The Best Christian Books For Kids (Our Family Favorites)
As a Mama of four kiddos aged 6 and under, we’ve been through our share of books! I had a friend ask me if I had a list of my favorite faith-based books for kids, so here are the best Christian books for kids that our family has found. I’m sharing all of our favorites, plus some I’ve got on my radar for Christmas this year or even when our kiddos are a bit older!
Just click the title or the picture to learn more about each book if you’d like to purchase it for your family. I almost always gift books for the holidays and baby showers for friends and family, so keep this list in mind for those events, too. Feel free to bookmark this page so you can reference it later!
These books would also make a great gift as a way to introduce Jesus and the gospel to friends or family who may not know Jesus. If you’re looking for opportunities to spark a conversation or share the gospel with someone in a relatively low-risk way, a book can be a great place to start.
(I do make a small commission (as in a few cents) if you use my link. All of the money I make for SIE currently goes to pay for website costs so we can continue to put out more great resources for you!)
Best Christian Books For Toddler and Preschool Kids
For this young age group, how much your child wants to interact with a book determines how well they will sit and listen to it. That’s why things like fun illustrations, animals, and bright colors work well for these littles. In my mind, the goal is for books to give them an introduction to who God is, who they are in light of who God is, and basic theological truths.
Here are 5 of our favorite Christian books for the young kids in our lives:
A Is for Ark: (A Bible-Based A-Z Rhyming Alphabet Board Book)
I’m going to list a few books from Our Daily Bread. My in-laws have gifted us several children’s books and Bibles from them, and this one is one of our favorites! (Fun fact: My husband’s uncle is a writer for Our Daily Bread, so look for Bill Crowder next time you’re reading one of their devotionals!).
This has been a consistent favorite of all 3 of my oldest kiddos. Not only are you getting some alphabet work in, but you’re also getting the story of Noah and the Ark as well.
God’s Bright and Beautiful Colors
This is another Our Daily Bread board book that our kiddos love! This one focuses on learning colors while teaching them about how God is the Creator of everything. Any books with animals are always a hit for young kiddos, and this one is another favorite in our household.
First I Say a Prayer
This book is wonderful as an introduction to prayer for young children (toddlers and young preschoolers). This is one my kids pick up to read on their own, and we also read together.
In addition to these three books that I mentioned, Our Daily Bread also has Easter and Christmas books for young kiddos that I would recommend!
Don’t Forget To Remember
This is one of the books that I’ve gifted to several friends at their baby showers. I love the basic theological truths represented in this book about who God is and how He loves us. The illustrations in this book are beautiful, and again, my kids LOVE the animals displayed throughout the book.
Ellie has 2 more children’s books that have been on my radar. I’m thinking of purchasing the Christmas one this year for my kiddos. She also has another book that I would love to snag someday!
Good Good Father
I can’t tell you how much I love this book. It’s short, it’s sweet (perfect for bedtime!), and emphasizes God’s goodness and how He is our heavenly Father. The words are beautiful, and I pray my kiddos hold them near and dear in their hearts.
Best Christian Books For Young Kids (Early Elementary)
On to some of the best Christian books for slightly older kids! These go a little deeper in theological and Biblical truths. More words, more pages, and they often minister to my heart just as much as my kids’ hearts.
Here are my 5 favorite Christian books for early elementary-aged kids:
The Garden, the Curtain and the Cross Storybook: The true story of why Jesus died and rose again
This is one of my favorite Christian kids books. The gospel is presented so clearly in this book, and beautifully and movingly. This is one I would recommend for every family!
Goodbye to Goodbyes: A True Story About Jesus, Lazarus, and an Empty Tomb (A Christian children’s book about grief, loss, suffering, death & the gospel)
This is another book that I would recommend for every family. It centers on the story of Lazarus but is a wonderful resource to talk to your kids about death from a Biblical perspective and the hope we have in Christ.
His Grace Is Enough: How God Makes It Right When We’ve Got It Wrong
This is another book my in-laws gifted us, and it does a wonderful job of teaching kids about the grace of God. It teaches about how we can never live perfectly, but the good news is, Jesus has covered our sins with His finished work on the cross. This book is so relatable for kiddos, and it’s another one that should be on every family’s bookshelf.
When God Made You
I was undecided about whether or not to put this in the younger category, but I decided to stick it here. Level 1 or 2 readers could probably read most of this on their own, but I started reading this with our kids when they were toddlers. It’s simple, but the words are powerful. My kids learned about what it means to be made in the image of God through our discussions about this book. I’ve gifted it several times over.
When I Pray For You
This is by the same author as, “When God Made You,” but seems to be written more for older preschool-elementary kids. The illustrations are wonderful and the reminder that we are praying for our kids is so powerful! We love this book.
Our Favorite Kids Devotionals
This category needs some beefing up, so I’m sharing our favorite kids’ devotional that we have, as well as some that are on my radar. Let me know in the comments if you have any recommendations!
How Great Is Our God: 100 Indescribable Devotions About God & Science
Does anyone have a kiddo who can’t get enough of science? We have one of those! I absolutely cannot say enough good things about this book. Not only will you learn a ton of science facts, but how they all tie into who God is and what He has done. The verses for each day are also great for scripture memory!
The Wonder of Creation: 100 More Devotions About God and Science
This is book 2 in this series by Louie Giglio and I officially just put it on my oldest kids’ Christmas list for this year. We will be getting this, soon!
Our Favorite Kids Bibles
I’m going to roll through these by age from our favorite kids’ Bibles for toddlers/younger children through elementary school. Our oldest kiddo is almost 7, so we haven’t delved into tweens and teens resources yet.
The Beginner’s Bible: Timeless Children’s Stories
This is my favorite first Bible for kiddos. It has a good variety of stories from the Bible, but the stories are condensed so it’s very doable for little ones with short attention spans. The pictures are bright and colorful, too, which is always a plus.
The Jesus Storybook Bible: Every Story Whispers His Name
The Jesus Storybook Bible is one that I recommend every family owns. Sally Lloyd-Jones did a beautiful job telling the stories of the Bible deeply and profoundly. We use this to do our Jesse Tree Advent tradition with our kiddos.
Bible Stories Every Child Should Know
This is the next Bible I recommend after the first children’s Bible I mentioned and the Jesus Storybook Bible. There are different stories in this book than others and I love the discussion questions at the end of each story. Perfect for early elementary-aged kiddos!
Books I Plan To Purchase Based On Recommendations
Here’s a list of books I have an eye on to purchase soon. Some of these my kids will be getting for Christmas this year! A few of them were recommended by dear friends as well.
The Story of God, by Jennie Allen – 5 Book Series Box Set
A friend recommended this series by Jennie Allen and I have also heard wonderful things about them!
Just Nicholas
The same friend who recommended The Story of God Series recommended this book as well. I’ve heard several people say that they love this book for Christmastime. It tells the true story of St. Nicholas.
The Action Bible: God’s Redemptive Story
The Action Bible is what we are getting for our almost 7-year-old boy this year. He’s at the point where he’s bored with typical children’s books but LOVES anything with a little action and adventure in it. This was recommended to us by several friends.
The Storm That Stopped Storybook: A true story about who Jesus really is
This book and the one below are in the same series as The Garden, The Curtain, And The Cross as well as Goodbye to Goodbyes.
God’s Very Good Idea Storybook: A True Story of God’s Delightfully Different Family
Click the picture above to learn more.
So Happy to Know You!
Annie F Downs’ podcast, That Sounds Fun, is a favorite of mine. This is the children’s book she recently published this year.
I’m Glad For What I Have
Is anyone a Dave Ramsey fan? I love his daughter Rachel and she just released a book about contentment. That’s a message that every kiddo needs to hear! (And adults, too, for that matter).
What did I miss? Let me know your favorite Christian books for littles in the comments!
Make sure you check out our parenting resource page for more recommendations and resources.
Thankful for you!
