This was a favorite in our house for years when my sons were little. The beautiful, spare prose are just right for getting a tiny person ready for sleep. The book is also a work of art, with painted illustrations just asking to be put up on the wall. Perfect for a calm read-aloud before putting on a bedtime podcast.

Conejito is a favorite in our family! It's a charming story about a little bunny who has to outsmart a fox, a tiger, and a lion in order to make it up the mountain to visit his sweet aunt. The illustrations are super creative and the pacing of the book is perfect for young readers. It's a very fun read aloud! The playful repetitions in this book have inspired me to bring similar repetitions to my own stories.

I am in LOVE with the gorgeous illustrations in this sweet book about gratitude and thankfulness. The poetic text is in both English and Spanish. A truly heartwarming, beautiful storytime read. This is a book that inspires me to go work on illustrations.

My own family absolutely loves Guji Guji. It is one of the books they continue to request time and again. The clever story follows a crocodile adopted by a family of ducks. Guji Guji has to confront questions about his own identity when he encounters crocodiles interested in eating his family. This is a thoughtful, fun story with adorable illustrations. I try to bring similar interplays between big life questions and silly asides to LSFTP.

I loved this book as a child and my kids love it now. The simple prose, the clever plot, the wry humor, and the endearing illustrations add up to a delightful read. Every time I read this one to my tiny people it makes me want to get up and write a new story.

I absolutely love the understated, clever humor in this book. I also love that the parents in the book are real characters with funny interactions; they don't just fade into the background of the story. That's something I always try for in my own stories. With a funny story, great dialogue, and stunning illustrations, it is truly an excellent read-aloud.

This is one of my very favorite children's books and it often brings tears to my eyes. It touches on family, loss, and love with such care, and the engaging illustrations bring the story to life. The magical elements, the sense of wonder, and the heartwarming ending are all things I try to replicate in my own stories.

This book helped our family a lot when my son went through a phase of wanting to discuss death every single day (for weeks!). When it comes up now, we can use the shorthand of referring to our "invisible strings" and it is always a comfort to my kids. In many of my more serious stories, I try to reach for a similar tone, to make big things in life a little easier to discuss.

My kids and I love this book and it has made for many peaceful bedtimes in our house. The illustrations are exquisite and the story is filled with a sense of wonder. The perfect pacing of the prose inspires me to get up and write, and the illustrations inspire me to get up and draw.

This was one of my favorite read-alouds as a kid and my own children giggle the entire way through. It is irreverent, ridiculous, and absurd, with the kind of humor I try to bring to LSFTP. Much longer than most picture books, it is perfect for a lengthy storytime that will put everyone in a good mood.