A pie is a small machine for making plot. It has to be assembled, which means gathering, waiting, and at least one thing going wrong; it has to cool on a windowsill, which means somebody will try to take it; and eventually it has to be cut, which means deciding who gets a piece. Children’s authors have noticed. In these books a pie turns up as a peace offering, a witch’s lunch order, a Thanksgiving catastrophe, a family inheritance, and the reason an entire town is lined up outside a shop at dawn.
Drawing from Bookroo’s collection of pie books, our editors chose read-alouds that survive a tenth reading, garden-to-table and true-history titles worth pairing with an afternoon in the kitchen, and longer stories where a crust recipe carries real weight. Start with our fixed shortlist of 12 favorites, then browse picture books for baking season and the Thanksgiving table, and chapter books for readers ready to solve a pie-shop mystery on their own.
Dad claims to know a recipe that gets rid of enemies for good—but the first step is spending an entire day with Jeremy Ross.
The market is closed, so the only way to get the ingredients is a trip to Italy, France, Sri Lanka, England, Jamaica, and Vermont.
Gritch the Witch has the recipe and the appetite. All she is missing is eight plump piggies from Old MacDonald’s farm.
Ol’ Bear wants Ugly Pie, and not one neighbor has a pie ugly enough, so he collects their leftovers and bakes it himself.
The old lady begins Thanksgiving dinner with an entire pie and keeps going—squash, salad, turkey—until she outgrows the dining room.
A pie cut open on a Fourth of July picnic blanket opens a quiet list of everything else a day can be divided into.
The pie leads back to the apples, the tree, the roots, the rain, and the wide, wide sky, one cumulative line at a time.
Molly plants one seed in spring and follows the vine through bees, rain, and harvest to a pumpkin pie on a crowded table.
Georgia Gilmore cooked and sold pies out of her Montgomery kitchen to keep boycotters riding in carpools instead of city buses.
A pie vanishes from the bakery window, and detectives Sam Cat and Dudley Pig follow the crumbs through a run of short Busytown cases.
When the town’s beloved Pie Queen dies, she leaves her secret crust recipe to her cat—and the cat to her ten-year-old niece.
Cady arrives in a mountain town with nothing, moves in with an aunt she has never met, and sets out to save a failing pie shop.
Baking-day comedy, holiday tables, contests, sharing, and pies gathered ingredient by ingredient, for ages 3–8.
A witch's messy house hides the key to her favorite pie.
Amelia Bedelia dives into autumn's wonders, from colorful leaves to apple pie.
A young girl faces her food fears to find the perfect Thanksgiving pie.
A spicy pie and a cunning wolf—can Little Red outsmart danger?
Cake and Pie face off in a dessert duel to settle their rivalry.
A girl bridges distance and illness with her grandfather through their love of pie.
Pirate rodents seek the ultimate dessert treasure, battling storms and rivals.
Can Grandpa and grandchild bake a surprise apple pie for Grandma?
A small bird craves a bigger slice of life and pie.
Can Liz help an injured goose reunite with his flock before winter?
A woodchuck and friends plot to snag a tempting pie.
A farewell turns sweet with a pie party, uniting friends and community.
Missing-pie mysteries, bake-off disasters, and pie shops worth saving, for independent readers ages 6–12.
A pie-eating contest at Rotten School could win Bernie a coveted watch.
Pigeon detectives race to find stolen tarts before they go stale.
Pies vanish before the contest. Can Detective Bones solve the mystery?
A Fourth of July fair turns chaotic. Is it a jinx or sabotage? Two young detectives investigate.
A cookie shop owner must save the city from a giant sea monster with the help of a robot and a future spy.
Can Dora and Boots find the perfect pumpkin for Abuela's pie?
