The Picture Book in 2016: Social Themes and Lessons

I recently received a very interesting, if puzzling, question. A friend of mine needed to know, for professional reasons, what I would consider the top themes in picture books these days. By “themes” I don’t mean trends but rather emotional or social lessons for young readers. You might even go so far as to call them the morals we’re trying to impart upon our 21st century offspring.

This is not as easy a question. While I attempt to take meticulous notes on every picture book I read, it’s far...