What Makes Children's Picture Books Memorable?

Kiwi the Cockerpoo: Cricket Match story illustration

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Every year, thousands of new children's picture books appear on bookshop shelves. Many are beautifully illustrated, thoughtfully written and full of imaginative ideas, yet only a relatively small number become the stories children ask to hear over and over again. Those are the books that survive bedtime after bedtime, become family favourites and are remembered long after childhood has passed.

In many families, there is a small shelf of children's books that has never quite been packed away. Often faded, a child's name and date from years ago written inside the front cover and probably a lot of sticky tape holding it all together, but they remain there all the same. They have been kept, not because they are valuable, but because one day a grandchild might come along and ask for a story. There is something rather special about opening the very same book that was once read aloud thirty or forty years earlier.

The greatest picture books do not simply entertain one generation; they earn the privilege of being shared with the next.

The difference rarely lies in having the cleverest plot or the biggest adventure. Young children are often far less interested in complicated storylines than adults imagine. Instead, they return to books that feel familiar, comforting and entertaining. They enjoy characters they understand, places they recognise and stories that reward every re-reading with the predictable ending.

Perhaps the greatest children's books all have one thing in common: they introduce us to characters who quickly begin to feel like friends.

Paddington Bear is a perfect example. Long before anyone remembers the details of a particular adventure, they remember the little bear himself. They remember the blue duffle coat, the polite manners, his remarkable ability to cause complete chaos despite having the very best intentions, and of course the marmalade sandwiches kept safely beneath his hat. Those sandwiches became so much a part of Paddington's identity that, decades later, even Queen Elizabeth II shared one with him during her Platinum Jubilee celebration. The sketch delighted millions because everybody already knew exactly who Paddington was.

The same is true of Winnie-the-Pooh and his companions in the Hundred Acre Wood. Pooh's uncomplicated optimism, Piglet's quiet courage despite his worries, Tigger's endless enthusiasm and Eeyore's wonderfully gloomy outlook have become so familiar that we instinctively know how each of them will react before they even speak.

Children enjoy that certainty. They are not looking for characters who constantly surprise them; they enjoy spending time with personalities they have come to know and trust.

The settings themselves are often equally important. Many of the most memorable picture books take place in places that feel reassuringly ordinary. A family home, a woodland path, a village, a park or a trip to the shops can become wonderfully exciting simply because the story is viewed through a child's imagination. There is a comforting familiarity in these worlds that makes children happy to return to them night after night. They already know how the story ends, but that is part of the attraction rather than a reason to choose something different. Like visiting old friends, there is pleasure in knowing exactly where the journey will lead. And adults are no different. We happily revisit favourite novels, films and television series, knowing perfectly well how they end, because part of the enjoyment lies in returning to something familiar.

Humour also plays an enormous part in what makes a picture book memorable. Young readers delight in seeing things go unexpectedly wrong, particularly when nobody is truly hurt and everything turns out well in the end. There is something irresistible about harmless mischief, especially when it is committed by characters whose intentions are entirely innocent. Children instinctively understand the difference between being naughty and being unkind, and some of the best-loved stories have always allowed their characters just enough freedom to tip ordinary life gently into chaos.

Roald Dahl understood this better than almost anyone. Although many of his books were written for slightly older readers, his stories gave generations of children permission to imagine a world where cleverness could outwit unfairness, impossible adults did not always have the final word, and extraordinary things might happen in otherwise ordinary lives. There is a wonderfully anarchic quality to many of his stories which children instantly recognise and enjoy, even if they cannot yet explain exactly why.

Illustrations, of course, are every bit as important as the words themselves. In a truly memorable picture book, the artwork does far more than simply show what the text describes. A well-timed facial expression, a tiny detail tucked away in the corner of a page or a visual joke hidden in the background can become just as memorable as the story itself. Long before children can read independently, they are already following the illustrations, noticing details adults sometimes overlook and telling parts of the story entirely from the pictures.

The very best picture books also grow alongside the child. A toddler may laugh because someone falls into a puddle or loses a sandwich, while a parent notices the joke hidden in the background. A few years later, that same child notices the background details for the first time and discovers new reasons to enjoy exactly the same book. The story has not changed, but the reader has.

Perhaps the greatest compliment any children's author can receive is a child asking, "Can we read that one again?" Those simple words mean the book has earned a place in the family's routine. It has become familiar, comforting and eagerly anticipated.

Kiwi the Cockerpoo was created around exactly those ideas. He is not a superhero, nor is he setting out to save the world. He is simply a small black cockerpoo with an uncomplicated approach to life, convinced that Doggo Treats, comfortable blankets, sunny patches of carpet and the occasional unattended sandwich are among life's greatest achievements. Unfortunately for everyone around him, ordinary days have an uncanny habit of becoming unexpectedly complicated.

The stories deliberately begin in familiar places and everyday situations because those are the moments children recognise most readily. A shopping trip, a walk, a family outing or a quiet afternoon at home can all become adventures once Kiwi becomes involved.

Like the great picture-book characters that have inspired generations of readers, the aim has never been to create elaborate plots or obvious life lessons. There is certainly a place for books that explore important subjects, and children can learn a great deal from stories.

But the books that stay with us are often those that never set out to teach us anything at all. They simply invite us into a world we enjoy visiting, introduce us to characters we come to care about and, almost without noticing, leave us a little happier every time we turn the page.

That has always been the hope for Kiwi. Not to preach, but simply to entertain. If, years from now, one of his stories is still sitting on a family's bookshelf waiting to be shared with the next generation, then he will have achieved exactly what every memorable picture-book character hopes for.

If you'd like to meet Kiwi the Cockerpoo and discover his everyday adventures, you'll find his growing collection of picture books here, along with free activities and the latest news from Kiwi's world.