The world is full of so many unknown people and places for young children. ABC Books are a great way to help young ones learn about different cultures. This book list includes three series that each feature numerous books, each one about a different country. Below the series books are listed by continents, with the exception of Antarctica. Enjoy our alphabetic trip around our globe.
ABC’s Around the World
More Resources for Little Book Lovers
The best way to encourage a love of reading is to provide kids with many opportunities to engage with a wide variety of books that are of interest to them. That’s why we share so many books lists on Fantastic Fun and Learning. We want to make it easy for you to find great books your kids will love. Over the years we’ve also discovered some helpful tools for connecting kids and books.
Digital libraries are one very handy way to do this. Epic! is one of our favorite online libraries. It’s full of over 25,000 books, learning videos, quizzes and more for kids 12 and under…and it’s free for educators. Click here to learn more and sign up.
Book Boxes are another fun way to get kids excited about reading. What kid doesn’t love to get a special delivery in the mail?! The crew over at Bookroo finds the best little known books that you won’t already have in your library, and they send them to you each month. Take a peak inside a Bookroo Box here.
Book-Based Activities are also a lot of fun for kids. Jodie over at Growing Book by Book has saved us all a ton of time and created a full year of Book-Based Activity Calendars so that you can extend the fun with a special book each week.
Book Series Featuring ABC’s from Around the World
Discover the World Series – Each page features a special person, place, event or item that is special to that state. The illustrations and facts provide readers with additional information.
S is for Shamrock: An Ireland Alphabet by Eve Bunting
E is for Eiffel Tower: A France Alphabet by Helen L. Wilbur
C is for Ciao: An Italy Alphabet by Elissa D. Grodin
B Is for Big Ben: An England Alphabet by Pamela Duncan Edwards
D is for Dala Horse: A Nordic Countries Alphabet by Kathy-jo Wargin
B is for Bagpipes: A Scotland Alphabet by Eve Begley Kiehm
T is for Taj Mahal: An India Alphabet by Varsha Bajaj
D is for Dancing Dragon: A China Alphabet by Carol Crane
D Is for Drinking Gourd: An African American Alphabet by Nancy I. Sanders
D is for Down Under: An Australia Alphabet by Devin Scillian
P is for Pinata: A Mexico Alphabet by Tony Johnston
M is For Maple: A Canadian Alphabet by Michael Ulmer
World Alphabets – The World Alphabet series has great photographs that feature kids, adults, places and items from that country. The photographs and short paragraphs allow readers a peak into the country.
E Is for Ethiopia by Ashenafi Gudeta
S Is for South Africa by Beverley Naidoo
C Is for China by Sungwan So
I Is for India by Prodeepta Das
I Is for Iran by Shirin Adl
B Is for Bangladesh by Urmi Rahman
P Is for Pakistan by Shazia Razzak
R Is for Russia by Vladimir Kabakov
K Is for Korea by Hyechong Cheung
J Is for Jamaica by Benjamin Zephaniah
M Is for Mexico by Flor de María Cordero
B Is for Brazil by Maria de Fatimo Campos
T Is for Turkey by Nilufer Topaloglu Pyper
P is for Poland by Agnieska Mrowczynska
Country ABCs – The Country ABCs series gives information on historical people and events, places and items that are specific to that country. The style of illustrations change with each book and fun facts are also included throughout.
Italy ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Italy by Sharon Katz Cooper
France ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of France by Sharon Katz Cooper
Germany ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Germany by Sarah Heiman
New Zealand ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of New Zealand by Holly Schroeder
Australia ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Australia by Sarah Heiman
India ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of India by Marcie Aboff
Israel ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Israel by Holly Schroeder
China ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of China by Holly Schroeder
Japan ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Japan by Heiman
Vietnam ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Vietnam by Theresa Alberti
Guatemala ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Guatemala by Marcie Aboff
Venezuela ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Venezuela by Sharon Katz Cooper
Mexico ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Mexico by Sarah Heiman
Costa Rica ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Costa Rica by Sharon Katz Cooper
Brazil ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Brazil by David Seidman
Canada ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Canada by Brenda Haugen
Kenya ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Kenya by Sarah Heiman
Egypt ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Egypt by Sarah Heiman
Kalamazoo to Timbuctoo, and everywhere in between!
W Is for World: A Round-the-World ABC (World Alphabets)by Kate Cave – W is for World is an alphabet books that has great pictures of people from all around the word. Each letter is represented by a common word that your little one would know, F is for Food and B is for Books. The description of each item shows why, for example, books are so precious to children in other parts of the world.
Children from Australia to Zimbabwe: A Photographic Journey around the World by Maya Ajmera – Children from Australia to Zimbabwe is a great book for upper elementary students that would like to learn more detailed information about different countries from around the world. The book does not include every country, but does include a map for each country, photograph of children from that country and details about the country.
World Food Alphabet by Chris Caldicott – World Food Alphabet is a fun trip around the world looking at foods from different countries. A short description and photograph of the food is included for each letter.
European ABC’s
ABC UK by James Dunn – ABC UK looks at common and unique cultural people, events and items in the UK. Each letter features an illustration and a short description. Items featured are; B is for the Beetles, Q is for Queen, and N is for Nessi.
ABC London by James Dunn – ABC London gives readers a great overview of some of the unique and famous things you can find in London. Readers can learn about the Changing of the Guard, Kings Cross, and Wimbledon, just to name a few.
Discover the World Series:
S is for Shamrock: An Ireland Alphabet by Eve Bunting
E is for Eiffel Tower: A France Alphabet by Helen L. Wilbur
C is for Ciao: An Italy Alphabet by Elissa D. Grodin
B Is for Big Ben: An England Alphabet by Pamela Duncan Edwards
D is for Dala Horse: A Nordic Countries Alphabet by Kathy-jo Wargin
B is for Bagpipes: A Scotland Alphabet by Eve Begley Kiehm
Country ABCs Series:
Italy ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Italy by Sharon Katz Cooper
France ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of France by Sharon Katz Cooper
Germany ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Germany by Sarah Heiman
World Alphabet Series:
T Is for Turkey by Nilufer Topaloglu Pyper
P is for Poland by Agnieska Mrowczynska
African ABC’s
A Is for Africa by Ifeoma Onyefulu – A is for Africa is a beautiful book that features photographs and a look into the life of people in West Africa. Each letter features information that will help little readers understand more about other cultures.
Jambo Means Hello: Swahili Alphabet Book by Muriel Feelings – Jambo Means Hello includes beautiful pictures and traditional words used every day in the Swahili language. Each letter features a word, definition, how to pronounce the word, extra information about the word and an illustration. This book focuses on the Swahili culture, not African animals.
ABC’s from Ghana: With Love by Betty Lewis Ellett – ABC’s from Ghana is a great book to use with preschoolers as they learn about the country of Ghana or as they are introduced to other cultures. The book features photographs and simple information about the country.
Discover the World Series:
D Is for Drinking Gourd: An African American Alphabet by Nancy I. Sanders
Country ABCs Series:
Kenya ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Kenya by Sarah Heiman
Egypt ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Egypt by Sarah Heiman
World Alphabet Series:
E Is for Ethiopia by Ashenafi Gudeta
S Is for South Africa by Beverley Naidoo
North America ABC’s
ABC of Toronto by Per Henrik Gurth – ABC of Toronto is a great book for little ones. The pictures are very childlike and feature animals as they explore different sites found in Toronto.
To see a list of ABC Books about the United States check out our previous post, American Places ABC Books.
Discover the World Series:
P is for Pinata: A Mexico Alphabet by Tony Johnston
M is For Maple: A Canadian Alphabet by Michael Ulmer
Country ABCs Series:
Mexico ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Mexico by Sarah Heiman
Costa Rica ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Costa Rica by Sharon Katz Cooper
Canada ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Canada by Brenda Haugen
World Alphabets:
J Is for Jamaica by Benjamin Zephaniah
M Is for Mexico by Flor de María Cordero
South American ABC’s
Country ABCs Series:
Guatemala ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Guatemala by Marcie Aboff
Venezuela ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Venezuela by Sharon Katz Cooper
Brazil ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Brazil by David Seidman
World Alphabet Series:
B Is for Brazil by Maria de Fatimo Campos
Asian ABC’s
K is for Korea by Hyechong Cheung – K is for Korea shows the alphabet with beautiful photographs and information about South Korea. The book looks at the culture of South Korea and gives young readers an insight into what the country is like.
My First Book of Chinese Words: An ABC Rhyming Book by Faye-Lynn Wu – My First Book of Chinese Words is a great way to introduce kids to Chinese words and culture. The book includes pronunciation tips for letter sounds at the beginning of the book, a short rhyme explaining the word and additional facts. You can also find this type of book for Japanese and Korean words.
My First Book of Japanese Words: An ABC Rhyming Book by Michelle Haney Brown
My First Book of Korean Words: An ABC Rhyming Book by Kyubyong Park
Discover the World Series:
T is for Taj Mahal: An India Alphabet by Varsha Bajaj
D is for Dancing Dragon: A China Alphabet by Carol Crane
Country ABCs Series:
India ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of India by Marcie Aboff
Israel ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Israel by Holly Schroeder
China ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of China by Holly Schroeder
Japan ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Japan by Heiman
Vietnam ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Vietnam by Theresa Alberti
World Alphabet Series:
C Is for China by Sungwan So
I Is for India by Prodeepta Das
I Is for Iran by Shirin Adl
B Is for Bangladesh by Urmi Rahman
P Is for Pakistan by Shazia Razzak
R Is for Russia by Vladimir Kabakov
K Is for Korea by Hyechong Cheung
Australian ABC’s
An Australian ABC of Animals by Bronwyn Bancroft – An Australian ABC of Animals is featured on our ABC Animal list. This book introduces kids to a new continent and animals that live there. The book includes very unique art work for each animal. If you are learning about Australian animals you might also enjoy this collection of books.
E Is for Echidna: My Australian Word Book by Bronwyn Bancroft – E is for Echidna is another book by the same author as An Australian ABC of Animals. The illustrations are beautiful works of art that feature an alphabetic list of animals and other items found in nature.
Discover the World Series:
D is for Down Under: An Australia Alphabet by Devin Scillian
Country ABCs Series:
New Zealand ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of New Zealand by Holly Schroeder
Australia ABCs: A Book About the People and Places of Australia by Sarah Heiman
We hope you enjoy reading some of these books for your own around the world ABC adventure!
Make the most out of teaching with ABC Books with these tips.
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