Staff Faves 2025: Kids Picture Books
Every year we ask our staff across the library system for their favorite books published in a given year. Enjoy this list of some of our favorite 2025 picture books for kids - some with staff annotations, and some with annotations from Kirkus, NoveList Plus, and School Library Journal. (Created November 2025)
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Fireworks
Two children cut loose on the Fourth of July. A radiant celebration of all things summer. [Kirkus]
Format: Book
Availability: All copies in use
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Hello, Tobi!
A friendly pup greets many different families on his walk. Readers—especially dog lovers—will delight in this everyday slice of life. [Kirkus]
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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Old MacPumpkin Had A Farm
A Halloween twist on a favorite rhyme includes Old MacPumpkin, a farm, a cat, a bat, a spider, a skeleton, a witch, a ghost and a monster. [NoveList Plus]
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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Papilio
ALL THREE LOCAL AUTHORS! A talented trio of author/illustrator creators and friends explore the three phases of a black swallowtail’s life. [Kirkus]
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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All the Stars in the Sky
A young boy learns the Cherokee lesson of gadugi from his grandmother and how working together and helping each other makes the whole community stronger. [NoveList Plus]
Format: Book
Availability: All copies in use
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There's Something Odd About the Babysitter
LOCAL AUTHOR! Can three raccoons in a trench coat be better at childcare than the boring and strict human babysitters Freddie has so far endured? [Kirkus]
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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The Peanut Man
A young Cuban refugee unexpectedly reconnects with her home country in this 1960s-set tale. [Kirkus] "This picture book made me cry (in a good way)." [Amanda]
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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Take A Breath, Big Red Monster!
Just as Emberley's Big Green Monster helped young children deal with fears, here the Big Red Monster helps young children manage their anger.
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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Aggie and the Ghost
A headstrong young girl finds herself in a haunted house standoff. A witty year-round ghost tale that delivers a wonderfully unconventional conclusion. [Kirkus]
Format: Book
Availability: All copies in use
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Moon Song
In alliterative language as lyrical and atmospheric as the moonlit accompanying scenes of northern forest, water, and sky, Goade evokes both the wonders of the natural world and her own Tlingit and Haida cultural background. [School Library Journal]
Format: Book
Availability: Available
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