Today, a few page spreads from picture books to surprise, delight, and amuse:
From I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen: This wordless spread captures the moment when the Bear confronts the rabbit who stole his hat. It’s a moment of tension and uncertainty, though the readers – and the rabbit – have a good guess what’s coming next.
Next up is Mina by Matthew Forsythe, and if you haven’t read it yet, please stop reading this and go find a copy; or at least request a copy from your library, close your eyes, and scroll down a bit, because I don’t want to be responsible for ruining perhaps the single greatest page turn ever:
“I’m sure there’s nothing to worry about,” said the doctor. “But let me take a look at these squirrels.”
“Oh, I see the problem,” said the doctor. “The problem is that these squirrels are definitely cats.”
This is the part in Snail Crossing by Corey Tabor where the snail realizes it has journeyed back to its starting place instead of making it across the road to where the delicious cabbages are. “Well, shoot.” I love the understatement of this, and the slime trail showing the snail’s path.
“Tommy closed his eyes. If he were a pterodactyl, he wouldn’t have to put up with this.” This gem is from You Can’t Be A Pterodactyl! by James Breakwell & Sophie Corrigan. Haven’t we all had moments like this? Kids, especially, often find their imaginative flights of fancy reined in and pulled back down to earth by adults (or even other kids).
This “final” page from Endlessly Ever After by Laurel Snyder and Dan Santat reminds readers “that every day…you choose.” The simple message is emphasized and made even more powerful by the 96-page book’s “pick your path” structure. In my experience, kids will want to read this one over and over again until they’ve made all the possible choices. And then they’ll want to read it again.
Do you have a favorite page turn or page spread from a picture book?
This Monday was the one-year anniversary of the 
Endlessly Ever After has become a mandatory staple since last December; it’s the book we always end with, but it’s different every time because of its pick-your-path nature. (Our storytime group is beyond excited that there is going to be another one in, I think, 2026? Laurel and Dan, if you need beta readers, we are at your service.)
As you can see, we lean toward bedtime books and fairy tales, including fractured fairy tales. I can already tell All at Once Upon A Time is going to be a repeat read; it goes so well with Endlessly, and the kids – and grown-ups! – who come to Pajama Storytime are old enough to understand and enjoy the humor. That’s something I love about Pajama Storytime: I get to read some wonderful books that are simply too long or complex for my morning storytime, which is mostly toddlers. There are great picture books for that age, too, and I love them, but Pajama Storytime lets me share more books with a different audience.
Jenny Arch 