10 Books that Make Perfect Baby Shower Gifts

I love to give books as gifts at baby showers. And I loved receiving them at my own (in fact, at one of my baby showers my friends made centerpieces at all of the tables out of children’s books – how clever is that?!). Books have a warm place in my heart and I hope my children will foster that same love.

Here are some baby shower book ideas you’ll want to have in your back pocket if you have any baby showers coming up.

Baby Shower Book Ideas

1. The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein – I thought this book was dumb when I was a kid. Now it makes me ugly cry before I even get to the third page. I think all parents need to own this book.

2. Love You Forever by Robert Munsch – Let me just say that I am not in love with this book the way everyone else is. Yes, it does make my cry a little bit, but….the scene where the mom drives to her grown son’s house with a ladder on top of her car and breaks into the second-floor bedroom of his house so she can hold him while he’s sleeping? Just…no. It weirds me out. The rest of the book, and the message behind it? Fabulous.

3. Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney – Sweet rabbit mom and child talking about how much they love each other? Yes please.

4. On the Night You Were Born by Nancy Tillman – I love this book. It’s fun to read, meaningful, and has amazing pictures that my kids love to stare at (even when they were young babies).

5. If I Could: A Mother’s Promise by Susan Milord – This book is about a sweet raccoon mother telling her little raccoon baby all the things she would do for him if she could, and what she can do for him (love him more than anything, of course).

6. Someday by Alison McGhee and Peter H. Reynolds – This book is all about a mom watching her baby grow up, and it reminds me that even though my kids are young, they won’t always be – and someday I’ll be watching my kids raising their own babies.

7. Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown and Clement Hurd – This book is a classic, and for good reason. It’s fun to read, has pictures that seem to captivate children (even babies) and comes in a board book edition (which babies like to eat, so extra bonus for that).

8. Alice in Wonderland: A BabyLit Colors Primer – This is a board book that both of my kids have loved since I first brought it home. It’s cute, fun to look at, and full of great pictures that will hold a baby’s attention.

9. The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle – No baby shower is complete without The Very Hunrgy Caterpillar. I like the board book version better than the regular version, though…the kids love to poke their fingers through the holes and they always end up ripping the pages in the regular book!

10. My New Baby by Rachel Fuller – If there is an older child in the family, this book will come in handy. It explains, in terms a toddler can understand, that a new baby is coming (and all that entails!).

Did I miss any must-have baby shower favorites?