(Part 2) Best children art books according to redditors

For me, the dividing line almost always lies in the main conflict.

For MG, the main conflict is home-based. By this I mean, whatever the goal of the main character is, it is directly linked to his/her home life. It could have larger repercussions, but the hero is in it for his home. Chasing Vermeer is a good example of this: the kids are solving an art mystery that the entire world is focused on, but they're solving it to save their own community.

For YA, the main conflict is world-based. The main character is doing something broader than him or herself or things linked directly to his/her life.

Another way to put it: MG is about the main character finding a place within his home. YA is about the main character finding a place within his world.

Really, this is the biggest dividing line to me--everything else is flexible.

https://smile.amazon.com/C-D-William-Steig/dp/0312380127

These are for older kids but I love this series - Rosie Revere, Engineer, Iggy Peck, Architect, Ada Twist, Scientist

They are really well written rhyming books, I find so many kids books painful to read but these are great.

Blue Balliett's series:

1. Chasing Vermeer
   
   
2. The Calder Game
   
   
3. The Wright 3
   
   Stephen Hawking's series:
   
   
4. George's Secret Key to the Universe
   
   
5. George's Cosmic Treasure Hunt
   
   
6. George and the Big Bang
   
   
7. George and the Unbreakable Code
   
   Others...
   
   The School Story (It has two female leads, not sure if that will be a deterrent for your nephews)
   
   Einstein Anderson series
   
   Encyclopedia Brown series
   
   Hardy Boys series
   
   Sammy Keyes series
   
   Check the ages. All of these are above a 5-year-old, unless you're reading to him. Most of what you're asking for will end up being detective mysteries.
   
   I wouldn't recommend nonfiction unless the subject matter matches their real-world interests... or you happen to know they prefer non-fiction.
   
   

IKEA has inexpensive wood activity bar things that you can place over any blanket. Most of the other features of this expensive one you found could be met with a tag-ball toy and a couple black and white board books that you stand up. We especially liked Art for Baby which is really big, stands up open well, and has captivating images to look at during tummy time, and Black & White which unfolds into a long double sided panel to stand around baby so they can look around a bit while doing tummy time.

Sophie the Giraffe

Step and Play piano

Art for Baby

Great questions! (from both you and your kiddo!). I came across this article - http://www.washington.edu/news/2013/01/08/the-philosophical-child-a-book-for-when-your-child-asks-why-are-we-here/ - which recommends a book for parents, but that doesn't sound like exactly what you're looking for.

In terms of philosophical picture books, the closest thing I can think of would be I Wonder by Annaka Harris. You might also check out the Zen Shorts series, though I don't think any of them really address "nature of reality" type questions directly. Also, while not exactly a picture book, the book Is Nothing Something? might give you some good starting points for discussion. Big Questions for Little People is similar but aimed at slightly older kids. You're Here For A Reason could also be relevant, although maybe not philosophical in quite the way you're looking for.

You could also take "How am I alive?" in a more scientific direction - you might enjoy You Are Stardust and Older Than the Stars, or a simple introduction to evolution such as Our Family Tree. You could also explore simple books about the human body and discuss how her heart, lungs, brain, etc allow her to walk and talk and stay alive - something like See Inside Your Body or Outside-In - or even go into a bit more detail about how she got "in mom's tummy" with a book like Who Am I? Where Did I Come From? or Before You Were Born - or talk about past generations (i.e. mom came from HER mom's tummy!) with a book like Me and My Family Tree

Hope some of that is helpful - of course this is a discussion you can continue as she gets older, and there are lots of great books for older kids that more directly tackle different beliefs and ideas about why we are here.

Chasing Vermeer is a mystery novel set in Hyde Park. I loved it as a kid

... removed body of original post.

Below is a great book by Thich Nhat Hanh that I have read multiple times with my daughter that may be helpful to you and your son.

Is Nothing Something?: Kids' Questions and Zen Answers About Life, Death, Family, Friendship, and Everything in Betweenhttps://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1937006654/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o07_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Do you mean how to draw swords? Swords: An Artist's Devotion.. How to Draw Weapons????

Do you mean a book about how to fight using a sword? For example, The Art of Drawing the Sword by Darrell Max Craig is focused on Japanese sword history and samurai culture. Is there a certain style of sword or fighting you're interested in?

Or do you mean about the art of swordmaking and blacksmith work, about that kind of sword art? Or something else?

Generally, I would just go through here.

Specifically, here are some lists of my favs:
one
two

[I](http://www.amazon.com/Appetit-Delicious-Life-Julia-Child/dp/0375869441/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&colid=3RPKDHM4EC9XE&coliid=I2BZYDMR4J2UQQ_ L LOVE BOOKS TOO!! :)

If you liked that, you'll like this book I just picked up by DK/DC. Incredible book that goes through all the main storylines and has a bunch of graphics like that. For example:

http://i.imgur.com/nVuHzxD.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/qq9A8fn.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/jPvdZu7.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/T1yfFxn.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/18EzIPn.jpg

I got it at my local bookstore, but I'll see if I can find the Amazon link for it! It's honestly a great encyclopedia on the batman mythos.

Edit: Here's the link to it!

Jeremy Dooley of insigne created a really darling board book (and ebook) for younger children:

• https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/insigne/the-clothes-letters-wear
  
• http://smile.amazon.com/Clothes-Letters-Wear-Jeremy-Dooley-ebook/dp/B00KFTZA4C
  
  Though that's a bit young for your audience, showing off different styles of lettering in popular culture (games, movies, etc.) and helping students draw their own alphabets could be fun and engaging.
  
  http://prototypo.io is another extremely hands-on tool after you've explained some of the basic terminology.

My kiddo loves to draw anime comics. You can purchase blank comic books and drawing instructions on Amazon

Drawing Chibi Supercute Characters Easy for Beginners & Kids (Manga / Anime): Learn How to Draw Cute Chibis in Animal Onesies with their Kawaii Pets (Drawing for Kids) (Volume 19)

Blank Comic book: Variety of Templates, 2-9 panel layouts, draw your own Comics

Here ya go.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1338166603/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

If it's not what the first person said it might be

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0036S4D6K/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1

Or the mixed up files of Mrs e basil

A few things I found that they may like:

How to Cosplay: a beginners guild - https://smile.amazon.com/Cosplay-Basics-Beginners-Guide-Costume/dp/1935548816/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1494339073&sr=8-1-fkmr0&keywords=sewing+patterns+for+roleplaying

Wish by Clamp: cute story of an angel who comes to Earth. I love it. n_n - 4 books total. Older series so books are cheap. - https://smile.amazon.com/Wish-1-Clamp/dp/1591820340/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1494339507&sr=8-2&keywords=Wish+manga


Metal brain teasers: https://smile.amazon.com/yueton-Brain-Teaser-Puzzles-Puzzle/dp/B0140RKPY4/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1494339683&sr=8-6&keywords=brain+games

Brain Game book: https://smile.amazon.com/Brain-Games-Clever-Kids-Exercise/dp/1780552491/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1494339742&sr=8-7&keywords=brain+games


Art book: https://smile.amazon.com/Tangle-Art-Meditative-Beautiful-Instruction/dp/B00FKY98DG/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1494339862&sr=1-5&keywords=Art+kits

Natures Art Box: https://smile.amazon.com/Natures-Art-Box-t-shirts-materials/dp/1580174906/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1494340034&sr=8-2&keywords=recycling+arts+for+kids

Crafts: https://smile.amazon.com/Trash-Treasure-Upcycling-Guide-Crafts/dp/193806318X/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&qid=1494340236&sr=8-11&keywords=recycling+crafts+for+kids#reader_193806318X

My first reaction was to send you sex toys. Soooo... NSFW Obviously

However, since that's kind of expensive, I found these awesome books instead.

It seems that your comment contains 1 or more links that are hard to tap for mobile users.
I will extend those so they're easier for our sausage fingers to click!


Here is link number 1 - Previous text "Ish"



----
^Please ^PM ^/u/eganwall ^with ^issues ^or ^feedback! ^| ^Delete

i have this book. It's called "Zoom" and there is another called "Re-Zoom"
http://www.amazon.com/Zoom-Viking-Kestrel-picture-books/dp/0670858048

http://www.amazon.com/Re-Zoom-Istvan-Banyai/dp/014055694X

Here are some books my kids love:

Picture books:

• Boot and Shoe by Marla Frazee - Sweet story of two dog brothers
  
  
• Look! A Book! by Bob Staake - Fun, funny I Spy type book but with an absurd silliness and fun rhymes
  
  
• And it's not really obscure since it's a NYT Bestseller but I'd be remiss if I didn't plug The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt since he's an old friend of mine. Plus my kids love it.
  
  Chapter books:
  
  Most of the chapter books my kids read are part of a series so they aren’t really obscure but my kids love them so I figured I’d note them in case you hadn’t heard of any of them:
  
  
• The Magic Treehouse series is a good series to start with for chapter books
  
  
• Bunnicula is hilarious
  
  
• Encyclopedia Brown – I loved them and now my son loves them
  
  
• Stink – My son loves that Stink and his friends are a lot like him and his friends. Their adventures are very relatable
  
  
• And my five year old daughter and I love Ivy and Bean and their antics. They’re laugh out loud funny and it’s great to have girl books that are about girls horsing around and getting into trouble. Ivy and Bean are real kids, not just precious little princesses in training.
  

Title: The Ghost of Lady Liberty

Genre: Children Historical Fiction Chapter Book (Grades 1-4)

Price: $0.99 (ebook)

Link: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B076YY3CG2/

The response to the first book (Missing Gems of the Taj Mahal https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071NZRDQ2; free until Nov 07) encouraged me to write a second book in the series. Young children can follow along as Sid and Meg try to save history-and themselves-while learning about the Statue of Liberty. History, interesting facts, recent photographs and illustrations enhance the realistic narrative, making this an educational and entertaining book for readers aged 5-10.
Ananya Chopra, a sixth-grader like Sid, illustrated Sid’s journey to Lady Liberty in her friendly style.

Premise:
Sid Cooper is a soon-to-be sixth-grader who loves history, travel and photography—which come together in this second chapter book in a series about travel and adventure while solving a mystery in history.

A visit to the Statue of Liberty takes an unexpected turn when Sid and his sister Meg are magically transported... over 130 years into the past, to when the pedestal was being built, and the statue was still in pieces waiting to be assembled!

Sid and Meg get a first-hand history lesson, but soon realize that the statue may never be built! Sightings of a ghost are scaring the construction workers, who plan to leave the island without completing the pedestal. How will Sid and Meg solve the mystery of the ghost of Lady Liberty and get back to the present?

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07MQW6GZ7/

I think this is a fairly common sort of book. Here's the one I had in the early 90s

That sounds like Making Faces by Norman Messenger

https://www.amazon.com/Making-Faces-Norman-Messenger/dp/156458111X

https://d2ydh70d4b5xgv.cloudfront.net/images/7/8/vintage-book-making-faces-by-norman-messenger-1992-hardcover-by-turn-wah-press-12a921f6c23d9153e55c467325e09c13.jpg

One description on Amazon described flaps featuring such things as "...a dagger in the neck, nails in the head, screw through the nose, and safety pins in the ears..."

*Edited to add links

https://www.amazon.com/Spider-Man-Ultimate-Guide-Amazing-Publishing/dp/0756626757 or an earlier edition of this seems like the best bet.

You're probably referring to Spider-Man: The Ultimate Guide. A popular Scholastic offering at schools.

HEY /u/PittPensPats, I THINK I MIGHT HAVE A COUPLE OF BOOKS YOU MIGHT WANT TO CHECK OUT:

CDB! AND CDC? BY WILLIAM STEIG.

I'M JOKING OF COURSE, AND THOUGH I WOULDN'T WISH HARDSHIP ON ANYONE, BECAUSE OF YOUR WAGER WITH AISHAAA, I HOPE YOU HAVE TO GO VOWEL-LESS FOR AT LEAST 3 MORE GAMES. :)

EDT: CPTLS. :D

This reminds me of an amazing graphical book Zoom and its sequel Rezoom:
http://www.amazon.com/Zoom-Picture-Puffins-Istvan-Banyai/dp/0140557741
http://www.amazon.com/Re-Zoom-Istvan-Banyai/dp/014055694X/ref=pd_bxgy_b_text_y
Very worth their price.

Batman Encyclopedia (NOT a list of stories):
http://www.amazon.com/Essential-Batman-Encyclopedia-Robert-Greenberger/dp/0345501063/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1422692616&sr=8-1&keywords=batman+encyclopedia&pebp=1422692629398&peasin=345501063

Another Batman Encyclopedia:
http://www.amazon.com/Encyclopedia-Comic-Book-Heroes-Original/dp/1401213553/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1422692616&sr=8-5&keywords=batman+encyclopedia

The DC Encyclopedia:
http://www.amazon.com/DC-Comics-Encyclopedia-Updated-Expanded/dp/0756641195/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1422692616&sr=8-7&keywords=batman+encyclopedia


Batman: The World of the Dark Knight (has overview entire run, plus story synopsis for some stories)
http://www.amazon.com/Batman-World-Knight-Daniel-Wallace/dp/0756692490/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1422692616&sr=8-3&keywords=batman+encyclopedia

I don't particularly recommend any of these books, but you kept saying that word encyclopedia so, well, those three may interest you.