This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
I have a new-ish baby at home and, as anyone with a teeny tiny human likely knows, repetition is super good for them. Hearing the same thing frequently allows babies’ brains to make stronger connections that support them in learning. That ultimately means that my partner and I have been reading the same 20 or so board books for the last nine months.
You might wonder why we aren’t taking more books out of the library, my being a children’s librarian and all. Well, my little human loves nothing more than pulling books off the shelf and biting, licking, scratching, and standing on them. I can’t tell if she loves books or thinks they have harmed her and is, therefore, enacting a vendetta against them. So these book-smashing ways are why we don’t take books very often— that way I can avoid wrestling books away from her brutish, if adorably small, hands.
And there it is—the truth about why I have been reading the same books for nearly a year. If you revisit the same titles daily and yearn for some new ideas, here are some board books that won’t drive you up the wall to hear on repeat.
Baby Axolotl by Yu-Hsuan Huang
Wonderfully short and captivating for babies, this is just one example title from a series of finger puppet books, featuring animals, plants, and even a witch cat. In each, the text is simple, allowing readers to fill in actions, sounds, and even extra dialogue.
Adventures with Barefoot Critters by Teagan White
This is an ABC book, and White has a counting book about the same characters; in both, the art is whimsical and cozy. The Barefoot Critters are deer, foxes, and other woodland animals all clad in comfortable and weather-appropriate outfits, and they do activities like reading, Trick-or-Treating, gardening, and more.
Little Dumplings by Jekka Kuhlmann, Krissy Kuhlmann, Haley Hazell, and Manita Boonyong
This is a charming, simple nonfiction guide to multicultural forms of dumplings. There are so many dumplings out there in the world—I had no idea. Learning the different names is entertaining, and pointing out which ones I’ve eaten makes it interactive.
Meet the Mushrooms by Sonali Fry and Melanie Demmer
This book is the last thing our daughter hears before bed each night, and it’s still an adorable read after all this time. My partner and I can both recite it like a poem at this point. Layered die-cut illustrations give our kiddo something fun to grip as she turns the pages.
Little You by Richard Van Camp and Julie Flett
I read this a few times before having my little human, and it hits differently when you’ve had a baby, poetically capturing the amazingness of the experience. Van Camp’s text expresses a family’s feelings of love and wonderment toward their new child. Flett’s art is gorgeous and full of beautiful patterns, showing the baby visibly growing older in each image.
The Watermelon Seed by Greg Pizzoli
Originally a picture book, the sparse text and bright images (black, white, neon green, and neon pink) make this exciting for babies—it was the first book that made my daughter pay attention when she was a month old. Our lead character, an alligator, loves watermelons until he accidentally swallows a seed and spirals into believing a watermelon will grow out of him.
A Winter Walk in the City by Cathy Goldberg Fishman and Melanie Hall
This counting book is a multicultural jaunt around a city, with a small child passing people lighting menorahs and Kwanzaa candles, putting up Christmas trees, celebrating the Lunar New Year with cakes, eating empanadas, and just enjoying being together. There are companion books for each season, and it’s a lovely way to introduce various cultures and holidays.
And so there they are, my recommendations for seven board books that won’t drive you up the wall to hear on repeat. Keep calm and enjoy reading to your littles.
