Reading order
| # | Title | Published | Author | Buy on Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Tale of Peter Rabbit | 1901 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 2 | The Tale of Squirrel Nutkin | 1903 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 3 | The Tailor of Gloucester | 1903 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 4 | The Tale of Benjamin Bunny | 1904 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 5 | The Tale of Two Bad Mice | 1904 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 6 | The Tale of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle | 1905 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 7 | The Tale of The Pie and The Patty-Pan | 1905 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 8 | The Story of Miss Moppet | 1906 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 9 | The Tale of Mr. Jeremy Fisher | 1906 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 10 | The Story of A Fierce Bad Rabbit | 1906 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 11 | The Tale of Tom Kitten | 1907 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 12 | The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck | 1908 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 13 | The Tale of Samuel Whiskers or the Roly-Poly Pudding | 1908 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 14 | The Tale of the Flopsy Bunnies | 1909 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 15 | The Tale of Ginger & Pickles | 1909 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 16 | The Tale of Mrs. Tittlemouse | 1910 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 17 | The Tale of Timmy Tiptoes | 1911 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 18 | The Tale of Mr. Tod | 1912 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 19 | The Tale of Pigling Bland | 1913 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 20 | Appley Dapply’s Nursery Rhymes | 1917 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 21 | The Tale of Johnny Town-Mouse | 1918 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 22 | Cecily Parsley’s Nursery Rhymes | 1922 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 23 | The Fairy Caravan | 1929 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 24 | The Tale of Little Pig Robinson | 1930 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 25 | Peter Rabbit Peek Through Board Books: Mice | 1996 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 26 | The Tale of Kitty In Boots | 2016 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
| 27 | The Christmas Present Hunt | 2021 | Beatrix Potter | Buy |
Beatrix Potter’s picture books span from The Tale of Peter Rabbit in 1901 through The Tale of Little Pig Robinson in 1930, with a few additional titles published posthumously or much later. The early books established Potter’s format: small volumes with a single illustration on each page facing a brief passage of text. This compact design was intentional, sized to fit comfortably in a child’s hands.
The stories follow various animal characters through adventures in gardens, kitchens, and the English countryside. Some are cautionary tales with real consequences (Peter Rabbit’s father ended up in a pie, after all), while others are gentler stories of friendship and domestic life. Potter wrote with a frankness that respected young readers, never talking down to her audience or softening the realities of the natural world too much.
Later additions to the collection include The Tale of Kitty In Boots, which Potter wrote in 1914 but was not published until 2016, and a few board book adaptations. The core run of original picture books remains the heart of the series and has been in continuous print for well over a century.