Best Baby Books to Promote Intellectual Growth in the UK

Review & Comparison, Last Update March 23, 2024
Books offer a great pastime for you and your baby to build a stronger parent-to-child bond and get your kiddie started on literacy ...Read more
PROS

Each book in the set is focused on a certain aspect of basic knowledge and will help kiddie learn common animals, colours, and grasp the basics of opposite notions. 

CONS

The pages tend to stick together. 

OUR VERDICT

What you'll get is a thought-out bundle of educational little books from Julia Donaldson who is the author of the world's popular classic children's books, the Grufallo and the Grufallo's Child. Knowing what kids want, the author knows how to get them interested and induce them to learn. They will eagerly study with their favourite character.

detailed parameters
Age Range

1+ year

Subject

4 books: Numbers, Animal actions, Opposites, Colours

Book Type

Board book, Paperback, Misc. supplies

Author/ Publisher

Julia Donaldson

Number of Pages

48 pages

PROS

All story books in the bundle are illustrated by R.W. Alley whose pictures in other books about Paddington Bear were duly appreciated by trustworthy critics. Thus, all books feature the same lovely style all kids admire. 

CONS

The size of the book is pretty small. 

OUR VERDICT

If your kiddies love Paddington Bear just like you did in the childhood, these story books will become their faves from the very first lines.  Be sure they will follow their much-loved bear friend through colourful and eye-catching pages with great interest, got hooked and fascinated by his adventures.

detailed parameters
Age Range

1+ year

Subject

4 books: Paddington – The Arrival, Paddington at Home, Paddington at the Seaside, Paddington Goes Shopping

Book Type

Board book

Author/ Publisher

Michael Bond

Number of Pages

32 pages

PROS

Chunky and easy-grip picture tabs will help kiddies turn pages in their own and easily find the necessary book section. Though the font is a bit funky, it is pretty big and easy to read.

CONS

It might seem a bit too much on each page to keep smaller infants engaged. 

OUR VERDICT

If you seek to induce and promote your kid's early development, the "Let's Get Talking" board book is definitely worth your attention. Abounding in catchy pictures and smartly organized, it will let your children develop and train their speaking, listening, and observational skills, while not getting bored or distracted.

detailed parameters
Age Range

1 - 3 years

Subject

Book for preschool learning

Book Type

Board book, Kindle edition

Author/ Publisher

Dawn Sirett

Number of Pages

28 pages

PROS

Classic Potter style illustrations come in a soft colour palette, which is good for little readers. Each double-page contains a single illustration or a simple word that is easy to remember. Sturdy cover and thick pages are exceptionally tear-resistant.

CONS

Pictures look a little blurry. 

OUR VERDICT

Based on The Tale of Peter Rabbit stories by Beatrix Potter, this bundle of educational books is a real find both for smaller infants who only make their first steps towards learning new words and basic concepts and for elder toddlers who start learning to read.

detailed parameters
Age Range

1 - 3 years

Subject

4 books: Words, Numbers, Shapes, Colours

Book Type

Board book

Author/ Publisher

Beatrix Potter

Number of Pages

48 pages

PROS

Thanks to a repeated ending on each double-page, you can make a nice rhyme when reading and kids can join in as they know what happens next. Thus, the book sets up a simple flowing story great for a bedtime read. 

CONS

The pages are quite empty. 

OUR VERDICT

"Dear Zoo: Lift the Flaps" by Rod Campbell is a must-have classic board book for every child's bookshelf. Offering interactive experience via lifting the flaps and mimicking hide-and-seek game, it promotes fine motor skills and logical thinking. 

detailed parameters
Age Range

0 - 2 years

Subject

Simple story (helps learn names of animals)

Book Type

Board book, Paperback, Audiobook, Illustrated pop-up

Author/ Publisher

Rod Campbell

Number of Pages

18 pages

Learn With the Gruffalo

Kids are more eager to learn via play, that’s a common truth that stands behind many educational books for the smallest. Yet, not all of them are as captivating and engrossing as books from My First Gruffalo Library.

This book bundle was created by Julia Donaldson, the author of globally popular prize-winning books The Gruffalo and The Gruffalo’s Child that were sold in more than 17 million samples and translated into 75 languages. A fabulous scary creature is adored by millions of children worldwide, so, no wonder the author has picked him to be the kids’ guide to learning basics since it’s always more interesting to explore something new with somebody you already know.

Coming down to the books themselves, the set consists of four books all linked by the fancy character of Gruffalo and focused on Colours, Animal actions, Opposites, and Numbers. Each book has six double pages featuring bright eye-popping cartoon illustrations on a colourful background. In general, the first five pages describe the main subject via clear pictures, be it numbers, common animals, basic colours, and opposite notions like big and small, and the last page is, so to say, a recap to let little once repeat and remember what they’ve learned.

The books are available both in board and paperback versions for your choice. However, board books will definitely serve you for longer, especially if you buy the set for 1-year infants who tend to tear and chew book pages.

The Size Matters

The books included in the set are pretty small and some customers even claim they are tiny. However, given the age range they are meant for, which is smaller infants of 1 year, they are sized just right. Thanks to a palm-long size, they will nicely fit into little hands and are easy to hold and turn the pages with little fingers. As a result, kiddies can sit and play with the books on their own if they want to. Besides, it’s a perfect size for travels to entertain your little fidgets during trips, journeys, and long car rides. The books come in a nice small cardboard sleeve, so, you can store them together and put into any travel bag without a hassle. In the meantime, they are both lightweight and sturdy enough to withstand some rough usage while the kid is still learning to be gentle with books. More than that, each of the books is also available in a large size and can be bought separately.

To round things up, what you’ll get is a quality picture book set for babies that will help little Gruffalo fans get involved in the learning process together with their favourite character.

Last updated price £4.49
Stock In stock
ASIN B007YXPNYY

A Blast From the Past

Paddington Bear is a staple character of stories for children who has been much loved and appreciated by several generations of kids for now and is still widely popular among toddlers and their parents. A funny and adorable bear in a red hat and blue coat first appeared in 1958 and used to have a natural capacity of getting into trouble, yet, he always tried to get things right. Created by Michael Bond over 60 years ago, this character is the embodiment of kindheartedness, politeness, friendliness, and openness. As such, he still holds to this image today and evokes only positive emotions. Paddington bear stories are already a piece of classics that bring back childhood memories for many parents today and are still loved by smaller kids. Now, Paddington is also a movie star and if your kid watched the Paddington Bear movie or has a Paddington Bear soft toy, he or she would love to meet a familiar face on the book pages indeed.

The Paddington Library is a compilation of four small board books bundled together and narrating the stories about Paddington bear. Packed into a cute slipcase, these books are just great to take out wherever you go with your little one and also make a nice gift idea for toddlers or expecting moms who have already started building the first library for their babies.

The four books are Paddington: the Arrival, Paddington at the Seaside, Paddington at Home, and Paddington Goes Shopping. They will help your kid find out how Paddington bear made his way from Peru to London and got into a loving family as well as tap into some of his simple yet hilarious everyday adventures. Even if your child has never come across Paddington, be sure, the kiddo will like this character from the very first lines.

A Choice for the Youngest

Though Paddington is loved by kids and adults alike, this mini-book collection was definitely created for the youngest. Everything here, from the books’ design to the content, is meant for babies. Thus, the books are small to be easily handled by little hands and thick cardboard pages are resistant to tear and bending. Meanwhile, all books have rounded page corners to be safe for the smallest.

Sturdy and kid-friendly design aside, the stories are laid in a very simple and easy-to-understand language. The sentences are short and contain no tricky words or phrases. And all pages are mostly pictures with only a few lines of text.

Infants are little observers, so, illustrations are highly important as well. The book is stuffed with original illustrations made by R.W. Alley whose Paddington Bear pictures were duly appreciated by numerous strict and trustworthy critics. All pictures are lovely and childish and come represented in vivid colours to grab the little one’s attention and lead them through the story till the end.

All things considered, the Paddington Library books are a valuable piece of classic read perfect both for babies and for toddlers who are raving about Paddington Bear.

Additional Info

    Manufacturer

Last updated price £5.09
Stock In stock
ASIN 0008195803

A Perfect First Book for Toddlers

Toddlers are naturally curious as well as they are naturally fidgety. In the age from 12 to 36 months, kiddies actively explore the environment and start acquiring some basic knowledge. Yet, they have sort of itty-bitty attention span and making them sit still to learn is a kind of challenge. However, addicted to everything bright, they won’t let a good book with eye-popping pictures like the Let’s Go Talk book go amiss.

Speech is developed via talking and vocabulary is built via reading and learning. With that in mind, this book is stuffed with bunches of most common words a child should know, all accompanied and maintained by bright illustrations. By visualising each word with a picture, it’s easier for little minds to build meaning-to-notion connections and remember new words. It’s notable that pictures are not imaginary drawings but real-life photos that will help children easily recognize the objects in the real world. Apart from colourful images with names, the book also contains a host of questions a parent can use to share and enjoy the learning process with a kid as well as check the kiddo’s knowledge and progress.

To continue, the quality book content comes packed into a quality design. You’ll get a board book made of rather thick yet lightweight cardboard to endure active daily use and smaller kids’ impact. As such, it is resistant to wear and tear and is not that easy to damage somehow. Though not too small, the book is still conveniently sized for toddlers to handle it on their own without a hassle.

Smartly Organised

In addition to multi-colour attention-grabbing illustrations and sturdy board design, the book is also cleverly organised. All words are smartly divided into categories including body parts, food, pets, household items, clothes, toys, vehicles, farm animals and wild animals, park, beach, colours, shapes, and numbers. Besides, unlike many other educational first books for toddlers that come complete with regular tables of contents normally printed at the beginning of the book and supposing a kid might need your help to find the necessary info, the word categories here are represented on handy thematic tabs around the outside of the book. Welcoming and inviting, those lovely tactile tabs will allow the kid to quickly turn pages and learn related words by pointing to images.

To conclude, the Let’s Get Talking is a wisely compiled first book for infants and toddlers that will help inquisitive minds to grow their vocabulary and train their speaking, listening, and observational skills.

Additional Info

    Manufacturer

Last updated price £6.99
Stock In stock
ASIN 1405370130

Follow the Rabbit

Beatrix Potter is yet another famous name in children’s literature. Her first book The Tale of Peter Rabbit saw the world in 1902 and has become a one-time love for several generations of kids since then. It’s a kind of lovely animal-inspired story that grandmas used to tell to their grandchildren and those will then tell it to their own kids. Beside this one, she also created a whole series of stories built around animal characters, yet, Peter Rabbit still takes the lead. So, if you want to introduce this classic character to your child while inducing a kid to learn some basic concepts, this book set will get you covered.

Created with infant and toddler developmental needs in mind, it’s a great bundle of first books, all inspired by legendary Peter Rabbit. That said, apart from well-known tale characters a kid will meet on the book pages, all books are designed in a uniform style, which is considered to be the branded Potter style. It stands out for a bit old-fashioned drawings that have some sort of retro vibe to them and still look very nice and cute. The colour pallet is very soft and mild, with blue tones prevailing in backgrounds and covers. It’s notable that this type of colours is the best option for smaller kids since neutral colours are considered more favourable for babies while contrasting colour combinations will still attract your little one’s attention.

Each book consists of 12 pages and is built around common early concepts all kiddies start learning first. These are numbers, shapes, colours, and some simple words. To hold the child’s attention span and get them interested, the pages are not overloaded with spotty illustrations and text. In fact, each page contains a single picture or only one simple word, which makes it easier for an infant to remember words and relate them to objects and concepts. At the same time, featuring words printed in clear mid-sized fonts, thee books are also helpful for elder toddlers who already learn to read.

Affordable Quality

Something else to like about this beautiful book set is the price to quality ratio it offers. The whole bundle will cost you about 5 pounds, which is more than an honest price for 4 sturdy board books. With both cover and pages made of thick and durable laminated cardboard, these books can easily withstand “attacks” of smaller babies who are prone to chewing the page corners and trying to tear the pages. You can rest assured, they’ll hardly be able to do it.

To add more, an attractive slipcase the books come packed into makes this kit a nice idea for baby shower, Christmas, or christening party gift. No toddler will resist playing with those eye-catching books and learn as they play.

In brief, My First Little Library is a pack of amazing picture books with a time-tested classic story behind. It will come to the liking of all smaller kids and make a useful contribution to the nursery library.

Last updated price £5.09
Stock In stock
ASIN 0723267030

A Piece of Interactive Classics

Nothing is as great as classics and the same is true for children’s literature, especially when it comes to books for the smallest. In all times, kids developed following pretty much the same patterns and things that captivated infants a hundred years ago will most likely attract their attention now. Without going that far, The “Dear Zoo” baby book was written by Rod Campbell 25 years ago and confidently passed the test of time. Today, it is not less popular among kids and their parents, and deservedly so.

At a glance, the book is fairly simple and there is nothing special about it. However, a solid hardcover with imprinted golden letters looks catchy and gives the whole book a touch of luxury. So, it will definitely catch your attention and induce you to peek inside. And the whole story will turn out really interesting and exciting. In Dear Zoo, a kid writes an imaginary letter to the zoo asking for a pet animal and views through a number of wild animals that simply don’t fit as pets. While reading, the child will have a chance to guess who is hidden beyond the lift-flaps mimicking crates and cages to see what animal the zoo has sent this time. Besides, each picture provides some sort of clue to help toddlers identify an animal lying underneath. And you are welcomed to ask your tiny tot some questions to induce a conversation. Thus, in a playful and engaging manner, your little one will get involved in a kind of interactive game that will be fun for both of you.

Some customers, though, claim that book pages are quite empty and the font is rather plain. At the same time, this simplicity along with a sturdy board design is what makes this book a perfect match for smaller infants. There won’t be a lot of stuff distracting the child’s attention from the main idea. Meanwhile, nicely sized pictures in soft colours and tactile flaps will let you use the book even for newborns as they start showing interest to surrounding objects.

... and a Great Bedtime Story

A good choice for active daytime plays, the “Dear Zoo” book by Rod Campbell will also work great as a bedtime read. Each page contains some repeated lines that a kid will eventually remember. It will let you make nice rhymes when reading and invite your child to join in as he or she already knows what is coming and can even predict things. Toddlers love to know what happens next and will eagerly read the rhymes with you. Despite the text being simple, it is still very amusing and makes an easy-flowing entire story that will engage a little fidget and eventually wind the kid down to sleep.

Summing up, the “Dear Zoo” book is true children’s classics distinguished by a combo of baby’s love of animals and their favourite hide-and-seek game. All of this delighted children decades ago and is still much loved by new generations of little readers.

Last updated price £7.49
Stock In stock
ASIN 0230747728

What Are Baby Books?

It’s never too early to start reading to your little one. You can read to your baby from the very birth since it’s not only an enjoyable time one-to-one with your kid but also a kind of developmental activity with a whole bunch of benefits to it. It will prepare the baby for reading on his or her own from the very childhood as well as boost the brain power and induce the vocabulary growth via sound and visual stimulation, the introduction of emotions and language development.

Though many scientists consider it doesn’t matter what you read to newborns, with good baby books at hand, you’ll have much more chances to get your kid interested and engaged, especially when it comes to toddlers and infants. Usually abounding in bright illustrations and lovely pictures, baby books draw kiddies and lovely stories easily get infants hooked and make them feel fun. A versatile choice of baby books in the nursery will let you entertain your tiny tot at any time and fill those crazy years of infanthood and toddlerhood with even more enjoyable and memorable moments you can share with your child while reading.

In the meantime, Stephen King books will take a decent place on the shelves of horror fans and handy book lights will make the reading time more comfortable.

What Features to Compare

Though most parents choose books intuitively, this task might appear a bit confusing. Thus, to make sure your little one will accept your choice, we’ve made a basic guide to help you replenish your baby’s library with books they will really love.

Age Range

For starters, it is advisable to pick up an age-appropriate book that will meet the needs and interests of a certain age range and help promote age-appropriate skills. Thus, while infant books are more focused on big and catchy simple illustrations, books for toddlers are built around more detailed pictures, word-to-content related images, longer texts, and more complicated rhymes.

Content

When it comes to the book content, it greatly varies depending on the kid’s age as well. Thus, for newborns, large bold pictures with some very simple and short rhymes will look most appealing while infants get more curious and inquisitive and will enjoy the books that encourage some activity and exploration such as peek-a-boo books and samples with some popping figures, furry objects, etc. Starting to grow and develop their language skills, toddlers still like vibrant colours and an abundance of pictures. However, for this age category, best work the books that will introduce some basic notions and situations that will invite your kiddie to discussion and conversation. As they learn, kiddies will adore books that will teach ABCs, numbers, colours, and shapes through play. And the bedtime stories and soothing rhymes or songs will help little fidgets wind down before falling asleep.

Language

A good book will strike your kid’s interest and should not be too difficult for the child. Too many tricky and unfamiliar words will make your little one feel bored. Go for short simple stories and repetitive verses or rhymes for the smallest and stay with some themed books that are based on cartoon characters and fiction stories or fairy tales for toddler-age kiddies.

Book Type and Design

With electronic books taking the lead today, tried and tested old-fashioned hardcover books are still the best option for babies who need not only emotions but also tactile sensations that help them explore the world via interactive experience. In this concern, paper pages with clear, vivid, and bright illustrations are certainly better than those displayed on the touchscreen. And to let a book live a longer life, try to choose board books or those with laminated pages for infants who like to play with books and tend to chew on them.

Did you know?

How to Foster a Love of Reading in Children

Every and each day we read something, from Insta posts and news columns to scientific articles and fiction books. Reading is good in many ways both for kids and for adults. However, while we read for necessity or pleasure, children are often reluctant to read and od it only for studies. Yet, reading for pleasure is different. It was proved that it makes us not only smarter but also healthier. And a kid who is a fond reader from a younger age is a more curious learner and is more likely to succeed in all sorts of studies. So, we’ve made a shortlist of handy tips to help you spark the love of reading in your preschooler.

  1. Be a model for your kid. It’s not a secret that kids are great observers and learn more from what they see. So, instead of talking about it, just do it by yourself. Stop watching TV and curl up with a book and chances are great your little one will do the same.

  2. Make the whole process interactive. For smaller children to get interested in reading, it should be engaging. They can’t passively focus on something and stay still for long. Therefore, let them feel involved by asking questions as you read or reading in different voices for each character.

  3. Spot your kid’s interests. To make your toddler a book enthusiast, skip the intent to read educational stuff only. That might be boring for your child and not what he or she wants to read. It’s more important what your kiddos really like and let them read about the things they love, be it dinosaurs, robots, vehicles, animals, princesses, etc.

  4. Don’t avoid repetition. How often did you read your kid’s favourite book? You might feel like you’ve done it a million times and know it from cover to cover. Believe it or not, the same is true for your children. As much as reading the same thing multiple times might drive you crazy, it is fine for smaller kids. Toddlers simply like to be aware of what happens next and anticipate the events. Just let them enjoy it. Besides, repetition is not a bad thing. It helps develop speech, grow vocabulary, and improve reading comprehension.

  5. Make reading a good habit. Introduce storytime into your child’s daily routine. Read to them before bedtime or a midday nap. Build a baby book library and make books readily available for your child. Besides, encourage reading outside the home. Long car rides and cues in the doctor’s office will be less exhausting with a good book at hand.

  6. Talk about books you’ve read. Discuss with your child the books you’ve read together. Share your opinion and ask your kiddo some questions. You can even organize some kind of parent-and-kid book clubs with your neighbours or family friends to talk about the books together.

All of the above are simple actions that will help make books an integral part of your kid’s life and let your child enjoy reading. And early readers are better grownup thinkers.

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