One of my favorite times of the year is when it’s time to announce the best new childrens books of the year!
I hope you did a lot of happy reading with your young elementary child.
These books are perfect for kiddos ages 6, 7 and 8 and include both picture books and early elementary chapter books.
You can find the best new childrens books of 2017 at your local library or purchase through the affiliate links provided for your convenience.
Best New Childrens Books of the Year!
I’ve broken down this category into picture books and chapter books because many kids in this age group are ready and reading longer books 🙂
Enjoy these best new childrens books!
New Picture Books Of the Year
The Antlered Ship
Parents’ Choice Recommended.
An inquisitive fox sets off on a seafaring voyage with a crew of deer and pigeons in this enchanting tale of friendship and adventure.
Malala’s Magic Pencil
Nobel Peace Prize winner and New York Times bestselling author Malala Yousafzai’s first picture book, inspired by her own childhood.
This beautifully illustrated volume tells Malala’s story for a younger audience and shows them the worldview that allowed Malala to hold on to hope even in the most difficult of times.
Jabari Jumps
Working up the courage to take a big, important leap is hard, but Jabari is almost absolutely ready to make a giant splash.
In a sweetly appealing tale of overcoming your fears, newcomer Gaia Cornwall captures a moment between a patient and encouraging father and a determined little boy you can’t help but root for.
Her Right Foot
A Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year. A School Library Journal Best Picture Book of the Year. A 2018 Orbis Pictus Award Honor Book. A Junior Library Guild selection.
In this fascinating and fun take on nonfiction, Dave Eggers and Shawn Harris investigate a seemingly small trait of America’s most emblematic statue.
What they find is about more than history, more than art. What they find in the Statue of Liberty’s right foot is the powerful message of acceptance that is essential of an entire country’s creation.
The Legend of Rock Paper Scissors
From acclaimed, bestselling creators Drew Daywalt, author of The Day the Crayons Quit and The Day the Crayons Came Home, and Adam Rex, author-illustrator of Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich, comes a laugh-out-loud hilarious picture book about the epic tale of the classic game Rock, Paper, Scissors.
The Book of Mistakes
As one artist incorporates accidental splotches, spots, and misshapen things into her art, she transforms her piece in quirky and unexpected ways, taking readers on a journey through her process.
Told in minimal, playful text, this story shows readers that even the biggest “mistakes” can be the source of the brightest ideas—and that, at the end of the day, we are all works in progress, too.
The Rooster Who Would Not Be Quiet!
La Paz is a happy but noisy village. A little peace and quiet would make it just right. So the villagers elect the bossy Don Pepe as their mayor.
Before long, singing of any kind is outlawed. But there is one noisy rooster who does what roosters are born to do – he sings!
Nerdy Birdy Tweets
A Neal Porter Book.
Nerdy Birdy and his best friend, Vulture, are very different. Nerdy Birdy loves video games, but Vulture finds them BORING.
Vulture loves snacking on dead things, but Nerdy Birdy finds that GROSS. Luckily, you don’t have to agree on everything to still be friends.
The Pomegranate Witch
This delectable romp from award-winning children’s poet Denise Doyen and acclaimed illustrator Eliza Wheeler honors classic children’s literature and revels in nostalgia for free-to-roam days full of playful invention.
When a scary old tree blooms with the most beautiful pomegranates ever seen, the neighborhood kids’ mouths water with anticipation. But the tree isn’t theirs—and it has a protector!
So begins the Pomegranate War, a fun, rollicking, rhyming tale of a battle between the sly, plucky young rascals and their wry, witchy neighbor who may have more than one trick up her sleeve.
My Journey to the Stars
This story of an ordinary boy who grew up to do extraordinary things is perfect for children. NASA astronaut Scott Kelly was the first to spend an entire year in space!
Discover his awe-inspiring journey in this fascinating picture book memoir (the perfect companion to his adult book Endurance) that takes readers from Scott’s childhood as an average student to his record-breaking year among the stars.
Prince and Pirate
Prince and Pirate are proud masters of their very own fishbowls, and life goes along swimmingly–until they’re scooped up and plopped into shared waters. Prince is horrified to find this cheeky cod trespassing in his kingdom. “Halt, peasant!”
Pirate is sure this scurvy sea slug has come to plunder his treasure. “Avast, ye scurvy sea slug!” And so begins a battle of regal sneers, seaworthy stink-eyes, and off-the-hook insults.
New Chapter Books of the Year
Dog Man: A Tale of Two Kitties: From the Creator of Captain Underpants (Dog Man #3)
Howl with laughter with Dog Man, the internationally bestselling series from Dav Pilkey, the creator of Captain Underpants!
Dav Pilkey’s wildly popular Dog Man series appeals to readers of all ages and explores universally positive themes, including empathy, kindness, persistence, and the importance of being true to one’s self.
Super Narwhal and Jelly Jolt (A Narwhal and Jelly Book #2)
Narwhal and Jelly are back in action for a SUPER adventure! Happy-go-lucky Narwhal and no-nonsense Jelly find their inner superheroes in three new under-the-sea adventures.
The Bad Guys (The Bad Guys #1)
They sound like bad guys, they look like bad guys . . . and they even smell like bad guys. But Mr. Wolf, Mr. Piranha, Mr. Snake, and Mr. Shark are about to change all of that…
Runny Babbit Returns: Another Billy Sook
An Amazon Best Book of 2017. A Barnes & Noble Best Book of 2017. A NCTE 2018 Notable Poetry Book.
This carefully compiled work from the Silverstein archives is filled with spoonerism poems that are both playful and poignant.
With tongue-twisting word play and uproarious characters, the endearingly befuddled Runny Babbit and his friends embody Shel Silverstein’s singular style, the one we all know and love.
Jasmine Toguchi, Mochi Queen
A Junior Library Guild Fall 2017 Selection. An Amazon’s Best Children’s Books of 2017. A Chicago Public Library’s Best of the Best Books 2017.
The first book in a new chapter book series featuring a spunky Japanese-American heroine!
Pounding mochi is traditionally reserved for boys. And the mochi hammer is heavier than it looks. Can Jasmine build her case and her mochi-making muscles in time for New Year’s Day?
Ben Franklin’s in My Bathroom! (History Pals)
History meets hijinks in this first title in a hilarious new middle grade series for fans of Timmy Failure and The Terrible Two, when Ben Franklin accidentally time travels to a 10-year-old’s home in 21st century America!
Stinkbomb and Ketchup-Face and the Badness of Badgers
A hilarious send-up of fantasy quest novels, perfect for fans of Adam Gidwitz and Jon Scieszka.
Winner of the Great Kerfuffle Best Book of Last Tuesday. Come and join our intrepid heroes Stinkbomb and Ketchup-Face on their highly dangerous and nail-biting adventure (or it may just be mildly perilous!).
Beatrice Zinker, Upside Down Thinker
Beatrice does her best thinking upside down. She was definitely upside down when she and her best friend, Lenny, agreed to wear matching ninja suits on the first day of third grade.
But when Beatrice shows up at school dressed in black, Lenny arrives with a cool new outfit and a cool new friend. Can Beatrice use her topsy-turvy way of thinking to save the mission, mend their friendship, and flip things sunny-side up?
Princess Cora and the Crocodile
A Newbery Medalist and a Caldecott Medalist join forces to give an overscheduled princess a day off — and a deliciously wicked crocodile a day on.
With perfectly paced dry comedy, children’s book luminaries Laura Amy Schlitz and Brian Floca send Princess Cora on a delightful outdoor adventure — climbing trees! getting dirty! having fun! — while her alter ego wreaks utter havoc inside the castle, obliging one pair of royal helicopter parents to reconsider their ways.
Love these best new childrens books of the year? Don’t miss out on other Best New Children’s Books for Kids, all broken down by age group through high school!
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