Welcome to the Bank Street Children's Book Committee's (CBC) Searchable Best Books List, a tool designed to help educators, families, librarians, and others access developmentally appropriate and engaging books for young readers (ages birth - 18).
Our online Searchable Best Books List draws from the committee's annual Best Children's Books of the Year-beginning with the list of books published in 2000-with each featuring more than 600 high-quality titles for young readers.
To share feedback about the tool, please feel free to email bookcom@bankstreet.edu. To learn more about the CBC, visit https://www.bankstreet.edu/cbc/.
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Octopus Escapes Again!
written and illustrated by Laurie Ellen Angus
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
While searching for food, a hungry mollusk encounters hazards and opportunities and displays numerous defensive abilities. Rich collages.
written and illustrated by Laurie Ellen Angus
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
While searching for food, a hungry mollusk encounters hazards and opportunities and displays numerous defensive abilities. Rich collages.
One of a Kind, Like Me/Único Como Yo
by Laurin Mayeno
Illustrator: Robert Liu-Trujillo
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Danny wants to go to his school costume parade as a princess, but time is running out to find the perfect dress. Muted watercolors.
by Laurin Mayeno
Illustrator: Robert Liu-Trujillo
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Danny wants to go to his school costume parade as a princess, but time is running out to find the perfect dress. Muted watercolors.
On the Farm, At the Market
written and illustrated by G. Brian Karas
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Farmers pick and pack vegetables, cheeses, and mushrooms, set up tents, and sell their products at a community farmers' market. gouache and acrylic illustrations.
written and illustrated by G. Brian Karas
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Farmers pick and pack vegetables, cheeses, and mushrooms, set up tents, and sell their products at a community farmers' market. gouache and acrylic illustrations.
Otters Love to Play
by Jonathan London
Illustrator: Meilo So
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Throughout the seasons and various stage of their lives, river otters play, learn, and survive. Watercolor illustrations.
by Jonathan London
Illustrator: Meilo So
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Throughout the seasons and various stage of their lives, river otters play, learn, and survive. Watercolor illustrations.
Our Food
by Grace Lin
Illustrator: Grace Zong
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Learn how eating fruits, vegetables, grains, and protein foods keeps you healthy. Haiku and prose. Cheerful, colorful acrylics.
by Grace Lin
Illustrator: Grace Zong
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Learn how eating fruits, vegetables, grains, and protein foods keeps you healthy. Haiku and prose. Cheerful, colorful acrylics.
Pablo Finds a Treasure
by Andrée Poulin
Illustrator: Isabelle Malenfant
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Pablo's cleverness prevails as he and his sister battle thugs while scavenging at a dump in order to survive. Evocative chalk illustrations.
by Andrée Poulin
Illustrator: Isabelle Malenfant
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Pablo's cleverness prevails as he and his sister battle thugs while scavenging at a dump in order to survive. Evocative chalk illustrations.
Pink is for Blobfish
by Jess Keating
Illustrator: David DeGrand
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
The diversity of animals with pink coloring is highlighted using vibrant photographs and humorous illustrations accompanied by characteristics and fun facts. Includes glossary and additional resources.
by Jess Keating
Illustrator: David DeGrand
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
The diversity of animals with pink coloring is highlighted using vibrant photographs and humorous illustrations accompanied by characteristics and fun facts. Includes glossary and additional resources.
Place Value
by David A. Adler
Illustrator: Edward Miller
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Cartoon monkeys emphasize the importance of numbers and digits as they bake a giant banana cupcake. Replete with tables and colorful illustrations.
by David A. Adler
Illustrator: Edward Miller
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Cartoon monkeys emphasize the importance of numbers and digits as they bake a giant banana cupcake. Replete with tables and colorful illustrations.
Platypus
by Sue Whiting
Illustrator: Mark Jackson
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Atmospheric mixed-media illustrations accompany a day in the life of a most unusual mammal. General facts are presented in a different font. Index.
by Sue Whiting
Illustrator: Mark Jackson
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Atmospheric mixed-media illustrations accompany a day in the life of a most unusual mammal. General facts are presented in a different font. Index.
Pond
written and illustrated by Jim LaMarche
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Three children work to convert a brook, filled with years of trash, to a pond enjoyed by wildlife. Soft acrylics, colored pencil, and opaque ink illustrations.
written and illustrated by Jim LaMarche
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Three children work to convert a brook, filled with years of trash, to a pond enjoyed by wildlife. Soft acrylics, colored pencil, and opaque ink illustrations.
Posy the Puppy (Dr. Kitty Cat series)
by Jane Clarke
Illustrator: Dynamo
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
A cat doctor and her mouse assistant tend to patients with amusing medical problems. Illustrations mix photographs of animals with cartoon drawings.
by Jane Clarke
Illustrator: Dynamo
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
A cat doctor and her mouse assistant tend to patients with amusing medical problems. Illustrations mix photographs of animals with cartoon drawings.
Radiant Child
written and illustrated by Javaka Steptoe
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
The Haitian-Puerto Rican boy from Brooklyn achieves fame with his unique style of artwork. Brilliantly colored paintings on wood evoke his style. Backmatter
written and illustrated by Javaka Steptoe
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
The Haitian-Puerto Rican boy from Brooklyn achieves fame with his unique style of artwork. Brilliantly colored paintings on wood evoke his style. Backmatter
Rafi and Rosi Carnival!/Rafi y Rosi ¡Carnival!
written and illustrated by Lulu Delacre
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
In English and Spanish versions of beginning readers, Rafi, a tree frog (coqui), both misleads and rescues his little sister, Rosi, during the Carnival in Ponce, Puerto Rico. Science and Arts/Crafts projects incorporated. Expressive illustrations.
written and illustrated by Lulu Delacre
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
In English and Spanish versions of beginning readers, Rafi, a tree frog (coqui), both misleads and rescues his little sister, Rosi, during the Carnival in Ponce, Puerto Rico. Science and Arts/Crafts projects incorporated. Expressive illustrations.
Rafi and Rosi/Rafi y Rosi
written and illustrated by Lulu Delacre
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
In English and Spanish versions of beginning readers, frog siblings Rafi and Rosi explore Puerto Rico in serial science based adventures: magnets separating sand; bioluminescent bays; hermit crabs and mangrove saplings. Expressive cartoon illustrations and glossary.
written and illustrated by Lulu Delacre
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
In English and Spanish versions of beginning readers, frog siblings Rafi and Rosi explore Puerto Rico in serial science based adventures: magnets separating sand; bioluminescent bays; hermit crabs and mangrove saplings. Expressive cartoon illustrations and glossary.
Rainbow Weaver/Tejedora del Arcoíris
by Linda Elovitz Marshall
Illustrator: Elisa Chavarri
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Ixchel yearns to follow the tradition of her ancestors but thread is scarce until she repurposes something littering her village. Mixed-media illustrations.
by Linda Elovitz Marshall
Illustrator: Elisa Chavarri
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Ixchel yearns to follow the tradition of her ancestors but thread is scarce until she repurposes something littering her village. Mixed-media illustrations.
Return
written and illustrated by Aaron Becker
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
With her father busy working, the girl with the red crayon draws a door and steps into a magical kingdom under siege. Detailed brilliant watercolor and pen-and-ink illustrations.
written and illustrated by Aaron Becker
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
With her father busy working, the girl with the red crayon draws a door and steps into a magical kingdom under siege. Detailed brilliant watercolor and pen-and-ink illustrations.
Roy's House
by Susan Goldman Rubin
Illustrator: Roy Lichtenstein
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Visit Roy Lichtenstein's house for an exciting visual tour of his artistic creations, brilliantly reproduced. With noted on the artist and his paintings.
by Susan Goldman Rubin
Illustrator: Roy Lichtenstein
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Visit Roy Lichtenstein's house for an exciting visual tour of his artistic creations, brilliantly reproduced. With noted on the artist and his paintings.
Rudas
written and illustrated by Yuyi Morales
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
No opponent is too big a challenge for the cunning skills of Las Hermanitas, Lucha Queens, not even their big brother Niño. Dramatic illustrations.
written and illustrated by Yuyi Morales
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
No opponent is too big a challenge for the cunning skills of Las Hermanitas, Lucha Queens, not even their big brother Niño. Dramatic illustrations.
Sam the Man & the Chicken Plan
by Frances O'Roark Dowell
Illustrator: Amy June Bates
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
When seven-year-old Sam finds a job, he masters its demands through diligence and ingenuity, making an unexpected friend in the bargain. Pencil drawings.
by Frances O'Roark Dowell
Illustrator: Amy June Bates
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
When seven-year-old Sam finds a job, he masters its demands through diligence and ingenuity, making an unexpected friend in the bargain. Pencil drawings.
Scout and the Sausage Thief (Puppy Academy series)
by Gill Lewis
Illustrator: Sarah Horne
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
A German Shepherd puppy, aspiring to become a police dog, is unjustly accused of unacceptable dog behavior. Will scout be able to graduate with her class? Engaging black-and-white illustrations.
by Gill Lewis
Illustrator: Sarah Horne
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
A German Shepherd puppy, aspiring to become a police dog, is unjustly accused of unacceptable dog behavior. Will scout be able to graduate with her class? Engaging black-and-white illustrations.
Six Dots
by Jen Bryant
Illustrator: Boris Kulikov
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
A blind child's world-changing invention of an alphabet enabling him to read is described by a first person narrative. Multimedia illustrations mirror the text. References. Braille alphabet end papaers.
by Jen Bryant
Illustrator: Boris Kulikov
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
A blind child's world-changing invention of an alphabet enabling him to read is described by a first person narrative. Multimedia illustrations mirror the text. References. Braille alphabet end papaers.
Slickety Quick
by Skila Brown
Illustrator: Bob Kolar
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Fourteen kinds of sharks are described in poetic style and vividly portrayed in colorful digital illustrations.
by Skila Brown
Illustrator: Bob Kolar
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Fourteen kinds of sharks are described in poetic style and vividly portrayed in colorful digital illustrations.
Solving the Puzzle Under the Sea
by Robert Burleigh
Illustrator: Raúl Colón
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Despite gender biases she faced as a woman, scientist Marie Tharp proved the hypothesis about continental drift. Colorful watercolors.
by Robert Burleigh
Illustrator: Raúl Colón
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
Despite gender biases she faced as a woman, scientist Marie Tharp proved the hypothesis about continental drift. Colorful watercolors.
Steamboat School
by Deborah Hopkinson
Illustrator: Ron Husband
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
When a new law denied African Americans education in 1847 in Missouri, a boy assisted crusader Reverend John Meachum in an ingenuous plan. Evocative, crosshatched illustration.
by Deborah Hopkinson
Illustrator: Ron Husband
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
When a new law denied African Americans education in 1847 in Missouri, a boy assisted crusader Reverend John Meachum in an ingenuous plan. Evocative, crosshatched illustration.
Stepping Stones
by Margriet Ruurs
Illustrator: Nizar Ali Badr
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
A young girl and her family flee their war-torn village to seek a new home. Illustrated with photographed stone artwork. Bilingual (English and Arabic).
by Margriet Ruurs
Illustrator: Nizar Ali Badr
Ages: 6+
Published: 2016
A young girl and her family flee their war-torn village to seek a new home. Illustrated with photographed stone artwork. Bilingual (English and Arabic).