Musicians spend their careers turning feelings into songs, so it makes a strange kind of sense that some of them eventually turn to picture books instead. The results range from gentle bedtime stories to oddly political fables about squirrels, and a surprising number of these titles have actually stuck around on bookshelves for decades. Here are eight , along with the stories behind how they came to be.
1. Madonna, “The English Roses”
The English Roses is a children’s picture book written by American entertainer Madonna, released on September 15, 2003, by Callaway Arts & Entertainment, and illustrated by Jeffrey Fulvimari with line drawings. The story follows four friends who resent a classmate named Binah because they assume her life is perfect, only to discover she is actually lonely and grieving. The book debuted at number one on The New York Times Best Seller list, spending a total of 18 weeks there.
The book was released simultaneously in more than 100 countries worldwide and translated into 42 languages. There are technically 14 books in The English Roses series, starting with the 2003 original, followed by a 2006 sequel, and then 12 additional chapter books released between 2007 and 2008. Madonna went on to publish several more titles for children, making this one of the more expansive musician-authored book series out there.
2. Paul McCartney, “High in the Clouds”
Paul McCartney entered the world of children’s literature by writing High in the Clouds with Geoff Dunbar and Philip Ardagh in 2004. It is not a light, breezy tale by any means. The book follows a squirrel who witnesses his mother being killed by a bulldozer, and leaves to search for an animal utopia free from human development.
The environmental undertones are hard to miss, and some reviewers have noted the story leans heavily on themes of development and loss. Still, McCartney keeps the pacing brisk enough that young readers tend to stay invested in the orphaned squirrel’s journey. It reflects a side of his songwriting instincts, namely a willingness to tell a full story with a clear emotional arc, just applied to prose instead of melody.
3. Julie Andrews, “The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles”
Julie Andrews is best known as a singer and actress, but she has also built a genuine literary career under her married name. Writing as Julie Andrews Edwards, she authored The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles, which sends the Potter siblings into a magical land to meet the last of a race of imaginary creatures. The book has become something of a cult favorite among fans of whimsical fantasy fiction for younger readers.
Andrews has continued writing well beyond this single title, producing a steady stream of children’s books over several decades, some in collaboration with her daughter Emma Walton Hamilton. Her musical background as a trained singer shows up in the lyrical rhythm of her prose, which many readers find distinct from typical picture book writing. It is one of the more literary entries on this list, closer to a chapter book fantasy than a simple bedtime story.
4. Dolly Parton, “Coat of Many Colors”
Dolly Parton uses the lyrics of her classic song “Coat of Many Colors” as the backdrop for this heartfelt picture book. The story is drawn directly from Parton’s own rural Tennessee childhood, when her mother sewed her a coat from scraps of fabric. Parton actually had such a coat as a child, and it can be seen in the Chasing Rainbows Museum at Dollywood along with the dry cleaning receipt on which she originally wrote the lyrics.
What makes this book stand out is how directly it ties into Parton’s broader literacy work. Through her Imagination Library, she has spent decades mailing free books to children around the world, so “Coat of Many Colors” fits naturally into a larger mission rather than functioning as a one-off celebrity project. The book carries the same warmth and simplicity that made the original song a country music standard.
5. Bob Dylan, “Forever Young”
Dylan has not written an original prose story for children from scratch, but his songs have been repeatedly adapted into picture book form by illustrators working closely with his lyrics. In 2008, Bob Dylan approached illustrator Paul Rogers, asking him to create a children’s storybook around his 1974 classic “Forever Young,” inspired by his own four-year-old son. The resulting book pairs Dylan’s original lyrics with gentle, dreamlike artwork aimed squarely at a young audience.
Dylan’s other book for children is called Man Gave Names to All the Animals, adapted from another of his classic songs. Both titles work more like illustrated song lyrics than traditional narratives, which is a fitting approach given how much of Dylan’s songwriting already leans on vivid, standalone imagery. Parents familiar with the original recordings often find themselves humming along while reading these aloud.
6. Pharrell Williams, “Happy”
Pharrell Williams turned his hit Academy Award nominated song “Happy” into a picture book that shows young readers photographs of children around the world and across cultures celebrating what it means to be happy. Rather than illustrated drawings, the book relies on real photography, which gives it a documentary feel that sets it apart from most musician-written children’s titles. It essentially extends the spirit of the song, which became a global phenomenon after its release in the 2013 film Despicable Me 2, into a format small children can hold and flip through themselves.
The book leans on universal, relatable moments rather than a single storyline, showing kids from different backgrounds smiling, dancing, and playing. That structure makes it less of a narrative and more of a mood piece, similar to how the song itself functions as pure, uncomplicated joy set to music. It has become a popular gift book, often paired with the song for read-alongs.
7. David Bowie, “Bowie’s Musical Storyland”
David Bowie collaborated with illustrator Jamilla Naji in 2004 to create Musical Storyland, his own sing along book, complete with a CD of original little known 1960s era Bowie music. It is one of the more unexpected entries on any list of musician-written children’s books, given how far it sits from Bowie’s usual artistic persona. The project was aimed to help children improve their reading skills.
The CD component is what makes this title unusual, since it pairs printed text with genuinely obscure recordings from early in Bowie’s career, long before Ziggy Stardust or his later reinventions. For collectors and Bowie completists, the book has become something of a curiosity item precisely because those recordings are hard to find elsewhere. For young readers, it functions as a straightforward sing along story, largely detached from Bowie’s rock star image.
8. Jimmy Buffett, “The Jolly Mon”
The Jolly Mon is a children’s picture book written by Jimmy Buffett and Savannah Jane Buffett, published by Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. The book was originally released in 1988 and illustrated by Lambert Davis. The plot heavily draws from the Greek myth of Arion.
Buffett combined his knowledge of oceanic folklore with his own experiences sailing with his daughter Savannah Jane from island to island throughout the Caribbean, resulting in an original tale involving music, enchantment, pirates, trickery, and the loyalty of a dolphin. The original hardcover release of the book was accompanied by a cassette tape of Jimmy Buffett and Savannah Jane performing the story’s songs. It set the template for Buffett’s later ventures into family entertainment, including a stage musical adaptation that toured years afterward.
These eight titles show just how differently musicians approach storytelling once they step away from the recording studio. Some, like Dylan and Parton, simply extend an existing song into a new format. Others, like McCartney and Bowie, built entirely original worlds with only a loose connection to their music careers. Whatever the approach, each of these books found an audience well beyond the artist’s usual fan base, proving that a good story can travel just as far as a good song.
