One of the joys of the Thanksgiving season is curling up with a beautifully illustrated picture book! The best Thanksgiving stories are colorful, heart-warming, and often sprinkled with a touch of humor that makes reading them together extra fun. They capture the sights, sounds, and spirit of the season in ways little ones will love. Here are some of our Editor's favorites! For your convenience, affiliate links are included for easy ordering.
Thanksgiving is a Blessing
Thanksgiving Is a Blessing celebrates the holiday as an opportunity to be our best selves. Warm, lively illustrations bring the celebration to life, while lyrical text captures how Thanksgiving can be special for so many reasons. No matter how one celebrates, it is a chance to connect and reconnect, reminisce and make new memories.
Two-List Thanksgiving
Two-List Thanksgiving celebrates the beauty of blending family traditions to create a multicultural holiday celebration.
Corduroy's Thanksgiving
Corduroy is hosting Thanksgiving dinner for his friends. They watch a Thanksgiving Day parade, then it’s time to eat. But first, Corduroy and his friends each say what they are thankful for. This brightly colored and fun shaped board book is perfect for the youngest fans of Corduroy.
How to Say Thank You
What are you thankful for? Whether it's a BIG moment like Grandpa taking you to a parade, a little moment like sharing a favorite snack, or even an unexpected moment like a new friend moving in next door, there are so many things to be thankful for!
Construction Site: A Thankful Goodnight
Young readers can lift the flaps to reveal delightful details as the construction crew gathers pumpkins, sets a scarecrow straight, and prepares the barn for a grateful harvest―all while feeling thankful for each other.
Sharing the Bread: An Old Fashioned Thanksgiving Story
In this spirited ode to the holiday, set at the turn of the twentieth century, a large family works together to make their special meal.
How to Catch a Turkey
A turkey is running loose in a school right before a Thanksgiving play. This hilariously zany children's picture book combines STEAM concepts and traps with a silly story and fun illustrations, perfect for starting a new holiday family tradition or giving as a Thanksgiving gift for kids ages 4 and up!
The Berenstain Bears Give Thanks
The Berenstain cubs act out the first Thanksgiving complete with costumes, props, and a full Thanksgiving feast.
The Night Before Thanksgiving
Follow along as the feast is prepared, cousins are greeted, and everyone gathers around the table, all with an extra helping of holiday fun. This family fun read-aloud makes the perfect gift to get young readers excited for this festive fall holiday!
Thanksgiving in the Woods
Told in a gentle, lyrical style, this picture book includes warm illustrations of people gathered around bonfires and long tables adorned with candles and food, singing songs and sharing laughter.
Bad Kitty Does Not Like Thanksgiving
Kitty does not like Thanksgiving. Kitty LOVES Thanksgiving. Specifically, Kitty loves turkey . . . and will do anything to get her paws on it. So, Kitty comes up with a plan but in perfect cantankerous cat fashion, can’t quite pull it off and ends up with the turkey (and all the fixins’) on her head.
Bear Says Thanks
When Bear decides to throw a feast, his friends show up one by one with different platters of delicious food to share. There’s just one problem: Bear’s cupboards are bare! What is he to do?
Fancy Nancy: Our Thanksgiving Banquet
With Fancy Nancy, this is not just a Thanksgiving dinner. This is way fancier. This is a Thanksgiving banquet—with stickers!
Llama Llama Gives Thanks
It's Thanksgiving time for Llama Llama and his family! That means yummy foods and autumn leaves and being thankful for everything from pumpkin pies to blue skies.
The Thanksgiving Story
With the help of the Native Americans, the Pilgrim family might just be able to survive their first year in this strange land—and have a November harvest to celebrate for generations!
Pinkalicious: Thanksgiving Helper
Pinkalicious and Peter decide to be Thanksgiving helpers...but when their efforts lead to a crash in the living room and smashed potatoes all over the kitchen, they worry that they're the worst helpers in the history of Thanksgiving.
Turkey Trouble
Turkey is in trouble. Bad trouble. The kind of trouble where it’s almost Thanksgiving…and you’re the main course. But Turkey has an idea―what if he doesn’t look like a turkey? What if he looks like another animal instead?
Pete the Cat: The First Thanksgiving
Starring in your school’s Thanksgiving play would make even the coolest cat nervous, including Pete the Cat! But the show must go on. With more than ten flaps that open to reveal hidden surprises, Pete the Cat: The First Thanksgiving is sure to be a holiday hit and a favorite for Pete the Cat fans.
Elmo's Best Thanksgiving Ever
Elmo and his parents have invited all their friends over for a special Thanksgiving meal. But the party was supposed to be outside, and it's raining! Elmo is disappointed until he takes a walk around Sesame Street and learns from friends including Oscar, Abby Cadabby, Bert, and Ernie that there are so many things to be thankful for—including rain!
