Inspiring Picture Books About Courage

The start of a new school year – especially during these uncertain times – is a perfect opportunity to remind kids about the inner strength they possess! Here is a batch of new picture books about courage to inspire the little ones in your life.

Picture Books About Courage

Disclosure: I received complimentary copies of the books below for review purposes; however, all opinions are my own. This post contains affiliate links. If you click through and make a purchase, I receive a small commission at no extra charge to you.

These picture books about courage are wonderful tools to inspire and encourage your little ones!

Go Get ‘Em, Tiger! is part of a collection of positive, values-driven children’s books created by two sisters. I’ve been lucky enough to review several of their books, including Kindness Rules! (read my review). Go Get ‘Em, Tiger! is color-tastic inspirational book that would be perfect for any child reaching a major milestone, such as starting a new year of school. This board book celebrates those wonderful values the child has developed, like kindness and curiosity. It also gives them a confidence boost for the next chapter, when they will be bold in exploring, make new friends, and show courage as they lead the way for others.

Ship in a Bottle is the story of a little mouse who just wants a safe place to live. She is forced to leave her first home because of a cat constantly on the prowl, and thus begins an epic journey that will draw on all Mouse’s courage and perseverance. She makes several stops at potential homes, but at each one her meager resources, which she shares so generously, are taken by selfish animals. In the end, she finds a new home in a city park with a diverse group of friendly animals. A poignant allegory about refugees that will help children find their own courage.

Lion Needs a Haircut is a fun story about a little lion who refuses to go to the barber. His loving father tries to convince him by guessing at his possible objections: Is he scared it will hurt? Worried about how it will look? The young lion only agrees to go if his father gets his mane cut, too. As it turns out, the big lion is worried about getting a haircut, too! With gentle humor, the little lion teaches his father that fears are best faced together.

Willow the Armadillo wants nothing more than to be a superhero in a picture book. She works harder than anyone else at the Picture Book Academy but is rejected at every audition. No one takes her seriously! Her determination finally falters, and Willow is forced to accept the fact that maybe she wasn’t meant to be a picture book hero. But an emergency at the library shows that, thanks her selflessness and courage, Willow is definitely a hero in real life!

This Way, Charlie is a story of the power of friendship to overcome barriers. When Jack the goat arrives at Open Bud Ranch for rehabilitation, everyone can see that he wants his space. Over time, he reluctantly forms a tentative friendship with Charlie, as Jack serves as a guide for the horse, who is slowly going blind. Yet one day Charlie’s optimism wears on Jack’s nerves, and he takes out his long buried anger on his only friend. But when a powerful storm overtakes them, Jack is forced to confront his fears and summon help to save Charlie.

Ergo is a relatable story about a little chick who is just trying to figure out the world and her place in it. At first Ergo thinks her little egg is all that exists of the world, but she soon realizes that there must be more outside of it. However, trying to imagine what that might be only frightens her, and she must summon all of her courage to break her shell. A wonderful metaphor for the rewards of stepping beyond your comfort zone to explore the wider world.

What little kid doesn’t dream of being an astronaut? In Goodnight, Astronaut, astronaut Scott Kelly shares his own journey from just dreaming about adventures to living them! In this sweet bedtime story, Kelly shows children all of the interesting places where he’s slept over the years, from the bottom of the ocean to the top of Mount Everest and, of course, in space! A wonderful book to send children off into their own dreams of adventure.

It’s important to teach our children about the hidden figures of history, whose stories are too often forgotten. People like Anna Strong, a real life hero of the American Revolution who helped win the war by doing the dangerous work of spying on the British. The new picture book Anna Strong: A Spy During the American Revolution tells about the ingenious methods she devised to pass on her secret messages – such as how she hung her wash. No British soldier suspected that a housewife would be relaying coded messages just by how she hung her clothes to dry! It wasn’t only the generals that won the war, so let’s share these stories of lesser known bravery.

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