12 Children’s Books Guaranteed To Help A Picky Eater

Looking for a great book to help your picky eater? One of the ways you can help your picky eater as a parent is to talk about food at times other than mealtime when things are a bit more mellow and no one is frustrated or angry.

Check out some of my favorite books for picky eaters that help teach confidence, get them excited about cooking in the kitchen and make them giggle!

12 Best Picky Eater Books For Children About Food

I’ve quickly learned that the dinner table isn’t always the only place to talk to my kids about picky eating.

One of the biggest ways kids learn is through play. So if you can find ways to talk about eating before you even get to the table your child may feel more comfortable and confident.

Storytime is one where my child and I were able to have conversations that helped her confidence. The messages in the books helped her when it was time to head to the table the next day. Check out some of my favorite books for picky eaters!

 

How Do Dinosaurs Eat Their Food

by Jane Yolen

How Do Dinosaurs Eat Their Food is a great book to bring out if you have a picky eater who is exceptionally messy, or you’re working on teaching your kid to keep their food on their tray or plate. The fun illustrations and silly but messy dinosaurs are totally relatable for kids but come with some great lessons about what to do at the table. This book is a part of a series, so if you have a dinosaur lover you may want to check out some of the other Dinosaur titles too.

D.W. The Picky Eater

By Marc Brown

I’m not sure it is about the Arthur series, but my own kid seemed to always see a lot of herself in the characters- especially with D.W. D.W. The Picky Eater is a great story that deals directly with picky eating head on to start an open and honest conversation with your kids. Many kids relate to D.W.’s fussiness and worries but also start to understand that manners are also important too at the table even if every food isn’t your favorite. We read this one many times!

Need more help? My Picky Eater Container System was a game changer for our family

The Little Chef

by Elisabeth Weinburg

The Little Chef is the sweet story of a little girl who wants to make a special dish for her grandmother who happens to be a chef. Lizzie wants to be a chef too, and young readers can follow her adventures with her mom as she recreates one of her grandma’s recipes and looks for the secret ingredient for the recipe. Young children will be delighted with spunky Lizzie’s story, and even includes the extra special recipe featured in the book that young readers can help cook!

The Pigeon Finds A Hotdog

by Mo Williams

Mo Williams’ books were a favorite in our house and The Pigeon Finds A Hotdog was definitely one of the top books on our favorites list. Your kid will be giggling along as the pigeon finds a delicious snack but also learns to share with Duckling. Duckling poses some interesting questions to Pigeon having never eaten a hot dog before, and it’s a great opportunity to talk to your own kids about trying new foods that they may have never eaten before in a relatable and silly way.

Green Eggs And Ham

by Dr. Seuss

Green Eggs and Ham is a  classic for a good reason, as the long silly rhyming pages will give your kids a case of the giggles. Under all the silly situations is a kid who isn’t interested in trying something new in the beginning but eventually when they give it a good try? Something amazing happens. This is also a great opportunity to try adding a little spinach to your child’s eggs after reading this book a few times.

Vegetables In Underwear

My child has laughed about Vegetables In Underwear so many times, and still enjoys it all the way up through first grade. This silly book is great for the potty training kid, but also is a fantastic way to encourage more vegetables with your child. Reading to your child about vegetables, even in a silly way like wearing underwear, is a great way to keep them thinking about veggies. This makes it all the more fun for kids at the table when they think about their own broccoli wearing underwear.

Daniel Tries A New Food

Have a young kid who seems to have a touch of anxiety at the idea of trying new foods? Daniel Tries A New Food is a great story to introduce and read over and over. There is even a little song included inside this book you can sing with your kid at the table. This book is a great choice for little ones.

I Will Never Not Ever Eat A Tomato

By Laureh Child

I Will Never Not Ever Eat A Tomato is a quick and smart story featuring two siblings with one being a very picky eater who won’t touch carrot, mashed potatoes or tomatoes, or will she? When Lola’s older brother Charlie starts helping her to use her imagination, suddenly the food on her plate isn’t entirely what it seems! The author has written several other books featuring Charlie and Lola so be sure to check out the other titles too!

Dragons Love Tacos

By Adam Rubin

Dragons Love Tacos is an adorable story, and one of those books that every parent should be reading to their child to help with time at the table. Dragons like all different kinds of tacos, and it’s a great way to talk about how foods can be served in different ways. Add spicey salsa and dragons have some sass, so much so that your child might even be willing to try salsa too on taco night. This book can be read over and over without losing it’s loveable quality and is the perfect length for bedtime. If your child loves this one, be sure to check out the sequel!

Bread and Jam For Frances

By Russel Hoban

Another classic, Bread And Jam For Frances is another great story that tackles the topic of picky eating with your child. What I love about books like this is when Frances is being a picky eater, it allows you a chance to open up conversations with your own child about picky eating. Do you think it’s a good thing Frances will only eat bread and jam? Will Frances only eat bread and jam forever? This classic also is part of a series, so if they love Frances there are other stories featuring her too!

Can I Eat That

By Joshua David Stein

Can I Eat That is such a playful book, and a great way to introduce your kid to foods from all over the world. This is a great way to introduce the idea that different people around the world eat different foods. This is one we got from the library more than once!

If You Give A Pig A Pancake

By Laura Numeroff

Sometimes as parents we are looking for solutions to picky eating with books that talk about the challenge head on. I personally think that opening up conversations about food are just as important for helping your picky eater, so that by the time you get to the table food you’ve had other opportunities to talk about food besides when it’s time to eat. If You Give A Pig A Pancake is a very silly book and was one of the favorites in our house along with many other of Laura Numeroff books. This book is so fun, they will want to read it over and over, and it allows you to open the conversation about food more often with them. Silly and adorable, this book will go in the nightly bedtime rotation!

Books are a great way to help kids cope with all kind of things they may not understand or may not be able to verbalize to us.

Is there a picture book that has helped your picky eater or just made them giggle? Share in the comments, we are always looking for more great finds!