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A TurtleAndRobot Book List: 15 Picture Books featuring Birds

August 22, 2014 · Filed under Board Books, Book Lists, Early Readers, Picture Books · Tagged Bob Staake, books about birds, Caldecott Honor, Children's book reviews, David Macaulay, Eric Rohmann, Helen Oxenbury, kid's book reviews, Lemony Snicket, Leo Lionni, Lois Ehlert, Maira Kalm, Nick Bruel, out of print, P.D. Eastman, Philip C. Stead, picture book reviews, Quentin Blake, Simon James

It is not uncommon for a child to latch onto a specific subject and then focus intensely on that one thing for a time. When such obsessions begin, the book purchaser’s job suddenly becomes easier and imbued with a new sense of fun—any book containing that subject will be an instant winner. But once the obvious choices pertaining to that topic have been exhausted, choosing books can become a painful, and fruitless, process. Buyer beware- that T.V. tie-in title that pertains to your child’s interest may be tempting but I assure you there are always higher quality choices still undiscovered.

I compiled this list of fiction picture books for people with a bird-loving child in their lives. Angelo by David Macaulay, a phenomenal and underappreciated book, is about a pigeon that brightens the life of an elderly stone worker. Bob Staake’s Bluebird spotlights an attentive bird that befriends a boy who is being bullied by his classmates. Whether the cobalt-hued hero of Bluebird is an actual bluebird or just a bird that is blue isn’t made clear, but that won’t matter to those who choose this remarkable wordless picture book. The remaining titles feature generalized, i.e. not necessarily naturalistic birds of a recognizable breed, as their main characters.

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