The toddler years were just so magical in introducing Riley to all things Christmas. I really adore the extra joy having her has brought to my own Christmas experience each year by watching her get excited about things and grasp more and more. One of my favorite memories, as I reflect on her toddler Christmases, is reading all the Christmas stories altogether and I suspect holiday reading will continue to be a fave memory.
As I started going through all the books I want to add to our Christmas picture book reading list for this year, I started thinking of all of our favorite toddler Christmas books from age 1 to 3 and decided to share our faves in case you are looking for seasonal Christmas reading for your family all December long! Especially Christmas Eve…is there anything better than snuggling together on Christmas Eve reading books??
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Best Christmas Books For Toddlers
- Best Christmas Stories for Toddlers
- Best Books About Christmas For Toddlers
- Best Interactive Christmas Books For Toddlers
- Best Classic Christmas Books For Toddlers
- Great Books For Toddlers Based On Christmas Carols
- Religious Christmas Books For Toddlers
- Christmas-themed basic concept board books
- Christmas Themed Books With Familiar Characters Or Songs
When Riley was 1 and 2 my Christmas book choices were a lot about introducing her to concepts surrounding Christmas and be age/developmentally appropriate in that.
She was able to handle quite longer stories at 2 years old but so much of it would go over her head so I tried to balance the longer story that she would sit raptly attentive to (though over her understanding) and the books that would actually contribute to her understanding of the holiday times and be fun and engaging.
It’s been so fun to watch how each year she got more and different things out of books than the year before and I know a bunch of these will still be in our rotation for holidays to come.
These Christmas-themed books below were the best ones out of all we read and I think work well for Christmas books to read with your 1 year old to 3 year old.
Best Christmas Stories for Toddlers
Looking for a good Christmas stories to read with your toddler to get in the holiday spirit or on Christmas Eve? These are some of our fave Christmas stories at 1 years old and 2 years old.
I loved at this age her attention to listening to actual stories grew so much and we’ve found a lot of favorite Christmas stories that I know are going to stick with us for a while but that were more on the toddler appropriate side vs some of the longer Christmas books out there that she didn’t understand or wouldn’t sit that long for.
We love this adorable glittery rhyming book about a truck and its animal friends picking out the perfect Christmas tree and enjoy the festivity of the season.
Perfect for kids who love all things trucks and vehicles!
This is honestly one of my favorite Christmas picture books for toddlers but just in general. It’s just so sweet! Bear, who hibernates all winter, tries to stay up for Christmas with the help of his friends.
An all time fave for all of us in this family! A little boy dreams about what snowmen do at Christmas. Adorable and, even though it’s longer than a lot of the books on this list, the rhyming and bounciness to the story makes it easy for littles to stay engaged.
The Mog series is always a good idea and this story about the lovable Mog getting nervous with all the hustle and bustle around the house (on Christmas) because he doesn’t understand so he goes to sneak off to get away from it all.
With short and rhyming text, this book about picking out and transforming a tree into a Christmas delight is a perfect Christmas-time read with a toddler. It’s a fave around here for the night we get our tree and the illustrations are just beautiful.
A new one this year but we love it already! A very determined duck who wants to celebrate and spread Christmas cheer to her fellow farmers…even though she’s told that animals don’t celebrate Christmas.
A rhyming book perfect for bedtime all about getting ready for bed on Christmas Eve and Santa’s trek to all the houses. Highly recommend the rest of the goodnight series!
Perfect for introducing Santa!
Listen, Sandra Boyton is toddler holy grail reading material. ALWAYS our faves. This sweet Christmas edition of Little Pookie is no exception.
Perfect for Christmas Eve!
While quite longer than most others on this list (and she had no concept of who Dasher was), my girl loved this origin story of Dasher as a 2.5 year old and now at 3 since we’ve pulled it back out. Will be a must-read for YEARS to come!
What a joyful, rhythmic book all about Christmas spirit that involves all the sensory wonders of the season — the good smells, the glorious sounds, the beautiful sights! The illustrations are so rich and happymaking! I can’t wait to read this one again this year.
Great for older toddlers though their grasp of Christmas spirit might not quite be there yet making this a book that will hit differently year after year!
This snuggly book is set to the rhythm of ‘Twas The Night Before Christmas, about two siblings who are just too excited to go to bed! Captures perfectly that excitement & anticipation of Christmas Eve!
Perfect for those who celebrate both the religious aspects of Christmas and Santa.
A cute little mouse wants to know what the magic of Christmas is all about and his family tells him what it’s about to them. So sweet!!
Perfect secular Christmas book for toddlers about the magic of Christmas that doesn’t mention Santa if your family isn’t doing that!
A cute little book all about Maisy and friends decorating her Christmas tree! Cute too because the book itself is cut out to be shaped like a Christmas tree.
Fantastic for the youngest of toddlers to introduce all things Christmas trees!
The cutest little rhyming story about this mouse getting ready for Christmas! The ending will make you smile. Just a cozy little read aloud.
This is a new one for 2021 that I got to preview and Riley is already obsessed with Gus. A grumpy Gus does NOT like Christmas but what will happen when his puppy friends try to get him in the Christmas spirit?
Perfect if you are looking for a funny Christmas book!
Looking for a great gift idea for your toddler?
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Best Books About Christmas For Toddlers
When I say books ABOUT Christmas what I mean is more than being a story they really explore what Christmas is on a toddler level. I loved these types of books to really introduce and reinforce all the aspects of Christmas and all the traditions.
It was fun to read books about things we had done because she would relate to them. So while some of these are Christmas stories these fall under ones that I used to help teach her and introduce her to Christmas.
A delightful, tender new addition to the Emma Dodd series of books is a gentle and heartwarming little book about what Christmas is really about— the love, joy and being together.
Perfect for those looking for a Santa-free or non-religious centered book about what the season is all about.
This delightful book, featuring a Black family, chronicles all the thing that baby discovers she loves about the Christmas season from the snow to the stockings to the tree.
Perfect introduction to the traditions of Christmas for toddlers (and babies alike)!
Looking for a Christmas board book for younger toddlers that introduces Santa in a cute way? This one is adorable!
This is a straight-forward (not super exciting for parents) book about two siblings doing all the holiday traditions together. Riley loved relating what Luke & Lottie were doing to the things we’d done also at Christmas-time.
Perfect for reinforcing Christmas-time traditions and fun for older toddlers who are starting to get excited about them.
Riley LOVES this series. They always make her laugh, I think they are silly. This is a cute one all about Christmas (includes going to meet Santa!) and a perfect intro for very little ones. While not the strongest of the series, still a very solid book about Christmas for toddlers.
Ollie (the cutest little zebra) and his dog Fred talk about all the things they love about Christmas. Seriously one of the best and most perfect books to learn about Christmas through the eyes of a toddler.
Does touch on some of the religious elements but doesn’t dive deep!
A cute little book all about the tradition of making christmas cookies! Not really a story, just a nice little poem of sorts about making them. Very festive!
Best Interactive Christmas Books For Toddlers
Interactive books at this age were always a big hit and we found so many wonderful Christmas-themed interactive books that she had fun listening to and paging through on her own.
Looking for a silly and fun Christmas book for your toddler! This one (and the whole series) is it as you participate in the mishaps of Larry trying to figure out what’s in the gift box without opening it!
Perfect for toddlers who struggle to sit during books! Super engaging!
Karen Katz “Where is Baby’s?” series will always be on any baby/toddler book list I make. ALWAYS. Delightful little book!
Perfect Christmas book for 1 year olds!
An adorable interactive (life the flaps and tabs to pull) Maisy themed Christmas book with a clever surprise at the end.
Dear Zoo fans will love this Christmas-themed spin where Santa is trying to find the PERFECT gift to leave under the tree.
This is a fun one! Lots of interactive elements for little ones to manipulate. The David Carter popups are among my favorite interactive books of all time and this is a must for the shelf.
Looking for a fun lift the flap book to familiarize your toddler with Santa? This simple and colorful book is a cute one about Santa and the elves preparing for Christmas.
Best Classic Christmas Books For Toddlers
Even when some of them go over her head I still loved reading the classic Christmas books to her whether I found them in a board book version or something simplified for right now (so then I can introduce the full story later).
A perfect little introduction to The Nutcracker for the youngest of readers!
This Jan Brett version of The Night Before Christmas (love all the Jan Brett books!!) is out in board book style now and is wonderful! A must have for your collection.
Great Books For Toddlers Based On Christmas Carols
One of my favorite things to read to her was books based on Christmas songs that we were also listening to a lot during the day. Loved having that familiarity with both the book and the song.
A board book version of a classic Christmas hymn/carol. Bright, beautiful illustrations full of diversity.
Makes a great gift especially when paired with Silent Night.
These darling illustrations bring a fresh and joyful rendition of a classic carol in a sturdy board book format!
There are plenty of 12 Days of Christmas versions out there but I am partial to this board book and its beautiful illustrations. This version is another cute one.
Seemingly a basic rendition but the gorgeous illustrations tell a fun story! This was 1 year old Riley’s OBSESSION that Christmas to the point I had to hide it one night. The story told through the illustrations will go over the head of younger toddlers but makes for a fun story for you and them when they get older.
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Religious Christmas Books For Toddlers
Wanting Christmas books that are faith-based and discuss Jesus and the Christmas story? Here are some of our favorite Christian-based Christmas books.
Admittedly we aren’t church-goers at the moment so she doesn’t really have much exposure to who God/Jesus are but I still, having grown up Christian and believe in God, want to introduce this aspect of Christmas to her at an early age.
The story of the night Jesus was born told through a Christmas pageant. The most adorable illustrations, too!
Now in padded board book format!
A cute twist on “12 Days of Christmas” that introduces the biblical story in a simple way with repetition and colorful illustrations.
The most heartwarming little story about one small donkey who feels he’s not special but then he gets to be the one who plays an important part of getting Mary to Bethlehem. A little gem of a book!
This is one that will sure to be part of your Christmas-time reading for years to come! While the illustrations aren’t personally my favorite I feel like it’s an accessible and intimate Nativity story.
Cute baby animals enjoying the blessings of Christmas Day and learning what the ultimate blessing of the day is.
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Christmas-themed basic concept board books
Looking for Christmas-themed books that also explore things like counting, ABCs, shapes or colors? These books sometimes are less story than others but were a fun addition to our Christmas cheer.
A cheerful rhyming Christmas story that combines two sisters joyfully preparing for Christmas and counting on each page.
Perfect for younger toddlers & older toddlers for the subtle immersion of numbers and counting.
A cute and colorful board book combining the festive things of the season and an early concept in colors as these cute little mice are preparing for Christmas. Red santa hats, green pine trees, white snowmen and more! I love the vibrant retro illustrations of this one, too!.
This gorgeous and festive displays the ABC’s of Christmas-time (no reference to Santa, does mention Nativity) with short little sentences to accompany each letter. Riley loved picking this one up on her own!
An adorable book about this sweet little polar bar and his other furry arctic friends enjoying all of what Christmas-time has to offer that incorporates counting and faith.
An adorable book about this sweet little polar bar and his other furry arctic friends enjoying all of what Christmas-time has to offer that incorporates counting and faith.
Perfect for toddlers already familiar with Little Blue Truck!
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Christmas Themed Books With Familiar Characters Or Songs
I loved pulling out characters or songs that she was already familiar with especially when she was 1 years old.
There are a lot of other character specific (think Disney, tv characters, other book characters) that are out there so I recommend searching for beloved characters to see if there is a Christmas version. These are just some of our favorites.
Perfect for kids who might struggle to sit for books but will be pulled in by the familiarity of Wheels on the Bus — but with a festive twist.
This dinosaur series is a big hit in our house! A silly book all about excited dinosaurs on Christmas with a nice message!
Perfect if you are looking for a fun Christmas book that’s a little bit more on the silly side without much of a storyline!
Love “Goodnight Goodnight Construction Site”? Have a kid who loves constructions vehicles? This is a wonderful holiday themed spin on the original and will capture vehicle-obsessed kids even if they don’t know the original.
What are some of your favorite Christmas books for toddlers? Give us your recs because we always need more Christmas-themed books to read!
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