Cale Atkinson

How would you get mail if you lived in the middle of the sea? It’s Jo’s dad’s job to deliver it, taking bottles wherever they need to go. He always comes home with exciting stories to tell-but Jo is far too afraid to go out on the ocean herself. Until Dad gets a bad sea cold, that is. With no one but Jo to deliver the bottles, she must find her courage and set sail alone. As she embarks on her mission, her fears just might be replaced with new friendships . . . and grand stories of her own. With beautiful, atmospheric art and endearing new characters by author-illustrator Cale Atkinson, this picturebook is a treasure.

Off & Away

Allan Ahlberg

Janet Ahlberg

This gorgeously illustrated, full-color classic celebrates a time before email by depicting amusing correspondence between fairy tale and Mother Goose characters. What could possibly be in a letter from Goldilocks to the Three Bears? Who would write to the Wicked Witch? Open this book, take out the letters, and discover what favorite characters would write to each other–and reimagine best-loved tales together.

The Jolly Postman

Akiko Miyakoshi

Akiko Miyakoshi’s enchanting picture book explores how an innkeeper who spends his days at the crossroads of others’ journeys secretly longs to have adventures of his own.

People from all over the world come and go at the innkeeper’s little hotel. He enjoys meeting them, and many even become his friends. Only, sometimes, when he goes to sleep at night, the desire to travel far away himself wells up inside him. He dreams of packing a big bag and journeying wherever he pleases, from one unfamiliar town to another. He imagines stopping to visit friends and having wonderful and unexpected experiences. The innkeeper continues to go about his daily routine at his hotel, but, someday, he is sure, he will explore the world.

This beautiful picture book from multi-award-winning and internationally best-selling author-illustrator Akiko Miyakoshi thoughtfully speaks to the common experience of longing for something new and exciting, while feeling comfort in the familiar. The artwork’s muted colors and soft focus give it a dreamlike quality and, paired with the spare, simple text, invokes wonder, leaving many questions open to interpretation. This book perfectly captures the feeling of wanderlust, of being curious about the world, wanting to see other places and how other people live. It could ignite intriguing conversations with children about what they long to do. Its message is also likely to resonate with adults.

I Dream of a Journey

Drew Daywalt

Oliver Jeffers

I’m not sure what it is about this kid Duncan, but his crayons sure are a colorful bunch of characters! Having soothed the hurt feelings of one group who threatened to quit, Duncan now faces a whole new group of crayons asking to be rescued. From Maroon Crayon, who was lost beneath the sofa cushions and then broken in two after Dad sat on him; to poor Turquoise, whose head is now stuck to one of Duncan’s stinky socks after they both ended up in the dryer together; to Pea Green, who knows darn well that no kid likes peas and who ran away—each and every crayon has a woeful tale to tell and a plea to be brought home to the crayon box.

Look for a special glow-in-the-dark picture [Note: make sure to “charge” it under a light first].

The Day the Crayons Came Home

Rosemary Wells

Ruby is busy sending out party invitations, so Max decides he’ll write a letter too, asking for a special present. But when the postman delivers the letter to Grandma, she thinks Max is just saying hello. So Max sends another letter. It soon becomes clear to Grandma that Max is asking for something special. The only question is what? With eight clever flaps to lift, this heartwarming and interactive picture book gives Rosemary Wells fans even more reasons to love Max and Ruby, who are now starring in their own Nickelodeon television show.

Bunny Mail

Erica Sirotich

Come along on Mail Duck’s delivery route for a day full of lift-the-flap surprises!

Mail Duck is delivering differently shaped packages to all his friends on his mail route. (Trudy likes triangles, and Harry likes hearts!) Lift the flaps to peek inside and guess what each friend received. Then head back to the post office for a big surprise: a thank-you celebration for Mail Duck planned by all his pals using the various packages they received throughout the story! Sixteen flaps and a final double-gatefold spread give readers plenty of sweet and silly details to unpack in this charming board book.

Mail Duck: A Book of Shapes and Surprises

The Jolly Postman rides again with more real letters, and presents, too, in his Christmas postbag.

This gorgeously illustrated, full-color classic celebrates a time before email with an interactive picture book full of real letters to read aloud. The Jolly Postman brings a batch of wonderful letters for Christmas, including notes from the Big Bad Wolf and all the King’s men. Open this book, take out the letters, and discover what favorite characters would write to each other–and reimagine best-loved tales together.

The Jolly Christmas Postman

Sandra Horning

Valeri Gorbachev

multigenerational

hugs

mail

How do you give your granny a hug when she lives far away? Send it through the mail, of course!

Owen’s hug travels across the country in a series of hilarious, sometimes awkward, always heartfelt embraces between animals of different shapes and sizes. Valeri Gorbachev’s adorable artwork pairs beautifully with Sandra Horning’s charming text, and makes for a fun, funny, and educational read-aloud. An unexpected twist at the end will delight readers and have kids asking for this book again and again.

The Giant Hug

Irene Latham

Thea Baker

Agnes has a beak that can crush bones and arms and stretch wide as a car―but that doesn’t make her a monster! After she comes across a postcard, Agnes, a giant Pacific octopus, strikes up a correspondence with various other creatures below―and above―the waves. Readers will delight in this unlikely introduction to the octopus life cycle.

Love, Agnes: Postcards from an Octopus

Samantha Berger

Julia Patton

A long, long time ago, before email and texting, the mail was delivered in a much slower way-it was called Snail Mail (because some thought it was delivered by a snail). Although it took much longer, everyone agreed that letters were a little more special when they were delivered by Snail Mail. They might be handwritten. They might include a drawing. They might even contain a surprise inside! One such letter was sent by a Girl to the Boy she loved, and it was up to four special snails to deliver her card across the country. The snails trek across the country-through desert heat and dangerous blizzards, across mountains and plains, through cities and forests-and along the way, they find that taking time to slow down and look around makes the journey all the more beautiful.

Snail Mail’s playful and educational story encourages kids to have slow living, and to approach life with determination and wonder. Julia Patton’s rich illustrations showcase America’s diverse terrain and national monuments from coast to coast. Kids and parents alike will delight in this celebration of America’s beauty and the power of a simple handwritten letter.

Snail Mail

Ben Clanton

From the author-illustrator of Something Extraordinary comes a tale filled with dragons, pickles, friendship, and lots of mail—perfect for fans of Mo Williams and Bob Shea. Liam really wants some mail, so he writes a letter to his mailbox asking for something in return. His mailbox delivers, sending Liam more than he could have hoped for…and how! But as the mail starts to pile up, Liam realizes that the best packages and parcels are even better when shared with friends.

It Came in the Mail

Richard Ho

Jessica Lanan

The heartwarming story of a package that gets lost, then found and an in-depth behind the scenes look at what happens at the post office, in Richard Ho and Jessica Lanan’s The Lost Package…

The Lost Package

Alexander Steffensmeier

Millie is unlike most other cows. She chews her cud and grazes in the fields with the others, but she doesn’t enjoy that nearly as much as she loves scaring the mail carrier. It’s too bad the mail carrier doesn’t have as much fun each time Millie comes up with a new way to surprise him. Who knew delivering the mail was going to be such a difficult job?

Millie Waits for the Mail (Millie's Misadventures)

Vera B. Williams

Jennifer Williams

Dear Reader,
Here are the postcards and snapshots that Stringbean Coe and his brother Fred sent home from the long trip they made one summer in Fred’s truck.

Their grandfather made this album for the family–and for you. Enjoy yourselves!

Love,
Vera and Jennifer

Stringbean Coe, his big brother, Fred, and their dog, Potato, are driving from Kansas to California in a pickup truck with a little house built on the back. Reading the postcards they send home every day is the next best thing to having a cross-country adventure all your own.
“A good-hearted celebration of life and experience, and a gift to the public.”–School Library Journal

Stringbean's Trip to the Shining Sea

Paul McCartney

Kathryn Durst

The New York Times bestseller from Paul McCartney—an action-packed picture-book adventure celebrating the fun that grandparents and grandkids can get up to. See the compass needle spin, let the magic fun begin! Meet Grandude—a super-cool grandfather who is an intrepid explorer with some amazing tricks up his sleeve. Grandude is a one-of-a-kind adventurer! With his magic compass, he whisks his four grandkids off on whirlwind adventures, taking them all around the globe. Join them as they ride flying fish, dodge stampedes, and escape avalanches! Brought to life with gloriously colorful illustrations from talented artist Kathryn Durst, it’s the perfect bedtime story for little explorers.

Hey Grandude!

P G Bell

A train that travels through impossible places. A boy trapped in a snow globe. And a girl who’s about to go on the adventure of a lifetime.Suzy Smith believes in science. Then the Impossible Postal Express comes roaring through her living room and her world turns upside down. After sneaking on board, Suzy suddenly finds herself Deputy Post Master aboard the train,and faced with her first delivery—to the evil Lady Crepuscula. Then, the package itself begs Suzy not to deliver him. A talking snow globe, Frederick has information Crepuscula could use to take over the entire Union of Impossible Places.But when protecting Frederick means putting her friends in danger, Suzy has to make a difficult choice—with the fate of the entire Union at stake

The Train to Impossible Places

Daniel Montero Galán

Susanna Isern

“A loving tribute to problemsolvers, quarrel menders, and peacemakers.” -Kirkus Reviews.  Each day, the old mailman faithfully delivers special letters to the forest animals. But the mailman has never received any letters of his own. Then one day everything changes. This touching story of friendship and love will delight readers and letter writers of all ages. Guided Reading Level: M, Lexile Level: 710L Check out the booktrailer:  Read the first pages:

The Lonely Mailman

Alexandra Day

Taffy gets the job of delivering the mail in her valley, and her whole family lends a handfrom her two daughters to all fourteen of their animals. But when they discover that some of their neighbors never get any letters, they decide to create their own special deliveries.Starring the family from “The Christmas We Moved to the Barn, “ this warm and wonderful story captures the joy of receiving a letter and delivers it straight to the reader’s heart.

Special Deliveries

Matthew Olshan

Sophie Blackall

Caldecott Medal-winning illustrator Sophie Blackall brings to life this marvelous story, which is full of humor and heart. In Paris, France, there lived a humble postman named Lalouche. He was small, but his hands were nimble, his legs were fast, and his arms were strong. When his job was replaced by an electric car, he turned to boxing to support himself and his pet finch, Genevieve. But–“You? A boxer?” the fighters asked. “I could sneeze and knock you down!” Still, Lalouche refused to give up. And perhaps small Lalouche was just nimble . . . just fast . . . and just strong enough to beat his fierce competitors. Includes an author’s note with historical information about French boxing and electric cars. “A bona fide knockout. C’est formidable!” Publishers Weekly,  Starred

Mighty Lalouche

Holly Hobbie

Celebrate the 10th Anniversary of Toot &amp;amp;amp; Puddle with this redesigned hardcover edition of the story that started a series. This anniversary edition of the book includes a limited edition Holly Hobbie print suitable for framing.One day Toot takes off to see the world, while Puddle decides to stay home. This is the story of their wonderful adventures both far away and right at home. It’s a story about being yourself and being a good friend.

Toot & Puddle [With Limited Edition Holly Hobbie Print]

A postman’s routine turns into an oddball cosmic adventure when he starts a new route in the far reaches of the galaxy.  Bob is a dedicated and deadpan mail carrier who remains unfazed when assigned a new postal route that takes his space ship to surprising planets. One is shaped like a bone and full of cosmic dogs who can’t wait to get a tasty bite out of a postman. The colorful art features extraterrestrials, from a giant blue farmer to a small cactus-like creature, and cinematic views of awe-inspiring alien landscapes. Bob’s adventures to make his five deliveries are as harrowing as they are hilarious in this award-winning graphic novel, perfect for fans of Jeff Smith’s Bone comics. A Junior Library Guild Selection!

Postman from Space

Finn Coyle

Srimalie Bassani

A diverse range of mail delivery people introduce the vehicles that deliver mail all over the world. Children will discover a surprising assortment of vehicles used to deliver mail in different parts of the world, including: a truck, snowmobile, bicycle, motorcycle, and boat. As children are asked if they know where each vehicle delivers the mail, the answer is revealed under a sturdy full-page flap.

About the Finn’s Fun Trucks series: Written by 11-year-old truck enthusiast Finn Coyle, the Finn’s Fun Trucks series provides a vocabulary-rich introduction to transportation for truck-loving children with the help of a diverse range of vehicle operators and community helpers. Each spread has a full page lift-the-flap feature providing a wealth of learning and discovery in each book.

Mail Movers

A diverse range of mail delivery people introduce the vehicles that deliver mail all over the world. Children will discover a surprising assortment of vehicles used to deliver mail in different parts of the world, including: a truck, snowmobile, bicycle, motorcycle and boat. As children are asked if they know where each vehicle delivers the mail, the answer is revealed on the next page.

About the Finn’s Fun Trucks series: Written by 11-year-old truck enthusiast Finn Coyle, the Finn’s Fun Trucks series provides a vocabulary-rich introduction to transportation for truck-loving children with the help of a diverse range of vehicle operators and community helpers.

Guillaume Perrault

Bob strikes back! Join a determined postman on his route across the galaxy in this hilarious graphic novel followup to The Postman from Space. Even as his delivery assignments get stranger and stranger, Bob is a dedicated and deadpan mail carrier who manages to remain unfazed. . . . Most of the time, anyway. This hilarious graphic novel follows Bob to several new planets (and a few old favorites) as he does his best to deliver the mail, train a new mail-carrier, and ends up facing down the infamous outer-space Biker Bandits! The colorful art features extraterrestrials and cinematic views of awe-inspiring alien landscapes, contrasting humorously with Bob’s down-to-earth take on things. His adventures are as harrowing as they are hilarious in this follow-up to the award-winning graphic novel, The Postman from Space,  a New York Public Library best book of the year and selection for the Little Maverick Reading List.A Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection

The Postman from Space: Biker Bandits

Tami Charles

Claire Almon

“The true story of Mary Fields, aka “Stagecoach Mary,” a trailblazing African American woman who helped settle the American West.”–Provided by the Publisher.

Fearless Mary

Brian Biggs

The Tinyville Town series is set in a cozy community where the people are kind, everyone says hello, the bus is always on time, and all the townsfolk do their part to keep things running smoothly. Everyone has a job to do in Tinyville Town. With a nod to the busy world of Richard Scarry and the neighborhood feel of Sesame Street, this series has become a favorite read for preschoolers and is ideal for story time and class discussions about occupations and community helpers. Tinyville Town is a growing, thriving city full of interesting people. They can’t wait to show you around!

I’m a Mail Carrier

Kevin Luthardt

Larabee likes everything about delivering mail, except that he has never received any himself!  
Every morning, the mailman Mr. Bowman and his dog Larabee wake up very early to deliver the mail. Larabee likes riding in the mail truck and carrying the mailbag. He likes delivering the mail, and he always, always makes sure it is delivered on time. There’s only one thing Larabee doesn’t like: There is never a letter for him! Then one day, after all the mail has been delivered, Mr. Bowman reaches into his bag and finds a letter…addressed to Larabee!  
Kevin Luthardt utilizes his highly expressive, comical, full-color illustrations and minimal text to poignantly and humorously dramatize this special tale of the pure joy that can result from the simplest expression of friendship.

Top 10 Mail Books