The Best Baby Board Books to Buy or Gift

Shopping for baby? Check out this list of the Best Baby Board Books to Buy or Gift!

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There are so many exciting board books available to read with our young ones. Quality prose or poetry (paired with excellent illustrations) make reading even these short and simple books a joy.

I also couldn’t resist including some non-board books called Indestructibles. These are rip-proof, chew-proof, AND washable. Shout out to my sister-in-law who discovered these several years back–they are awesome. Babies can look through them all they want with no worries about gnawing off cardboard. Just note that when you see “Indestructibles” in the book title then it will NOT be a board book.

1. The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle | A classic. Watch as the caterpillar eats its way through enormous amounts of food (interactive pages!) and becomes…well, you’ll just have to read it.
2. If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Numeroff | A delightful snowball effect ensues with the simple act of giving a mouse a cookie.  
3. All Aboard! National Parks: A Wildlife Primer by Haily Meyers & Kevin Meyers | Visit national parks and explore wildlife by train in this unique board book. Very basic language/content make this a great picture book for the littlest babies.
4. Winnie-the-Pooh’s Colors by A. A. Milne | Simple sentences plus darling Classic Pooh illustrations. Note that there is not a story in this book, it just points out colors such as, “The bee is yellow.”
5. Moo, Baa, La La La! by Sandra Boynton | With singing pigs that cry “la la la” versus the more expected “oink”, Boynton provides her usual whimsical spin on baby literature. Babies and kids alike love this one! Be prepared to memorize it.
6. Indestructibles: Baby, Let’s Eat! by Amy Pixton | Read about foods grouped by color with your babe, or since this book is “indestructible” (they really are!) enjoy watching baby crinkle, crumple, and chew to their heart’s content. 
7. The Going-To-Bed Book by Sandra Boynton | A quick read filled with the unexpected, like “exercising” being a crucial pre-bedtime step. 
8. Pride & Prejudice: A BabyLit® Counting Primer by Jennifer Adams | A counting book that includes “Two rich gentleman” and “Four marriage proposals”. Just like the original! (Note that it does not include the actual story).
9. Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes by Mem Fox | Illustrated by Helen Oxenbury and filled with babies from around the world, a charming must-own classic. The padded cover makes it easy for older babies to page through all on their own.
10. Hush Little Baby by Sylvia Long | Mmk, so old nursery rhymes/songs are actually often pretty odd. If not downright cray. This sweet re-telling of Hush Little Baby is a much preferred update to the old “hush and I’ll buy ya stuff” version.
11. Everywhere Babies by Susan Meyers | A long read for younger babies, we often choose just a few pages to read versus the whole book. Sweet rhymes and illustrations of how babies “everyday, everywhere” fill their days. 
12. Baby Talk by Stella Blackstone | High contrast + photos of adorable babies make this so engaging for babies. Repetitive text (great for babies, but you may not want to read it dozens of times in a row!).

1. Lit for Little Hands: Pride and Prejudice | An abridged (and somewhat out-of-order) retelling of the classic story. Babies and kiddos will enjoy the many flaps, wheels, and hidden characters to discover. Includes plenty of quotes from the original (as “asides” from the main text).
2. Night-Night, Little Pookie by Sandra Boynton | Rhyme your way to bed with this short and sweet Boynton pick.
3. Little Red Barn | “The animals love their little red barn…” and you will too with the interactive flaps and the short & sweet text. A favorite pre-nap read at our house.
4. The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats | The original 1962 Caldecott Medal winning book is full of the magic of a first snowfall and is a must-have for every bookshelf.
5. Winnie-the-Pooh’s ABC by A.A. Milne | Simple one letter + one word pages paired with Classic Pooh illustrations make this book the perfect choice for tiny readers becoming familiar with the alphabet.
6. Winnie-the-Pooh’s 1-2-3 by A. A. Milne | Again, the illustrations make this simple book such a charming addition to any babe’s collection!  
7. Barnyard Dance by Sandra Boynton | Full of animal sounds and dancing steps, this is an upbeat rhyming read. Toddlers will love to participate as the book is read aloud.
8. The Jungle Book: A BabyLit® Animal Primer by Jennifer Adams | Very simple text that is indeed a “primer” to the original Jungle Book (you won’t get a retelling of the story with this one). Great for a short read with animal-loving kiddos.
9. Indestructibles: Hello Farm by Maddie Frost | Greet the day with the animals at the farm. Not all the Indestructibles books have words, but this one does have simple greetings on each page (i.e. “Hello, insert animal name here”)
10. Global Babies | A favorite of my Little One who loves to look at other babies. Limited text, but the photos are plenty to keep baby engaged. 
11. All the World by Liz Garton Scanlon | On our list to add to our collection, I’m entranced by the sweet poetry and illustrations of this book.
12. Indestructibles: Wiggle! March! by Karen Pixton | No words, with generally just one animal per page. Great for baby to chew on, to make up a story with, or to learn animals together.

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