100 Books About the Arts

Source: one tough job

Break out those crayons! Fostering a love of the arts can help kids find productive ways to express themselves and even lead to a lifelong passion. The books below are all about the arts, from music to photography, so your child can find what they like best.

infants & toddlers (0 - 2 years)

Andy Warhol So Many Stars by Mudpuppy

Art for Baby by Various Artists

Baby Bear Sees Blue by Ashley Wolff

Bea at Ballet by Rachel Isadora

Blue Hat, Green Hat by Sandra Boynton

Color for Baby by Yana Peel

Color Zoo by Lois Ehlert

Dancing Feet! by Lindsey Craig

Dinosaur Dance! by Sandra Boynton

Every Little Thing by Bob Marley and Cedella Marley

I Love You Too by Ziggy Marley

Jazz Baby by Lisa Wheeler

Little Blue and Little Yellow by Leo Lionni

My Many Colored Days by Dr. Seuss

Pantone: Colors by Pantone

Pop Art Baby by Mudpuppy

Rockabet by Kelly Polark

Shape by Shape by Suse MacDonald

Spots and Dots by Chez Picthall

The Line by Paula Bossio

The Rainbow Book by Kate Orht


preschool (3 - 4 years)

Extra Yarn by Mac Barnett

A Day With No Crayons by Elizabeth Rusch

Abiyoyo by Pete Seeger

An ABC of What Art Can Be by Meher McArthur

Angelina Ballerina by Katherine Holabird

Art & Max by David Wiesner

Bear Sees Colors by Karma Wilson

Ben's Trumpet by Rachel Isadora

Brontorina by James Howe

Butterfly Butterfly: A Book of Colors by Petr Horacek

Can You Hear It? by William Lach

Color Dance by Ann Jonas

Harold and the Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson

Hilda Must Be Dancing by Karma Wilson

Katy Duck Is a Caterpillar by Alyssa Satin Capucilli

Let's Paint! by Gabriel Alborozo

M Is for Music by Kathleen Krull

Mix It Up! by Herve Tullet

Mole Music by David McPhail

Monsters Love Colors by Mike Austin

Mouse Paint by Ellen Stoll Walsh

Mr. Cookie Baker by Monica Wellington

Never Play Music Right Next to the Zoo by John Lithgow

Octopus's Garden by Ringo Starr

One by Kathryn Otoshi

Piggy Paints by Jim Benton

Red Is a Dragon: A Book of Colors by Roseanne Thong

Rupert Can Dance by Jules Feiffer

Squeak, Rumble, Whomp! Whomp! Whomp! by Wynton Marsalis

Sunny by Robin Mitchell Cranfield and Judith Steedman

Sunshine on My Shoulders by John Denver and Christopher Canyon

Tallulah's Tutu by Marilyn Singer

The Art Book for Children by Editors of Phaidon Press

The Color Kittens by Margaret Wise Brown

The Little Drummer Boy by Ezra Jack Keats

Tuba Lessons by T. C. Bartlett

Zin! Zin! Zin! A Violin by Llyod Moss


early school (5 - 6 years)

Art Dog by Thacher Hurd

A Bad Case of Stripes by David Shannon

Before John Was a Jazz Giant: A Song of John Coltrane by Carole Boston Weatherford

Charlie Parker Played Be Bop by Christopher Raschka

Dancing in the Wings by Debbie Allen

Degas and the Little Dancer by Laurence Anholt

Draw-It-Yourself Adventures: Alien Attack by Andrew Judge

Draw Me a Star by Eric Carle

Drum Dream Girl: How One Girl's Courage Changed Music by Margarita Eagle

For the Love of Music: The Remarkable Story of Maria Anna Mozart by Elizabeth Rusch

Henri's Scissors by Jeanette Winter

I Ain't Gonna Paint No More! by Karen Beaumont

I Am an Artist by Pat Lowery Collins

I Can Draw it Myself, By Me, Myself by Dr. Seuss

I Know a Shy Fellow Who Swallowed a Cello by Barbara Garriel

I Spy: An Alphabet in Art by Lucy Micklethwait

Imogen: The Mother of Modernism and Three Boys by Amy Novesky

Ish by Peter H. Reynolds

Lili at Ballet by Rachel Isadora

Look! Look! Look! At Sculpture by Nancy Elizabeth Wallace and Linda K. Friedlaender

Marsh Music by Marianne Berkes

Max Found Two Sticks by Brian Pinkney

Meet the Orchestra by Ann Hayes

Metal Man by Aaron Reynolds

M is for Melody: A Music Alphabet by Kathy-jo Wargin

Passing the Music Down by Sarah Sullivan

Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes by Eric Litwin

Punk Farm by Jarrett J. Krosoczka

Rap a Tap Tap: Here's Bojangles -- Think of That! by Leo & Diane Dillon

Snail Trail: In Search of a Modern Masterpiece by Jo Saxton

Swatch: The Girl Who Loved Color by Julia Denos

Tabby McTat, the Musical Cat by Julia Donaldson

The Art Lesson by Tomie DePaola

The Artist Who Painted a Blue Horse by Eric Carle

The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds

The Twelve Dancing Princesses by Marianna Mayer

This Jazz Man by Karen Ehrhardt

Through Georgia's Eyes by Rachel Victoria Rodriquez

Viva Frida by Yuyi Morales

What a Wonderful World by Bob Theile and George David Weiss

When a Line Bends…A Shape Begins by Rhonda Gowler Greene

When Pigasso Met Mootisse by Nina Laden


Want to read more? Check out our final category of 100 books all about interactive fun. And make sure to share your journey to 1,000 on social media and tag us! #1000Books


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