2023 in Picture Books

Part one of my yearly look back on what I read this year

First, a look at the stats. I read 159 picture books this year. I really enjoyed digging into this medium. I love bringing books home, be it from the library or from the bookstore, but my reading pace isn’t fast enough to read every novel I see that looks interesting. But with picture books I can just go wild.

The definite tilt of these books was toward women authors, which I think reflects children’s literature as a space heavily populated by women. There’s a definite dearth of non-binary authors here, and I’m betting the ongoing attacks on trans and non-binary people using the “think of the children” tactic is to blame. Books that use openly non-binary authors are expected to be making a statement, more on that later, and publishers may view using non-binary artists as “risky” in the face of book bannings and the like. From what I remember, almost all of the non-binary folks I found were illustrators, I suspect because they face less scrutiny.

The books I read were heavily white. I think there’s a couple reasons for this. Firstly, I wasn’t very critical about my intake this year, just reading whatever came my way. Our society privileges white people and their stories, so uncritical consumption is going to net a bunch of white people. Segregation in society means that artist/author teams are often of the same race. The structures of society generally make it easier for White people to get the education and connections needed to make a picture book. Etc etc.

I also think that there’s pressure on authors of color to write books about the experience of being a person of color, or about issues that ostensibly relate more to experiences of people of color, whereas white authors are getting published whether they write about meaningful cultural experiences or not. For example, a book about Kwanzaa is by a Black person, a book about making a snowman is by a White person. A book about the importance of pronouncing names correctly is by an Asian person, a book about a rabbit that is mad at its mom is by a White person. I’m very glad that books about Kwanzaa and pronouncing names correctly are getting made, and I hope that people of color get more opportunities to write silly little books that don’t have to focus on teaching about their culture.

I actually think many of the books I read by Native authors were able to do this. My Heart Fills with Happiness comes to mind. The book as a whole is simply about what makes you happy, while the specific examples and images bring in Native cultural elements without having to spend the whole book explaining them. I think it’s no coincidence that most of these books by Native authors were published by Native owned publishing houses/imprints. Putting people of color in decision making positions creates more, and more varied, opportunities for people of color.

Now on to my favorite picture books, in very rough order.

The Every Baby Book, By Frann Preston-Gannon

Each page shows several scenes from different families relating to a line or two of text. The pictures are funny and relatable, and show the diversity of families, people, and ways that babies accomplish common tasks. I was entertained, and there’s enough going on on each page that on rereads (and with children there are plentiful rereads) I could often discover something new, or that I hadn’t looked at in a while.

El Fútbol me Hace Feliz, By Maribeth Boelts with Lauren Castillo (Illustrator)

I’m a sucker for books about soccer. This one weaves the soccer in with issues of class, and how that manifests in the emotional lives of children. I also enjoyed seeing the main character work up the courage to talk to the adults in her life and ask them for the support she wanted.

Bunny Roo, I Love You, by Melissa Marr with Teagan White (Illustrator)

Various baby activities common in the first few months of life are compared to the activities of animals, culminating in the baby’s first smile. My favorite is when the baby is represented as a lizard, looking around at the world, because early on babies really do be like that. A sweet book about a stage of babyhood that doesn’t have as many books dedicated to it.

Luces de Feria, by Fran Nuño with Enrique Quevedo (Illustrator)

A story of a child going to the fair with their dad, who seems to know a little too much about this surreal fairground. Magical realism, digging heavier on the magical side. The writing is solid, but the illustrations carried this one into my favorites, with a style that makes me think of an art deco Heironymous Bosch. I borrowed this one from the library, but feel a strong need to acquire this one so I can pore over the artwork on each page again and again.

The Runaway Bunny, by Margaret Wise Brown with Clement Hurd (illustrator)

It’s a classic, and I almost left it off because it has such fame already. But this representation of unconditional love continues to be a touchstone for me, and Orion loves the wordless colorful pages showing mother and child in each new strange pairing.

Begin with a Bee by Liza Ketchum, Jacqueline Briggs Martin and Phyllis Root; illustrations by Claudia McGehee

This one maybe could have been a favorite from the gorgeous woodcuts alone, but on top of that are the exciting bee facts. Did you know that rusty backed bumblebee larvae poop once (once!). Everyone poops I guess, but some of us more than others I guess. A lovely book about the importance of bees, and did I mention the incredibly beautiful woodcuts yet?

The Dot, by Peter H. Reynolds

A more recent classic in the children’s book world that I again thought of leaving off because of my hipster heart. But I’m a sucker for teacher books as well, and this tale of a recalcitrant child discovering their passion for art, AND THEN PASSING IT ON is just an absolute Montessori Teacher’s dream. Apparently there are more by this author in the same vein, so I’ll have to check those out.

Ten Beautiful Things, by Molly Griffin with Maribel Lechuga (illustrator)

I read this book last year, but I read it again this year and I really wanted to shout it out somewhere. A tender book about a child’s trip across the Midwest with their Grandma against an unspoken backdrop of grief. The words capture the ebb and flow of a child struggling with big emotions, and the images convey the beauty they find along the way that helps them be in the moment. It hit different this year as I no longer am making trips across the Midwest to visit my Grandmas, could be one of the ten beautiful things that help you process your grief if that’s the situation you find yourself in.

The People Remember, by Ibi Zoboi, with Loveis Wise (illustrator)

Explores pieces of Black history through the lens of the values celebrated at Kwanza in poetic style. This book is a bit longer than most picture books, as the author goes fairly in depth with each piece of history she describes, and often weaves multiple pieces of history into the same value, simultaneously grounding you in the lived experiences of Black people from that time, while also drawing out the animating value that helped them survive and thrive. She makes it look easy, but managing that many threads to produce something so beautiful, poignant, and focused (and in verse!) leaves me in awe of Ibi Zobois’ artistic genius. I originally read this book as an audiobook last year, and enjoyed it enough that when I saw it in a bookstore I bought it immediately. I don’t regret it, and the inspiring artwork adds immensely to the already magnificent writing.

A is for Activist, by Innosanto Nagara

So we’ll cover the obvious bases for this one first. It’s an alphabet book themed around activism! On the activism front, it covers a wide range of activist causes, tactics, and ideas. Each page has the possibility to be a conversation starter with curious budding radicals. This focus doesn’t compromise its role as an alphabet book, however, with the illustrations connecting not only to the activist activity, but also containing other objects or animals starting with the target letter (as well as a cat on each page), to provide that classic alphabet activity easter egg hunt. Where this book particularly shines, however, is the combination of alliteration, rhyme, and rhythm to produce pages that are an absolute joy to read out loud. There are some that I can’t help but sing, and others that can only be said in a protest chant. While there are a couple that I don’t particularly enjoy, the whole is so good that I’m willing to see what the verdict from children is once they get a bit older. Between the lovely sound, “good trouble” topic, and evocative pictures, this one is a treat to read again and again.