Picture books are generally the first types of books introduced to children. They are presented in board, paperback and hardcover format as illustrated, informational, concept and wordless books. Picture books expand on a variety of concepts such as the alphabet, numbers, shapes and life lessons. The illustrations are just as essential as the text to help children understand the concepts of the story. Picture books are typically no more than 48 pages long.
Fiction books are written about made-up or make-believe characters and events. Many are written from the imagination of the author and some are based on actual events with made-up elements. There are many different types of fiction writing, including realistic, fantasy and historical fiction. Realistic fictional books illustrate real-life events that could occur. They help children understand many different concepts and apply them to their own lives, such as potty training and starting school. Fantasy stories are popular among children because they expand on their imagination by displaying non-realistic elements such as super-human powers, talking animals and imaginative worlds. Historical fictional books recount stories that occurred in the past, with real settings and fictional characters. These books help children understand historic events that have occurred throughout the world.
Non-fiction books are written about real life events, and include biographies and autobiographies. Biographies provide details about the life of an actual person, written by another person. Many focus on certain parts of an individual's life. Autobiographies are stories of a person's life written by that person.
Poetry books introduce children to a variety of poetic elements such as rhyme, concrete verse and free verse. They are written to inspire thoughts and feelings, and illustrate the sounds of language. The element of rhythm is often used to help illustrate the meaning of the poem. Poetry books include narrative poetry, haiku, free verse, visual poetry, ballads, concrete poetry and limericks.