I know every blogger has posted their favorite fall book roundups, but as a huge sucker for best books listicles, I can't help but throw mine into the mix! I’m going to skip the more more popular picks and focus on my favorite lesser known books.

POP classics - E.T, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Back to the Future - We are a huge fan of this whole collection. In addition to being some of our most beloved cinema and TV characters, the illustrations are amazing. I really think Kim Smith is one of the best illustrators in the biz!

Stumpkin - This is a really cute book about a stumpy little pumpkin trying to find a home.

Adventures with Barefoot Critters - I have been gifted many, many books that feature the alphabet, but this is one of the only ones I actually enjoy. There are so many cute and interesting characters on each page my daughter loves reading through it (over and over) and it's nice that each page is a complete action versus "A for Apple".

Vlad the Rad - We picked this one up on vacation over the summer and it's been a staple ever since. It's the story of a mischievous skateboard loving vampire. I will warn you, the teacher in the book is named Ms. Fussbucket and sometimes when I am super tired I have most definitely mispronounced it in a very not kid-friendly way.

Pick a Pumpkin - I am a huge fan of the illustrator Jarvis (anyone else love "Pick a Pine Tree" as much as I do??) and this one does not disappoint. It's the perfect Halloween-themed book although if anyone else's kid is like mine and for some unknown reason needs to know every single characters' name on every single page (regardless of whether or not the author named them or if having many specific names is important in the slightest to the actual story), be warned that there are a lot of characters on every page that will require naming!

How to Make Friends With a Ghost - This very quirky book is beautifully illustrated and spilling over with fun hipster vibes. It's a little bit Wes Anderson and a little bit Tim Burton. Definitely weird, definitely for kids that dig the darker things and definitely for parents that are open to an ending in which our super cute narrator (she who has found and befriended the ghost of the title) grows old and eventually transitions from one plane of existence to the next.

Outfoxed - This book feels very Fall-like to me (maybe it's the gorgeous color palette?) and is a great story about a young fox who only eats swiss cheese and wants nothing more than to be a detective in search of a chicken to win his father's approval. It's silly, cute and very interactive.

Come Home Already - A great story about friendship (and camping) between a duck and a bear. Bonus points for being part of a series so we get to revisit the characters in different scenarios.

Happy reading!

- Callie