Peggy Rathmann
Recognized in the Creative Minds Montessori 2026 Teacher’s Choice list.
Peggy Rathmann is one of roughly one hundred authors whose work was selected by the Montessori-certified teachers at Creative Minds Montessori for the 2026 Teacher’s Choice list — 120 books chosen across four reading stages, from first lap-reads to first chapter books. The selected book was chosen for how precisely it meets children at a real developmental moment. This recognition cannot be bought: no author or publisher paid to appear on our lists, and we take no commission on any book sale.
About Peggy Rathmann
Peggy Rathmann won the 1996 Caldecott Medal for Officer Buckle and Gloria. Good Night, Gorilla, her almost wordless story, started as a homework assignment in a children's-book class and was named an ALA Notable Children's Book for 1994.
On her own site Rathmann describes a family videotape in which the dog quietly licked every poached egg on the buffet while her mother chatted nearby, and the family then complimented her mother on the delicious eggs. She says she suspects that tape 'had a big influence on my choice of subject matter.'
Also by this author: Officer Buckle and Gloria · 10 Minutes till Bedtime
Official website: peggy-rathmann.com
Selected for the 2026 Teacher’s Choice list
Part of The Best Children’s Books by Age, chosen by the teachers at Creative Minds Montessori in Frisco, TX.