Guidance: Books for Reluctant Readers in Lower Ks2

Every reader is different in their tastes and needs, and each reluctant reader has their own set of reasons for not wanting to open a book. Identifying the key reasons behind the reluctance towards reading is a key step in getting the right book into the hands of the right child.

For readers who find longer sections of text overwhelming, we suggest trying some of the brilliant books available with a higher image-to-text ratio, like the popular 13-Storey Treehouse series or Aaron Blabey’s super-amusing The Bad Guys books. Graphic novels are also often a hit with readers who enjoy a strong visual aspect to what they read, from the hugely popular Dog Man books to the hilarious animal detective-duo in the Investigators series. Where dyslexia is present, we highly recommend Barrington Stoke’s super-readable books, which cater for all sorts of different tastes and are dyslexia-friendly in their formatting. Try Malorie Blackman’s Ellie and the Cat, all about a girl who magically switches bodies with a cat, or Phil Earle’s football-themed The Unlucky Eleven.

For readers who love a good laugh, we suggest Guy Bass’s action-packed Spynosaur books or the funny and imaginative The Nothing to See Here Hotel series, which is a big favourite with Years 3 and 4. As for readers who need to find high-interest subjects to draw them into a book, try Tom Nicoll’s video-game themed Level Up, the intergalactic mystery in Space Detectives or – for footie fans – the highly recommendable Soccer Superstars books, with a whole series of fun books to discover based on different Premier League players.​

For pupils who get ‘stuck’ on a favourite author or series and are not sure how to move on, browse around our Branching Out lists, which give suggestions of alternative books similar to popular favourites like David Walliams or Tom Gates.​

​If you are looking for other Year 3 and Year 4 book recommendations, be sure to check out our Reading for Pleasure booklists.

More Booklists to Help Reluctant Readers

Reluctant Readers KS2 (9-11)

Reluctant Readers KS2 (7-9) – this page

Dyslexia-Friendly Books

Graphic Novels KS2

Funny Books

First Chapter Books

Branching Out Booklists

You may also like our Year Group booklists, featuring 50 Recommended Reads for each primary school year group, or our curriculum topic booklists.