selected book topics for all ages | character traits in books (all ages) | character traits in movies (all ages)
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Playlist : Books about Character

younger kids of all ages

This is (obviously) not a comprehensive list. Simply stories I’ve enjoyed and appreciated that illuminate traits, emotions, or feelings worth illuminating. Most would fall into the “Picture Book” category, i.e. feature lovely and unique illustrations or design that is integral to the storyline or theme. Let me know of additions or ideas!

Adventure

Fog Island by Tomikas Ungerer (2013)
Follow That Frog! Written by Philip C. Stead, illustrated by Matthew Cordell (2021)
if you want to see a whale - words by Julie fogliano, pictures by erin e. stead (2013)
Journey by Aaron Becker (2013, Caldecott Honor Book 2014, #1 in series)
Jumanji by Chris Van Allsburg (Caldecott Winner)
Quest by Aaron Becker (2014, #2 in series)
Return by Aaron Becker (2016, #3 in series)
River by Elisha Cooper (2019)
Sebastian and the Balloon by Philip C. Stead (2014, pastels, oil paints, pressed charcoal)
Teacup by Rebecca Young & Matt Ottley (2015)
The Trip (Little Critter) by Mercer Mayer (1997)
Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak (1963)

Adversity

How I Learned Geography by Uri Shulevitz (2008)
Smoky Night by Eve Bunting, illustrated by David Diaz (1994)
The Undefeated by Kwame Alexander, illustrated by Kadir Nelson

Anger / getting along / solving disagreements / navigating emotions

An Emotional Menagerie: Feelings from A to Z by The School of Life (2020), illustrations by Rachel Saunders
The Baby Beebee Bird - Diane Redfield Massie, pictures by Steven Kellog (1963, illustrations updated 2003)
The Book of Mean People by Slade & Toni Morrison, pictures by Pascal Lemaître (2002)
The Boy Who Lost His Gravity by Jenni Desmond (2014)
The Duckling Gets a Cookie!? by Mo Willems (2012)
Get On Your Bike by Joukje Akveld & Philip Hopman (2018)
I Feel Teal by Lauren Rille, illustrations by Aimee Sicuro (2018)
Little Blue and Little Yellow by Leo Lionni (1959)
Me First! by Max Kornell (2014)
Shahrzad & the Angry King by Nahid Kazemi (2022)
Swarm of Bees by Lemony Snicket , Art by Rilla Alexander (2019)
Vote for ME! by Ben Clanton (2012)
The Wills and the Won’ts - written by Angela Woolfe, illustrated by Roland Garrigue (2022)

Anxiety / worry / stress

The Piano Recital by Akiko Miyakoshi (2019)
What do you say to a Dragon? A story about facing Fear and Anxiety - Lexi Young Peck, illustrations by Wendy Leach

Boldness

Boredom

The Boring Book by Sinsuke Yoshitake (2017)

Bravery & Courage

After the Fall: How Humpty Dumpty Got Back Up Again by Dan Santat (2017)
Brave Irene by William Steig (1986)
The Bravest Knight by Mercer Mayer (2007)
The Cat Man of Aleppo by Irene Latham and Karim Shamsi-Basha, illustrated by Yuko Shimizu (2020)
The Great Zapfino by Mac Barnett and Marla Frazee (2022)
Henry's Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad - Ellen Levine, illustrated by Kadir Nelson (2007)
The Paper Bag Princess by Robert Munsch
There’s a Nightmare in My Closet by Mercer Mayer (1968)
Teacup by Rebecca Young & Matt Ottley (2015)

Caring & Compassion

A Sick Day for Amos McGee by Philip C. Stead, illustrated by Erin E. Stead (2010)
The Cat Man of Aleppo by Irene Latham and Karim Shamsi-Basha, illustrated by Yuko Shimizu (2020)
Hello, Neighbor! The Kind and Caring World of Mister Rogers by Matthew Cordell (2020)
Mr. Gumpy’s Outing by John Burningham (1970)

Cleanliness / Tidiness / Picking up

The Problem With Pierre by G.K. Smouha, illustrated by Suzanna Hubbard (2020)
Tidy Titch by Pat Hutchins (1991)

Collaboration

Ebenezer Has a Word for Everything by Chelsea H. Rowe, illustrated by Frank Dormer (2018)

Competitiveness / “me first”

Me First! by Max Kornell (2014)
Straw - Amy Krouse Rosenthal, illustrated by Scott Magoon (2020)

Confidence / Uniqueness / Daring to be yourself

A Normal Pig by K-Fai Steele (2019)
Keith Among the Pigeons by Katie Brosnan (2019)
Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed by Mo Willems (2009)
Penguin Problems by Jory John & Lane Smith (2016)
The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf (1936)
Swimmy by Leo Leonni (1963, Caldecott Medal)

Cooperation / Getting along

Corruption

Creativity

A Very Late Story by Marianna Coppo (2018)
Art & Max by David Wiesner (2010)
Hello! Hello! by Matthew Cordell (2002)
Kiyoshi’s Walk by Mark Karlins, illustrated by Nicole Wong (2021)
Olivia by Ian Falconer (2000)
Sector 7 by David Wiesner (1999, Caldecott Honor winner 2000)
When I Draw a Panda by Amy June Bates (2020)
What to Do When You’re Sent to Your Room by Ann Stott, illustrated by Stephen Gilpin (2014)

Curiosity

The Heart and the Bottle by Oliver Jeffers (2010)
Olivia by Ian Falconer (2000)
One Beam of Light: A Story of Albert Einstein - Jennifer Berne, pictures by Vladimir Radunsky (2013)
Swimmy by Leo Leonni (1963, Caldecott Medal)

Determination

Non stop by Tomi Ungerer

Devotion

Greyfriars Bobby by Ruth Brown (2013)

Dignity

Dreaming

Embarassment

Watercress - Andrea Wang, illustrated by Jason Chin (2021)

Empathy & Compassion

A Face Is a Poem - by Julie Morstad (2024)
All Too Much for Oliver by Leila Boukarim (2015, highly sensitive children)
The Cat Man of Aleppo by Irene Latham and Karim Shamsi-Basha, illustrated by Yuko Shimizu (2020)
You, Me and Empathy: Teaching children about empathy, feelings, kindness, compassion, tolerance, respect, and recognizing bully behaviors - Jayneen Sanders, illustrated by Sofia Cardoso (2017)

Encouragement

Enthusiasm

Just Me and My Little Brother (Little Critter) by Mercer Mayer (1991)

Embarrassment

Envy / Jealousy

The Better Tree Fort by Jessica Scott Kerrin, pictures Qin Leng (2018)
Hey, Al - story by Arthur Yorinks, pictures by Richard Egielski (1986, Caldecott Award)
His Royal Highness, King Baby: A Terrible True Story by Sally Lloyd-Jones, illustrated by David Roberts (2017)
In a Small Kingdom by Tomie dePaola, illustrated by Doug Salati (2018)
Once Upon a Mouse by Marcia Brown (1961)

Equality

Fairness

This Moose Belongs to Me by Oliver Jeffers (2012)
Sunshine: A Story About the City of New York by Ludwig Bemelman (1950)

Faith

The Little Island by Margaret Wise Brown, illustrated by Leonard Weisgard (1946)

Faithfulness

Fear / Worry

A Small Thing…but Big - Tony Johnson, pictures by Hadley Hooper (2016)
Black Dog by Levi Pinfold (2011)
There’s a Nightmare in My Closet by Mercer Mayer (1992)
George and His Nighttime Friends by Song Soun Ratanavanh (2022)
The Great Zapfino by Mac Barnett and Marla Frazee (2022)
Scratch Scratch Screw Plop! by Kitty Crowther (2015)
What do you say to a Dragon? A story about facing Fear and Anxiety - Lexi Young Peck, illustrations by Wendy Leach (2021)
What There Is Before There Is Anything There: A Scary Story - Liniers (2006)

Fixation / Obsession / Singlemindedness

Green Pants by Kenneth Kraegel (2017)

Forgiveness

Friendship

The Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend by Dan Santat (2014)
Amos & Boris by William Steig (1971)
Beyond the Fence by Maria Gulemetova (2017, the kind of friendships that are restricting, controlling, or toxic)
Big Cat, Little Cat by Elisha Cooper (2017, Caldecott Honor)
Crictor by Tomi Ungerer (1958)
Friends by Eric Carle (2013)
Flora and the Flamingo (2013) by Molly Idle
Frog and Toad All Year by Arnold Lobel (1976)
The Grudge Keeper by Mara Rockliff (2014)
I Will Surprise My Friend! by Mo Willems (2008)
Iced Out - written by CK Smouha, illustrated by Isabella Bunnell (2019)
In the City by Chris Raschka (2020)
Knuffle Bunny Too: A Case of Mistaken Identity by Mo Willems (2007)
Listen To My Trumpet! by Mo Willems (2012)
Lost and Found by Oliver Jeffers (2005)
My Baby Crocodile by Gatean Doremus (2016)
My Bison by Gaya Wisniewski (2018)
My New Friend Is So Fun! by Mo Willems (2014)
Out of Nowhere by Chris Naylor-Ballesteros (2020)
The Rough Patch by Brian Lies (2018)
Rufus : The Bat Who Loved Colours by Tomikas Ungerer (1961)
Teacup by Rebecca Young & Matt Ottley (2015)
This Moose Belongs to Me by Oliver Jeffers (2012)
Lost and Found by Oliver Jeffers (2005)
Up and Down by Oliver Jeffers (2010)
The Way Back Home by Oliver Jeffers (2007)
Waiting for Chicken Smith by David Mackintosh (2018)
Will We Always Hold Hands? by Christopher Cheng & Stephen Michael King (2021)

Generosity / Sharing / Giving

Baby Says by John Steptoe (1988)
The Doorbell Rang by Pat Hutchins (1986)
The Duckling Gets a Cookie!? by Mo Willems (2012)
I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen (2011)
In a Small Kingdom by Tomie dePaola, illustrated by Doug Salati (2018)
It’s My Tree by Olivier Tallec (2020 - more like how not to be 😬)
Maggie’s Treasure by Jon-Erik Lapping, illustrated by Kellen Hatanaka (2020 - a girl who collects and wants to hoard everything)
Mr. Gumpy’s Outing by John Burningham (1970)
Mr. Rabbit and the Lovely Present - Charlotte Zolotow, pictures by Maurice Sendak (1962)
Miss Rumphius - story and pictures by Barbara Cooney (1982)
Pie is for Sharing - Stephanie Parsley Ledyard, illustrations by Jason Chin (2018)
The Old Man by Sarah V, illustrated by Claude Dubois, translated by Daniel Hahn (2018)
This Moose Belongs to Me by Oliver Jeffers (2012)
Uh-Oh, Baby! written by Nancy Coffelt, illustrated by Scott Nash (2013)
We Found a Hat by Jon Klassen (2016)

Gratitude

It Could Always Be Worse by Margot Zemach (1976)

Grief & Loss & Death

A Ball For Daisy by Chris Raschka (2011, Caldecott Winner)
The Bear and the Wildcat - written Kazumi Yumoto and illustrated by Kodak Sakai (2011)
The Bird Coat - Inger Marie Kjølstadmyr & Øyvind Torseter (2022, a serious and somewhat-shocking one, for a ‘children’s book,’ but deals with the nature of grief being a part of life)
Big Cat, Little Cat by Elisha Cooper (2017, Caldecott Honor)
Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale by Mo Willems (2004, Caldecott Winner)
Love You Forever by Robert Munsch, illustrated by Sheila McGraw (1986)
The Rabbit Listened by Cori Doerrfeld (2018)
The Rough Patch by Brian Lies (2018)
Shahrzad & the Angry King by Nahid Kazemi (2022)
Sylvester and the Magic Pebble by William Steig (1969)

Guilt

Happiness & Joy

Because Amelia Smiled by David Ezra Stein (2012)
The Better Tree Fort by Jessica Scott Kerrin, pictures Qin Leng (2018)
Extra Yarn - Mac Barnett, illustrated by Jon Klassen (2012)
This Beautiful Day - Richard Jackson, illustrated by Suzy Lee (2017)

Helping & Helpfulness

How to Cheer Up Dad by Fred Koehler (2014)
Pigs to the Rescue - John Himmelman (2010)

Honesty

I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen (2011)
This Is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen (2012)

Honor

Hope

Henry's Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad - Ellen Levine, illustrated by Kadir Nelson (2007)
Sylvester and the Magic Pebble by William Steig (1969)
The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain by Peter Sis (2007)

Humility

Imagination

Best Day Ever by Michael J. Armstrong, illustrated by Eglantine Ceulemans (2020)
The Boring Book by Sinsuke Yoshitake (2017)
Fly! by Mark Teague (2019)
Imagine a City by Elise Hurst (2014)
One Monday Morning by Uri Shulevitz (1987)
The Power of Henry’s Imagination - Story by Skye Byrne, Pictures by Nic George (2015)
Rain Makes Applesauce by Julian Scheer, Pictures by Marvin Bileck (1964)
This is a ball: books that drive kids crazy by Beck & Matt Stanton (2015)
This Is My Dollhouse by Giselle Potter (2016)
Trainstop by Barbara Lehman (2008)
What If the Shark Wears Tennis Shoes? by Winifred Morris, illustrated by Betsy Lewin (1990)
When I Draw a Panda by Amy June Bates (2020)
Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak (1963)

Independence

Clementine and the Lion by Zoey Abott (2022)
Fly! by Mark Teague (2019)
The Day the Babies Crawled Away by Peggy Rathmann (2003)
Miss Rumphius - story and pictures by Barbara Cooney (1982)

Insecurity

Integrity

This Is Not My Hat by Jon Klassen (2012)

Justice

Kindness

A Small Thing…but Big - Tony Johnson, pictures by Hadley Hooper (2016)
Emma & The Whale by Julie Case (2017)
Hello, Neighbor! The Kind and Caring World of Mister Rogers by Matthew Cordell (2020)
Kind: A book about kindness - written by Alison Green, illustrated by 38 illustrators (2019)
The Old Man by Sarah V, illustrated by Claude Dubois, translated by Daniel Hahn (2018)
Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge - Mem Fox, illustrated by Julie Vivas (1984)

Knowledge

Starry Messenger: Galileo Galilei (1996)

Learning / growth

Dragons : Father and Son by Alexandre Lacroix (2017)
How I Learned Geography by Uri Shulevitz (2008)

Liberty

Listening / paying attention

I Am Going by Mo Willems (2010)
Lenny the Lobster Can’t Stay for Dinner…or can he? You decide! by Michael and Finn Buckley, illustrated by Catherine Meurisse (2019)

Loneliness / Alone / Solitude

The Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend by Dan Santat (2014)
Chrysanthemum by Kevin Hanks (1991)
Everybody Needs a Rock - Byrd Baylor, pictures by Peter Parnall (1974)
Everything In Its Place: a Story of Books and Belonging - Pauline David-Sax, illustrated by Charnel Pinkney Barlow (2022)
Grandfather’s Journey by Allen Say (1993)
The House of Lost and Found - story by Martin Widmark, illustrated by Emilia Dziubak (2017)
Leave Me Alone! by Vera Brosgol (2016, Caldecott Honor)
The Bear and the Wildcat - written Kazumi Yumoto and illustrated by Kodak Sakai (2011)
Lost and Found by Oliver Jeffers (2005)
The Old Man by Sarah V, illustrated by Claude Dubois, translated by Daniel Hahn (2018)
The Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus by Jen Bryant, illustrated by Melissa Sweet (2014)
Shadow by Suzy Lee (2010)
The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf (1936)
Teacup by Rebecca Young & Matt Ottley (2015)
The Wave by Suzy Lee (2008)
Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak (1963)

Love

The Hello, Goodbye Window - Norton Juster, illustrated by Chris Raschka (2005)
How Do I Love Thee? Jennifer Adams, illustrated by Christopher Silas Neal (2018)uni
Just Like Dad by Mercer Mayer (Little Critter, 1993)
Love You Forever by Robert Munsch, illustrated by Sheila McGraw (1986)
Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel (1939)
"More More More," Said the Baby: Three Love Stories by Vera B. Williams (1990)
Papa, Do You Love Me? by Barbara M. Joose, illustrated by Barbara Lavallee (1991)
Will We Always Hold Hands? by Christopher Cheng & Stephen Michael King (2021)

Loyalty

Amos & Boris by William Steig (1971)
Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel (1939)

Mischief

Anna at the Art Museum - Hazel Hutchins & Gail Herbert, illustrated by Lil Crump (2018)
Maggie McGillicuddy’s Eye for Trouble by Susan Hughes, illustrated by Brooke Kerrigan (2016)
Three Little Monkeys - Quentin Blake & Emma Chichester Clark (2016)

Obsession

Optimism

Panic

Patience

Sylvester and the Magic Pebble by William Steig (1969)
Three Little Monkeys - Quentin Blake & Emma Chichester Clark (2016)
The Very Impatient Caterpillar by Ross Burach (2019)
Waiting by Kevin Henkes (2015)

Peer pressure

The Berenstain Bears’ Show-and-Tell by Mike Berenstain (2017)
Starry Messenger: Galileo Galilei (1996)

Peace / Peacefulness

The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf (1936)

Perseverance / Persistance

Everest: The Remarkable Story of Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay by Alexandra Stewart, illustrated by Joe Todd-Stanton (2019)
Everyone Can Learn to Ride a Bicycle by Chris Raschka (2013)
The Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus by Jen Bryant, illustrated by Melissa Sweet (2014)
Snowflake Bentley - Jacqueline Briggs Martin, illustrated by Mary Azarian (1998, Caldecott Medal)

Playfulness

Are You Ready To Play Outside? by Mo Willems (2008)
Best Day Ever by Michael J. Armstrong, illustrated by Eglantine Ceulemans (2020)
Everybody Needs a Rock - Byrd Baylor, pictures by Peter Parnall (1974)
if you want to see a whale - words by Julie fogliano, pictures by erin e. stead (2013)
Pie is for Sharing - Stephanie Parsley Ledyard, illustrations by Jason Chin
Pond by Jim LaMarche (2016)
Shadow by Suzy Lee (2010)
This Beautiful Day - Richard Jackson, illustrated by Suzy Lee (2017)
Watch Me Throw the Ball! by Mo Willems (2009)
The Wave by Suzy Lee (2008)

Pride

Millions of Cats by Wanda Gág (1928)

Proactiveness

Problem-solving / ingenuity

Henry's Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad - Ellen Levine, illustrated by Kadir Nelson (2007)
Starry Messenger: Galileo Galilei (1996)
Stone Soup by Marcia Brown (1947)
Stuck by Oliver Jeffers (2011)
The Wolf, the Duck, and the Mouse - Mac Barnett, illustrated by Jon Klassen (2017)

Reliability

Remorse / Regret

Resilience

After the Fall: How Humpty Dumpty Got Back Up Again by Dan Santat (2017)
Brave Irene by William Steig (1986)
How I Learned Geography by Uri Shulevitz (2008)
Trying - written by Kobi Yamada, illustrated by Elise Hurst (2021)
The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain by Peter Sis (2007)
What to Do When You’re Sent to Your Room by Ann Stott, illustrated by Stephen Gilpin (2014)

Resourcefulness

Respect

Self-consciousness / shyness / quietness / tranquility

A Small Thing…but Big - Tony Johnson, pictures by Hadley Hooper (2016)
Owl Moon by Jane Yolen, illustrated by John Schoenherr (1987)
Roger is Reading a Book by Koen Van Biesen (2015)

Self-discipline / self-control

Hello! Hello! by Matthew Cordell (2002)

Spirituality

The Little Island by Margaret Wise Brown, illustrated by Leonard Weisgard (1946)

Stupidity

Suspicion

Terror

Thoroughness

Tolerance

Trust

Chicken Little: the Real and Totally True Tale by Sam Wedelich (2014)
Non stop by Tomi Ungerer (2019)