Recommendations and answers to the reading-life questions parents ask — from an English teacher who curates every book in the Little Reads library.
Children's ballet books for ages 5 to 10, with Magic Ballerina's red shoes and No Ballet Shoes in Syria. Stories, not how-to-dance books.
Christmas books for 5 year olds, with Daisy's nativity disaster and Mabel's naughty elf. Six short chapter books, and more for 6 year olds.
The best Robin Stevens books for 11 year olds. All nine Murder Most Unladylike cases, my five, and the one to read first.
What children like to read at each age, 5 to 11, from the genres families pick on Little Reads. The top pick at 5 nearly halves by 11.
Book series for 6 year olds, to read with them or for them to try alone. Five series we hold, with what to know about each before you start.
The best Jeremy Strong books for 8 year olds. My five, from My Brother's Famous Bottom to a Viking in a seaside hotel, and the one to read first.
Children's historical fiction for 7 to 11 year olds. Five stories set in different times, Roman Britain and 1922 Egypt among them, with how dark each one gets.
Chapter books for 5 year olds with short chapters to read aloud or alone, starting with The Owl Who Was Afraid of the Dark.
Books like Heidi Heckelbeck for 6 and 7 year olds. Five funny books with a magic secret, starting with Princess Mirror-Belle.
Children's Greek mythology books from age 5 to 10. Percy telling the myths like family gossip, a day at the ancient Olympics, and more.
Chapter books for 10 year olds that aren't part of a series. Five whole stories to start with, and a few more for when those are done.
Books like Captain Underpants for 6 to 8 year olds. Five silly books to read next, starting with Dog Man, and a few more after those.
Christmas books for 8 year olds to read on their own. Five stories, which are funny and which are sad, plus picks for 7, 9 and 10.
Books like Junie B. Jones for 6 to 8 year olds. Five funny school stories told by the child, two of them British.
Five book series for 7 year olds, with the book to start on and how many more we have, plus where Magic Tree House begins.
Book series from the 90s that a child can read now, with the year each began, where to start and the age it suits today.
The best Pamela Butchart books, picked from the sixteen we hold. Which to start with, which suits a 5 year old and which is for 9.
Five book series for 9 year olds, with the book to start on, how many follow and the sad or scary bits worth knowing first.
A Year 4 reading list for 8 and 9 year olds who read for fun, not for homework. Five books to start with and a few more after.
Books like Spirit Animals for 8 to 10 year olds. Five books with a child, an animal who belongs with them and a world that needs saving.
Chapter books for 9 year olds who read alone and want something longer. Five series starters, the one to try first, and where to go after.
The classic children's books we stock, by age from 5 to 11, and which ones a child reads alone and which work best out loud.
Five book series for 8 year olds with enough books to keep them going, which one to start with and who each suits. Hand-picked.
Books like Judy Moody for 6 to 8 year olds, from someone who read the lot as a kid. Five series with the same moods, mischief and short chapters.
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