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Eleanor
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Over in the Montessori forum, we've been discussing Maria Montessori's controversial advice to parents and teachers, to avoid reading fantasy stories to children under age 5 or 6. Needless to say, there have been a wide range of responses expressed in the thread, and people have chosen various ways to apply (or not apply!) this advice in their own families. One thing we do seem to be agreed on, though, is that it's surprisingly difficult to find high-quality, realistic storybooks that are suitable for preschool-aged children.
I thought it might be helpful to start a thread to share the titles of such books. As I find the time, I'll look through past discussions and reading lists to find additional suggestions. Please feel free to add more. 
For the purposes of this thread, "realistic" means that the events in the story could actually take place. No talking animals, no dancing teapots, no time travel, no fairies, etc. The stories themselves could either be fictional, or based on real events. If the latter, they should be written in a narrative or poetic style, rather than just as a series of facts with accompanying illustrations.
I've had very little success in finding realistic storybooks in the "general fiction" category. It's somewhat easier to find them if you stick to specific subjects, e.g.: books about baby animals; religious stories; stories about life in specific geographical areas or historical periods; and books that are meant to help children deal with "major life issues" (which could be anything from potty training to disabilities). Of course, not all of these books meet the tests of being age-appropriate, well written and illustrated, and compatible with our faith... but many of them do.
Anyway, to start off with, here are a few picture books that we like, and that fall into the category of "things that might really happen."
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W. Nikola-Lisa: Night is Coming
Shirley Hughes: Alfie’s Feet (and others in the Alfie series)
George Ella Lyon (illustrated by Stephanie Anderson): Weaving the Rainbow
Thomas Locker: Mountain Dance, Where the River Begins
Barbara Cooney: Miss Rumphius
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marianne
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Ox-Cart Man, by Donald Hall
Blueberries for Sal, by Robert McCloskey
The Story About Ping, by Marjorie Flack (told from the perspective of the duck, but not an unrealistic tale)
My all time favorites are the old fashioned series of Flicka, Ricka, Dicka and Snipp, Snapp, Snurr by Maj Lindman. The stories take place in Sweden and the styles of clothes are old, but the stories are realistic and character building. This is an all star series that went out of print for a while, but they brought it back.
Also, the Billy and Blaze series by CW Anderson.
Here's one for the 2yo crowd: Mommy Mine by Tim Warnes
Shows animals and their mothers, using a descriptive, rhyming text.
I am so sorry that I don't have the link thing working - I just can't get it right! I also couldn't get my titles underlined. So sorry!
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Rebecca
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Some of our family's favorites, many of which are OOP but can be found at library booksales for as little as $0.25...
Emma by Barbara Cooney
Little Tim and the Brave Sea Captain and many others in the series by Edward Ardizzone
Obadiah the Bold and Thy friend, Obadiah by Brinton Turkle
Yonie Wondernose, Bright April, Henner's Lydia by Marguerite de Angeli
Owl Moon by Jane Yolen
The Little Stone House-A Story of Building a House in the Country by Berta and Elmer Hader
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Eleanor
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Thanks! The title of The Little Stone House reminded me of another one that my husband and daughter like (though it's a little too technical for my taste) :
Let's Build a House: A White Cottage Before Winter by Russ Flint.
And I probably should have included the ever-popular Madeline, by Ludwig Bemelmans. I'm not sure about the rest of the series, but the first book seems plausible.
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CatholicMommy
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We love ALL the Madeline books. As well as various books about how trucks work - I've just packed them all, but I'll list them when I open the boxes again.
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SeaStar
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I love the Little Farm by the Sea by Kay Chaoro
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Eleanor
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Here are a few more:
The Stray Dog by Marc Simont
Kitten's First Full Moon by Kevin Henkes
At the Crossroads by Rachel Isadora
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joann10
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We have just finished a unit about Maine, and my kids really enjoyed,Birdie's Lighthouse and The Late Loonand One Morning in Maine andKeep the Lights Burning Abbie.
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Kathryn UK
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My dds enjoyed the Katie Morag books by Mairi Hedderwick, about a little girl who lives on a Scottish island.
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Karen E.
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We love Jim Arnosky's books. Some of the nature books, on this page (under "youngest readers") are among Ramona's favorites.
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Karen E.
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I'm laughing here ... I just updated the above post so that it's coherent. If you read it on email notification rather than on the forum, the original note said something like:
"We love books. Great. Jim Arnosky's."
because I had forgotten to insert links, and as I did it, they ended up in the wrong place.  I need more coffee.
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momwise
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I think Ezra Jack Keats's books would fit your criteria and be enjoyed by preschoolers, including The Snowy Day and Whistle for Willie.
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Eleanor
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Gwen, thanks for mentioning Ezra Jack Keats -- I kept forgetting to add him to the list. Here are a couple more stories about urban life:
A Chair for My Mother by Vera B. Williams
White Snow Bright Snow by Alvin Tresselt and Roger Duvoisin
And more classic animal stories:
Angus and the Ducks, and Angus and the Cat, by Marjorie Flack
The Big Red Barn by Margaret Wise Brown
And here are a couple that are perhaps unlikely, but are still within the realm of possibility:
Harry the Dirty Dog by Gene Zion
Slinky Malinki by Lynley Dodd
Okay, maybe that last one is pushing it a bit; I doubt that a cat could really get all that stuff home in one night. But, if the "Montessori police" decide that Slinky Malinki isn't sufficiently plausible, they'll have to pry it from my cold, dead hands.
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acystay
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Just thinking of some of my son's favorites that aren't fantasy
Trashy Town by Andrea Zimmerman also look at "Digger Man" by the same author.
10 Rubber Ducks by Eric Carle. This was based on an actual event! There are other Eric Carle ones too like that my kids like that aren't fantasy.
Lois Ehlert is another good author to go with. My kids love many of her book.
"Kitten's First Full Moon" was a big hit here too when we read it last year.
I ain't a-gonna paint no more was a great big hit here too. I even let them paint while in the tub to this book. I don't know that it would sit well with the neat and order side of MM though, 
Honey for a Child's Heart is a great read for you to find good books. The list in the back (while many do give that fantasy aspect) there are a ton that don't. I've found this book to just be great for me to explore new children's authors.
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mary theresa
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How about the Tom and Pippo books by Helen Oxenbury? They are SO cute!! I think there is upwards of 4 in the series.
Also, there is River Parade, by Alexandra Day
This is all I have now off the top of my head. Sorry I don't have time to link!
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aiereis
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One of my son's favorite books is "The Farm Book" by Jan Pfloog.
Our family also likes "All the Places to Love", "Big Red Barn", "The Biggest Bear" and "I Love You Like Crazy Cakes". The last one is a true story, I think.
--Christina
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aiereis
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Oh, I meant to add that I have seen many realistic stories about farm life other than the two I mentioned, I just don't know the names of any of the others.
Christina
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Fe2h2o
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acystay wrote:
There are other Eric Carle ones too like that my kids like that aren't fantasy.
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Eric Carle's Pancakes, Pancakes for example! We've just got it from the library and it's fabulous!
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Stephanie_Q
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Looking through my books and trying not to repeat:
A Chair For My Mother and Something Special for Me by Vera B. Williams.
The Glorious Flight Across the Channel with Louis Bleriot by Alice and Martin Provensen
The Quilt Story by Tony Johnston (illustrated by Tomie dePaola)
Once Upon a Dinkelsbuhl by Patricia Lee Gauch (illustrated by Tomie dePaola)
And here are a couple books that that I just picked up off the library book sale shelf that look good:
My Home by Renee Bartkowski (a Little Golden Book)
the tiniest sound by mel evans with water colors by ed young
I Know A Lady by Charlotte Zolotow
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CrunchyMom
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We like the series that includes The Little Duck. We have a few of these that I grabbed because they are only $3.25 a piece new, and I remembered reading and enjoying them a lot growing up. They have photography as illustrations and it is the story of a child and the animal. Often the animal is the pet or the child lives on a farm or finds an egg and raises it, etc...
Idk, they might be twaddle, but I don't think so since I enjoy reading them over and over and don't get annoyed (which I can't say that for most of the books at the library the first time I read them!).
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4Real Forums : Picture Book Discoveries
Topic: Realistic storybooks for preschoolers
