12 Monster Stories for Preschoolers

Here is a list of 12 preschooler-approved monster stories! All of these are fun, not-scary stories to share with your kiddo anytime of year.

1.Spooky Wheels on the Bus by J. Elizabeth Mills —

This book is so much fun! Your preschooler will love this Halloween version of the song The illustrations are fantastic and the spooky rhymes will have kiddos singing along. This one has been a favorite in my house for a couple years. My son loves counting all of the Halloween guys and looking at all of the details on the pages.

Amazon has it in paperback and Kindle. Both are pretty inexpensive. https://amzn.to/3oEE0xM

2.How to Catch a Monster by Adam Wallace —

My son loves Adam Wallace’s “How to Catch” series. In this monster tale, the child sets elaborate traps to get the monster who lurks in the closet. The child actually succeeds in catching monster. The monster, however, is nothing like the child imagined. The monster is very nice and just wants to play. It brings the child home to meet its family and a friendship is formed. It goes to show that just because something seems scary, doesn’t mean that it actually is.

3.Go Away, Big Green Monster! by Ed Emberley —

Not only is Ed Emerberley’s green monster a preschool favorite, but its is my favorite monster book! The die cut illustrations and bold colors make this book a visual treat. The monster slowly builds as the reader turns the pages. But we aren’t scared, so go away big green monster! The reader then gets to turn the pages and the monster disappears until it is completely gone. This empowering story is a great way to help kids conquer bedtime fears.

Ed Emerberly made a companion book called, Nighty Nighty, Little Green Monster, and it is adorable. It has the same awesome die cuts in the illustrations. The reader gets to say goodnight to the cute little monster and watch it slowly disappear with each turn of the page. Sweet dreams little green monster.

4.My Monster Mama Loves Me So by Laura Leuck —

This sweet, rhyming story is an ode to a mama’s love for her little one. It chronicles all of the loving things mom’s do for their little monsters. Mom’s play with, cheer-on, protect, comfort, and take care of their little ones, whether they be monsters or humans. Preschoolers will giggle at the gross things little monster likes, such as lizard juice and bugs.

5.The Haunted Ghoul Bus by Lisa Trumbauer —

Preschoolers will enjoy this rhyming story filled with fun, Halloween characters. On Halloween morning, a little boy accidently gets on the ghoul bus instead of the school bus! Yikes!!!! At first he is afraid of all of the spooky riders boarding the bus. Soon he learns that new friends come in all forms and that ghouls just want to have fun. The bus arrives at ghoul school and the little boy has to say to bye to his new friends until next year.

6.Spooky Hour by Tony Mitton —

In this rhyming counting book, preschoolers meet a number of spooky characters. Kids will love counting all of the monsters, wizards and cats who make their way to the party. The story is filled with fun sounds that preschoolers will want to say, making it an interactive reading adventure.

7.Vampirina Ballerina by Anne Marie Pace —

Before she was a TV star, Vampirina appeared in a series of cute picture books that are beautifully illustraed by LeUyen Pham. In this story, Vampirina sets out to become a ballerina. The story shows her vampire ways at odds with the humans around her, causing preschoolers to giggle. Despite some setbacks, Vampirina doesn’t give up and her supportive family is there to encourage her to keep trying. The fantastic message of hard work and resilience is certainly a great one for kids to hear.

8.The Monsters’ Monster by Patrick McDonnell–

This is a not-scary monster book starring 3 little monsters who love causing trouble and wreaking havoc! They decide to create the biggest, baddest monster ever to help them carry about their sinister plans. However, instead of carrying out trouble-filled ideas, the big monster that they bring to life teaches them an important lesson about gratitude and saying “thank you.”

9. Moldilocks and the Three Scares by Lynne Marie. —

In this monster-filled take on the classic Goldilocks and the Three Bears, Moldilocks stumbles onto the home of a monster family. She tries 3 bowls of gross soup, sits in 3 spooky chairs, and tries out 3 monster beds before falling fast asleep. The 3 nice monsters return home, and to Moldilocks’ surprise, they welcome her into the family and all live happily-ever-after. My son really likes this book! It has the “spooky” elements that he loves and features a loving, parent-child relations that he enjoys in stories.

10. The House the Monsters Built by Steve Metzger —

Steve Meztger’s books are favorites among the preschool crowd! This book, a spooky version of The House that Jack Built, explores all of the monsters’ house-building contributions, complete with rhymes, spooky sounds, and humorous illustrations by Jared Lee. I have read this one so many times at library preschool storytime and to my own son. Preschoolers and kindergarteners love this book!

11. Bonaparte Falls Apart by Margery Cuyler. —

This is a cute story about a skeleton named Bonaparte who keeps losing his bones. He is literally falling apart and is nervous about starting school with his condition. His monster friends, including Franky Stein, try and help ease his fears by coming up with creative ways to keep Bonaparte’s bones together, but all of their attempts are unsuccessful. Finally the friends come up with a great idea — a service dog! The dog fetches Bonaparte’s bones and brings them back to him. This enables Bonaparte to participate in all of the fun activities his friends are doing at school.

12.There was an Old Monster by Rebecca Emberley —

This is an Emberley family collaboration: art, words, and beat by a talented family. This monster story is made to be read as a song, with a fun “scritch, scritchy scratch” refrain. The story follows the tale of a monster who ate a tick and felt sick. In an ongoing effort to rid itself of tummy problems, the monster keeps eating things to alleviate itself of its tick problem. Ed Emerberly’s fantastic artwork adds to the zaniness of this monster tale.

These 12 monster stories are sure to delight your preschooler! Check you library for these and other monster stories. Looking for more spooky stories, check out my GHOST STORIES post for more book recommendations!

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