Picture Books that Inspire Imagination

A child’s imagination is a unique and powerful thing. In fact, a well developed imagination helps children navigate the world around them. Imagination give children a tool to make sense of events that don’t impact them directly (and sometimes those that do), as well as to build empathy, understand their place in the world, and help conquer anxieties. The following list of books nurture the imagination through expressions of creativity, adventurous exploration, and elements of fantasy.

The Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend

An imaginary friend waits a long time to be imagined by a child and given a special name, and finally does the unimaginable–he sets out on a quest to find his perfect match in the real world.


Battle Bunny

On his own birthday, Alex hijacks a story called Birthday Bunny, about forest friends who plan a surprise party, and turns it into a story called Battle Bunny, about a fight between a supervillain and his forest enemies.


Draw!

In this wordless picture book, a boy who is confined to his room fills his sketch pad with lions and elephants, then imagines himself on a safari.


Extra Yarn

With a supply of yarn that never runs out, Annabelle knits for everyone and everything in town until an evil archduke decides he wants the yarn for himself.


Journey

Using a red marker, a young girl draws a door on her bedroom wall and through it enters another world where she experiences many adventures, including being captured by an evil emperor.