Good St. Patrick’s Day books are hard to come by. I rounded up a huge stack and read through them all, then picked only the best options to share. Come find out which picture books you should read to your kids to get into the holiday spirit and learn a little bit more about St. Patrick’s Day.
One of my goals this year is to start our collection of holiday themed books. We have a great Christmas book collection, but the other holidays were pretty sparse. (Check out this post for some good Valentine’s Day book options.)
That being said, there are so few holiday book options out there–and many of them just aren’t that good. #sorrynotsorry
So I got my hands on almost every single St. Patrick’s Day picture book I could find and read them all. Then I weeded out all the not-so-good and only-sort-of-good options to create a list of the best ones.
Even if you only add one or two to your collection each year, you’ll have a great pile to choose from pretty quickly.
12 Best St. Patrick’s Day Books
- The Itsy Bitsy Leprechaun by Jeffrey Burton: This is a really cute board book that follows the tune of “The Itsy Bitsy Spider”. It’s the perfect little story for babies and toddlers that you can either read or sing. And the illustrations are bright, colorful, and absolutely gorgeous.
- Ten Lucky Leprechauns by Kathryn Heling and Deborah Hembrook: This is a great read for toddlers and preschoolers that creates exposure to counting and numbers in a fun way. It’s full of rhyming, repetition, and has a cute message about friendship.
- The Night Before St. Patrick’s Day by Natasha Wing: This is a cute St. Patrick’s themed take on the traditional ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas poem. It’s a cute story that introduces the holiday and will get your kids’ imaginations going about creating leprechaun traps.
- Pete the Cat: The Great Leprechaun Chase by James Dean: I was pleasantly surprised with this one. It was such a cute story! Pete tries to catch a leprechaun to get some good luck for his friends, but is unsuccessful. Later he learns that instead of capturing luck for his friends, he can be a friend and help them. Such a cute message wrapped up in a super fun book! The book also includes some St. Patrick’s day cards (similar to Valentines), a poster, and some stickers.
- A Fine St. Patrick’s Day by Susan Wojciechowski: This is a cute story about two towns that have a competition every St. Patrick’s Day. One town soon learns that it’s more important to help others and spend time together than to win an award. I loved this one!
- Lucky O’Leprechaun by Jana Dillon: This story follows two kids who try to catch a leprechaun and keep getting tricked. When they finally catch him, they realize that more than gold, they just want to talk to the leprechaun. Relationships are more important than money! This is a fun book with a subtle but important message at the end.
- The Gingerbread Man and the Leprechaun Loose at School by Laura Murray: I love these gingerbread man books. They’re so cute! This is just a cute, fun story your kids are sure to love and ask for again and again!
- Traveling Tom and the Leprechaun by Teresa Bateman: This is a fairy tale style story about a man trying to win over the heart of a princess by capturing a leprechaun’s pot of gold. This was a fun tale and had a very strong St. Patrick’s Day vibe, in my opinion. I loved it!
- How to Trap a Leprechaun by Sue Fliess: This book definitely promotes creativity and hands on projects. It’s bright, colorful, and fun and has a note at the end for parents to help their kids build their own leprechaun traps. I LOVE this idea! So fun!
- S is for Shamrock: An Ireland Alphabet by Eve Bunting: This is a great informational book. It goes through each letter of the alphabet and talks about something that has to do with St. Patrick’s Day or Ireland. Each item is talked about briefly in poem form, but there is more information in small print on the side of each page. So if your kid is a voracious learner, or simply wants to learn more about one or two things mentioned, they can read more. I loved this setup!!
- Fiona’s Luck by Teresa Bateman: This is a cute story about a girl who uses her cleverness to save her town and take back the luck captured by the leprechauns.
- The Leprechaun in the Basement by Kathy Tucker: This is a cute story about a boy and a leprechaun who both learn important lessons about being grateful for what you have and helping others. I highly recommend this one!
Start Your Collection
Pick a book that sounds great for your kids and start your St. Patrick’s Day collection today! Books are a fun and easy way to get into the holiday spirit, spend quality time together, learn about the history of the holiday, share some laughs, and maybe learn a message or two.
[bctt tweet=”Books are a fun & easy way to get into the holiday spirit, spend quality time together, learn about the history of the holiday, share some laughs, and maybe learn a message or two.” username=”colormyhappy”]
What’s your favorite St. Patrick’s Day story?
Pin this post below so you can refer to it next year and add another book to your St. Patrick’s Day library.
If you’re looking for more St. Patrick’s Day fun, check out this Shamrock Shake recipe!
Britney is a wife and mom with a passion for helping other women see the good inside of them. She loves podcasts, polka dots, and dancing around the kitchen with her family.