New year read-alouds are the perfect way to kick off the beginning of the year. You can’t go wrong reading these fabulous books come January. Check out this awesome list!
New Year read-alouds delight young readers.
With the new year around the corner, it’s the perfect time to celebrate! These new year read alouds will help you do just that.
We love using fabulous picture books as a spring board for conversation, and the new year books on this list highlight special traditions, diverse cultures and even making those all-important resolutions. They will give your family a lot to talk about as you discuss your own goals for the new year.
Wherever you are, however you celebrate, be sure to share these wonderful stories with your family. And one thing is for certain – we hope you find yourself reading lots and lots of great books in the new year!
Frequently asked questions
I adore Snow Horses, by Patricia MacLachlan and Micha Archer, featured below. It is a gorgeous, quiet book about tradition, family, and community. I love how it shows people young and old saying goodbye to the last night and hello to the first morning of the sweet new year. It’s breathtakingly beautiful!
Absolutely! We love reading about all kinds of new year celebrations. On this list, A Sweet New Year for Ren is all about the Lunar New Year, and Every Month is a New Year discusses the diverse religious, cultural, and regional New Year celebrations that take place all throughout the year!
I get asked this question all the time, and there’s one simple answer.
Whatever you want! Some families love to keep these holiday books out even past the new year. Others put them away until the holiday approaches again. This keeps the books feeling special once they are pulled off the shelf the next year. There is no right or wrong answer here, and you must do what works best for your family!
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We love these New Year Read Alouds!
In this breathtakingly beautiful book, snow falls heavily on the last night of the year. Two black horses, Tim and Tom, await their sled’s jingle, then pull the sleigh through the town to spread light and joy to the community. Happily, the horses drive down the winding hill, first stopping for the laughing children, then for the grandmothers, grandfathers, aunts, and uncles. From one generation to another, the riders are both joyful and reminiscent as they ride through town and get ready to wake to the first snowy, sunlight morning of the new year. A gorgeous new story about an age-old new year tradition!
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It’s almost the Lunar New Year, and little Ren can’t wait to help her family prepare. There’s just one problem: everyone in her family thinks she is too little to do anything! Luckily, with the help of her brother, Ren learns how to make the perfect pineapple cakes – her favorite! We love this sweet story of family, tradition, and delicious food!
As they prepare for the new year, one family makes their traditional New Year’s soup, a special meal that dates back to the Haitian Revolution. As Ti Gran and Belle cook and dance together, Ti Gran teaches Belle about the soup’s history, as well as the history of their family and Haiti, too. We love this celebration of culture and passing down traditions from one generation to the next. A joyful read!
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Ava Gabriela visits her family in Colombia for the holidays, and she loves to partake in all of the family traditions, like making delicious bunuelos. Yet, there’s one small problem: Ava’s family is loud loud LOUD, and Ava is awfully shy! Will Ava miss out on all of the New Year’s fun, or will she be able to find her voice before the festivities are over?
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In this sweet board book perfect for your youngest readers, Spot finds a way to celebrate the new year, even if he is too little to stay up until midnight! Who says you have to stay up all night to wear party hats and delight in the sounds of noisemakers? Your littlest kids will love this delightful new year read-aloud!
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Squirrel knows that everyone makes resolutions at the beginning of the new year, but what is a resolution anyway? Her friends have all decided what they want to do in the new year, and Squirrel is eager to help them with their goals. But Squirre feels stuck. What should her resolution be? Will she figure it out before it’s too late?
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One day, a child gets a chance. It appears seemingly out of nowhere, but he doesn’t embrace it. Instead, he is uncertain and pulls away. When the next chance comes around, he reaches for it and falls. The child inever wants to feel so foolish again! Though the chances keep appearing, the child keeps ignoring them, and they eventually cease. Only then, with his emotions in turmoil, does the boy realize that as scared as he is, he does want to take a chance. Will he find the courage to seize a new opportunity? While this story isn’t centered around the start of a new year, it is one I read with my children every January 1st. I love the way it encourages us to embrace new opportunities, which is a perfect reminder for the start of a new year! For our full review of What Do You Do With a Chance?, click the link!
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Oh no! Grandma prepared a great meal for New Year’s Day, and even though there are chitlins, baked ham, greens, and cornbread to eat she forgot the Black Eyed Peas! Everyone knows it is bad luck to start the year without them, so Shante takes matters into her own hands. Determined to continue her family’s holiday tradition, Shante borrows some from her neighbors and gets cooking! We love this story about food, family and tradition!
We love multicultural picture books, and this gem discusses the diverse religious, cultural, and regional New Year celebrations that take place all throughout the year! While the New Year begins on January 1st in many places around the globe, this isn’t always the case! Chinese New Year occurs in January or February, Iranians celebrate Nowruz in March, and Thai people celebrate Songkran in April. This fabulous book highlights sixteen festivals, from the well-known to the lesser known, and you’ll learn something new on every page!
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