Halloween Picture Books
- Chelsea Lanese
- Sep 30, 2024
- 6 min read
One of my absolute favorite parts of being a mom is reading to my kids. I love to snuggle up and get lost in stories with them; especially during the holidays. There is something so special about only having these books out just once a year. We read them so much more knowing that in just a short month's time, they'll be back in storage until next year.
Over the years our collection has been ever changing. I go through purges and find new ones. I've now had the privilege of spending 11 Halloween seasons as a mom and these books have either stood the test of time, or passed my now hard-to-pass test of getting into our stack.
Let's dive right in!
This is an absolute favorite to read aloud. I love to add different accents for all the characters. The kids love to act it out and add sound effects. It's quite a theatrical experience in our home when we get this book out at bedtime. This is one we'll have on our shelves for the grandkids one day.
If I were only allowed to choose three Halloween books for you to purchase for your child, this would be among the three. A classic and absolute favorite in our family.
An adorable rendition of the classic song, "The Wheels on the Bus". The lyrics are adorable and the kids love to dance and sing along.
This lift-the-flap book is perfect for preschoolers. Our favorite characters return in adorable costumes and a fun to read storyline.
I am obsessed with the amazing illustrations and diversity shown in this story. This is a new one for our family this year and I highly recommend. Our kids have a very good friend who has a wheelchair and they were so excited to see a little boy with a wheelchair in this book!
This. Book. Is. Adorable! Christopher isn't quite like all the other pumpkins, he loves everything to be sparkly and filled with joyful colors. He doesn't quite fit in, and finds a way to continue letting his true shelf shine. I love a good book showing boys who love pink and sparkles.
All the science books in this series are fantastic. I find they make great additions to our homeschool!
Our kids find this book especially interesting as they grow up in Florida. Another great non-fiction addition to add to your fall/Halloween stack.
The Little Old Lady Who Was Not Afraid of Anything
This book can actually be a bit scary for younger kids or kids who are sensitive to spooky things. Our kids adore it, but I remember reading it for the first time feeling a bit surprised.
Our kids love Grimelda! She gives off a lot of ADHD vibes and being in a neurodivergent-filled family, she's a big hit here. We have more Grimelda books, but they've mysteriously gone missing and I'm sure there somewhere in the kids' rooms.
This book is precious. We have all fallen in love with the main character and her hatred of pumpkins. I love the lesson taught in this story. Sometimes we can turn the thing we hate the most into something so incredibly beautiful. All about mindset and how you problem solve. Love it.
I personally don't love reading this one aloud, which means...it's a current favorite of the kids in our home. (Always works that way doesn't it?) The text goes back and forth a bit and is a bit choppy, but the story is pretty funny. Liam loves the illustrations and thinks this book is just absolutely hilarious. Perfect for kids who love a silly book and want a good laugh.
Our kids actually own two copies of this book because there was a time in our home when Lucy and Liam both wanted to sleep with it. Perfect for toddlers, preschoolers, and pre-readers.
Another Top Three in our home! So loved that we've even lost the book jacket. The storyline is so stinking sweet and filled with the most clever storytelling and creativity. We are also big fans of the children's singer, Emily Arrow, and she happens to have written an amazing song to go along with this book. We watch it on YouTube repeatedly every Halloween season.
Our kids love sweet Gilbert the pink friendly ghost. We love a good ghost story over here, especially ones about ghosts who just want to be themselves and are loved for it!
Beatrice Likes the Dark This one is new to us this year and isn't necessarily Halloween. I can keep this one out year-round. It's absolutely beautiful. Two sisters; one who loves the dark and night, and one who loves day and all things colorful. Highly recommend.
From the author of our beloved Room on the Broom, The Baddies is a great addition this year to our Halloween collection.
This book is so sweet! The story of a precious boy who wants to treat everyone with kindness and love.
I. Love. This. Book! This book is filled with so much creativity! I used it for a Book Club one year and sent it out to hundreds of families I love it so much.
This is another new one for us this year and we have really enjoyed it! Griselda teaches the little boy in the story that there is always a book for everyone.
Eeee! It's a new favorite book alert! Our kids are obsessed. Liam (5) wants me to read this to him all the time. I cannot even begin to tell you how much I love the storyline, the illustrations, the creativity and - the best part - the message! What is the point of us all being the same. We are born to be uniquely amazing. You should most definitely add this one to your collection!
This book is beautifully illustrated. It's one I feel like we don't read enough and whenever we pick it up, I am so glad I did!
Another new one I grabbed this year and it's wonderful. Similar to Gilbert Ghost, it tells the story of a ghost who just loves beautiful things and how he learns to combine beauty and ghost-life.
New to our family this year and one of my new favorites to read aloud! I love acting while I read to the kids and this book had me cracking up! The kids kept laughing asking me, "Mom! Why are you laughing so hard?" Maybe it felt a bit relatable ;)
Sweet Stumpkin. I always feel so bad for this poor little stumpless pumpkin. Liam has such a hard time with this one and is always so relieved at the end. A great lesson and such beautiful unique illustrations!
New this year and everyone who has a perfectionist child should go run to the bookshop to grab this one! Leila doesn't do anything unless she's perfect and winning... I'll leave it at that.
Our Lilly Belle (11) loves this one! New to our family this year and it's been an absolute hit. Never hide who you truly are; you'll always find your people. Acceptance is the core moral of this story and I'm here for it.
It seems there are many stories about ghosts who just don't want to be what society expects them to be. This is another great ghost story, but Leila and Vlad are definitely my favorites in the series before this one.
A Monster Called Pip (not sold via Amazon)
An adorable story about a sweet little monster who doesn't feel good enough, until one day... This story is filled with amazing lessons in friendship.
This book is so much fun to add to an October Morning Basket or for bedtime stories! A fun take on classic Mother Goose stories.
It's no surprise that our family loves Disney, living 1-mile from Magic Kingdom. Our kids love these stories!
No explanation needed. If you haven't seen this classic...go watch it and then grab this book so you can read it, too!
This is another new one I found this year that could really be read year-round but I thought would be fun to have out in our Halloween basket.
I hope you find some new-to-you Halloween books here! I always get so excited when someone shares a Halloween book I haven't seen yet. I always feel like I have them all until I find another! These are the ones that have made it through purges here in our home so you know they're great!
Happy Reading!
-Chelsea
תגובות