Today The Atlantic launches “65 Essential Children’s Books,” a new editorial project that brings together important illustrated stories for young readers, beginning with The Story of Ferdinand, by Munro Leaf, published in 1936, all the way through Kyle Lukoff’s I’m Sorry You Got Mad, released last year. This project follows the March 2025 release of “The Best American Poetry of the 21st Century (So Far)” and 2024 publication of “The Great American Novels.”

In an introduction to “65 Essential Children’s Books,” the project’s editors write that “a picture book is a deceptively complex object: Ideally, it should be mind-expanding, psychologically astute, vividly illustrated, and—that most elusive criterion—fun. It must entertain the child without boring the grown-up to tears. And it should t

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