11 Fantastic Thanksgiving Picture Books
As Halloween drew to a close, I started getting flooded with requests for Thanksgiving books.
I compiled this list of Thanksgiving books several years ago but have updated it this year. I’ve taken some of the Thanksgiving books that previously appeared on this list off (ones that inaccurately depict the events of 1621 or are very one-sided) and added several that are more inclusive of Native voices.
I’ve been doing a ton of reading and research on this topic and feel hugely inadequate to even begin to address this, but if you’re interested in Native perspectives on Thanksgiving, Oyate is a really great resource.
American Indians in Children’s Literature is also a fantastic site that is a wealth of information about books for children that depict Native Peoples and recommends or doesn’t recommend many titles (and helps you understand why some books are problematic and why others are worth reading with your children or students).
I have as much to learn about this topic as anyone and it’s a work in progress for me to become better informed and more aware of the myths and stereotypes that surround this holiday (which is a day of mourning for many Native people).
These eleven Thanksgiving books for kids celebrate Native voices, gratitude, the changing seasons, and gathering with friends and family for a feast.
If you know of other great Thanksgiving books, I’d love to hear!
My favorite Thanksgiving books
Balloons Over Broadway: The True Story of the Puppeteer of Macy’s Parade by Melissa Sweet
This is, hands down, my favorite Thanksgiving picture book (so much so that I wrote an entire post about it, which I rarely do about picture books). Melissa Sweet’s illustrations always blow me away, plus in this book, you get to see her amazing research and writing chops too. The Macy’s Parade is a Thanksgiving staple, but I had no idea how it got started, and this book made watching it even more fun.
This book does a great job giving context for the first Thanksgiving feast and how the interactions between the European settlers and the Native Americans were sometimes peaceful and collaborative and other times violent and hostile. The illustration are beautiful in this one too – I bought a copy for my collection this year!
If you’re looking for a gorgeous picture book, the kind you’ll have as a display all season long, this is the one. Makes me almost love the idea of living somewhere with snow (except, you know, not really).
This gorgeous book, which garnered an impressive list of awards when it came out last year, focuses on the word “otsaliheliga” which is a Cherokee word that means gratitude and how the Cherokee Nation celebrates a year, starting in the fall when a new year begins.
I love this cute little story about a mouse who goes to get a single pea from the leftover Thanksgiving feast, but then he starts getting more and more things, leaving him ill-prepared to run when the cat makes an appearance.
Turkey Trouble by Wendi Silvano, illustrated by Lee Harper
This one is more than 10 years old but we read it for the first time last year and my girls thought it was HILARIOUS as the turkey tries to avoid detection by disguising himself as other farm animals in an attempt to NOT be the main dish.
Sarah Hale worried that Thanksgiving Day was dying out and she made it her personal mission to make it a national holiday. She spent 38 years writing letters to five U.S. presidents in a row, attempting to convince them, but she didn’t succeed until Abraham Lincoln finally responded to her letters during the Civil War. This book is one of those magical biographies that is well-written, interesting, and even funny. (Sarah Gives Thanks is another excellent biography about Sarah Hale).
This book is more than 20 years old, but does a beautiful job sharing the Thanksgiving Address that the Iroquois use in an annual ceremony giving thanks.
This little board book has been a favorite Thanksgiving book at our house for the past few years – we actually own two copies! It’s just a sweet little love note to babies that smell like cinnamon and spice and are just as delicious as a good slice of pumpkin pie.
This was our VERY favorite Thanksgiving book last year and my 3 year old asked for it on repeat for weeks. It’s such a sweet story of a modern Native American family and what Fry Bread means to them and their history.
And if you’d like a printable copy of this Thanksgiving book list that you can take to your library or screenshot on your phone for easy access, just pop in your email address below and it’ll come right to your inbox!
Any Thanksgiving picture books to recommend? I’d love to add to my collection, which is nowhere near as good as my Halloween or Christmas collection.
I remember #2, I loved that book.
We love to share 'Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving by Dav Pilkey with our school-age kids. And I love All for Pie, Pie for All by David Martin (which is not technically a Thanksgiving book, but hey PIE). And I know Todd Parr appeals to a certain taste, but he just put out The Thankful Book.
Thanks for the suggestions! I'm looking forward to finding Balloons over Broadyway.
My mom sent me Off to Plymouth Rock by Dandi Daley Mackall for Anna's first Thanksgiving. It is a nice, rollicking poem in board book form. My kids love it. The illustrations aren't really my style, but they are detailed and engaging.
My four year old was just enchanted with Little Bear's Thanksgiving by Janice. (Yes, just Janice) It's so 60's and the illustrations are very sweet.
Oh, I love Balloons Over Broadway ~ I never thought of it as a Thanksgiving book which is kind of silly. It totally is! We're vegetarians in this house so we particularly like 'Twas The Night Before Thanksgiving. So cute! But I do agree with you that there are not enough GOOD Thanksgiving books out there!
It's Thanksgiving is a book of Jack Prelutsky poems. Thanksgiving at the Tappletons' is one of my favorites. P is for Pilgrim is a beautifully illustrated alphabet book, but really for older children. Cranberry Thanksgiving is another classic.
I used "Thank You, Sarah: The Woman Who Saved Thanksgiving" with a class of third graders for the second time yesterday. Haven't read "Sarah Gives Thanks" but I like the lighthearted way history is treated.
Thanks! So lovely to not have to sift through lousy Thanksgiving books myself and just go for these winners! 🙂 ps- the deleted comment was by me, accidentally posted as my husband.
We've enjoyed An Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving by Louisa May Alcott but now I can't find the edition we read that had gorgeous illustrations too. Happy hunting.
I actually checked that one out! It's too long for Ella right now, but I'm excited to pull it out again in a couple of years.
I love hearing your recommendations! I need something to keep track of them though 🙂
We love "Turkey Trouble" by Wendi Silvano. My kids get such a kick out of the illustrations.
The former children's librarian at my library used this book and the preschool crowd loved it. The cover illustration alone is hilarious.
Our favorite Thanksgiving book is "I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pie" by Alison Jackson and Judy Schachner. My kids love it!
The Thanksgiving books are the saddest display of holiday books at our library every year. Last week we tried Rivka's First Thanksgiving by Elsa Okon Rael and really enjoyed it. It's better suited for grade school kids, and my 4th grader liked it best of my three children.
I can’t wait to check these out! Our favorite Thanksgiving book is “A Turkey for Thanksgiving” by Eve Bunting. It’s a great one.
These look great! We love “A Turkey for Thanksgiving” by Eve Bunting.
My kids love cranberry thanksgiving. It’s probably in the top 10 most read all year long. I keep it out bc they love it that much. It’s sometimes funny to me what makes that list, but for some reason that one does!
The Great Thanksgiving Escape is a winner in our library! Also Thanksgiving Rules and Bear Says Thanks.
My 2 favorite books to read at story time this time of year are Turkey Trouble and The Great Thanksgiving Escape! Enjoy!
One of my favorites is “Thankful” by Eileen Spinelli. Not specifically Thanksgiving, but a way to look at gratitude in everyday, small ways. And her pictures are so sweet.
Sharing the Bread: An Old-Fashioned Thanksgiving Story by Pat Zietlow Miller will always be my #1 Thanksgiving picture book. It’s heartwarming, which is just what a book about Thanksgiving ought to be.
I second that one!
Turkey Trouble by Wendi Silvano for the win!