Cat wants to make Sunday pancakes, but realizes they don’t have any eggs or milk. To get these must-have ingredients, Cat invites Rabbit and Bear to join the breakfast making fun. Luckily, together they have everything they need to make a steaming, tall stack of pancakes. Even if there are a few mistakes made along the way, making breakfast together is the most delicious way to spend a Sunday morning.

Noa wonders why Teddy is always so tired. Teddy’s eyes are always in the same sleepy curve. And Noa is getting frustrated that Teddy never has enough energy to play. But it turns out there is a reason Teddy is so sleepy. He spends his nights protecting Noa from unwanted visitors like a tickle monster and the Boogeyman. Noa doesn’t know about Teddy’s nightly service in helping him sleep. But readers will have so much fun being let in on this secret and appreciating Teddy for all the work he does. There is also a Spanish language version of the picture book, El peor Teddy del mundo, for interested readers!

A brother and sister learn to fight boredom by following their grandmother’s advice to use their imaginations. Now, sibling bickering and gray days can be solved with their powerful, colorful imaginations. This contrast between their internal world and the drab external conditions are portrayed brilliantly through illustrations. Particularly poignant is the grandmother’s descriptions on how she learned to use her imagination to fly from her ancestors who used the same ability from her ancestors who were forcibly brought to America and enslaved.