Fall is here, Halloween is coming and that means we break out our favorite pumpkin books for kids! We love reading these stories when the temperature drops, the pumpkin spice lattes come out, and we get to picking out spooky costumes.
Children’s pumpkin books are perfect for fall
Whether you are getting into the Halloween spirit with your family, getting ready for Thanksgiving, or simply celebrating the arrival of Fall with visits to the pumpkin patch and the orchard for apple-picking, we love pumpkin books!
Pumpkin books for kids can be used in a variety of manners. Not only can you discuss pumpkins in connection with seasons and the holidays, but you can also incorporate them into conversations about farming, the harvest, and cultural traditions from around the world. Pumpkin books can be used to introduce activities in your kitchen or in your garden, and small pumpkins even make great tools to help kids with numeracy and math skills!
Our favorite pumpkin book for kids
When Halloween is around the corner, we adore Pick a Pumpkin, featured first in our list below. Our family has forever enjoyed pumpkin carving traditions, and I love the way this pumpkin book highlights one family’s special traditions. From picking out the perfect pumpkin to carving its face to getting ready for trick or treating, Pick a Pumpkin does everything right. I also love the gorgeous, vibrant illustrations featured in the story. Jarvis is hands down one of our family’s favorite illustrators!
Frequently asked questions
Yep! Many families around the world don’t celebrate Halloween for various reasons. Thus, there are many pumpkin books for kids that feature everyone’s favorite big orange fruit (yes, I promise it’s a fruit!) without any mention of the holiday. These are featured in the “Seasonal pumpkin books for kids” section below.
Use books, of course! Many stories help children learn about the farming, growth, and harvesting of pumpkins. Some books teach kids about the different parts of a pumpkin. Books are always my go-to resource.
Pumpkin Trouble, by Jan Thomas, which is featured below! Jan Thomas never fails to make me laugh, and both the story and illustrations in this pumpkin-themed book are a winner for young kids, every single time!
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Halloween-themed pumpkin books for kids
If your family has a pumpkin carving ritual, you will absolutely love this fabulous book and its vibrant, retro-styled illustrations. From picking out the perfect pumpkin to cleaning out the insiders to carving a spooky face and lighting it up with a candle inside, children will recognize their own Halloween traditions in this great story with pitch-perfect rhyming text!
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Stumpkin is a beautiful pumpkin! He’s round and bright orange, and he doesn’t even have a blemished side! He’d make the perfect Halloween jack-o-lantern, except for one small problem. Poor Stumpkin doesn’t have a stem! Instead, there’s nothing there. Just a stump. And no one seems to want a stemless pumpkin for Halloween. Will Stumpkin ever get his chance to be the fabulous jack-o-lantern he knows he can be?
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If you love We’re Going on a Bear Hunt as much as we do, you will love this Halloween spin on the classic book! Three trick-or-treaters are on the hunt for a perfect pumpkin, but they end up encountering cobwebs and bats and a haunted house! But are they scared? No! Your young readers will delight in this children’s Halloween book that lends itself well to singing and activity!
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While this book isn’t solely about pumpkins, this cover just wins me over every time! I love this countdown to Halloween, a fun and spooky twist on a traditional preschool rhyme. It begins with ten spooky pumpkins, then nine black cats followed by eight screeching bats. It’s a rhythmic read-aloud and a perfect lead-in to the holiday!
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RELATED: We have an excellent list of kindergarten read-alouds that make storytime rock. Be sure to check them out!
Um, did this pumpkin just quack? Poor duck! What happens when he cleans out his pumpkin to get it ready for carving -and then falls inside it and gets stuck? Jan Thomas can always get me to laugh. Her characters are awesome, her storylines fun, and the illustrations are vibrant and easy for kids to follow. This is one of my favorite Halloween books for toddlers!
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Seasonal pumpkin books for kids
It’s fall, and since the leaves are now red and green, one young girl is going on an adventure. Join the child and her family on Comstock Farm as they spend the day picking apples — and searching for a perfect pumpkin! This is such a lovely fall book for preschoolers!
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Our favorite mouse from If you Give a Mouse a Cookie is back, and this time, he’s decorating all of the pumpkins in the patch! But what happens when a pumpkin goes missing? Not only is this simple board book adorable, but it’s a great one to use to help kids with counting and learning about their emotions, too.
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In an old white cabin in the woods, three pals make pumpkin soup the same way, day after day. Cat slices the pumpkin, Squirrel stirs in the water, and Duck adds the salt. One day, though, Duck wants to mix it up. He wants to stir the soup, not pour the salt! This causes quite the debacle, and Duck leaves the cabin in a tizzy. Can the three friends learn about compromise and how to share?
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Amara can’t wait to host a potluck meal for her friends! But first, she must find pumpkins for her tasty treats. What do we know about pumpkins? We love the way this pumpkin book for kids invites readers into the story to hunt for pumpkins and compare this fruit to the other produce growing in Amara’s garden.
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This is a wonderful and informative pumpkin book for kids. National Geographic Kids takes readers on a journey from seed, to sprout to pie, imparting knowledge through simple, factual text and beautiful photographs. If you are looking for a great nonfiction pumpkin book, this is a winner!
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For your older kids, this is a fabulous story to read in connection with any math or science lesson. Mr. Tiffin’s students gather around to determine how many seeds are in a pumpkin – will the big, medium or small pumpkin have the most? This is a great pumpkin book to use in connection with skip-counting and estimation, and it also teaches about kindness and cooperation, too.
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What are your favorite pumpkin books for kids? Let us know in the comments below!
Happy reading!
RELATED: Looking for books about Thanksgiving for your bigger kids? Check out this awesome list!
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