It’s time for my yearly roundups! I have no idea how many books I read last year (I never count), but I know I read a significant number. I read fewer picture books than usual, but I made up for that by reading dozens of chapter books.
I always share these annual posts of mine with a disclaimer—not all these books were published in 2024; I just read them in 2024.
A second disclaimer—I received several of these books as review copies from the publishers. This does not influence my opinion of the books; I review only ones that I enjoy.
And now, here’s the first of my lists – my favourite picture books and early chapter books. Three Hook Books and one hOle book feature on the list!
What Happened to Grandpa
What Happened to Grandpa by Nandini Nayar and Aditi Anand is a beautiful picture book about love and loss. A bittersweet story about coming to terms with dementia, it’s a picture book that deals with big themes and big feelings in a deceptively simple way.
Where Does It Hurt?
Another beautiful, simple book, Where Does It Hurt? by Samina Mishra and Allen Shaw is a picture book in free verse about pain of all kinds. We fall and get hurt. Our stomach pains. But sometimes, pain is more than that. Pain can find its way into your life in the form of grief that is too big to hold. By asking Where does it hurt? with kindness and empathy, we begin to help people share pain and perhaps work towards lessening it.
I Won't Wash My Hair
Where the first two books on this list deal with big themes and big emotions, I Won’t Wash My Hair by Aparna Kapur and Ogin Nayam is the opposite. It is a whimsical, delightful book about everything that can happen if you refuse to wash your hair. Yes, it may smell. Yes, it may invite all kinds of creatures to make their home in it. But what about all the wonderful things that might just happen?
Puppy Trouble
The third Hook Book on my list of favourite picture books and chapter books from 2024 is Puppy Trouble by Bijal Vachharajani and Rajiv Eipe. Another book that’s fun rather than serious and moving, it features a character we can all identify with—a child who wants a puppy. But what if a puppy comes into your life and suddenly, you’ve got more than you bargained for?
Ottoline at Sea
Chris Riddell’s Ottoline has featured on my list of favourites in the past, but thanks to my book club, I read another book from the series—Ottoline at Sea-–and I love it! I especially recommend books that my book club enjoys because they’re child-approved. After we read this one at my book club, a parent told me that his children had taken to calling him Mr Munroe!
Like the rest of the series, Ottoline at Sea is the perfect mixture of seriousness and hilarity, and the pictures make it a rich, stunning read.
Peanut Has a Plan
The only hOle book on my list of favourites this year is Peanut Has a Plan, written by Yashodhara Lal and illustrated by Shreya Sen. Peanut, the enterprising character at the centre of the story, comes up with one money-making scheme after another. Contrary to what the title leads us to expect, she has not one, but many plans. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about them all!
Dear Sister
I love epistolary novels, and Dear Sister by Alison McGhee and illustrated by Joe Bluhm is right up there with my favourites! Written as a series of letters from a boy to his sister, it’s humorous, engaging and completely believable. What I loved most about this book was how it is designed. When you erase something, it doesn’t entirely disappear, does it? The book has faint pencil markings like that! Every detail is lovely, making the book a gorgeous read.
I’ve roughly sorted this list out on the basis of target audience. While the first four books would be suitable for children five and up, the others are for slightly older readers, probably seven plus.
If you would like more recommendations for this age-group, look at my favourites from 2023, 2022, 2021 and 2020. Tomorrow, I’ll post about early middle-grade books I read and loved last year!
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