The easiest book character costumes come straight from the closet: a striped shirt and round glasses for Waldo, a red hoodie for Little Red Riding Hood, white pajamas and a paper crown for Max, or overalls and a pail for Sal.
Most book character costumes need no sewing and no shopping: regular clothes, one prop and the book itself.
Below are 66 ideas for toddlers through teens, teachers, classes and families, each with the real book and author, plus school rules to check, a 1 week plan and expert costume safety advice.
Key Takeaways
Start with a book your child loves, then build the outfit from the closet.
One clear prop does most of the work. Carry the book too.
Dress as a character through clothes and props only, never by changing skin color.
Check your school’s own rules on masks, toy weapons and face paint.
Keep hems short, props soft and faces uncovered.
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Table of Contents
Book Character Costumes at a Glance
Quick Answer
The easiest book character costumes are regular clothes plus one prop: a striped shirt and round glasses for Waldo, white pajamas and a paper crown for Max, a red hoodie and a basket for Little Red Riding Hood, or overalls and a pail for Sal. Let your child pick a book they love, then carry the book.
Character
Book
Closet items
Effort
Waldo
Where’s Waldo?
Striped shirt, knit hat, round glasses
Very low
Little Red Riding Hood
Fairy tale
Red hoodie, small basket
Very low
Jordan Banks
New Kid
Hoodie, backpack, sketchbook
Very low
Sal
Blueberries for Sal
Overalls, small pail
Low
Max
Where the Wild Things Are
White pajamas, paper crown, sock tail
Low
Ms. Frizzle
The Magic School Bus
Any dress, paper cutouts, toy lizard
Medium
Roz
The Wild Robot
Gray sweats, cardboard box, foil
High (a cardboard build)
Quick picks by effort. All 66 ideas below list the book, the author and what to wear.
When is book character day? Your school sets its own date. Read Across America, launched by the National Education Association (NEA) in 1998, includes big celebrations on March 2 and throughout March. World Book Day in the UK and Ireland falls on March 4, 2027. Children’s Book Week, established in 1919, runs for a week in May and a week in November. Every idea also works for Halloween.
Picture Book Characters for Toddlers and Preschoolers
The Very Hungry Caterpillar:The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle. Green clothes and a red beanie with pipe cleaner antennae.
Max:Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak. White pajamas, a sock tail and a paper crown.
The Pigeon:Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! by Mo Willems. A light blue sweatsuit; carry a cardboard steering wheel.
Peter:The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats. A red hooded jacket and red pants; carry a cotton snowball.
Corduroy:Corduroy by Don Freeman. Green overalls with one button missing and felt bear ears.
Pete the Cat:Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes by Eric Litwin and James Dean. Blue clothes, felt cat ears and white sneakers.
Llama Llama:Llama Llama Red Pajama by Anna Dewdney. Red pajamas and felt ears on a headband.
The Mouse:If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Numeroff. Overalls and paper mouse ears; carry a cardboard cookie.
Lola:Lola at the Library by Anna McQuinn. Play clothes and a backpack of books; carry a library card.
Early Reader, Chapter Book and Middle Grade Heroes
Early readers and first chapter books.
Nate the Great:Nate the Great by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat. A raincoat and a detective hat; carry a magnifying glass.
The Princess in Black:The Princess in Black by Shannon Hale and Dean Hale. Black clothes, a black cape and a tiara.
Dog Man:Dog Man by Dav Pilkey. A blue button-up shirt and a blue cap with felt dog ears.
Middle grade and series heroes. These characters dress like regular kids.
Percy Jackson:The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan. An orange T-shirt and jeans; carry a ballpoint pen.
Jordan Banks:New Kid by Jerry Craft. A hoodie and a backpack; carry a sketchbook.
Mia Tang:Front Desk by Kelly Yang. Jeans and a T-shirt; carry a ring of keys.
Josh Bell:The Crossover by Kwame Alexander. A basketball jersey and shorts; carry a foam ball.
Castle “Ghost” Cranshaw:Ghost by Jason Reynolds. Running clothes with a paper race bib.
Merci Suárez:Merci Suárez Changes Gears by Meg Medina. School clothes; carry a soccer ball or a bike helmet.
Bud Caldwell:Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis. A cap and a jacket; carry a battered old suitcase.
Classic Storybook Character Costumes and Fairy Tales
Alice:Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll. A blue dress, a white apron and a headband.
Dorothy:The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum. A blue and white gingham dress and a basket. In the book her shoes are silver.
Anne Shirley:Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery. A plain dress, a straw hat and two braids.
Peter Rabbit:The Tale of Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter. A blue jacket and paper bunny ears; carry a paper radish.
Christopher Robin:Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A. Milne. Shorts and rain boots; carry a teddy bear.
Tom Sawyer:The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain. Rolled jeans and a straw hat; carry a paintbrush.
Pippi Longstocking:Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren. Two braids, a patched dress and mismatched long socks.
Little Red Riding Hood: The fairy tale, told by Charles Perrault and the Brothers Grimm. A red hoodie or cape; carry a small basket.
The Frog Prince: The fairy tale, collected by the Brothers Grimm. Green clothes and a paper crown; carry a gold ball.
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Nonfiction and Biography: Dress as a Real Person You Read About
Jane Goodall:Me . . . Jane by Patrick McDonnell. Khaki shirt and shorts; carry a stuffed chimpanzee.
Mae Jemison:Mae Among the Stars by Roda Ahmed. An orange sweatsuit as a flight suit; carry paper stars.
Amelia Earhart:I Am Amelia Earhart by Brad Meltzer. A brown jacket, a scarf and goggles on a knit cap.
Ruth Bader Ginsburg:I Dissent: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Makes Her Mark by Debbie Levy. A black robe, a paper doily collar and glasses.
Katherine Johnson:Counting on Katherine by Helaine Becker. A cardigan and glasses; carry a clipboard of math.
Jackie Robinson:I Am Jackie Robinson by Brad Meltzer. A baseball jersey and cap; carry a soft glove.
A kind note on respect. Dress as a character or a real person through clothes and props only. Never darken or lighten skin with makeup, and skip any outfit that turns a culture, religion, disability or body type into a costume.
Book Character Costumes for Teachers
Pre-K to grade 2.
Ms. Frizzle:The Magic School Bus at the Waterworks by Joanna Cole and Bruce Degen. A dress covered in paper planets or bugs; carry a toy lizard.
Miss Viola Swamp:Miss Nelson Is Missing! by Harry Allard and James Marshall. A black dress and striped tights; carry a stack of homework.
Amelia Bedelia:Amelia Bedelia by Peggy Parish. A black dress, a white apron and a hat with paper flowers.
The peddler:Caps for Sale by Esphyr Slobodkina. A jacket and a tall stack of caps on your head.
Grades 3 to 5.
Mary Poppins:Mary Poppins by P.L. Travers. A dark coat and a hat with flowers; carry a large fabric bag.
Mr. Popper:Mr. Popper’s Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater. Painter’s overalls; carry a stuffed penguin.
Middle and high school.
Sherlock Holmes:The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Arthur Conan Doyle. A long coat and a cap; carry a magnifying glass.
Jo March:Little Women by Louisa May Alcott. A long skirt and a shawl; carry a handwritten manuscript.
Group, Whole-Class, Sibling and Parent-Child Ideas
Group book character costumes for teachers and whole classes.
The crayons:The Day the Crayons Quit by Drew Daywalt. One solid color per person with a matching paper cone hat.
The alphabet:Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault. Each child wears one felt letter; the teacher is the coconut tree.
The animals:Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? by Bill Martin Jr. and Eric Carle. One animal and one color each: a brown bear, a red bird, a yellow duck.
The barnyard:Click, Clack, Moo: Cows That Type by Doreen Cronin. Cows in black and white, a duck and Farmer Brown in overalls.
Fern, Wilbur and Charlotte:Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White. Fern in overalls, Wilbur in pink, Charlotte in gray with a yarn web.
Elephant and Piggie:Today I Will Fly! by Mo Willems. One in gray with round glasses, one in pink with paper ears.
Frog and Toad:Frog and Toad Are Friends by Arnold Lobel. One in green, one in brown, each in a jacket.
Curious George and the Man with the Yellow Hat:Curious George by H.A. Rey and Margret Rey. A grown-up in yellow with a wide-brim hat; a child in brown.
CJ and Nana:Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de la Peña. Everyday clothes; Nana carries an umbrella.
The Cat in the Hat with Thing One and Thing Two:The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss. A grown-up with a striped paper hat; kids in red pajamas and blue caps.
Princess Elizabeth:The Paper Bag Princess by Robert Munsch. A large paper bag tunic over regular clothes and a paper crown.
Flat Stanley:Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown. Two sheets of poster board worn as a giant envelope.
Roz:The Wild Robot by Peter Brown. Gray sweats, a cardboard box chest panel and foil cuffs.
Comfortable all-day school costumes.
The bunny:Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown. Striped pajamas, soft bunny ears and real shoes.
Harold:Harold and the Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson. Blue sweats or a one-piece sleeper; carry a purple paper tube crayon.
For kids who do not like dressing up.
Vashti:The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds. Any T-shirt covered in round stickers.
Clifford:Clifford the Big Red Dog by Norman Bridwell. A red T-shirt and red pants.
Elmer:Elmer by David McKee. A gray T-shirt covered in colored paper squares.
Or wear the main color of the cover and carry the book. That counts.
How to Choose a Character and School Rules to Check
Start with the book: let your child pick a story they love, then read it again and notice what the character wears.
One clear prop: a pail, a suitcase or a crown tells the story from across the classroom.
Test the school day: your child should be able to sit on the rug, run at recess and use the bathroom alone.
Any character is for any child: “for boys” and “for girls” lists are just lists. Let the favorite book decide.
School rules to check. Policies differ, so ask the teacher about masks, toy weapons (including wands and swords), face paint and hats in class. If in doubt, leave the prop at home and bring the book.
Turn Dress-Up Day Into Reading Time
The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) advises reading to your child every day, even if only for a few minutes, letting your child choose the book even if it is the same one over and over, and stopping to ask what will happen next.
Read the character’s book the night before and again after school.
Ask your child to invent a new chapter with our story starters.
For Halloween, pair the costume with one of our spooky stories.
Our Halloween safety tips cover streets, candy and allergies. These points are costume specific.
Fit and trip hazards: the AAP says costumes should be short enough to prevent tripping and that shoes should fit well. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) advises avoiding overly long or baggy costumes.
Flame resistance: the AAP says to look for “flame resistant” on costume labels, wigs and accessories. The CPSC recommends polyester or nylon over sheer cotton or rayon, and warns that any fabric can burn if it touches an open flame.
Masks vs. face paint: the AAP calls non-toxic makeup and decorative hats safer alternatives to masks, and suggests testing makeup on a small patch of skin first. Hats should not slide over the eyes.
Props soft and short: the AAP advises avoiding sharp or long swords, canes or sticks. Make wands and scepters from paper or foam.
Toddlers: the AAP says to check that your child can see, breathe, walk and move their arms easily, and that a hat or cape does not block the face.
Weather layers: the AAP suggests checking the forecast and including layers if needed.
Costumes come off for sleep. No capes, hoods, strings or props in bed. Babies under 12 months sleep as they do every night: alone, on their back, on a firm, flat, bare surface.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the easiest book character costumes?
The easiest book character costumes use clothes you already own. Try Waldo in a red and white striped shirt and round glasses, Little Red Riding Hood in a red hoodie with a basket, Max in white pajamas with a paper crown, or Sal in overalls with a small pail.
What can I wear for book character day if I do not have a costume?
Wear the main color of the character or the book’s cover, add one prop, and carry the book. A red T-shirt works for Clifford, a shirt covered in round stickers for Vashti from The Dot, and a hoodie with a sketchbook for Jordan Banks from New Kid.
What are good book character costumes for teachers?
Pick something comfortable for a full day and easy for students to recognize. Favorites include Ms. Frizzle in a dress covered with paper planets, Miss Viola Swamp in black with striped tights, Amelia Bedelia in an apron and flowered hat, and Sherlock Holmes with a magnifying glass.
What is a good last minute book character costume?
Pick a character who dresses like a regular kid. Matilda needs a simple dress and a stack of library books. Harry Potter needs round glasses and a striped scarf. Percy Jackson needs an orange T-shirt and a pen. Paddington needs a blue coat, a hat and a small suitcase.
When is book character day?
Each school chooses its own date, so check the calendar or flyer. The National Education Association says Read Across America includes big celebrations of reading on March 2 and throughout March. In the UK and Ireland, World Book Day falls on March 4, 2027.
Can my child wear a mask or face paint for book character day?
Check your school’s policy first, because rules differ. The American Academy of Pediatrics calls non-toxic makeup and decorative hats safer alternatives to masks, and suggests testing makeup on a small patch of skin ahead of time. A headband with ears or a paper crown keeps the face uncovered.
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