Museums: Books For Kids
Children’s literature has many notable options when it comes to museums. To help you find the right books for you and your young reader, we’ve compiled a list of the best kids books about museums.
Our list includes board books, picture books, and chapter books. Board books are best for babies and toddlers from ages newborn to 2 or 3. Picture books are generally great options for toddlers and for preschool and kindergarten age children. Picture books are especially enjoyable for adults to read aloud with young kids. The chapter books on our list are generally best for elementary through early middle school age tween kids. You can filter to sort by the best book type for your kid.
When it comes to children’s stories about museums, there are a variety of titles. This list covers everything, from classics like The Jungle Pyramid to popular sellers like Barnum’s Bones.
We hope this list of kids books about museums can be a helpful resource for parents, teachers, and others searching for a new book! As you explore the list, please comment below to let us know what books you would add.
Emily Winfield Martin shows little ones that letting their imaginations run free will lead them into fantastical day dreams. Whether cloud-gazing or wandering through a museum, reading a book or playing in a tide pool, the children in this board book encounter magical creatures such as dragons, unicorns, griffins, and jackalopes.
The newest title in the Welcome to the Museum series focuses its attention on the impressive beasts that once ruled the world: dinosaurs. With artwork from Chris Wormell, this stunningly curated guide to dinosaurs gives readers the experience of a fascinating exhibition from the pages of a beautiful book. Featuring a wonderful range of dinosaurs, from the much-loved triceratops and Tyrannosaurus rex to lesser known species such as coelophysis and tsintaosaurus, Dinosaurium is a fascinating display of the impressive beasts that once ruled the world.
After passing a city museum many times, a boy finally decides to go in. He passes wall after wall of artwork until he sees a painting that makes him stop and ponder. Before long the painting comes to life and an afternoon of adventure and discovery unfolds, changing how he sees the world ever after.
When Isabella has a day off from school, her mother suggests doing something special. Instead, Isabella walks her parents through all of the exciting things they could do as she imagines herself in famous paintings ranging from Van Gogh’s The Starry Night to Warhol’s Campbell’s Soup Cans. Through her musings, Isabella creates a wondrous museum of her own making, showing how home can be the most special place of all!
Documents the work of an early 20th-century paleontologist, named after the famous circus icon by his ambitious parents, who grew up to work for the American Museum of Natural History and discovered the first documented skeletons of the Tyrannosaurus Rex and other noteworthy species. By the author of Pippo the Fool.
Cody and the Heart of a Champion - In Cody’s life, some people keep her on her toes—just like Mother Nature, who is warm one day and snowy the next. Or like Cody’s brother, Wyatt, who has started wearing collared shirts because his girlfriend likes them. Meanwhile, Pearl has begun playing soccer and it’s all she can talk about. Spencer is busy creating a mysterious museum underneath GG’s house and he’s never around to play. And Spencer’s mom doesn’t look any different. . . . Could she really have a baby growing inside her? Maybe the baby is like Cody’s beloved ants, waiting patiently inside the earth for spring to arrive. It seems like everything around Cody is changing—from seasons to friendships—but if she can just navigate it all with her trademark enthusiasm and charm, maybe the most important things will stay the same.
Bookscape Board Books: A Marvelous Museum - Escape into a magical world with this adorable Bookscape Board Book! Discover a a museum’s exhibits in this one-of-a-kind book. Each uniquely shaped page overlaps with the next to create a complete landscape when closed—and an immersive world to explore with each turn of the page when open. Delightfully petite and chunky, this book begs to be picked up thanks to its tactile, toylike quality. With simple concept-based text and jubilant illustrations, A Marvelous Museum provides a light introduction to landscapes kids will recognize—or soon encounter.
Lois Looks for Bob at the Museum - The next two titles in this quirky lift-the-flap book series from illustrator Gerry Turley appeal with their offbeat humor. Little readers will love helping Lois search for her friend Bob behind museum artifacts and encountering their friends along the way.
Pluto is Peeved! - Who can blame Pluto for being peeved after scientists unceremoniously decide he is no longer a planet? Looking for answers, Pluto heads to the science museum! Kids will take a scientific journey side-by- side with Pluto, as he asks what exactly scientists are interested in. Presented in a graphic novel-inspired format Pluto Is Peeved! transforms the vast universe into a fun and informative introduction to astronomy and the scientific method.
Freaky Friday meets Downton Abbey in this middle grade mystery that features a modern day twelve-year-old switching bodies with a Gilded Age heiress in order to solve a famous art heist.
Hannah Jordan lives in a museum…well, sort of. She is the daughter of the caretaker for mansion-turned-museum The Elms in Newport, Rhode Island. Hannah’s captivated by stories of The Elms’s original occupants, especially Maggie Dunlap, the tween heiress subject of a painting that went missing during a legendary art heist in 1905.
But when a mysterious mirror allows Hannah and Maggie to switch places in time, suddenly Hannah is racing to stop the heist from happening, while Maggie gets an introduction to iPhones, soccer (which girls can play!), and freedoms like exploring without supervision. Not to mention the best invention of all: sweatpants (so long, corsets!).
As the hours tick away toward the art heist, something’s not adding up. Can the girls work together against time—and across it—to set things right? Or will their temporary swap become a permanent trade?
During Mason’s birthday sleepover at the natural history museum, friends enjoy a scavenger hunt but Mason has a hard time choosing the gallery in which they will sleep. Includes facts about museums and a list of notable museums that allow sleepovers.
Madame Martine’s friend Louis works at the Louvre Museum. When he suggests Madame Martine and her dog Max come visit him and see the works of art, Madame declines his invitation—she knows dogs are not allowed at the museum. But Max has a different plan! He sneaks into the Louvre and sends Madame and Louis on a chase around some of the world’s most beautiful works of art.
Also published in English as: William Wenton and the luridium thief.
A million dollars’ worth of gold bullion has been stolen from the Wakefield Mint under strange circumstances. Mr. hardy is asked to investigate but before long his life is threatened, and he asks Frank and Joe to help him. The boys fly to Zurich, Switzerland, hoping to get information at the Swiss Gold Syndicate and to find the man who has stolen a valuable ancient gold figurine from a New York museum. Their search on both counts seems futile as they return to the United States where they uncover clues that lead them to an adventure in the Yucatán jungle. But the Hardy’s travels lead to nothing but new doubts and nagging suspicions. And now their lives are in danger.
Ladybug Girl's Day Out with Grandpa - Ladybug Girl and Grandpa visit the museum in the New York Times bestselling series’ latest picture book! Lulu wants to learn everything, but she discovers that sometimes you have to slow down to appreciate the wonder of what’s around you. When Lulu and Grandpa visit the museum, Lulu wants to see it all! Grandpa suggests exploring bit by bit, but Lulu can do it all—she’s Ladybug Girl! But there is so much to see. Even Ladybug Girl may never see it all. Then Grandpa shows her something extra special: the butterfly room! Inside, Lulu slows down. She looks and listens. And she realizes that Ladybug Girl can be like a flower if she holds very still and thinks flower thoughts. When a shining blue butterfly lands on her finger, she understands that even if she can’t learn everything in one day, she can learn so much from each moment, if she only takes the time to look around.
Linus the Vegetarian T. Rex - Meet Linus—a Tyrannosaurus rex who is very brave, very tough, and very…vegetarian? Ruth Ann Mackenzie knows everything about dinosaurs. She knows their names. She knows when they lived. And she certainly knows what they ate. So when she meets Linus, a towering, toothy T. rex who prefers picking vegetables to preying on his herbivorous neighbors, she’s not sure what to think. Is something wrong with Linus? Or does Ruth Ann maybe, just maybe, not know everything there is to know about dinosaurs? Dino lovers young and old will delight in this picture book chock-full of prehistoric personality—and don’t forget to search for the naughty velociraptor duo hidden throughout the book!
Find Spot at the Museum - Spot, the classic character and beloved puppy, is back for another lift-the-flap adventure! After a funny mishap with a dinosaur skeleton, Spot goes missing at the natural history museum. His friends search high and low, in some unexpected places, before finding him at last. This Spot adventure is full of surprises with all the fun and humor that has made the original Where’s Spot? a children’s classic.
The Art Collector - Oscar’s Great-Granny showed him how to draw. Oscar was not good at drawing. But he loved art, so he kept the drawing of a red chicken that Great-Granny gave to him and he loved to look at it. He bought another drawing at a flea market, and he loved looking at that one, too. As he grew up, Oscar collected more drawings and paintings, filling his bedroom with color and shapes and scenes. Oscar collected and collected until a museum had to be built to hold all of his drawings and paintings. Not everyone can become an artist, but as Oscar learned, everyone can love looking at art. Oscar’s passion for the stories in paintings and the thoughts they provoke will inspire young readers to see art in a new way—even if they don’t enjoy making it themselves.
A captivating picture book biography about Howard Carter, the discoverer of King Tut’s tomb in 1922. Howard Carter was obsessed with mummies. He met his first when he was a boy in England and lived near a mansion filled with Egyptian artifacts. Howard dreamed of discovering a mummy himself—especially a royal mummy in its tomb, complete with all its treasures. When he was seventeen, he took a job with the Egypt Exploration Fund and was sent to Egypt to learn about archaeology and excavation sites. And his mummy hunt was on! Howard discovered many amazing artifacts, but he searched for years before coming upon the most famous mummy of all, King Tut. With stunning artwork from Boris Kulikov, and an informative and funny text from Tracey Fern, Howard and the Mummy is a true story about the challenges of discovery and the rewards of perseverance.
Best friends Hammy and Gerbee—a hamster and a gerbil—find out they’re both in Miss Capybara’s class. On a field trip to the science museum, what are two rodent friends to do but find their own fun (and trouble)? This graphic novel hybrid includes science and history facts on Egypt. Illustrations.
A long, long time ago, dinosaurs roamed the earth.
Some were big, and some were little. Some were fast, and some were slow. Some lived alone, and some lived together. They are gone now, but you can still see their bones at museums all around the world.
Simple text and bold, vibrant illustrations take young explorers on a tour through the time of the dinosaurs.
Did you enjoy our children's book recommendations? Did we miss one of your favorites? Let us know in the comments below!