Hygge Book Recommendations for Children

The use of the Danish concept Hygge has become a popular approach in nursery life and children’s Early Years education in general. This blog will explore some Hygge book recommendations including new releases that your child is bound to love. We want to help your child find their new favourite book so we’ve included a mix of genres.

What is Hygge?

Let’s start off with some background knowledge, ‘What is Hygge?’. Hygge is centred around the peaceful Scandinavian way of life. This child-led approach focuses on adding calmness, warmth, joy and nurture to a child’s learning environment.

When Hygge is applied in children’s Early Years, it can provide the ideal setting for children to grow and learn in an environment that isn’t overstimulating, but balanced and nurturing instead. This method also helps children be free with their interests, develop awareness, and appreciate their surroundings.

James, Nursery Manager at Kiddi Caru Day Nursery and Preschool in Abington Grove shared his discoveries: “Applying the concept of Hygge within our nursery has allowed us to create a home-from-home feeling. In turn, this helps to create a sense of security and wellbeing that enables children to feel calm and relaxed, and confident as they explore and investigate”

Hygge Book Recommendations

Winter Sleep: A Hibernation Story

Winter Sleep: A Hibernation Story is a calming book that you need to add to your child’s reading list. This Hygge tale follows a child and his grandmother wondering through a scenic winter landscape to explore how the Earth goes to sleep for winter.

With addition of beautiful animal illustrations and an overall cosy feel, this unique book is bound to brighten up your day and become one of your child’s favourite reads.

Everybody’s Welcome by Patricia Hegarty & Greg Abbott

Everybody’s Welcome is a heart warming tale that is centred around friendship and unity. This story focuses on a mouse and other woodland friends who embark on a journey to build a home together. With soft neutral illustrations scattered throughout, this Hygge-inspired book delivers a great message no matter your age. Getting beautifully lost with the words and illustrations is easy with this tale.

The Tea Party in the Woods” by Akiko Miyakoshi

This Alice in Wonderland meets Little Red Riding Hood inspired book is focused on a character called Kikko, who sets out in the snow after her father with a forgotten pie for her grandmother. Soon Kikko discovers that she has not been following her father at all, but instead a bear in a coat and hat!

This fun story is complimented by an array of soft-touch pencil drawings, perfectly completing the Hygge-feel for readers.

Waiting by Kevin Henkes

Although simple, this New York Times Best Selling picture book has a profound meaning. The concept of waiting is a huge part of people’s childhoods. A child might be waiting to grow up, waiting for their birthday or even waiting for the chance to have their first sleepover. However, in this book, a child takes the lead, orchestrating the scene and guiding the action.

5 friends sit on a windowsill patiently waiting for something special to happen. Each of the friends wait for something different— snowfall, rain, moonshine, wind or a surprise visitor. As time passes, they find joy and peace in the small moments, embracing anticipation and appreciating the beauty of the world around them. Combined with beautifully gentle illustrations, Waiting perfectly captures the essence of Hygge – patience, mindfulness, and finding warmth in life’s simplest pleasures.

Need more books?

If you want to explore generic non-Hygge inspired books, We have more children book recommendations here for you to check out.

Does your child have a favourite book? Tell us about it! Tag on social media or email [email protected] with a photo of your child and their favourite book. Let us know why they have loved it so we can share the book with others.