Recommendations: Gr. K – 2

Below find some of our favorite book recommendations and lists for kindergarteners, first and second graders. For the latest content, subscribe to our Raising Readers monthly email.

2025 Elementary Nutmeg Nominees (2nd – 3rd Grade)

The Elementary Nutmeg Book Award encourages children in grades 2-3 to read quality literature and choose their favorite from a list of nominated titles.

2024 Elementary Nutmeg Nominees (2nd – 3rd Grade)

The Elementary Nutmeg Book Award encourages children in grades 2-3 to read quality literature and choose their favorite from a list of nominated titles.

2023 Elementary Nutmeg Nominees (2nd – 3rd Grade)

The Elementary Nutmeg Book Award encourages children in grades 2-3 to read quality literature and choose their favorite from a list of nominated titles.

2022 Elementary Nutmeg Nominees (2nd – 3rd Grade)

The Elementary Nutmeg Book Award encourages children in grades 2-3 to read quality literature and choose their favorite from a list of nominated titles.

Appealing Picture Book Biographies (2nd – 6th Grade)

Sharing amazing, award-winning and highly reviewed picture book biographies is a wonderful way to spark curiosity with the children (and grown-ups) in your family through gorgeous illustrations and inspirational true stories.

Awesome Books Featuring Autism (K – 6th Grade)

There are many wonderful books about people with autism. Sharing stories about people with different perspectives, abilities, and talents is a critical step in raising readers who are aware, informed, and accepting.

Back-to-School Picture Books (Preschool – 2nd Grade)

From new (early) morning routines to catching the bus, the back-to-school season is full of transitions for children and parents. Share these titles to help kids and grown-ups feel positive about heading back to school!

Celebrating Culture and Food (K – 3rd Grade)

These picture books are a delicious combination of special foods and cultural traditions–and are perfect for sharing with your family.

Chapter Books for Graphic Novel Fans (2nd – 5th Grade)

The engaging chapter books on this list are NOT graphic novels, but feature the comic-book style humor, illustrations, and adventure your child enjoys so they can try a more text-based format that is still lots of fun to read.

Favorites for Fall (Preschool – 2nd Grade)

We’ve harvested some of our favorite fall picture books for your next family read-aloud.

First Grade Fun (1st Grade)

This list features fun grade-specific titles for first graders.

Fractured Fairy Tales & Nursery Rhymes (Preschool — 2nd Grade)

Take a classic fairy tale or familiar nursery rhyme and change a few characters, the setting, or add a surprise ending, and you’ve got a “fractured” version that’s usually lots of fun to share, laugh at, and talk about.

“Good Night” Themed Picture Books (PreK – 2nd Grade)

Nights are longer in the winter, so maximize your bedtime reading routine with some exceptional picture books that celebrate the special elements of nighttime.

Great Graphic Novels (K – 6th Grade)

This list spans a wide range of reading levels with high-quality choices from this popular genre.

Guided Reading Level C

Simsbury Public Schools use the Guided Reading Levels by Fountas & Pinnell to track students’ proficiency, with different reading levels assigned to letters of the alphabet. While we do not level our collection like a school library, we hope these levelled lists make it a little easier to find the books your children need for their reading/language arts homework.

Guided Reading Level E

Guided Reading Level K

Guided Reading Level L

Holiday Picture Books (K – 3rd Grade)

Check out these recently published picture books that are full of seasonal spirit.

If you liked…Biscuit (Toddler – 1st Grade)

If you’re already friends with Biscuit the dog but are ready to help your new reader explore books on the same reading level (i.e., low word count, lots of repetition), we’d like to introduce you to Otto (a robot) and Pip (a sidekick mouse) and The Adventures of Otto beginning reader series. These titles are perfect for brand new readers who are building confidence–and are sure to please all robot-obsessed toddlers!

If you liked…Captain Underpants (2nd – 6th Grade)

Captain Underpants is awesomely gross and embarrassingly funny, but there are only so many titles in the series. Our list focuses on series (so if your child likes one, they can read MORE), and they offer either the humor, “eeew” factor, or general goofiness that makes reading fun for a lot of Captain Underpants fans.

If You Liked…Rainbow Magic (Preschool – 1st Grade)

If your new reader is in deep with the Rainbow Magic series by Daisy Meadows, you can work through the over 200 titles in the series, or you can encourage a little branching out. The series featured in this read-alike list are at a similar beginner reading level and feature either magic, cute animals, or friendship-based adventures.

Kids in the Kitchen (Preschool and Up)

Borrow a kid-friendly cookbook to lure children into your kitchen.

Kindergarten Reads (Kindergarten)

Our list of books appropriate for kindergarteners ranges from silly poetry and early chapter book series to read aloud (or for kids to start to read some on their own) to clever picture books with a kindergartener’s sense of humor.

Moon Picture Books (Preschool – 2nd Grade)

This collection of moon-focused picture books offers great bedtime stories, explorations of what animals may do at night, and a look at the moon’s monthly phases.

Peaceful and Mindful Picture Books (Preschool – 2nd Grade)

These picture books are designed to help younger children sort through feelings and anxieties using tools such as mindfulness, meditation, and yoga.

Picture Books About Being Kind (Preschool – 2nd Grade)

These thoughtful picture and board books present examples of kindness in concrete terms for younger children.

Seaside Stories (Preschool – 1st Grade)

Whether you’re beach-bound or splashing at the pool, it’s fun to share stories that take place in summer.

Second Grade Selections (2nd Grade)

Check out these grade-specific second grade selections.

Seek-and-Find Books (Preschool – 2nd Grade)

If your child knows Waldo and loves the classic I Spy books, it might be time to seek something new. “Seek-and-find” picture books make reading an interactive adventure.

“Snow Day” Picture Books to Share (Preschool – 2nd Grade)

Sure, you can bring home The Snowy Day or Snowmen at Night, but here are some especially snow-cozy titles to share in celebration of a snow day or night!

Springtime Stories (Preschool — 2nd Grade)

Welcome the return of raindrops, fresh flowers, and busy birds with these fresh springtime stories.

STEM Stories: Picture Books to Chapter Books (K – 5th Grade)

Kids will enjoy plots that feature robots, animal care, computers, and engineering as well as characters who (like them) relate to a STEM-centered filter on their busy world.

Summer Camp Tales (2nd – 6th Grade)

Camp is a staple of the summer season, whether it’s just for the day, or sleep-away. This list is full of fireflies, best friends, embarrassments, canoes, and special memories.

Vacation and Road Trip Reads (K – 2nd Grade)

Picture books can take children so many places, and all these books have a trip or vacation theme, with some focusing on postcards you send home, or the road signs that fly by.

Warm Weather Picture Books (K – 2nd Grade)

We’ve got a great list of picture books that will put you in the mood for warmer weather.

Wonderful Picture Books from 2018 (Preschool – 2nd Grade)

These titles are wonderful, and they might have passed you by. Explore and share them!

Wordless Picture Books to Share (Preschool – 2nd Grade)

Q: How do you read a child a book that has no words? A: You ask the child questions! “What do you see in this picture?”, “What is he/she thinking?”, “What do you think will happen next?” are all questions that will engage your child in the wordless picture book you’re sharing by introducing them to the concepts of plot and setting, as well as how to use visual context clues and even exercise their imagination when they reread the book to you.