Picture Books About Spirited and Boisterous Girls!

These picture books feature strong, girls who active, noisy, spirited, spunky, and dangerous (in the best sense of the word). They jump, wriggle, sing, and sometimes explode! These girl power books have characters who stir things up, test behavior boundaries and emotional boundaries. Most of all, they are charming and independent!

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By the way both boys and girls benefit from seeing girls portrayed as strong, independent, feisty characters! I am a firm believer that there is no such thing as "books for girls" or "books for boys." Such categorizations limit our children and prevent them from hearing and reading books about a variety of experiences and characters. 

Phoebe and the Digger by Tricia Springstubb, illustrated by Jeff Newman

Find it: Your library | Amazon

It's pretty clear to anyone whose ever visited a sandbox that boys and girls love diggers equally. Nevertheless, most depictions of kids playing with diggers are of boys, not girls. Phoebe and Digger is a refreshing change from that gender stereotype. At its center, this is a story about learning to live with a new sibling. Phoebe has a new digger, and her mom has a new baby. Phoebe must learn to share her mom, just as she need to navigate the sandbox with other kids who may want to share (or take) her new digger.

MORE: Picture books that challenge gender stereotypes

Oh No!: Or How My Science Project Destroyed the World by Mac Barnett, illustrated by Dan Santat

Find it: Bookshop | Amazon

If your child is a budding scientist or loves inventing things, he or she will enjoy the mayhem that ensues when a science fair project turns out a bit too good.  The illustrations depicting the epic battle for control evoke Japanese B movies and superhero comics. Funny, clever and engaging, this is sci-fi at its best and it's only the girl's scientific genius which can save the day. Be sure to read what happens next in Oh No! Not Again!: (Or How I Built a Time Machine to save History) (Or at Least My History Grade).

MORE: Science fiction picture books

Journey (series) by Aaron Becker

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This trilogy of wordless books is amazingly gorgeous. Using a red crayon, a girl draws a red door on the wall of her room and enters into a parallel world where adventures with flying carpets, evil rulers, airships, and daring escapes await.

My Parents Won't Stop Talking by Emma Hunsinger and Tillie Walden

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While reading this book I was transported back to my own childhood with memories of endlessly waiting for my mother and her friends to stop talking! If only my experience had been as amusing as the one portrayed in this book. Molly wants to go to the park but her patience is stretched thin as her parents gab away with the neighbors. To help her get through the interminable experience, her imagination takes over in a series of hilarious and wonderfully illustrated fantasies to help her get through the interminable experience. You will LOVE this book.

MORE: Funny picture books to read aloud

Beautiful Warrior: The Legend of the Nun's Kung Fu by Emily Arnold McCully

Find it: Your Library | Amazon

Jingyong's father rejects the notion that his daughter must be raised to be a lady-in-waiting. Instead, he educates her and trains her in the martial arts. Later, she (now renamed Wu Mei) mentors another girl, the impoverished Mingyi, who wants to escape marriage to a bandit. This is a great book about discovering one's inner strength.

Bella's Rules by Elissa Haden Guest, illustrated by Abigail Halpin

Find it: Your Library | Amazon

Bella makes up her own rules.  She washes her hair with mud, she rejects bedtime, she sleds down the stairs and terrorizes her babysitter. Her parents are at their wits' end and call upon her grandmother for help. Bella's grandmother comes to visit with a special gift: a puppy. Puppy also likes to follow his own rules–but together he and Bella learn from each other. This is a really fun read aloud and I love that Bella's sitter is a teenage boy–not something you often see in a picture book.

MORE: Picture books about manners

The Snurtch by Sean Ferrell, illustrated by Charles Santoso

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My youngest son loved this book. I think he found it easy to relate to the main character, a girl who continues to get in trouble but knows that the truth is that the Snurtch did it! The Snurtch is an imaginary and troublesome creature who plagues Ruthie while she is at school. Because of the Snurtch, Ruthie can't sit still, do her homework, control her emotions or impulses (sound familiar?). After she draws a picture of her Snurtch, her friends become more understanding as they reveal they all have snurtches of their own. A fun book and good for building empathy.

MORE: Books that support emotional intelligence

Marisol McDonald Doesn't Match / Marisol McDonald no combina by Monica Brown, illustraed by Sara Palacios

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Red-headed, half-Scottish, half-Peruvian Marisol bounces off the page with great enthusiasm and loves her mismatched life. When her friend, Ollie, challenges her to “match”, Marisol finds she is unhappy with life as a conformist. This is a great story that emphasizes the importance of embracing and accepting one’s uniqueness. (Text is in both English and Spanish.)

MORE: Books that teach meaningful values

Thunder Rose by Jerdine Nolen, illustrated by Kadir Nelson

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My son was a little obsessed with the idea that Rose could speak sentences at birth. "Babies can't talk!" Well, not only could little Rose speak just after she was born, but she could create balls of lightening, and lift a cow and "drink it dry". As she grows up, she invents barbed wire and lassos a storm to relieve a drought.  Kadir Nelson's fantastic illustrations are a treat.

MORE: American folktales and tall tales

Jovita Wore Pants: The Story of a Mexican Freedom Fighter by Aida Salazar, illustrated Molly Mendoza

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Growing up in rural Mexico in the 1910s, Jovita hated being forced to wear big skirts. So she fashioned her skirts into a pair of pants and went exploring with her brothers. When her father and brothers joined the Cristeros as part of the Mexican revolution, Jovita longed to join them. She eventually becomes involved, but the revolution brings tragedy to Jovita's family. Jovita does not back down, dressing "as Juan" and leading an army of peasants against the government. Includes a lengthy and informative author's note. Ages 7 and up.

MORE: Picture book biographies of women activists

Not All Princesses Dress in Pink by Jane Yolen and Heidi E. Y. Stemple, illustrated by Anne-Sophie Lanquetin

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The rhyming text and colorful illustrations depict a diverse group of girls engaged in all sorts of activities, from farming to ball-playing, from fighting evil sorcerers to skipping in the mud. The one thing they all have in common is that they don't wear pink, but they do wear a sparkly crown. It's a great message: that there is nothing incongruous about girls engaging in rough-and-tumble activities while still loving a bit of sparkle.

Dangerously Ever After by Dashka Slater, illustrated by Valeria Docampo

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This was favorite of my then 4-year-old son, who was a little obsessed with Amanita's journey through the woods, and he still returns to the book, even 5 years later. Amanita loves gardening. The catch is that she only grows dangerous plants: poisonous, sticky, poke-y plants. There is a lot of humor in the book, too. When she gets a nose plant instead of a rose plant, Amanita discovers that she can love beauty and danger.

No Fits, Nilson! by Zachariah OHora

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Nilson and Amelia are the best of friends and do everything together, but Amelia often has to remind Nilson to be on his best behavior. Amelia teaches Nilson techniques to remain calm in the face of frustration and distracts him with a froggy coin purse when standing in a long line. However, when the lack of a promised banana ice cream threatens to send Amelia over the edge, it is Nilson who saves her from a total meltdown. Parents will easily recognize all the methods Amelia uses to regulate Nilson's moods and savvy readers will anticipate the twist at the end of the book when we discover Nilson's true identity.

MORE: Books about strong and gentle boys

Grace for President by Kelly DiPucchio, illustrated by LeUyen Pham

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Grace may not be bouncing off the walls in true rowdy-style, but when she finds out there has never been a female president, here spirited self is determined to change that. While the boy she is up against makes popular promises and counts electoral votes, Grace works hard and steadily to earn her votes and show with her actions that she's the right girl for the job. The explanation of how electoral votes are cast is skillfully woven into the narrative, making this a great choice for discussions around election time.

Harriet, You'll Drive Me Wild! by Mem Fox, illustrated by Marla Frazee

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Harriet engages in your typical toddler behaviors. You know, the ones that are normal but gradually start to send you over the edge. Things like spilling food on the floor, breaking objects... Harriet's mother tries very hard to keep her cool. She doesn't yell or lose her temper. Eventually, however, she breaks and yells and yells and yells. Mem Fox expertly handles the normal push and pull that happens during the course of the day with a spirited (aka normal) child, and the resolution is utterly satisfying for both parties. Books that deal with the emotions of both child and parent are important to include in your arsenal of read alouds.

MORE: Picture books about being different

The Rain Stomper by Addie Boswell, illustrated by Eric Velasquez

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I love the joyful spirit of this book, the illustrations are alive with movement. Jazmin is excited to twirl her baton in a parade, but the rain threatens to spoil everything. At first she takes out her anger by stomping in the puddles, but that energy quickly turns into something else as she spins and jumps, twirls and splashes. The rest of the neighborhood can't help but be drawn in. This is an engaging book showing how the physical release of emotion can lift the spirits and lead to positive action.

What To Do About Alice?: How Alice Roosevelt Broke the Rules, Charmed the World, and Drove Her Father Teddy Crazy! by Barbara Kerley, illustrated by Edwin Fotheringham

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Alice Roosevelt was well-known in her day for being an unconventional and free spirit, but it's not a name many of our children are familiar with. Alice's exploits like sliding down banisters and whizzing off to parties in the middle of the night may not seem so unusual today!

My Name Is Not Isabella: Just How Big Can a Little Girl Dream? by Jennifer Fosberry, illustrated by Mike Litwin

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There are three books about purple-haired Isabella, who spends her days imagining herself to be a different women from history. She hops from Sally Ride to Annie Oakley to Elizabeth Blackwell and more: all fiercely determined women who changed the world. In the second book, she imagines trotting around the world, having adventures like observing the stars from a Mayan temple or building the Great Wall of China. In the third, she becomes characters in all her favorite fairy tales.

MORE: Books about women in STEM fields

Clever Beatrice (series) by Margaret Willey, illustrated by Heather M. Solomon

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Beatrice's family is poor and the spirited Beatrice needs to earn money. Since she is too slight to cut down trees with the lumberjacks, she takes her chances with the rich giant. The giant's egotistical faith in his superior strength and Beatrice's cleverness turn out to be his downfall. This is a adaptation of folktales Michigan's upper peninsula.

Carolinda Clatter! by Mordicai Gerstein

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Carolinda's family and neighbors live in fear of waking the legendary sleeping giant near their village and have lived for generations never speaking above a whisper. Spunky Carolinda, however, can not keep quiet. As she grows up she cries at the top of her lungs bangs pots, sings songs and generally makes as much noise as possible. True to the legend, the giant awakes and Carolinda sets off on a journey to get him back to sleep. In the end it is her voice and music that soothes him.

Marigold and the Dragon by Fred Crump, Jr.

Find it: Your Library | Read my gush review

Even though this book is long out of print I like to mention it, as it was my favorite childhood book. Marigold is an intrepid princess, defiant of the boredom that often fills the day of a highborn lady's life. Instead, she goes in search of adventure, attempts to rescue a dragon and makes a new best friend. If you are very, very lucky you will be able to find a copy at your library or through interlibrary loan. I waited for years to find an affordable copy and finally plunked down $40 for a used version. It was worth every penny.

MORE: Picture books about dragons