19 New Picture Books, August 2022

This August, I’m sharing almost 20 picture books that I know you will LOVE and want to share with the kids in your life.

Happy reading!

BEST PICTURE BOOKS OF 2022

19 New Picture Books, August 2022

My Pet Feet by Josh Funk, illustrated by Billy Yong
FUNNY / WORDPLAY
Darling and creative, this playful wordplay adventure hits all the right letters, and you’ll laugh your way through it. A little girl wakes up to a world without the letter R — and sees that her FERRET Doodles has turned into FEET! How can she save him? As she races around town, she discovers all the problems without the letter R — bread becomes bead, friend becomes fiend, crows become cows. Doodles leads the girl towards a pirate ship where they discover the stolen Rs. She returns the Rs to Doodles and repairs the town. But just as she’s about to sleep, she realizes something else is missing… A delightful read– and sure to be a new favorite read aloud.

Becoming Blue by Ellen Tarlow, illustrated by Julien Chung
JEALOUSY
An excellent story about jealousy and learning to see your own value! Blue feels jealous of all the cool things Red can do! When Red tells Blue to STOP copying her, Blue ponders being Blue — and learns that he loves being Blue with his birds and lakes and sad songs. And they even pair up together at the end and make purple!

Five Hiding Ostriches by Barbara Barbieri McGrath, illustrated by Riley Samels
COUNTING
A playful counting and rhyming story about five ostriches who run and hide from a lion. And what will happen when the lion catches them? It’s not what you think! It’s a fun friendship story that toddlers and preschoolers will love.

Abueltia and I Make Flan by Adriana Hernandez Bergstrom
GRANDPARENT/GRANDCHILD, MAKING MISTAKES
Anita breaks Abeula’s special flan dish–and she feels guilty but doesn’t say anything while she’s helping her grandparents mix and cook and share the stories of their past. Anita finally confesses what happened and her abuela is happy to know the truth and isn’t mad. “A plate is a plate but YOU are irreplaceable.” You’ll love the story’s relatable topic, the mix of both languages, the Cuban culture, and the love that bursts through the relationships.

Ways to Make Friends by Jairo Buitrago, illustrated by Mariana Ruiz Johnson
MAKING FRIENDS
Sweet and funny with both helpful and quirky advice, the book’s gentle message is kindness toward others with some fun twists as well as learning how to be your own best friend, too. “Say hi to the shy kid who never says hi to anyone. After you’ve said hi at least forty times, he might even say hi back, exactly like an old friend.” I adore this book–both the story and the gorgeous illustrations.

Old Friends by Margaret Aitken, illustrated by Lenny Wen
MAKING FRIENDS
Marjorie misses her Granny and their shared interests. The kids in her neighborhood were great but didn’t love plants and knitting like Marjorie…and Granny did. So Marjorie sneaks into the Senior Center in disguise and finds lots of new friends! But when her disguise falls off, what will happen? I loved Marjorie’s problem-solving and the relatable topic of finding friends with shared interests (of all ages.) This is great read-aloud choice for schools and homes.

Jo Bright and the Seven Bots by Deborah Underwood, illustrated by Meg Hunt
FAIRY TALE / SCIENCE FICTION
In this updated science fiction Sleeping Beauty, clever Jo loves building Bots from scratch. But the jealous queen wants to be the best bot builder — better than Jo. Rhyming, jaunty text depicts Jo befriending a dragon and fixing an enchanted dragon. They capture the queen and the mirror-bot makes Jo the new queen. It’s an engaging, girl-power STEM story that readers will love.

Told and Retold: Around the World with Aesop’s Fables by Holly Berry
FABLES
I love the block-print artwork which sets this retelling apart with inviting and beautiful scenes.

Nana, Nenek & Nina by Liza Ferneyhough
GRANDPARENTS
Nina shares about her two grandmothers in a parallel story showing the similarities and differences in cultures and parts of the world. Nana lives in England, and Nenek lives in Malaysia. In each place, Nina wears different closes and eats different foods, but in both places, there’s love and hugs and bedtime. Atmospheric, lovely illustrations.

Brown Is Warm, Black Is Bright by Sarah L. Thomson, illustrated by Keith Mallett
Lyrical, beautiful, and sensory, this is a celebration of black and brown kids. “Black is flight…inky wings on wet watercolor clouds. Brown is beckoning…a faithful path to follow all the way home.”

The Big Worry Day by K.A. Reynolds, illustrated by Chloe Dominique
WORRY
The little girl’s dog has a lot of worries. To help the worries, the girl and dog try three strategies: breathe, use their imagination, and do yoga. Then, they can play outside without the worries.

Set Sail for Pancakes! by Tim Kleyn
GRANDPARENT
A grandpa and grandchild have a big adventure together traveling to the islands that have ingredients for pancakes.

How Can We Be Kind? by Janet Halfmann, illustrated by Darla Okada
KINDNESS
Inspiring! Practical behaviors show kindness in action as seen in the animal kingdom. “We can wait for others, like African elephants do. // We can put others first, like prairie dogs do.”

Black Boy, Black Boy: Celebrate the Power of You by Ali Kamanda and Jorge Redmond, illustrated by Ken Daley
BLACK BOY JOY
Written to inspire black boys, the rhyming text shows the many possibilities unfolding in the future — to dream big, to realize their talents, and to be brave. Stunning, colorful artwork.

A Synagogue Just Like Home by Alice Blumenthal McGinty, illustrated by Laurel Molk
JEWISH COMMUNITY
A positive, energetic rabbi races around the synagogue trying to fix everything for Shabbat services. But during the services, the other community notices his repairs need repairs and help him fix everything. Their community works together– helping, sharing, and caring — to care for their home, the synagogue. 

My Town Mi Pueblo by Nicholas Solis, illustrated by Luisa Uribe
COMMUNITY AND CULTURE / COMPARE AND CONTRAST
Written in English and in Spanish, the same story on each page in English or Spanish shares two cousins’ experiences and love for their hometowns and visiting each other either in Mexico or the U.S. Lovely and meaningful, we see the kids’ love for their community and family.

More Than Peach by Bellen Woodard, illustrated by Fanny Liem
INCLUSIVITY
Bellen is bothered when her classmates use the term “skin-colored” when referring to a peach color of crayon. So she talks to her mom and helps her classmates and teacher understand the importance of changing their language and being inclusive and specific so no one is left out.

Just Like Jesse Owens by Ambassador Andrew Young and Paula Young Shelton, illustrated by Gordon C. James
PERSONAL NARRATIVE / HISTORICAL
Almost a personal narrative, Andrew grows up in the segregated south during the World War II era. He is inspired by Jessie Owens to be the best he can be.

All That Is You by Alyssa Satin Capucilli, illustrated by Devon Holzwarth
LOVE POEM
This lyrical love poem showing love in families and friends, old and young, with emotion-filled illustrations, would make a wonderful gift to someone you love. “You’re the sun when rain showers, the hush as snow falls, the castle in my sand, the leap when waves call.”

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