Recommended children's booklists sorted by age or topic

Author & Illustrators

Rob Harrell Books

Chapter book

Wink is a remarkable book with a story that masterfully balances weighty themes with humour, making it a highly engaging read for older children and younger teens.

Ross’s seventh-grade year takes an unexpected turn when he receives a diagnosis of a rare eye cancer, instantly making his desire to be ‘normal’ a distant dream. Navigating the challenges of hair loss, a required hat and the awkward silence of friends unsure how to react, he feels like nothing more than the ‘cancer kid’. Readers follow Ross and his family grappling with this significant life event, discovering strength and laughter through friends, art and music amidst the hardship – not to mention the imagined antics of his comic creation, Batpig, offering a unique and relatable perspective.

Alongside the cancer plotline inspired by the author’s own experiences, this recommended read also explores themes of friendship dynamics, family bonds, peer judgement, identity and cyberbullying. The cast of characters – not least Ross’s friends and supporting adults – highly enrich the story, from Abby’s sharp wit to Frank’s musical passion and Jimmy’s surprising depth.

Relatable, funny and highly recommended.

With great porker comes great responsibility.
Gary Yorkshire is finally getting into the swing of this whole superhero thing – saving the world from terrible villains, masterfully concealing his identity with a very small mask. But what happens when Batpig is called to battle time itself in a maths class that just won’t end? Or when the city is attacked by something completely (and literally) out of this world?

It’s not easy being a super-swine, but with the help of his best friends Brook the bat and Carl the fish, there’s no hamburglar they can’t catch.

A brilliantly funny and skilfully rendered commercial young graphic novel series, with each book containing two separate stories.

Chapter book
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Popcorn tells the story of a day in the life of Andrew Yaeger. But this isn’t any old day, this is a day of epic catastrophes – one disaster after another. It’s school photo day, and Andrew is determined to get a nice photo, but that seems less likely by the minute.

Andrew struggles with anxiety, which he likens to a kernel bouncing around, getting progressively hotter and hotter until it eventually pops. He’s had a panic attack before, and he is terrified of having one at school – he thinks that it would be the worst thing that could happen. But as the day goes on, surely his kernel is going to explode.

Popcorn is a cleverly written, impactful narrative. It deals with a serious issue, but in an incredibly relatable and humorous way that will have its readers laughing out loud. The story is accompanied throughout by cartoons and captions describing Andrew’s thoughts and feelings as his anxiety levels increase, as well as providing helpful tips on coping with anxiety.  A core wellbeing read for middle grade pupils

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Stone Girl Bone Girl

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Does the book contain anything that teachers would wish to know about before recommending in class (strong language, sensitive topics etc.)?

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