CCBC booklist are compiled from books we have recommended in various editions of CCBC Choices. Most of these booklists are updated annually. You can also select books from one or more booklists to create a custom list, which can also include additional books from the CCBC-Recommended Book Search.
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Rhyme and Reason: 25 Rhyming Books
©2024, 2013 Cooperative Children's Book Center
Compiled by Megan Schliesman
Rhyme is an important element of early literacy and early learning. Rhymes provide listening and literature experiences full of pleasure and delight while helping children make connections between the sounds they hear and what they will eventually see and decipher on a page as readers.
You can find rhyming in poems and verse and in many picture book stories as well. This list of trade books for young children offers early care providers and teachers suggestions of well-written rhyming picture books that incorporate rhyme, as well as poetry and rhyme collections including and beyond Mother Goose.
Children also need books that reflect their own lives and the richness of the world in which they live. Therefore, in addition to emphasizing the importance of rhyme, this list emphasizes the importance of books that are culturally diverse. Some books on this list contain significant multicultural content; others are simply inclusive, with illustrations showing diverse characters or characters whose heritage is open to interpretation.
Most of the books on the list are currently in print and available for purchase, or can be obtained at or through your local public library. For additional titles, seach "Stories in Rhyme" in our Recommended Books database.
Ten Little Puppies = Diez perritos
by Ada, Alma Flor and F. Isabel Campoy, Rosalma Zubizarreta
Illustrated by Ulises Wensell.
HarperCollins/Rayo, 2011. 32 pages. Ages birth - 6
Global Baby Bedtimes
by Ajmera, Maya
A Global Fund for Children Book/Charlesbridge, 2015. 16 pages. Ages birth - 2
When Stars Arise
by Alaraj, E.G.
Illustrated by Martyna Czub.
Orca, 2023. 20 pages. Ages birth–3
One, Two, Grandpa Loves You
by Becker, Shelly
Illustrated by Dan Yaccarino.
Abrams/Abrams Appleseed, 2023. 24 pages. Ages 3-5
Brown Baby Lullaby
by Brown, Tameka Fryer
Illustrated by AG Ford.
Farrar Straus Giroux/Macmillan, 2020. 32 pages. Ages 1-4
The Neighborhood Mother Goose
by Crews, Nina
Illustrated by Nina Crews.
Amistad/HarperCollins, 2004. 63 pages. Ages 1-6
You and Me
by Dotlich, Rebecca Kai
Illustrated by Susan Reagan.
Creative Company/Creative Editions, 2018. 16 pages. Ages birth - 6
Little Roja Riding Hood
by Elya, Susan Middleton
Illustrated by Susan Guevara.
Putnam, 2014. 32 pages. Ages 4-8
Flash and Gleam: Light in Our World
by Fliess, Sue
Illustrated by Khoa Le.
Lerner/Millbrook, 2020. 32 pages. Ages 4-7
Hush! A Thai Lullaby
by Ho, Minfong
Illustrated by Holly Meade.
Orchard, 1996. 32 pages. Ages 2-5
Alphabet Family Band
by Jones, Sarah
Illustrated by Sarah Jones.
blue manatee press, 2017. 12 pages.
Golden Domes and Silver Lanterns: A Muslim Book of Colors
by Khan, Hena
Illustrated by Mehrdokht Amini.
Chronicle, 2012. 24 pages. Ages 3-7
Green Green: A Community Gardening Story
by Lamba, Marie and Baldev Lamba
Illustrated by Sonia Sanchez.
Farrar Straus Giroux, 2017. 32 pages. Ages 3-7
Fort-Building Time
by Lloyd, Megan Wagner
Illustrated by Abigail Halpin.
Alfred A. Knopf, 2017. 24 pages. Ages 3-6
'Ohana Means Family
by Loomis, Ilima
Illustrated by Kenard Pak.
Holiday House/Neal Porter Books, 2020. 32 pages. Ages 3-7
Los Gatos Black on Halloween
by Montes, Marisa
Illustrated by Yuyi Morales.
Henry Holt, 2006. 32 pages. Ages 4-6
First Morning Sun: A Book of Firsts
by Reid, Aimee
Illustrated by Jing Jing Tsong.
Beach Lane/Simon & Schuster, 2022. 32 pages. Ages 2-5
The Stack
by Roeder, Vanessa
Illustrated by Vanessa Roeder.
Dial/Penguin Random House, 2022. 32 pages. Ages 3-6
Holi Colors
by Singh, Rina
Orca, 2018. 24 pages. Ages 2-4
Pride Colors
by Stevenson, Robin
Orca, 2019. 26 pages. Ages birth - 3
Fiesta Babies
by Tafolla, Carmen
Illustrated by Amy Cordova.
Tricycle Press, 2010. 20 pages. Ages birth - 3
Round Is a Mooncake: A Book of Shapes
by Thong, Roseanne Greenfield
Illustrated by Grace Lin.
Chronicle, 2000. 32 pages. Ages 3-5
Little You
by Van Camp, Richard
Illustrated by Julie Flett.
Orca, 2013. 22 pages. Ages birth - 3
Red, White, and Boom!
by Wardlaw, Lee
Illustrated by Huy Voun Lee.
Henry Holt, 2012. 32 pages. Ages 2-5
All We Need
by Wolff, Kathy
Illustrated by Margaux Meganck.
Bloomsbury, 2021. 32 pages. Ages 3-7
Can’t find what you’re looking for? Our Recommended Book Search includes access to CCBC-recommended titles based on subject headings created by our staff.
Please send questions or comments about CCBC booklists to ccbcinfo@education.wisc.edu.