5 Picture Books With No Moral Lessons Whatsoever

Chu’s Day, by Neil Gaiman and Adam Rex
Chu’s Day is about a cute little panda who gets the sniffles. No lessons here, just fluffy bundles of cuteness. (And if you want a nice feel-good distraction, I highly recommend that you Google “sneezing baby panda” immediately.) When Chu sneezes, it blows the roof off, literally. One “Aaaaachoooo” from this cute character and a day at the circus turns into a national disaster. A delightful and quick read, with plenty of colorful illustrations by Adam Rex. Tissues not included.

Go, Dog. Go!, by P.D. Eastman
This wacky book is straight-up dog-gone fun. Cartoony illustrations in bold primary colors make zipping through it a blast. If you’re a fan of Dr. Seuss (and who isn’t), you’ll love this classic story by his colleague, P.D. Eastman. In it you’ll find big dogs, little dogs, red dogs, a green dog on a yellow tree…You get the picture. There are dogs at work, dogs at play, dogs at a party, and there’s not much of a story in between. This beginner book is a great and entertaining way to introduce kids to reading. It even ends with a doggy party, and what’s not to celebrate about that?

Creepy Carrots, by Aaron Reynolds and Peter Brown
I would say the title alone might lead one to believe that unless this book is a treatise against eating your vegetables, we’re in lesson-free territory. The moral of this book is open to interpretation, but the story is about a rabbit named Jasper and his passion for carrots. In fact, he can’t get enough of them And then, curiously, the orange vegetables start following him. Soon Jasper is seeing these creepy carrots EVERYWHERE. With Peter Brown’s delightfully spooky black and orange illustrations, Creepy Carrots is not to be missed. (It’s also a Caldecott Honor winner.)

I Want My Hat Back, by Jon Klassen
In Klassen’s funny and, let’s be honest, slightly disturbing read, our protagonist the bear has lost his beloved hat. He is completely obsessed with said hat. He asks all of the other animals if they’ve seen it, and everyone denies it. His hat is red and pointy, and wait, could it be that a rabbit is wearing his hat? That thief! The final illustration depicts the bear sitting, apparently full, once again wearing his hat, and swearing that he would never ever eat a rabbit. The discerning reader knows better. The lesson here is not necessarily moral, but it’s an important one nonetheless.

Pat the Bunny, by Dorothy Kunhardt
This timeless baby book is all about texture and interaction, making Pat the Bunny more of a tactile experience than anything else. For a baby who is still trying to learn not to eat the pages, let alone extract any sort of lesson from them, you can’t do much better than this sweet classic. Despite (or because of) its simplicity, Pat the Bunny will stick in your subconscious (raise your hand if you viscerally remember its iconic textures, from the bunny’s soft fur to Daddy’s scratchy face), which makes it even more fun to pass the experience along to the next generation. Happy Patting!