A Dino Gets a New Sibling, The Letter Z Takes Charge, and a Little Boy Grows Wings: 12 New Picture Books for Summer Storytimes

Super Saurus and the Egg, by Deborah Underwood, illustrated by Ned Young
When Super Saurus’s parents show him their egg and tell them that a new baby brother or sister dinosaur will crack through its shell one day, the masked, caped dinosaur boy has his doubts. “Maybe this was not a dino egg,” he thinks, “maybe it was the Egg of Doom.” Super Saurus’s parents think he’s being an extra-attentive big brother as he watches the egg night and day, but really he’s surveilling it to make sure it doesn’t open to reveal a villain that only he can stop with his super powers. A terrific way to gently introduce older kids to the concept of an imminent younger sibling.

Z Goes First, by Sean Lamb, illustrated by Mike Perry
Every kid needs to learn the alphabet—which means there are a lot of alphabet books out there. This presents a challenge for an author trying to reinvent the alphabet story—and a parent growing tired of the genre! This funny book about the day when Z finally got fed up with going last and set out to go first will entertain even the most jaded reader of alphabet books, as Z meets the donut-eating D, and the tricksy Q who sticks out a leg to trip her as she makes her way to the top. This book will be especially fun for kids whose last names begin with letters near the end of the alphabet.

Let’s Go ABC! Things That Go, from A to Z, by Rhonda Gowler Greene, illustrated by Daniel Kirk
If you’re the parent of a transportation-loving kid, you probably feel like you’ve read every F-is-for-fire truck alphabet book you care to. But trust me, here’s one more you need for your shelves. Let’s Go ABC! features fresh, clever rhymes and dynamic illustrations of active animals driving vehicles for each letter. And yes, F is for Fire Truck, but Greene and Kirk make it new with onomatopoeia and verve. 

Box Meets Circle, by Aaron Hartline
Box Meets Circle is a part of the Pixar Animation Studios Artist Showcase series, featuring picture books written and illustrated by animators at Pixar. In this charming story, two potential new friends introduce themselves to each other: Box and Circle. But they can’t seem to settle on an activity that would be fun for both. Circle wants to jump—but Box can’t bounce. Box wants to sit, but Circle only rolls. Finally they come up with a solution that involves both of their favorite activities. If your child is an aspiring animator, read them the illustrated biographical sketch in back that explains just how Hartline finally got a job at Pixar and what he does there.

Perfectly Norman, by Tom Percival
“Norman had always been normal—perfectly normal,” Tom Percival writes. But then one day, he sprouts some beautiful wings. At first Norman enjoys his wings, soaring through the sky, but when he goes home for dinner he worries about what his parents will think. He covers up with his yellow coat, refusing to remove it for days, even though he’s hot and uncomfortable. Finally, has an insight: “It was the coat that was making him miserable, not the wings.” This is a sweet, fanciful story about kids accepting the qualities that make them different.

Silvia Long’s Big Book for Small Children, by Silvia Long
If you’re seeking the perfect baby present for a new arrival, look no further. This lavishly illustrated book is sure to become a bedtime favorite, as it’s chock full of classic rhymes, illustrated lists of objects—from flowers to clothing to vegetables—recipes, and timeless stories such as “The Three Little Pigs” and “Goldilocks and the Three Bears.” Silvia Long’s animals have distinctive, appealing personalities, and the pages are so full of details, toddlers will linger over each one.

The Hugely-Wugely Spider, by Ethan T. Berlin, illustrated by Karl Newsom Edwards
First-time author Ethan T. Berlin is a professional comedian and comedy writer, and it shows in this hilarious reimagining of “The Itsy-Bitsy Spider.” What if a spider is not so itsy-bitsy? Well, if he’s hugely wugely, he’s not going to be fitting his derriere inside that waterspout. Luckily, the Hugely-Wugely Spider finds that his size confers other advantages.

A House That Once Was, by Julie Fogliano, illustrated by Lane Smith
Julie Fogliano’s incantatory verse and Lane Smith’s entrancing sponge-painted illustrations bring to life an unforgettable childhood experience. The two kids in this story discover an abandoned house in the woods and allow their imaginations to romp, wondering, “Who was this someone/ who ate beans for dinner/ who sat by this fire/ who looked in this mirror?” A House That Once Was captures the timelessness of children’s curiosity and creativity, and the melancholy feelings that come with their first sense of the transitory nature of life.

Help Find Frank, by Anne Bollman
Frank is a dapper little polka dot bowtie-wearing bulldog who decides to go off solo on a romp one day. His owner posts a lost dog sign: “Size: Stubby. Face: Smooshed.” Follow Frank’s footprints through the town to catch up with him. But beware, “Frank has very stinky toots. Whatever you do, do not feed him any cheese.”

The Other Dog, by Madeleine L’Engle, illustrated by Christine Davenier
Beloved author of A Wrinkle in Time wrote this winsome picture book before her famous novels, when she was living in New York City with her dog Touché. Inspired by Touché’s reaction to L’Engle’s first baby, this story is told from the perspective of the dog, who doesn’t understand why “another dog” has been brought home. Touché puzzles over all the attention being paid to the baby, but eventually warms up to this new pooch.

How to Code A Sandcastle, by Josh Funk, illustrated by Sara Palacios
This book is a project of Girls Who Code, “an organization that wants to teach every girl to learn to code,” according to the introduction by founder Reshma Saujani. This story will teach girls, boys, and even adults married to software engineers who have little idea what their spouses do about the process of writing code. The narrator is a girl who wants to build a sandcastle at the beach, and has brought her programmable robot to do a more efficient job of it. Through trial and error, she learns how she must be very precise in her coding instructions, how to make him repeat actions through a loop, and more. Finally she comes up with the perfect code to make the robot do just what she wants.

Thomas Paine and the Dangerous Word, by Sarah Jane Marsh, illustrated by Edward Fortheringham
Thomas Paine led a fascinating life, full of reversals of fortune, as detailed in this compelling and vivid new picture book. “Born in England to a poor corset-maker and his wife, Thomas wasn’t expected to go to school,” Marsh writes. Paine’s family found enough money to send him to school from age 7 to 12. And then it was back to sewing corsets. But as Paine wrote, “The mind once enlightened cannot again become dark.” After seven years sewing corsets, Paine broke free, conscripting with a ship, and eventually making his way to America where his writing helped spark both the abolitionist movement and the American Revolution. That’s a lot more satisfying that sewing women’s underwear!