The Baby + Toddler Book Guide
All the best books and book tips for reading to your little one! This is my little “Bookshop!” These are all of my favorite books for little ones, organized by age and category. The best part is that ALL orders from this Bookshop raise money in free books for pregnant women and children living in poverty. In 2023, Eat Play Say delivered $10,000 in free books to families in need!
Check out all the favorites below and the descriptions below the pictures for more information! These are USA only links.
First Words Library - Farm: This book has only one picture on each page and light and bright colors to draw baby’s attention. It’s short and sweet and perfect for repetition.
Woodland Tummy Time!: This book folds into a three-sided tummy time toy! It has a mirror, soft pages to turn, and lots of bright colors! Books that double as toys are a great way to expose baby to even more reading time in fun ways!
Baby’s Very First Noisy Nursery Rhymes: Soothing sounds that keep baby’s attention, each page has a corresponding button that plays a short tune! This book has been a favorite for both of my kids in their first year especially.
Hello, Baby Day + Night: The handle of this book is a teether and a rattle, and the soft pages are colorful and easy to grab and turn. Baby can grasp it from any angle and play while they read, too!
Crinkle Jungle: A fold-out crinkle book that’s PERFECT for tummy time! I love that this book has black and white images on both sides and it’s easy for baby to hold. Read with baby in tummy time, on your lap, or lay the book on their chest in the play gym and let them explore the crinkly sounds!
That’s Not My Monkey: Touch and feel books are the way to go! Once baby starts reaching (3-4 months of age), bring these books out and prop baby on your lap facing you. Model how to touch all the soft and scratchy parts and see if baby will imitate you! Model the functional words in the book and keep reading as your baby gets older!
Panda in the Park: This $5 book is so CUTE. It has little peek-a-boo cut outs where you can see part of the animal on the next page, and its very short and sweet! We read over and over when my son was an infant and as a toddler it was his most requested book for a while!
Baby’s Very First Touchy Feely Book: Black and white images paired with touch-and-feel components are the perfect pair! One picture on each page keeps things simple and makes it easy for baby to learn names of items! The different touch-and-feel spots motivate reaching and page turning to see what’s next!
Lift-the-flap Peek-a-Boo at Bedtime: Large flaps are great for little ones who are just learning how to reach and grasp! This short and sweet book is colorful and motivates baby to wait and see what’s hiding behind each flap. Model “peek-a-boo, I see you” on each page!
Fold Out Nursery Rhymes: Another fun tummy time book! With songs on each side you can sing to baby as they look at the pages. Then, as they get older, they can sing (and sign) along with you!
On the Farm: This black and white book is great for 0-6 months. Another short and sweet option with big images so baby can look and track! Move the book side-to-side for your newborn and see them turn their head and move their eyes to follow along!
Don’t Tickle the Gorilla!: Sound books are so much fun to introduce early, as they keep baby’s attention and give them something to look forward to on each page!
Baby’s Very First Noisy Book - Trains: Your baby will love all of the fun train sounds this book has to offer and will likely start to try and imitate them verbally! It’s a fun book with colorful pictures that your little one will enjoy well into toddlerhood, too!
Baby’s Very First Bus Book: It’s a book on wheels! So, it counts as a toy too, and it’s my most recommended book for littles who aren’t so interested in a regular book. Glide it across the room, spin the wheels, and look at the colorful pictures. There is also a tractor, ambulance, and fire truck version, too!
Slide and See - Under the Sea: These books are fun for the baby who is reaching and touching! Moving parts in the book motivate baby to engage and keep looking for the next piece! It’s part of a larger series and there are several other books (Dinosaur, Things that Go, Farm, Zoo, etc).
Fingertrail Playbook - Cats + Dogs: This is one of my faves! Little cut out trails for baby to trace with their hand, lots of touch-and-feel parts and functional, fun words on each page. There are other books in this series too if your baby becomes a fan!
Jump Around: THIS IS MY ALL TIME FAVORITE BOOK. And it’s $5! It prompts imitation through body movements and baby has SO much fun trying to imitate the stomping, wiggling, and more!
Don’t Tickle the Hippo!: Touch-and-feel mixed with sound books are great for this age, as baby can imitate by touching the spots you touch AND by trying to imitate the sound on each page! There are several books in this series and this is one of my faves!
Don’t Tickle the Lion!:Touch-and-feel mixed with sound books are great for this age, as baby can imitate by touching the spots you touch AND by trying to imitate the sound on each page! There are several books in this series and this is one of my faves!
Goodnight, Chameleon: Felt flaps, need I say more? Baby can’t rip them! I only wish there were more! Goodnight, Owl is another option, and each book is filled with colorful pages, big flaps for easy grasping, and fun animals hid beneath each flap. Perfect to introduce around 6 months and continue into toddlerhood!
Are You There Little Owl?: This cute peek-a-boo book keeps baby’s attention as they look for where the animal is hiding on each page. They find other animals along the way and can touch the cut-outs! Pages are easy to turn and motivate baby to look for what’s next!
First Words Library - Animals: In infancy, books with one picture per page are great for teaching functional vocabulary. I recommend having books like these First Words ones in your rotation so baby can start to follow directions like “Hmmm, I see the dog! Let’s touch the dog!” as you model phrases and sentences like that.
Dance with the Dinosaurs: This fun book has a song on each page with functional words like “spin, twirl, stomp” and your little one can imitate those body movements and also start to imitate the words as you repeatedly read it and dance!
Peek-a-boo at the Zoo: Keep those large flap books coming! As baby’s reaching and grasping skills refine, these books are great to keep in rotation. With a few in the series you can read them all! Play peek-a-boo during the book and after in play, as well, and your little one will likely start to initiate that social routine with you!
First Words Library - Me: Around the first birthday we expect littles to identify several body parts and start to label them, too! So this is a great book to help support those skills.
That’s Not My Sloth: Those touch and feel books that baby enjoyed are ready to be taken up a notch! Modeling the functional descriptive words repeatedly and pausing to let baby try and imitate is key!
Don’t Tickle the Elephant!: Between 6-12 months we were focusing on imitating the pushing of buttons and touching the spots on the books, now we can switch gears to focus on the functional verbs highlighted in these books!
Fingerwiggly Monkeys: Finger isolation for pointing is expected by 15 months of age, so these books are so great to prompt your little one to stick their fingers through the hole and wiggle! Fingers become arms and legs in the book and it’s so cute to see!
Monster Hide-and-Seek: Big flaps come into play here as monsters of all colors hide around the house. This book is great for focusing on functional language like “in, on, under, on top.” And then later targeting colors!
Slide and See - Things That Go: Practice finger isolation by sliding the moving pieces back-and-forth in this book! Prompt baby to imitate the environmental sounds like “beep, honk” and then play with vehicles afterwards!
Lift and Look - Jungle: This flap book helps your toddler look for all the animals in the jungle! It’s colorful and easy to hold. There are also lots of other books in this series (Under the Sea, Trains, etc.)
Grocery Day Sort and Play!: MY FAVE book for toddlers! It comes with little felt food pieces that stick in the book as you read about navigating the supermarket. Your little one can put the food in the cart, on the conveyor belt, and pack the car. Then do it all again!
Squawk, Toucan!: One of my most recommended books, this short board book has a moving mouth at the end that helps you really emphasize the animal sounds! Your little one will love the moveable mouth and be more motivated to imitate as it moves!
1, 2, 3 - Do the Dinosaur: This cute book is full of movement and prompts your little one to move their body and imitate! You sing a cute little song throughout that your little one will want to hear again and again.
See a Rainbow: Another $5 favorite! Colorful pictures on each page. At this age, focus on labeling the items on the page, and when your toddler is closer to 2, label the colors too!
How to Bathe Your Little Dinosaur: This rhyming book is so cute! All about bath time, your little one will start to fill in the blank as they learn the rhyming routine! There are 3 other books like this (Cheeky Monkey, Snappy Croc, Sleepy Lion).
Twinkly, Twinkly Nighttime: This book is so cute, as different things light up on each page! You can talk to your toddler about where the characters are and what is lit up on each page! Perfect for bedtime.
Chef: This little flap book takes your toddler through the day of being a chef! Little flaps and help the chef get dressed, flip pancakes, and more. Then you can get some pretend play food afterwards and re-inact what you read!
Things That Go - Sound Book: All the sounds of vehicles everywhere! Perfect for a transportation lover, this book has lots of pictures that you can narrate as you discover the sounds.
Laundry Day Sort and Play!: These felt piece books are my favorite! Felt clothing pieces are included for your little one to stick all over the book- hang them on the line to “dry” and fold them to put away in the drawer. A functional language book about routines, and then your little one can help you do laundry at home!
Wild Animals Sound Book: Another motivating book for littles with lots of buttons to push! Your little one can imitate the sounds each animal makes and you can talk about where they live and what they are doing.
Lift-the-flap Colors: Around 2 years of age, little ones start to show an interest in colors, so now is the time to point them out! Lift the flap to see what color is underneath and talk about all the different images. TIP: Put the color AFTER the noun in the sentence for your little one to learn it best. “The car is RED” as opposed to “the RED car.”
How to Brush Your Teeth with Snappy Croc: Such a great book for little ones to get comfortable with brushing teeth and going to the dentist. In toddlerhood, brushing can be really hard, so this book can help them get more comfortable with brushing! We read this one a lot before a dentist visit!
I Can Do It!: Fine motor skills are really coming into play as your toddler reaches their second birthday. This book is so much fun with buttons, snaps, ties, and more for them to undo and redo over and over!
Steady Sloth: Toddlers are notorious for going TOO fast. This book talks about how if you go SLOW you can do it AND do it with less frustration. Also in the series are Scaredy Cat, Grumpy Tortoise, and Cautious Chameleon).
Are You There Little Tiger?: A great book for finding animals and talking about where they are hiding, this book targets prepositions and verbs! Part of a series, so if your little one really likes a particular animal (puppy, owl, etc), you can look for those too!
Taco Truck: A new favorite! This book on wheels is so cute! Read about how to serve meals from the truck and then drive it around and take it for a spin.
Nibbles Colors: Nibbles is a character in many books in the Bookshop, and the Colors book is the best. He eats different colors throughout the book, which makes your little one laugh and helps them learn the colors!
Animal Sticker Book: You know I love a good sticker book that keeps hands busy (especially in places like a restaurant, church, or doctor’s office!) This book comes with over 150 stickers for hours of fun.
Time to Brush: Love this reusable sticker book (just wet the pieces if they stop sticking and let them dry- they will stick great again!) And I love that it talks about a routine that littles might not love, so it can help teethbrushing go much better!
I’m a Dirty Dinosaur: This is a traditional book with pages, but they have a coating on them that makes it almost impossible to rip! So, for littles who are transitioning to paper books, this is a great one to start with! Imitate the movements and repetitive nature of the book for a lot of fun!
It’s Time To…Fix It!: This super cute book has sliders, flaps, and more! Your little one will fix items that are broken with some simple lifts and slides. Paul got this for Christmas (2.5 years) and he is obsessed! The Bake It version is also a fan fave!
Beast Feast: Littles who are ready to transition to a book with paper pages instead of a board book can make the jump with Beast Feast. It still has flaps to open and fun pictures, and the story is really cute!
My First Tag Puzzle - Farm: A puzzle and a book all in one! This book will motivate littles to find the matching puzzle piece and put it in! Read this and then play with farm animals as a way to make a thematic play scheme.
Scaredy Cat: Big emotions happen in toddlerhood and this book explains feeling scared and how it’s ok! Each page breaks down why the cat is scared and how he can feel better.
Picnic Day Sort and Play: Another felt piece book for the win! Have your toddler use the felt pieces to set up a picnic. Bring in some pretend food for a bigger play event and let the imagination go wild.
First Pen Control: If your little one is into arts and crafts, this book is for you! Use the pen in the book and just wipe it clean to start all over!
Lift and Look - Construction Sites: A bigger book with more intricate flaps, this is perfect for a toddler obsessed with construction vehicles. They will grow into this book as it provides a lot of specific information about different construction vehicles! This book is apart of a larger series (Space, Ocean) for littles with other interests, too!
Lift and Look Spiky Dinosaur: This fun lift-the-flap book lets your little one on an adventure with the spiky dinosaur! It has fun textures and cut outs too to keep your little one motivated to see what’s next!
Shine-a-light - On the Space Station: Grab a flashlight! Shine it on the pages of the book to see things you can’t see without it! It’s a cool book that brings a toy-like feel to it! There a several other in the series that you can grab!
Los animales: This book labels both English and Spanish animals, so it’s great for vocabulary building for dual language learners and bilingual families!
El bebé toca - ¡Mira cómo brilla!: This book has tons of touch and feel components and bright colors, perfect for a little one 0-12 months. Label functional vocabulary and prompt baby to imitate touching the books!
En la granja: Grab a flashlight! This book about the farm has hidden pictures that show up when you shine a light on them! Perfect for 2 years +
En el hospital: This one uses a flashlight too and talks all about what is found inside a hospital! Perfect for 2-3 years +
Mis primeras preguntas - ¿Qué es ser bueno?: This book about questions help littles answer and understand more abstract concepts. Perfect for 3 years +
¡Toca, toca! - Este no es mi perrito: The Spanish version of That’s Not my Puppy, your little one can touch and feel parts of the book and learn functional vocabulary words!
Los colores: This book labels colors in both English and Spanish, so it’s great for vocabulary building for dual language learners and bilingual families!
La vida de pirata: The Life of a Pirate is a great adventurous book for littles 2 years and older!
¿Qué Hora es?: Poppy and Sam books are great for littles! This book explains time and the clock! Perfect for 18 months +
Señor Roscoe on Vacation: This regular hard back book is hilarious! Senor Roscoe and his fish Fry travel all over for their vacation and get in quite the predicament! Perfect for 2 years +
Mi abuelo y yo: This book is about grandpa and grandchildren and their relationship. Such a cute book for a little one from a grandparent.
Veo, veo por casa: This book talks about things found all over the house! You can help your little one label what they see. Perfect for 18 months +
Dinosaur Sounds: For the dinosaur lover, this book is packed with fun sounds for your little one to imitate! Part of a collection, other books like Things That Go or Animal Sounds are also great ones for imitation.
Make a Noise: This short $5 book is MY FAVE for verbal imitation! Get animated with all the sounds that animals/things make and pause for your little one to try and imitate. Prompt them to turn the page as this book has easy to turn page for small hands.
Animal Noises: This very simple board book can go a long way! Say the sounds that the animals make and wait for your little one to respond in some way before turning the next page!
Don’t Tickle The Bear!: This series is PERFECT for imitating body movements and verbally too! Let your little one touch the animal on each page and see if they try to make the sound themselves!
Squawk, Toucan!: Another fave for imitation, this book has a moving mouth at the end that really gets littles excited to imitate! Let out a SQUAWK as you move the mouth and see if your little one will also try!
Dance with the Unicorns: A fun dance on each page, complete with functional verbs like prance and trot, your little one can imitate body movements and then imitate verbally, too!
Baby’s Very First Noisy Book - Trains: The Noisy Books are great for imitation. If your little one isn’t ready to imitate words, they may imitate sounds first, so this is a great stepping stone!
Fingerwiggly Octopus: This book is great for getting your little one’s fingers involved! Model how to put them through the holes and prompt baby to imitate you! Remember, pointing with isolated finger is expected by 15 months, so you can work on this skill beforehand to support that.
1, 2, 3, Do the Dinosaur: A fun sing-songy book for your little one to follow along and imitate body movements! You can do this one standing up.
Speak up, Mouse!: Another fave for imitation, this book has a moving mouth at the end that really gets littles excited to imitate! Let out a ROAR as you move the mouth and see if your little one will also try!
Jump Around!: A book all about movement, your little one will imitate stamping and wiggling with the animals! Perfect to start reading around 6 months and up!
If You’re Happy and You Know It: This sound book sings the Happy and You Know It song! It’s perfect for practicing clapping! Push the button to hear the song and imitate your little one to clap, wave, stomp and more!
The books in the Bookshop are the BEST! And every month I pick 5 winners to receive free books from me as a thank you for ordering and supporting my charity cause! I hope you enjoy reading with your little one! Even just one book per day makes the BIGGEST impact on their development! You’re doing great!
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