Picture books celebrating the bonds of love between children and their mothers are easy to find, but picture books featuring children and their fathers can be a bit trickier to locate. Here are a few picture books I found just in our branch, when I helped a patron find books that her partner could share with their children. We tried to find books that weren’t just about fathers, but which simply featured children and their fathers interacting as part of the story.
How To Cheer Up Dad is one of my favourite new picture books, I just love the illustrations, and the way it perfectly captures the state of loving exasperation that is parenthood.
1. We’re Going on a Bear Hunt / Michael Rosen
Brave bear hunters go through grass, a river, mud, and other obstacles before the inevitable encounter with the bear forces a headlong retreat.
Note: This book is available in several different languages.
2. Mouse’s First Snow / Lauren Thompson
A mouse and its father enjoy playing in the snow.
3. How To Cheer Up Dad / Fred Koehler
A young elephant sees his dad is in a bad mood and tries to cheer him up, not realizing his own mischief caused the bad mood in the first place.
4. There Once Was a Dog / Adelia Carvahlo
When Daddy doesn’t know “the dog story” that his child desperately wants to hear, he tries to satisfy his child with a story about every other animal–a lion, a pig, a hen, a rat, and more–until inspiration strikes!
5. Hide and Squeak / Heather Vogel Frederick
A mouse baby leads his father on a merry game of hide-and-squeak at bedtime.