The 25 Greatest Picture Books of the Past 25 Years
Picture books have undergone a revolution in the past 25 years
The authors of this article say: When we became parents, we too initially gravitated toward the unruly classics we loved as children, while shying away from new picture books. There were just so many of them! The ones we saw on the front tables in bookstores all seemed to be authored by celebrities—or, worse, were branded tie-ins promoting movies and TV shows. How could any of them be as good as the books of our youth, let alone better?
Creators, including many signatories to the 2011 manifesto (see below), have become more interested in innovating within, and subverting, the picture-book form: shortening the text, breaking the fourth wall, and fostering reader interaction—encouraged, perhaps, by the success of a certain argumentative pigeon. Picture-book nonfiction has grown in popularity, becoming especially useful in classrooms—where older elementary and middle school students, often fans of now-commonplace graphic novels, find it crucial in accessing difficult historical topics. And, of course, celebrities have flocked to the picture book—with mostly lukewarm results, although at least one TV star has published an unalloyed work of ridiculous genius. You’ll find it on our list. (The Book with no Pictures by BJ Novak - Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen argue (and I agree) that this is not actually a picture book).
To make this guide, we surveyed more than a hundred authors, illustrators, librarians, booksellers, academics, and publishing pros. We ended up reading more than 200 books, for which we must fulsomely thank our local libraries. Our goal: to find the books that represent the best of these transformations, and to tell the story of an art form that responded to a front-page crisis with a new wave of inventive stories that respect the intelligence, playfulness, and widely differing experiences of young readers.
We hope that the next time you’re looking for a book to read aloud with your favorite young person, this package will help you find something new and surprising—and understand, a little better, how it came to be that way.
Of course, nearly all of the books on the list I have featured here in this post are from the US. Many have reached us here in Australi but aa few relate to US History and so are less relevant here. When you read the article (link at the top of this post) you will find detailed notes about each title.
I am going to suggest to my friend from Kinderbookswitheverything that we could make our own 25 book list. We both love picture books from around the world so we might need a list of Australian titles AND a list of international titles.
Here are a few of the 25 books listed by Slate which is an online magazine that covers current affairs, politics, and culture in the United States. The Slate journalists (with help from their panel of experts) also list related picture books and novels to go with each of their 25 choices, so in a way this list is way more than the 25 stated in the title.
2025 is a year of lists. In Australia we are voting now for the ABC Radio National top 100 books of the last 25 years. This is mainly an adult 'competition' but there is a children's book category. I have written about it here. Just like Jon Klassen and Mac Barnett I am not a big fan of lists. They are only as good as the people who write them. They date very quickly. Sometimes sadly parents think their children should read every book on a list or that a list is a measure of book quality and appropriateness. Lists can have a commercial purpose aimed at book sales. Having said all of that, though, I did find this list quite interesting - especially the addition texts listed with each of the 25 picture books. I have made a reading list from these for myself:
- Wilderlore: The accidental Apprentice by Amanda Foody
- Restart by Gordon Korman
- Drita, My Homegirl by Jenny Lombard
- Plants can't sit still by Rebecca Hirsch
- No Purchase Necessary by Maria Marianayagam
- Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman
- Parachute kids by Betty C Tang (Graphic novel)
- Dim Sum Palace by X Fang
- Chinese Menu by Grace Lin
Source: Best kids books: The 25 greatest picture books of the past 25 years.
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