5 Silly Thanksgiving Books for Kids

Children learn well from their picture books. Celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday with some of these fun and silly Thanksgiving picture books for kids.

Five Silly Turkeys by Salina Yoon

This is a silly board book with counting rhymes, based on turkeys. It's designed for toddlers and preschoolers, and counts down from five to one.

This book is available from Penguin Group, ISBN 9780843114164.

I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Pie by Alison Jackson

This book is hilarious and a must-read every year in my classroom. Jackson has taken the classic song, "I Know an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly" and substituted words to make it all about Thanksgiving. It starts when the Old Lady swallows a pumpkin pie, that was really too dry. So, she swallows some cider, and continues to make her way through the entire Thanksgiving feast. The kids particularly love when she lets out a huge burp at the end. While this book is fun to read, it is even better to sing!

This book is available from Puffin Books, ISBN 9780140565959.

Over the River and Through the Woods by Lydia Marie Child

This book isn't necessarily silly, but it is a lot of fun to read or sing aloud. Did you know that this favorite song is actually about the Thanksgiving holiday? Some people use parts of it for Christmas, as well. Sing the song and enjoy the illustrations in this board book.

This book is available from North South Books, ISBN 9780735821538.

Thanksgiving Mice! by Bethany Roberts

The mice featured in Bethany Roberts's stories love to celebrate all of the holidays. In this story, the silly mice put on a Thanksgiving play about when the first mice came over with the Pilgrims. It's a mix of fiction and history.

This book is available from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, ISBN 9780618604869.

'Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving by Dav Pilkey

Dav Pilkey is famous for his crazy and comical Captain Underpants series for kids. His take on the classic poem by Clement C. Moore takes a whacky twist when a group of kids visit a turkey farm. As soon as they find out that their fine-feathered friends are going to be slaughtered for the Thanksgiving meal, they plot to set all of the free. Smuggling them home in their shirts, the children end up having vegetarian dinners, with some special flighty guests.

This book is completely ridiculous and silly, yet the children love it. Younger children get a kick out of the whacky illustrations by Pilkey. Older children can appreciate a deeper message.

This book is published by Scholastic, Inc., ISBN9780439669375.