10 great children’s books about using your imagination

The following is a list of 10 great children’s books about using your imagination. My daughter Ally, 4, and I have read and enjoyed each of these books. They are not ranked in any special order.

1. Ladybug Girl and Bumblebee Boy (By David Somar and Jacky Davis) – A little girl named Lulu, or as she calls herself, Ladybug Girl, wears a red tutu, wings and antennae. At the playground, she meets up with her friend, Sam. The two kids find out that the best way for them to play together is to use their imaginations and pretend to have superpowers. She pretends to be Ladybug Girl while Sam is Bumblebee Boy. They use their imaginations to fly (on the swings) and to save a dog from a monster (a squirrel). Other kids join in and they form the Bug Squad.

Buy it: Ladybug Girl and Bumblebee Boy

2. Harold and the Purple Crayon (By Crockett Johnson) – A young boy named Harold decides to go for a walk one night in the moonlight with his purple crayon. But there is no moon and their is no walking path so he draws them with his crayon. The illustrations in this story are simple purple line drawings and show how Harold uses his imagination to move the story along. As he walks, he draws an apple tree, then a dragon, then a sailboat and then a mountain and creates his own adventure.

Buy it: Harold and the Purple Crayon

3. Goldilicious (By Victoria Kann) – Pinkalicious is back in this new story and this time she has a pet unicorn, Goldie, who only she can see. Pinkalicious and her imaginary unicorn dance ballet, roller skate, play hide and seek and have a tea party. But then her brother, Peter decides to join in the imaginary play. He imagines that he captures Goldie in his castle tower (tree house). As Pinkalicious and Peter play together, they change Goldie’s story from pirates to mermaids and eventually send the unicorn flying away in a hot air balloon. But lucky for Pinkalicious, Goldie returns when she starts to miss her at bedtime.

Buy it: Goldilicious

4. Where the Wild Things Are (By Maurice Sendak) – A young boy named Max, dressed in a wolf suit, gets into mischief. So he is sent to his room without dinner. Then a forest begins to grow in his room and then there is an ocean and a boat. Max sails the boat to a land where big furry creatures live. Max tames the wild things and they make him their king. Max and the wild things play together; roaring and hanging from trees. But then Max realizes he wants to be with his loved ones. He sails home and finds his dinner waiting for him in his room.

Buy it: Where the Wild Things Are

5. Fanny & Annabelle (By Holly Hobbie) – On a rainy day, Fanny sits down to write her own picture book called “Annabelle’s Adventure.” Fanny creates a story, characters and pictures. The story Fanny is writing is about Annabelle needing to find enough money to buy a locket for her Aunt Sally. Fanny isn’t sure how to finish the story and decides to take a break. She finds some money out on a sidewalk and then her story and the story she’s writing start to intertwine. In the end, Fanny returns the money she found to its rightful owner and gives the story that she’s been writing to her mom for her birthday.

Buy it: Fanny & Annabelle

6. For Just One Day (By Laura Leuck) – This is a cute rhyming story about a child who dreams about what it would be like to be different animals for just one day. He imagines what life would be like as a crocodile, a chimpanzee, a butterfly, a snake and a porcupine. He imagines how fun it would be to fly, dive in the sea or dangle from a tree. And while he’d like to be an animal for just one day, he decides that all the other days he likes being the special person that he is.

Buy it: For Just One Day

7. Not a Box (By Antoinette Portis) – This is a simple story about a rabbit and a box. And while it looks like the rabbit is just sitting in or standing by a plain old box, as the reader turns the pages they see the rabbit is imagining that the box is a race car, a mountain, a robot, a hot air balloon or a rocketship. This is a cute book for any child who has ever played for hours with a simple cardboard box.

Buy it: Not a Box

8. Ready to Dream (By Donna Jo Napoli and Elena Furrow) – On a trip to Australia, a young girl named Ally meets an artist. Ally is excited to show the artist her own artwork. The artist teaches Ally that sometimes what Ally sees as “mistakes” in her own artwork can be the greatest part . For instance, her picture of a koala keeps curling up, just like a real koala. Ally draws all the animals and nature she sees on her trip and learns she can create art everywhere, sometimes with just sand and rocks.

Buy it: Ready to Dream

9. Sky Castle (By Sandra Hanken) – In this story, three fairies close their eyes and imagine building a castle in the sky. The fairies dream of a castle with room for oceans, rainforests and mountains inside with rainbow stairs and crystal floors. They imagine the animals, family and friends who will live there. Then they dream about bringing their castle down to Earth. The book lets children know that all dreams are possible with imagination and love.

Buy it: Sky Castle

10. Appelemando’s Dreams (By Patricia Polacco) – Appelemando lives in a drab village where there isn’t much to do. But his daydreams take him away to a colorful world. He has four good friends who can actually see his dreams drift right out of the top of his head in colorful swirls. But soon the boys discover that Appelemando’s dreams have stuck to all the houses, stores and walls of the village. The village elders are angry and think it’s a prank. As Appelemando and his friends are walking home, they get lost in a forest. But the boys are found when Appelemando’s colorful dreams float out over the trees and are spotted by the villagers. Appelemando’s village is no longer drab and he grows old there, still loving to daydream.

Buy it: Appelemando’s Dreams