I’ve read hundreds of picture books this past year! My main goal was to discover the newest published picture books and share the ones I liked with an audience of teachers, parents, and anyone who reads to children. I feel so fortunate to have read and learned from over 360 books! Of course, as I read, I would stop and think ‘I love this book’. I would close my eyes and imagine reading it again to my granddaughters or to a room full of uplifted faces. Some books touched my heart, some tickled my funny bone, and some simply wormed their way into my mind and wouldn’t let go! These are the books I added to my list of mentor texts to inform my own writing.
Not using any specific criteria, these became my top picks for 2015. Below are my Fifteen Faves of Twenty Fifteen listed alphabetically (by title). You can click on the title of each book to read my summary of the story and see the activities I chose to go with each book.
Bear and Bunny by Daniel Pinkwater and Will Hillenbrand
The Blue Whale by Jenni Desmond
I Wish You More by Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Tom Lichtenheld
Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast by Josh Funk and Brendan Kearney
Leo, A Ghost Story by Marc Barnett and Christian Robinson
Mother Bruce by Ryan T. Higgins
Nerdy Birdy by Aaron Reynolds and Matt Davies
The Peddler’s Bed by Lauri Fortino and Bong Redila
A Rock Can Be… by Laura Purdie Salas and Violeta Dabija
Seaver the Weaver by Paul Czajak and The Brothers Hilts
Stick and Stone by Beth Ferry and Tom Lichtenheld
Those Pesky Rabbits by Ciara Flood
Yard Sale by Eve Bunting and Lauren Castillo
*****
And just because 15 is too hard to choose… here are the 5 runner ups making my list Twenty Fifteen!
Ketzel, The Cat Who Composed by Leslea Newman and Amy June Bates
Miss Hazeltine’s Home for Shy and Fearful Cats by Alicia Potter and Brigitta Sif
One Word From Sophia by Jim Averbeck and Yasmeen Ismail
Soon by Timothy Knapman and Patrick Benson
Swan: The Life and Dance of Anna Pavlova by Laurel Snyder and Julie Morstad
Juliana Lee 
Thank you, Juliana! Honored to have my book included here–I love SWAN, NERDY BIRDY, SIR PANCAKE, and a few others. And then some I’ve never heard of! Off to add things to my To read shelf:>)
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you Laura! I really admire your work. Last year I fell in love with Water Can Be, so I knew I was going to love A Rock Can Be before I even read it!
LikeLike
Have only read a couple of the books! Thanks for the suggestions.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hi Pat. These are not the same books you might find on the more popular lists… but they’re the ones I like. Hope you do too.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks for this great list, Juliana. There are still several of these I haven’t gotten my hands (or eyes) on yet! The pressure’s on, as 2016 titles will be flooding in!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, I know Jane. I’ve already got quite a list in my queue at the library. I’m not going to review as many as I did last year, but a few of my favorites will hit the blog I’m sure. I’ll still add them to my Goodreads list if you want to follow there as well. 🙂
LikeLike
This is such a great list, Juliana! I shared it with my daughter who’s teaching preschool.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you Viki! For the compliment and the share! So glad it’s useful. 🙂
LikeLike
Thanks Juliana for including my book on your list – an honour indeed to be alongside so many gorgeous books : )
LikeLike
You are so welcome, Ciara! My granddaughter loves this book! Just yesterday, my daughter-in-law mentioned it in a conversation about ‘time outs’. Apparently my 3 year old granddaughter told her mother that the rabbits were ‘not making good choices’ when they messed up the kitchen! Had to smile!
LikeLike
Juliana, I’m thrilled you chose my book as one of your 15 favorites of 2015! It’s an honor to be in such fine company too! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Lauri, it’s a wonderful story! I simply love it!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you for this great list!
LikeLike
You are so welcome! It’s a labor of love. Happy you enjoyed it!
LikeLike