In our house, we love bugs! Well, we don’t love bugs IN our house, but you know what I mean! We love bugs so much that we’ve compiled a list of the Best Bug Books for kids. These books are for truly curious bug lovers! Our list is designed for ages 3 to adult (because I love them too!). Starting at age 3, they can enjoy the pictures and illustrations. As they age, they will love the information and fun facts in these books.
Best Bug Books for kids
- Bugs, Butterflies, Beetles and Bees: A Visual Bug and Insect Encyclopedia for Kids (DK Our World in Pictures) by DK
- Everything You Need to Know About Bugs by DK
- The Backyard Bug Book for Kids: Storybook, Insect Facts, and Activities (Little Scientists Learn) by Lauren Davidson
- ABC Bug Book for Kids by Jessica Lee Anderson
- Insect Anatomy: The Curious World of Bees, Beetles, Butterflies, and Bugs by Julia Rothman and Michael Hearst
- Spiders of the World: A Natural History (A Guide to Every Family) by Norman I. Platnick
Books by DK
These books are great for ages 3 to adult. DK is a British publishing company that specializes in illustrated reference books for kids and adults. They are top tier with their information and pictures. However, they publish secular reference books. So, if you are a Christian like me, be prepared to address some of the science-based content in these books with your kids.
For bug lovers, this book is FASCINATING! The almost 1000 pictures alone are worth buying this book. The information in this book is plentiful but bite-sized. This book focuses heavily on pictures making it perfect for young kids to flip through on their own. The amount of bugs that I didn’t know existed until we had this book was crazy!
Everything You Need to Know About Bugs by DK
This book explores insects from the inside, out! It is packed with bite-sized fun facts and identification help. The facts in this book blew my mind! I lost track of how many times we said, “Oh my gosh!” and “I didn’t know that!”. This book is truly very interesting and the images are spectacular. Some quirky facts it shares – a map of bugs that are consumed (yes, eaten!) around the world AND the full life cycle of a Cicada.
Lighter reading books
These books are really engaging for younger kids ages 3 to Grade 1. They have simple information, awesome pictures, and they’re interactive.
The Backyard Bug Book for Kids: Storybook, Insect Facts, and Activities (Little Scientists Learn) by Lauren Davidson
This book teaches about familiar insects within a storyline told by a little caterpillar. It’s very cute! It has wonderful pictures AND activities at the end of the book.
ABC Bug Book for Kids by Jessica Lee Anderson
Perfect for kids learning their ABC’s and letter sounds, this book has familiar and not-so-famliar bugs. For each letter, it has 1-3 images of different species of the bug that that letter references. Ex. B is for Butterfly page shows a Monarch butterfly, a Blue Morpho Butterfly, and an Eighty-Eight Butterfly.
Scientist-type bug books
These books are for the smarty-pants, want to ‘know it all’ kids and grown ups! Both of these books have beautiful illustrations and pictures though. So, they are still great browsing books for younger ages.
Insect Anatomy: The Curious World of Bees, Beetles, Butterflies, and Bugs by Julia Rothman and Michael Hearst
We love Julia Rothman’s Anatomy Collection! (Secular author) In this book, all of the illustrations are beautifully hand drawn with such careful detail. The information is also very detailed. This info-packed book is perfect for homeschooling, nature journaling, and insect-inspired artwork.
Spiders of the World: A Natural History (A Guide to Every Family) by Norman I. Platnick
This one is for the spider lovers! My son LOVES spiders, so we had to have one book focusing on spiders. This book does not disappoint. It covers over 100 different families of spider species with beautiful photography. I’m not gonna lie, a lot of the information in this book is over my head. It is extremely scientific HOWEVER, the photographs make it worth it. It also maps where each spider can be located globally.
Shopping for the best bug books
Are you ready to shop these books? If you follow the links I’ve included in this post, you will be taken to Amazon. Do not forget that Amazon offers books for resale. You can buy books secondhand on Amazon often for much cheaper than the ‘new’ price of the book. If buying used on Amazon, be sure to always buy ‘very good’ or ‘good’ and check for positive seller feedback. I always try to buy from sellers that have a 90%+ rating with customers.
The love of reading
Fostering the love of reading is so important and it’s never too late to start! For littles, always try to keep books out and available for your kids to explore independently. For bigger kids, if they haven’t always enjoyed reading, try to engage them with reference books for things they are interested in. Start by looking at pictures together and transition into reading more. Most kids are more receptive to reading time if they realize that it means quality time with mom and dad.
Find more helpful tips on how to help your child love reading here.
Let me know your favorites!
I hope you found a book for your little bug lovers on our Best Bug Books for kids list. Either way, let me know in the comments. I’d love to know which book you plan on exploring and if you found this post helpful. I would also love to hear if your family’s favorite bug book isn’t on our list. We’re always open to more bug books in our library!
Happy reading 🙂
To God be the Glory.
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