- Picture Books
- Ages 2–6
- Art & Creativity
Press Here
A landmark interactive picture book that makes children feel as if they are controlling the page with taps, shakes and tilts. Perfect for toddlers, preschoolers, reluctant readers and adults who want a screen-free book that behaves like magic.
- Best for2–6
- FormatPicture
- Length46 pp
- Read aloud~9 min
The vibe
What it’s like.
Style
- Second person
- Repetitive
- Conversational
- Comedic
Tone
- Funny
- Silly
- Warm
- Whimsical
Themes
Experience meters
What’s it about?
The story.
Press Here begins with a single yellow dot and a simple instruction: press here. From there, the child taps, shakes, tilts, claps and turns the page to make dots multiply, move and change. The brilliance is that nothing electronic is happening, but the timing and page turns make the book feel alive. Herve Tullet turns the physical act of reading into a game, giving very young children a powerful sense of agency and anticipation. The book is especially good for shared reading because the adult can perform the instructions while the child feels responsible for the results. This is a core interactive picture book: visually simple, hugely engaging, excellent for reluctant readers and a strong reminder that a book can be an object to play with, not just a story to receive.
Fit check
Right for your child?
Where it lands by age
- 1
- 3
- 5
- 7
- 9
- 11
- 13
- Best fit · 2–6
- Read aloud · 1–7
- Independent · 4–7
Prose load
Light
Visual support
Very high
Reluctant-reader friendly
Very
Read-aloud quality
Excellent
Works well for
- Reading aloud
- Bedtime
- Reading together
- Gift-buying
- Reluctant readers
Nothing in the book is likely to concern most parents. Safe to recommend without preview.
Bedtime suitability
4 / 5 · Bedtime-friendly
Sensitive-child
5 / 5 · Good fit
Graphic intensity
1 / 5 · None
Best for
- Interactive picture book
- Toddlers
- Screen free play
- Cause and effect
- Reluctant readers
Avoid if
- Wants story arc
- Prefers traditional illustration
- Dislikes instruction books
Particularly good for children who are…
- Reluctant reader
- Struggling with reading
- Neurodiversity or learning differences
- Starting nursery or preschool
In the classroom
How it works in school.
The magical interactive picture book — press the dots and watch what happens; a guaranteed story-time hit that delights the youngest.
A book children love that happens to support school — never a stand-in for the texts a class is taught with. Reviewed for the classroom · June 2026.
Why it lands
Why they love it.
Why kids love it
The specific delight is the magic — pressing a yellow dot, turning the page, finding more dots. The instructions feel like spells; the book feels alive. A two-year-old gets the most foundational interactive picture book ever made.
- Magic powers
- Making a difference
- Trickery and cleverness
Why parents love it
The Hervé Tullet foundational interactive picture book — taps, shakes, tilts, the page-turn timing making it feel like the child is causing the magic. Toddler-magic without screens. Reliable repeat read.
- Shared humour
- Quick to read
- Educational for adult too
- Bedtime appropriate
About the author & illustrator
Herve Tullet.
If you liked this
Three ways out of this book.
If you liked this, try…
Lateral matches. Same shelf, different texture.
Come into this from…
Easier or preparing reads — perfect lead-ins.
Where to go next…
Escalation reads — a step up in scale, silliness, or stakes.
More like this…
Books that share themes and topics with this one.
Where you’ll find it
On these reading lists.
Buy or borrow
Pick up a copy.
- Bookshop.org ↗
- Waterstones ↗
- Amazon UK ↗
- Hive ↗
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