There is a bin of books I keep at the Brimful studio that only comes out during our family's summer visits to the Pacific Northwest.

Inside are books from my childhood alongside favorites my children have enjoyed for the past twenty years. Well-loved Berenstain Bears books, a Star Wars picture book from the early 1980s, and the Waldo search-and-find books I used to spend hours poring over.

When the kids were little, they would wake early and quietly read from that book bin during our summer vacations, buying me a bit more sleep in the mornings. Now all grown up, they still leave books scattered across the floor before I am awake.

There is a quiet comfort in returning to stories that have traveled with us through the years. They hold memories of bedtime routines, favorite illustrations, and children who have grown taller with every passing summer.

For those of you still building your family's storybook library, I've gathered nine picture books from our own shelves that I think you'll enjoy. The kind that are read so often you can practically recite them by heart. The kind your children may one day share with their own.

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