12 Picture Books to Shower Your April Birthday Kid with Fun

April Fool! Watch Out at School!, by Diane deGroat
Gilbert, a porcupine who stars in many books by Diane deGroat, is determined to play some wonderful pranks on April Fool’s Day. The only problem is, nobody will fall for his hijinks—his friend Lewis won’t try a piece of Gilbert’s hot spicy gum and says Gilbert’s plastic spider is pathetically “fake.” Meanwhile, even Gilbert’s teacher and mom play pranks on him. As Gilbert makes his way through the school day, sitting on a whoopee cushion and walking the halls with a sign that says “I smell” taped to his back, will he ever get a turn to be the prankster?

April Fool’s Surprise, by Abby Klein and John McKinley
This second book in the Double Trouble series finds twins Kasey and Kelly planning an ambitious program of April Fool’s Day pranks to keep their family and friends second guessing all day long. If everything goes according to plan, their mom will get water sprayed in her face, their dad will sprinkle sugar instead of salt on his eggs, and their baby brother will wake up with an inked-on moustache. You might want to wait until after April first to read this book so that your April birthday kid doesn’t get any ideas.

Cinnamon and the April Shower, by Amy Crane Johnson and Robb Mommaerts
Solomon the raven enjoys the early spring, when he can greet the newest baby animals in the forest and welcome the squirrels and bears as they wake up from hibernation. But the month of April is also known for sudden spring showers, and when the sky grows dark and lightning threatens, Solomon takes to the skies to warn Cinnamon the bear and her new cub to stay safe from the storm in their den.

Misty of Chincoteague, by Maguerite Henry and Wesley Dennis
Maguerite Henry was born April 13, 1902 and lived to age 95. She wrote 58 books vivid, action-packed books about animals, including this one, among her most beloved, that explains how wild horses came to live on Assateague Island off the coast of Virginia. One legend, which Henry retells, is that the horses originated from a Spanish galleon that sunk nearby. (A more likely explanation is that horse owners on the mainland placed their horses on the island to avoid paying taxes on them.) After years isolated on the island, the horses developed their own unique characteristics, including their short stature, captured in Wesley Dennis’s charming illustrations. In this story, orphaned siblings Paul and Maureen convince their grandpa to let them save up enough money to buy a horse in the roundup for Pony Penning Day. Warning: this book might inspire a “Can I have a pony?” birthday request.

Rip Van Winkle, by Washington Irving
Washington Irving, one of America’s earliest celebrated writers, is sometimes called “the father of American literature.” He was born April 3, 1783, the same week that residents of New York first learned of the ceasefire that officially ended the American Revolution. In gratitude, Irving’s mother named him after George Washington. Irving led a varied and eventful life that included serving as the ambassador to Spain, but today he’s best known for the original American folk tales he created, including “The Devil and Tom Walker,” “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” and “Rip Van Winkle,” first published in 1819. The tale of the lazy man who fell asleep for twenty years, enchanted by mysterious Dutchmen in the Catskills—and missed the American Revolution—continues to amuse new generations of readers.

Ella Takes the Cake, by Carmela D’Amico and Steven D’Amico
Steven D’Amico, who illustrates the Ella the Elephant series of books written by his wife, Carmela D’Amico, will celebrate his birthday on April 27. In this charming story, Ella helps her mother in the bakery of Little Village but yearns to do more than sweeping. One day the bakery’s delivery driver misses an important item—a magnificent birthday cake for The Captain. Ella sets out on her bicycle to deliver the cake to the lighthouse but encounters a few mishaps along the way.

April Foolishness, by Teresa Bateman and Nadine Bernard Wescott
The grandchildren come to visit their grandparents’ farm on April first, but Grandpa is determined not to fall for any of their pranks. He doesn’t believe the kids when they tell him the cows are loose, the chickens are out, and the pigs broke the gate and are devouring the tomatoes. Grandpa calmly carries on preparing his breakfast, no matter how frantic the grandkids become. But then Grandma joins in on the pranking, and she and the grandkids finally manage to get Grandpa’s goat.

Bananas in My Ears, by Michael Rosen and Quentin Blake
If your April birthday kids can’t confine all their jokes and pranks to just one day, read them this book of wacky poems to keep the tomfoolery going all month long. Bananas in My Ears is illustrated by Quentin Blake, whose playful drawings also grace many Roald Dahl books. Michael Rosen’s poems feature impending calamities, crazy thought experiments (“What if/hard-boiled eggs turned into hard-boiled legs”) and a trip to the doctor for a case of “spollyollydiddlytiddlyitis.”

The Ugly Duckling, by Hans Christian Andersen and Rachel Isadora
Legendary fairy tale author Hans Christian Anderson was born in Denmark on April 2, 1805. Rachel Isadora has reimagined his classic tale The Ugly Duckling, setting it in Africa and illustrating it through vivid, intricate collages. In this version, the sad little duckling blossoms into a gorgeous black-and-green swan.

Maya Angelou, by Lisbeth Kaiser and Leire Salberria
April 4 is the birthday of beloved poet and memoirist Maya Angelou. Learn about her remarkable life in this volume of the Little People, Big Dreams series by Lisbeth Kaiser, illustrated adorably by Leire Salberria. Maya Angelou grew up in the segregated South, where people told her “she couldn’t get a good job because of the color of her skin.” She disagreed. “There’s nothing I can’t be,” she declared. “And she was right,” Kaiser writes. “She was a cook and a streetcar conductor. She was a dancer, a singer, and an actress.” Kids and adults alike will be inspired by the amazing trajectory of Maya Angelou’s life, told in broad strokes.

Life Doesn’t Frighten Me, by Maya Angelou and Jean-Michel Basquiat
Now that you’ve learned about Maya Angelou’s life, you and your April birthday kid can read some of her work. This story, illustrated by Jean-Michel Basquiat paintings, conveys the bold and hopeful vision of life that runs through all of Angelou’s work. “Shadows on the wall/Noises down the hall,” she writes, “Life doesn’t frighten me at all.”

April’s Kittens, by Clare Turlay Newberry
The name April grew in popularity in America in the 1960s and 70s before reaching its peak in 1980 and then tapering off. However, April could be making a comeback—it jumped up 145 spots on the girl’s name popularity list this year. This sweet book staring a shy young girl named April was published in 1940, but with its classic dilemma and lush, expressive charcoal illustrations it will be equally enchanting to today’s kids. April is six, and she lives with her parents in a New York City apartment so small that she still has to sleep in a crib. Her father tells their cat Sheba that she can’t ever have kittens because this is a “one-cat apartment,” but as cats do, she defies him. April adores Sheba’s three kittens, and can’t bear the thought of giving them away. When her parents tell her she might be able to keep one, she’s too shy to express which one is her favorite. When she learns she’ll have to give up Sheba if she decides to keep a kitten, April must make an important choice.