Best New Pop-Up Books

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Best New Pop-Up Books

Introduction

Where do I find collectible pop-up books?

Pop-up books are in a second golden age right now, with incredibly clever and intricate designs. But because pop-up books are actually still put together by hand, the labor and transport costs are fast making them cost more to buy than the reasonable person can afford. Many titles only have a single print run, and are very difficult to find in mint condition from the second hand market due to their delicate nature, so missing out on a beautiful title while it’s still in print can be very costly.

So to help you find latest and greatest, this list includes the most beautiful, collectible, and/or likely to be future prize winning pop-up books published over the past couple of years.

As always, please do share in the comments if there’s a title you’re particularly enjoying right now 

Please note that some of the links below are affiliate links for which I may be compensated (this does not affect my reviews nor cost you any money, but helps support my site hosting costs). I deeply appreciate your support of my site if you use these links, but warmly encourage you to buy from your local Indie bookshop if you have the opportunity.

2024 Recent Releases

ehrhard bicycles

Bicycles

A brief, whimsical history of the bicycle. English translation of the 2022 French title, with a succession of scenes from the first steps on a balance bike to the legendary Tour de France (nb: sample images below from the French edition).

Paper Engineer: Dominique Ehrhard
Publisher: Prestel Junior
Anticipated Publication Date: Mar 5, 2024

Find it at Amazon | B&N | Blackwells

Prestel JR, 9783791375618

Move!

Colourful pop-up shapes, stripes and spots are ready to come to life as you pull tabs, wind wheels, flip flaps, and more. (Also published as ‘Action!’ in French, Gallimard Jeunesse, 2022)

Paper Engineer: David A. Carter
Publisher: Thames and Hudson
Anticipated Publication Date: Feb 29, 2024

Find it at Amazon | Waterstones | Blackwells

Thames & Hudson, 9780500653425

Ancient Civilisations Series

Each title in this new series contains eight 3D reconstructions for readers to explore and discover an ancient civilisation, accompanied by educational text about how the people lived.

Paper Engineer: David Hawcock, illustrations by Javier Joaquin & Margherita Borin
Publisher: NuiNui
Anticipated Publication Date: Feb 13, 2024

Find Ancient Pompeii at AmazonWaterstones | Blackwells

Find Ancient Greece at Amazon | Waterstones | Blackwells

Find Ancient Rome at Amazon | Waterstones | Blackwells

Find Ancient Egypt at Amazon | Waterstones | Blackwells

Pompeii: 9782889754151 / Greece: 9782889754144 / Rome: 9782889754083 / Egypt: 9782889754069

2023 Publications

Garbage Pail Kids: Pop-Up Yearbook

Foul, fan-favorite Garbage Pail Kids like Adam Bomb, Leaky Lindsay, and Bony Joanie are brought to three-dimensional life in this 1980’s-style pop-up yearbook. You’ll see the kids get an education in wreaking havoc with vomit in the cafeteria, mucky experiments in science class, and stink bombs in the locker room. Also includes bonus removable, interactive GPK cards.

Paper Engineer: Matthew Reinhart, illustrated by Joe Simko
Publisher: Insight Editions
Publication Date: Dec 2023

➤ Amazon B&N | Blackwells

ISBN: 9798886631135

Minecraft: The Official Pop-Up - Matthew Reinhart

Features five pop-up spreads across different biomes, which allow readers to take on creepers, zombies, and endermen. Original illustrations give new depth to favorite mobs and creatures, caves, and dungeons, while experiences range from surviving the first night to building a unique base. ISBN 9798886630978 (US) / 9780008626495 (UK).

Paper Engineer: Matthew Reinhart
Publisher: Insight Editions (US) | HarperCollins (UK)
Publication Date: Oct 2023 (US) / Apr 2024 (UK)

➤ US Edition: Amazon | B&N | Blackwells

➤ UK Edition: Amazon | Waterstones | Blackwells

Harry Potter: A Pop-Up Guide to the Creatures of the Wizarding World

A pop-up tour through the wizarding world’s boundless menagerie of magical creatures. Five intricately detailed pop-up spreads showcase creatures from the Harry Potter films in beautifully illustrated scenes that leap from the pages, accompanied by behind-the-scenes facts from the making of the film series – including fantastic beasts like the Basilisk, Buckbeak, and the Hungarian Horntail dragon. Filled with Reinhart’s signature interactive features like pull tabs and hidden pops.

Paper Engineer: Matthew Reinhart, text by Jody Revenson
Publisher: Insight Editions (US) | Titan (UK)
Publication Date: Oct 2023

Find US edition at Amazon | B&N | Waterstones | Blackwells

Find UK edition at Amazon | Waterstones | Blackwells

ISBN: 9798886631135 (US), 9781803368627 (UK)

Hoffmann's The Nutcracker - Gilded Fairytales

A magical pop-up edition of The Nutcracker with intricate folksy illustrations. ISBN 9788293560357.

Paper Engineer: Richard Ferguson, illustrated by Zanna Goldhawk, text by Steve Patschke based on the original story by ETA Hoffman
Publisher: Templar Books
Publication Date: Oct 2023

Find it at Amazon | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay

☞ In series with a very pretty pop-up version of The Snow Queen illustrated by Lesley Barnes.

Edvard Munch Pop-Ups

Showcasing one of Modernism’s most significant artists, this book creates three-dimensional representations of The Women on the BridgeWoman with PoppiesThe Building of the Winter StudioChildren in the Forest, The Yellow Log and of course the iconic Scream, accompanied by explanatory texts and sketches by Munch. ISBN 9788293560357.

Paper Engineer: Courtney Watson McCarthy, text by Bjørn Arild Ersland
Publisher: Munch Museum
Publication Date: Oct 2023

Find it at Amazon | Waterstones | Blackwells

☞ In series with McCarthy’s other art pop-up titles, including Hokusai Pop-UpsLeonardo Pop-Ups and Dalí Pop-Ups.

Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

The third book in the Harry Potter series, richly illustrated in brilliant full colour by MinaLima and featuring eight interactive paper-engineered elements, which include unfolding the Marauder’s Map, looking inside the Knight Bus, the Grim in a teacup, a spinning Time-Turner, and more. This is a hardback with the original unabridged text accompanied by 190 full-colour illustrations (nearly every page). ISBN US: 9781338815283; UK: 9781526666321.

Paper Engineer: MinaLima, text by JK Rowling
Publisher: Scholastic (US) / Bloomsbury (UK)
Publication Date: Oct 2023

➤ Find US edition at Amazon | B&N Blackwells | Abes | eBay

➤ Find UK edition at Amazon | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay

➤ Signed bookplate copies of the UK edition are also available from MinaLima direct.

☞ Read more about the MinaLima Interactive Children’s Classics series.

Paws, Claws, and Snapping Jaws: A Rainforest Predators Pop-Up

An introduction to more than 20 rainforest predators from the Amazon to the Congo Basin. Spreads include an endangered Amazonian jaguar leaping out at the readers, snapping crocodiles, slithering eels, and a majestic tree canopy spilling out on the turn of a page. ISBN 9798886630831.

Paper Engineer: Matthew Reinhart, text by Lori C. Froeb
Publisher: Insight Editions
Publication Date: Sep 2023

➤ Amazon | B&N | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay

 In series with Reinhart’s other nature pop-up title Teeth, Tentacles and Tail Fins.


New York: A Pop-Up Book

A selection of New York’s most iconic settings and architectural wonders unfold in seven pop-ups contained in a charming pint-sized package (the small size is intended to make it easy to carry along while traveling). The book is designed with a retro feel and features vintage-style street maps as backgrounds for each two-page spread, which deliver an iconic building or monument accompanied by text profiling the historical background and cultural significance of the structure or scene depicted in the pop-up. Scenes include the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, the Guggenheim Museum, Times Square, Brooklyn Bridge, Freedom Tower, and the Oculus. ISBN: 9780789339782.

Paper Engineer: Dominique Ehrhard
Publisher: Universe
Publication Date: Sep 2023

Find it at Amazon | B&N | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay

☞ In series with Ehrhard’s other travel titles Paris Pop-Up and London Pop-Up.

Dungeons & Dragons: The Ultimate Pop-Up Book 

An innovative pop-up tour through the world of D&D, including fantasy locations such as Waterdeep and Neverwinter, and fantastical creatures such as mind flayers, dragons, mimics, owl bears, and beholders, there are easter eggs hidden behind interactive doors and flaps like beloved characters Drizzt and Guenhwyvar. Includes five detailed pop-up spreads, with text written by Dungeons & Dragons Young Adventurer’s Guide Series authors Jim Zub and Stacy King in conjunction with paper engineering wizard Matthew Reinhart, and featuring dozens of characters and locations rendered by Brazilian artist Claudio Pozas (whose work can also be seen in several D&D 5E books). With a resurge in interest in the game driven by the release of the new Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves film, and newly acquired Stranger Things fans, first printings of this title are likely to disappear quickly. ISBN US: 9781647226206; UK: 9781803366104. 

Paper Engineer: Matthew Reinhart, written by Jim Zub & Stacy King, illustrated by Claudio Pozas
Publisher: Insight Editions (US) / Titan (UK)
Publication Date: Jul 2023

US edition: Amazon | B&N | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay

UK edition: AmazonWaterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay

Disney: The Little Mermaid Pop-Up Book

A pop-up celebration of the Disney Princess interpretation of the original Hans Christian Andersen tale, The Little Mermaid. This edition includes 5 pop-up spreads, original artwork and Reinhart’s signature ‘hidden surprises’ on every page. Reinhart is a master of the craft, so you know it’s bound to be excellent. ISBN 9781647227593.

Paper Engineer: Matthew Reinhart
Publisher: Insight Editions
Publication Date: May 2023

Pop-up Forest

Everything you’ve always wanted to know about forest ecosystems around the world with fact-packed text, lively and colorful illustrations, and delightful pop-up forestry. Discover what happens when trees communicate with each other; the kinds of creatures that live in them; and what the Scandinavian legend of Yggdrasil has to do with it all. ISBN 9780500653081.

Paper Engineer: Tom Valliant, illustrated by Bernard Duisit, written by Fleur Daugey
Publisher: Thames & Hudson
Publication Date: Mar 2023

➤ Find it at Amazon | B&N | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay 

☞ In series with Pop-Up Volcano, Pop-Up Earth and Pop-Up Moon, all of which are also excellent titles.

Teeth, Tentacles and Tail Fins: A Wild Ocean Pop-Up

Pop-up master Matthew Reinhart explores an underwater world where creatures such as the colossal squid, the anglerfish, and the goblin shark lie in wait. Majestic pop-up spreads, pull-out flaps and moving tabs are accompanied by fascinating facts about underwater animal behavior and anatomy.

Paper Engineer: Matthew Reinhart
Publisher: Insight Kids
Publication Date: Jan 2023

2022 Publications

The Seven Trials of Rostam

When the mythical Persian king of Iran, King Kay Kavous, foolishly invades the lands of Mazandaran, he soon finds himself and his army imprisoned by the terrifying White Demon. In all of Iran, only one young man is fit for the task of rescuing the king. Rostam, along with his devoted horse Rakhsh, sets off to complete seven heroic trials to save the king and Iran. A stunning effort in English with Persian script told through 8 spreads using 12 intricate mechanics. Enclosed in a beautiful slipcase. A worthy finalist in the 2023 Meggendorfer Awards.

Paper Engineer: Simon Arizpe, art and design by Hamid Rahmanian, text by Melissa Hibbard
Publisher: Kingorama/Fictionville Studio, 9798218011178
Publication Date: Nov 2022

Find it at Amazon | Kingorama

➤ See also French edition (Les Sept Épreuves de Rostam) at Amazon 

☞ In series with the equally stunning pop-up Zahhak: The Legend of the Serpent King (← links to in-depth video review of this highly recommended title).

Snow White and other Grimm's Fairy Tales [MinaLima Interactive Edition]

This latest effort by MinaLima is a brightly illustrated collection of 23 Grimm’s fairy tales with nine clever interactive features ranging from a pop-up forest and pull-tab mirror for Snow White and a wall of thorns encasing Sleeping Beauty, to a three-dimensional ball gown for Cinderella and a pop-up tower for Rapunzel.

Paper Engineer: MinaLima, text by the Brothers Grimm
Publisher: Harper Design
Publication Date: Nov 2022

➤ Find it at Amazon | B&N | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay

☞ Read more about the delightful MinaLima Interactive Children’s Classics series.

Marvel Super Heroes: The Ultimate Pop-Up Book

A pop-up Marvel super-hero celebration featuring contemporary comics art and three-dimensional paper engineering on every page. Tabs allow you to transform Tony Stark into Iron Man and Bruce Banner into the Incredible Hulk, with other spreads featuring the X-Men taking down a giant sentinel and more.

Paper Engineer: Matthew Reinhart
Publisher: Abrams Books for Young Readers, 9781419749117
Publication Date: Nov 2022

Stranger Things

This 3-D guide explores the world of Stranger Things, including Hawkins, Indiana, the Upside Down, and beyond, inviting you to adventure alongside Eleven and Mike Wheeler, crack the Russian code with Steve Harrington at Scoops Ahoy, face off against the terrifying Demogorgon, and more. Lots of hidden surprises and Easter eggs under the flaps and interactive spreads. A finalist in the 2023 Meggendorfer Awards.

Paper Engineer: Simon Arizpe, illustrated by Kyle Lambert, creative direction by Matthew Reinhart
Publisher: Insight Editions (US) / Titan (UK)
Publication Date: Aug 2022

➤ Find US edition at Amazon | B&N | Blackwells | Abes | eBay

➤ Find UK edition at Amazon | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay

Snowscape: A Winter Pop-Up Book

A whimsical pop-up winterscape with snowfall blanketing the landscape and delicate pop-up displays of flowers, animals and snowflakes. ISBN 9781623486594. A finalist in the 2023 Meggendorfer Awards.

Paper Engineer: Yoojin Kim, illustrated by Kathryn Selbert, text by Nicole Yen
Publisher: Jumping Jack Press
Publication Date: Aug 2022

Woodland Painting Party: An Easter Pop-Up Book

An Easter holiday adventure in which the Easter Bunny decides to paint her Easter eggs, inspired by the beautiful patterns and colors of her friends. Features seven illustrated spreads filled with original pop-ups, hidden flaps, and charming surprises.

Paper Engineer: Yevgeniya Yeretskaya, illustrated by Riley text by Nicole Yen
Publisher: Jumping Jack
Publication Date: Mar 2022

➤ Find it at Amazon | B&N | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay

☞ In series with Woodland Christmas.

☞ You may also be interested to see the most Beautiful Easter Pop-Up Books

Reprints

Up Pops: Paper Engineering with Elastic Bands

Each of ten basic mechanisms is illustrated by a working model which you can cut out and make. When finished, each working model glues back into the book on a special tab and folds away to make a kind of three dimensional dictionary or encyclopaedia. For each working model there is also a page called technical considerations which points out important features of the mechanism and suggests how it might be used to create original designs of your own. ISBN 9781913565497.

Paper Engineer: Mark Hiner
Publisher: Insight Editions
Publication Date: Jul 2023 (originally released 1993)

Graphic Pops Series Review

This comic-book style adaptation of classic literature is a brilliant way to get the story into the hands of a younger audience. Newly releasing in the US in 2023, the pop-ups and story flaps are engagingly designed, adding a fun interactive element to the tale. The paper is a bit rough on my UK editions that were released in 2021 (although I think that help ensure an overall robustness), but the text is decently sized and the pop-up mechanisms are smooth.

Sherlock Holmes: The Hound of the Baskervilles (Classic Pop-Ups/Graphic Pops)

A graphic adaptation of the classic Sherlock Holmes mystery, with comic-book style illustrations, giant pop-ups and fold-out pages on every spread. ISBN 9781645178231 (US) / 9781398808225 (UK).

Paper Engineer: David Hawcock, illustrated by Anthony Williams, text by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
Publisher: Canterbury Classics (US) / ARC (UK)
Publication Date: Jul 2023 (released in the UK in 2021)

➤ US edition: Amazon B&N | Blackwells | Abes | eBay

➤ UK edition: Amazon | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay

Frankenstein (Classic Pop-Ups/Graphic Pops)

A graphic adaptation of the classic brooding science fiction tale, with comic-book style illustrations, giant pop-ups and fold-out pages on every spread. ISBN US: 9781645178224; UK: 9781398808218.

Paper Engineer: David Hawcock, illustrated by Anthony Williams, text by Mary Shelley
Publisher: Canterbury Classics (US) / ARC (UK)
Publication Date: Jul 2023 (released in the UK in 2021)

US edition: Amazon | B&N Blackwells | Abes | eBay

UK edition: Amazon | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay

Dracula (Classic Pop-Ups/Graphic Pops)

A graphic adaptation of the classic gothic vampire mystery, with comic-book style illustrations, giant pop-ups and fold-out pages on every spread. ISBN US: 9781645178217; UK: 9781398808201.

Paper Engineer: David Hawcock, illustrated by Anthony Williams, text by Bram Stoker
Publisher: Canterbury Classics (US) / ARC (UK)
Publication Date: Jul 2023 (released in the UK in 2021)

➤ US edition: Amazon | B&N | Blackwells | Abes | eBay

 UK edition: Amazon | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay

The Brambly Hedge Pop-Up Book

This book is actually a redesign of a much desired but long out-of-print pop-up title, Through the Hedgerow. It’s a charming celebration of the world of Brambly Hedge, with windows into the daily lives of the mice picking berries and baking pies, as well as attending grand events like Poppy and Dusty’s wedding, and the Snow Ball. It’s not a typical pop-up book – rather, the pages are constructed to pop up as 3D vignettes. (Think of it like widows looking into a beautifully illustrated but static scene.) I love this series, but the pop-up style of this title may not be to everyone’s taste – check out the internal pictures to see what they’re like before purchasing. ISBN 9780008547110.

Paper Engineer: Damian Johnston. Written and illustrated by Jill Barklem
Publisher: HarperCollinsChildren
Publication Date: Dec 2022

 Find it at Amazon | B&N | Waterstones | Blackwells | Abes | eBay

2 Comments

Citrus · 27 November 2023 at 9:21 am

Thank you for publishing these pages. I love seeing all of these fantastic pop up books I never realized existed.

    Daisy · 9 December 2023 at 1:29 pm

    Thank you!!

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