25 of the Best Christmas Books for Toddlers

With the holidays right around the corner, I felt inspired to find some new Christmas books for toddlers to add to our collection. Christmas is my absolute favorite holiday and we take our holiday books pretty seriously around here.

Having seasonal books is a great way to rotate through the tons of books in our house as well as get us out of reading ruts. You know when your toddler only wants to read that one book over and over and over… 

By switching books in and out, we keep the holiday books new and fresh every year and get a nice break from some of our other favorites.

Also, I’ve seen the idea of making a book advent calendar floating around the internet the past few years. I love the concept of wrapping 24 books to open and read one each day until Christmas! While the extra wrapping has deterred me in the past, I’m considering giving it a try this year. 

Which brings me to my quest for Christmas books for my toddler. Admittedly, I’ve curated quite a collection of classic Christmas books for kids, but I still keep my eyes out for new favorites. This year, I specifically wanted to add some more durable books for my rather destructive one year old. 

I read my little ones every Christmas book we could find to pick the very best. While we found so many great books, I specifically looked for ones that are not too long or wordy that toddlers lose interest. Also, many of the books have flaps or touch and feel areas to keep little ones engaged. 

Since toddlers tend to be a bit rough, all of these listed are available as board books. 

By limiting this list to just toddler-friendly board books, some awesome titles didn’t make the cut. Also for a few I mention other similar books in my comment and specifically state if those are not available as board books.

While they may not exactly be fine literary masterpieces, all of these Christmas board books are toddler approved!

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Here are the 25 Best Christmas for Toddlers:

Curious Baby Curious About Christmas

By H. A. Rey

I can not recommend this Curious George touch and feel book enough. It is a top pick in our house for all ages! The bright colors, different textures, and fun rhymes keep everyone interested. 

Merry Christmas, Little Pookie

By Sandra Boynton

We are big Sandra Boyton fans! This short and sweet story of getting ready for Christmas is a toddler hit. Luckily for the other Boynton enthusiasts, this is not her only great Christmas book! We also love Bob and Christmas Parade (unfortunately, this one is not a board book).

Dream Snow

By Eric Carle

A classic from the brilliant Eric Carle, Dream Snow is cute story of a snowy Christmas on a farm. My kiddos practice counting the animals and love lifting the flaps. While the board book has sturdier flaps, the hardcover copy has a musical sound effect on the last page.

Merry Christmas, Mouse!

By Laura Numeroff

We love all of the If You Give a Mouse a Cookie books, but especially the holidays ones. This book is so fun for little ones to practice counting ornaments as Mouse decorates the tree. If you love Mouse and have a bit longer attention span, If You Take a Mouse to the Movies also has a cute Christmas-y story (but it isn’t available as a board book).

Duck & Goose, It’s Time for Christmas!

By Tad Hills

This silly Duck and Goose book is great for young toddlers. It’s a simple and quick story with fun outdoor winter activities and adorable pictures. 

That’s Not My… Christmas Box Set

By Fiona Wyatt

My toddler loves the That’s Not My… touch and feel books and there are a few different Christmas-y ones to choose from. That’s Not My Snowman is our favorite because it has totally different textures to feel on each page even though it is not actually Christmas specific. We also really like That’s Not My Elf and That’s Not My Reindeer and you can get all 3 (+2 more!) in a Christmas box set. They are all great Christmas books for toddlers.

Spot’s Christmas

By Eric Hill

I grew up with the Spot books so it’s really neat to be able to share them with my kids now. This one is a short and sweet story of Spot getting ready for Christmas. Spot’s First Christmas is another festive favorite and includes the usual flaps which my kids love.

Llama Llama Holiday Drama

By Anna Dewdney

This is a fun story about the excitement and anticipation of getting ready for Christmas. A bit on the longer side compared to most of these books, it’s rhythm, rhyming, and pictures keep even my toddler interested. For shorter attention spans, we also love Llama Llama Jingle Bells, which reads much quicker with only a few words per page.

Where Is Baby’s Christmas Present?

By Karen Katz

This lift-the-flap book is so much fun for little ones! My kids love the bright colorful pictures and looking for Baby’s present under each flap. 

Christmas Cookie Day!

By Tara Knudson & Pauline Siewert

If baking cookies is part of your family traditions, this the perfect book! With simple rhymes, few words, and cute pictures, this is great for even young toddlers. Plus there is a cookies recipe at the end to make with your little one!

Dear Santa

By Rod Campbell

From the author of the popular Dear Zoo, this book follows a similar pattern with fun flaps to lift. My kids love seeing what gifts are under each flap as well as the touch and feel final page.

Merry Christmas, Stinky Face

By Lisa McCourt

We love the Stinky Face books and the Christmas edition does not disappoint! Stinky face is at is again with his questions and his ever patient mother has all the answers to his Christmas worries. I was afraid this book would be too wordy for my toddler, but he adores it (I think it’s the fantastic pictures that keep him interested) and this seems like it will continue to be a favorite for years to come.

(this is one of Jo’s personal favorite Christmas books for toddlers!)

Dr Seuss’s The Sounds of Grinchmas

By Dr. Seuss

While I, of course, love the original How the Grinch Stole Christmas, it is just too long for my one year old to sit through. I was thrilled to find this clever, shortened, noisy version which is ideal for toddlers! It manages to boil down the plot while somehow still rhyming and the sound buttons are endless entertainment.

Jingle Bugs

By David Carter

This book was a favorite when I was a kid and my boys still love it! The book is so fun for little ones as each page has fun pop up, moving pictures. My 1 year old does pull the tabs a bit too aggressively, but overall this book has held up very well for the past 30 years. 

Christmas in the Manger

By Nola Buck & Felicia Bond

This book is great for families that want to include baby Jesus in their Christmas celebration. This rhyming, toddler-friendly introduction to the first Christmas is sweet and adorable. As a quick and simple read, even very young toddlers can stay engaged.

The Itsy Bitsy Reindeer

By Jeffrey Burton & Sanja Rescek

The Itsy Bitsy books are so much fun! Set to the tune of the classic nursery rhyme, the itsy bitsy spider, this Christmas version is adorable and a huge hit with little ones. We also love The Itsy Bitsy Snowman which, while not Christmas specific, is another fun winter read.

Good Night Christmas

By Adam Gamble

One of the Good Night Our World series, this one shows lots of different Christmas traditions and is our favorite. However, there are also more holiday versions including Good Night North Pole, Good Night Christmas Tree, and Good Night Baby Jesus – all great Christmas books for toddlers!

Don’t Push the Button! A Christmas Adventure

By Bill Cotter

This is similar to the original Don’t Push the Button! with a fun Christmas twist. It’s a cute, quick story and encourages kids to interact with the book. My kids get a huge kick out of “pushing” the button!

Fa La La

By Leslie Patricelli

Like Patricelli’s many other books, this Christmas one is a huge hit with young toddlers. It’s a simple story about Christmas traditions with fun pictures. I particularly like that this book shows baby sitting on Santa’s lap introducing my toddler to that idea before we actually go.

Biscuit’s Pet & Play Christmas

By Alyssa Satin Capucilli

For all of the Biscuit fans, this Christmas story has fun things to touch and feel! This simple and quick read is a hit with my little ones who love to feel the different textures of the wooly sweaters and Santa’s beard!

The Spirit of Christmas

By Nancy Tillman

From the bestselling author of On the Night You Were Born, this Christmas story is actually MY favorite out of our Christmas board books. The illustrations are gorgeous and the story is beautiful and heartfelt. My toddler likes the colorful pictures, but honestly, this book is for mom. I literally tear up each time we read it.

Snowmen at Christmas

By Caralyn Buehner & Mark Buehner

From the duo behind the bestselling Snowmen at Night is a sweet story of how snowmen celebrate the holiday. Though there are a lot of words, they have great rhythm and the illustrations are absolutely dazzling with hidden images to find. This book is on the longer side and probably better for older toddlers, but my one year old does seem into it and really likes looking for the mouse on each page.

Who is Coming to Our House?

By Joseph Slate & Ashley Wolff

This is a sweet story told from the perspective of the animals as they prepare for Baby Jesus. This book is strikingly different in its simplicity and doesn’t go into detail about the nativity story. This is great for young toddlers who will love the repetition and animals.

Bear Stays Up for Christmas

By Karma Wilson & Jane Chapman

The Bear books are a staple in our house and this Christmas story is no exception. Bear’s friends help him stay up with Christmas preparations. With a great rhythm, adorable illustrations, and sweet message of friendship, this book is a winner!

The Night Before Christmas

By Clement C. Moore

Ok, I must admit that this is not the most toddler friendly book, BUT it’s our family tradition to read it every year on Christmas Eve. I like having a sturdy board book version with colorful illustrations like this one to keep toddlers interested.

Want more book recommendations? We have lists with more books about Winter for preschoolers (read it here) and our favorite Valentine’s day books for toddlers (read it here)!

Did we miss your little one’s favorite Christmas book? Which does your toddler love? Share your favorites in the comments.

I’m always looking for new Christmas books for toddlers to add to the list!