The Best Picture Books to WATCH on Amazon Prime
Discover your favourite books transformed into short films!
Animated stories offer a unique way to enjoy great picture books. The text is thoughtfully narrated and the illustrations are brought to life with gentle animation.
I appreciate how these videos hold Henry's interest without being overly stimulating. Some of the stories we've also read together and Henry enjoys seeing them presented in a new way.
We've watched a number of the animated shorts and so far, these are our favourites. I've added a suggested age, based on the complexity of the content and vocabulary. I've also noted where there might be potential scary parts for sensitive little ones. Enjoy!
Story descriptions are from Amazon Prime Video.
Goodnight, Goodnight Construction Site (9 min)
Age 18 months+
Down in the big construction site, tough trucks work with all their might. But now it's time to say goodnight! Little truck drivers will drift off to sleep to this soothing bid good-bye to the day.
Is Your Mama a Llama? (7 min)
Age 2+
Lloyd the llama is looking for his mama. "Is your mama a llama?" he asks a bat, a swan, a cow, a seal, and a kangaroo. Young children will share Lloyd's delight when the answer to his question is finally, "Yes!"
Bear Wants More (8 min)
Age 2+
When springtime comes, Bear wakes up very hungry! His friends help him find good things to eat, but will his hunger ever be satisfied?
The Snowy Day (38 min)
Age 2+
Based on the award-winning book by Ezra Jack Keats. Peter goes on a magical, snowy walk to his Nana's house to bring home their Christmas Eve dinner.
Seven Blind Mice (8 min)
Age 2.5+
One by one, on successive days of the week, six different colored blind mice investigate parts of the strange something near their pond and speculate to the group about its identity.
Bugs! Bugs! Bugs! (8 min)
Age 2.5+
With whimsical verse and brightly colored collage images, everyone's favorite bugs come to life. Backyard entomologists will buzz with excitement!
Dooby Dooby Moo (13 min)
Age 2.5+
When Duck finds out about a talent show at the county fair, he and the animals on the farm start rehearsing. While Farmer Brown tries to figure out what the animals are up to, Duck is determined they will enter the contest and win!
Stick and Stone (8 min)
Age 3+
When Stick rescues Stone from a prickly situation with a Pinecone, the pair becomes fast friends. But when Stick gets stuck, can Stone return the favor?
The Curious Garden (11 min)
Age 3+
One boys quest for a greener world... one garden at a time. He discovers a struggling garden and decides to take care of it. As time passes, the garden spreads throughout the dark, gray city, transforming it into a lush, green world.
Scaredy Squirrel Makes a Friend (12 min)
Age 3+
Scaredy Squirrel is scared to make a friend. After all, they can bite. When he decides the perfect friend would be a goldfish - no teeth, his plan takes a surprising turn. In the end, he discovers that making the effort has its rewards.
Scaredy Squirrel at Night (11 min)
Age 3+
Scaredy never sleeps - sleep might mean bad dreams about dragons, ghosts, vampire bats and polka-dot monsters. So he has a plan to stay awake all night and just in case he does nod off - a Bad Dream Action Plan!
We are big Julia Donaldson & Axel Scheffler fans so we were very excited to see their classic stories transformed into animated films. These videos are a little longer than the others and depending on your little one's tolerance, there are some potentially scary parts with the Gruffalo and the dragon (Room on a Broom).
Henry (3yo) is surprisingly okay with them considering he is sensitive to a lot of noises and made-up creatures. I think because he's familiar with the physical books, there are not too many surprises.
The Gruffalo (27 min)
Age 3+
A magical tale of a mouse who takes a stroll though the woods. Encountering three predators who all wish to eat him - a fox, an owl and a snake - the plucky mouse has to use his wits to survive.
The Graffalo's Child (26 min)
Age 3+
The sequel to The Gruffalo, The Gruffalo’s Child tells the delightful tale of a little Gruffalo who ignores her father’s warnings and tiptoes out into the snow in search of the Big Bad Mouse.
Room on the Broom (26 min)
Age 3+
ROOM ON THE BROOM is a magical tale about friendship and family from Magic Light Pictures, the producers of the hugely successful The Gruffalo and The Gruffalo’s Child.
If you're looking for more book based content, your child may also be interested in these tv series' based on these popular book characters.
I hope that Amazon Prime Video will continue to add more animated stories. We really enjoy them as an alternative to regular tv time.
Happy watching!
