Recommended children's booklists sorted by age or topic

Topic: Reading for Pleasure

It’s easy to feel lost in the flood of so many new children’s books available. Each month, our Review Panel reads scores of new books and we highlight five of our recently published favourites.

This month, our panel of experienced teachers, librarians and children’s book experts has carefully selected five outstanding titles for you to read, with a mixture of longer and shorter reads to engage and excite young readers.

From burrito loving flamingos and frogs to a bear that loves sushi, there’s plenty to entertain younger readers in Genevieve Aspianall’s fun new picturebook, Tigers Don’t Eat Jelly.

There’s a great choice of chapter books for older readers, from adventure and courage amidst challenging family relationships in The Children of Wolf Rock, to a football-focused story about chasing your dreams and speaking out in Strike.

The popular partnership of Matt Goodfellow and Joe Todd-Stanton return with Six Weeks, a verse novel which powerfully explores a grieving boy’s journey to rebuild his life, described by our reviewer as “raw but entirely hopeful”.

For fact-book fans, this month’s pick is Chris Packham’s Nature is the Answer. This brilliant book explores eco-anxiety, confronting some of the challenges facing our planet which young people can find overwhelming. Offering reassurance and hope alongside practical tools to help children navigate their worries and transform them into positive action.

Read on to discover our Review Panel’s top new children’s books for you to read in June 2026.

Schools can also take advantage of our Books of the Month subscription service, enabling schools to receive regular bundles of our Books of the Month selections.

It’s easy to feel lost in the flood of so many new children’s books available. Each month, our Review Panel reads scores of new books and we highlight five of our recently published favourites.

This month, our panel of experienced teachers, librarians and children’s book experts has carefully selected five outstanding titles for you to read, with a mixture of longer and shorter reads to engage and excite young readers.

Pablo is neither panda nor badger, and younger readers will love watching him grow in confidence and discover the wonder of his uniqueness in The Panda-Badger, an empathy-building picturebook by CBBC presenter Ben Cajee.

Those looking for an illustrated chapter book series to get stuck into could try the feline magic of Star Kitties by Laura Ellen Anderson, or Mel Taylor-Bessent’s Riley Wright is Always Wrong, described by our reviewer as “a super-fun and positive new series aimed at younger readers who are not yet ready for Dork Diaries, Lottie Brooks or Diary of a Wimpy Kid.”

I Am Ray’s Imaginary Friend is the first verse novel by much-loved children’s poet, Brian Moses. Exploring themes of change, empathy and emotional growth, our reviewer found this a quick and accessible read that “encourages moments of reflection”.

The final pick this month is Cath Howe’s Two is a Crowd. This is a longer read for children in upper KS2 and early KS3, weaving themes of family dynamics, friendship and jealousy. Our reviewer found this a “compelling book that will strongly resonate with pupils who have siblings and close family relationships.”

Read on to discover our Review Panel’s top new children’s books for you to read in May 2026.

Schools can also take advantage of our Books of the Month subscription service, enabling schools to receive regular bundles of our Books of the Month selections.

best books for fans of holly webbIf you like Holly Webb’s animal books, try these…

Holly Webb’s animal stories feature gentle adventures with themes of kindness, hope and bravery. With relatable characters and loveable animals, these chapter books are hugely popular with independent readers.

We’ve put together a list of ten similar books for fans of Holly Webb. Those looking for more tales of special bonds between humans and animals could try Charlotte’s Web, Snow Foal or Lizzie & Lucky.

For young readers who enjoy stories of local animal rescues, we recommend An Otter Called Pebble, Because of Winn-Dixie or Appletree Animal Agency, while those looking for stories of wild animal conservation might enjoy Jess Butterworth’s Red Panda Rescue or Hannah Gold’s The Last Bear.

 

best books for fans of the wild robotIf you like The Wild Robot, try these…

Adventurous and thoughtful, The Wild Robot books feature themes of technology, environment and survival. The books are a stalwart in primary classrooms, with a picture book version and animated movie also being bit hits.

We’ve put together a list of ten similar books for fans of The Wild Robot. Readers looking to further explore the environmental theme might enjoy Piers Torday’s captivating animal adventure The Last Wild, Elizabeth Laird’s conservation story Song of the Dolphin Boy, and folklore-inspired Land of the Last Wildcat by Lui Sit.

For more stories of island adventures, we recommend Jess Butterworth’s survival story, Lost on Gibbon Island, featuring illustrations by Rob Biddulph. Childhood games come to life in Jenny McLachlan’s The Land of Roar, while Michael Morpurgo’s The Puffin Keeper is a story of friendship, hope and new beginnings set in the Scilly Isles.

Readers who love Roz, The Wild Robot’s loveable main protagonist, will find similarly appealing robot characters in Tin by Padraig Kenny, Scrap by Guy Bass, and Ted Hughes’s classic story, The Iron Man.

best books for fans of the magic faraway treeIf you like The Magic Faraway Tree, try these…

Loved by young readers for generations, Enid Blyton’s classic series features eccentric characters, magical lands, adventure and exploration. From the joys of discovering the Enchanted Wood to tea with Saucepan Man and Silky the Fairy, these stories are well loved bedtime classics and independent chapter books, as well as a hit movie.

We’ve put together a list of ten similar books for fans of The Magic Faraway Tree. Young fans of stories featuring tiny heroes in hidden forest worlds might enjoy Toby Alone, Finders of Silverthorn Forest or By Ash, Oak and Thorn.

There are more portals to magical worlds to be found in P. G. Bell’s fast-paced The Train to Impossible Places, Amy Sparkes’s madcap The House at the Edge of Magic, and Ben Miller’s mysterious The Night We Got Stuck in a Story.

Readers looking to explore more fantasy lands could try the fantastical Museum of Lost Umbrellas, or Jenny McLachlan’s Land of Roar, which brings the childhood games of two twins to life.

best books for fans of the hunger gamesIf you like The Hunger Games, try these…

Hugely popular with YA readers, The Hunger Games is set in a post-apocalyptic society, featuring themes of survival, morality and media control.

We’ve put together a list of ten similar books for fans of The Hunger Games.

Readers looking for more stories of quests for survival might enjoy James Dashner’s bestselling The Maze Runner or Monique Turner’s sinister reality TV-inspired debut, Island of Influencers. Two survival stories that have stood the test of time are Gary Paulsen’s Hatchet, which starts with a crash-landing, and Robert Swindells’s Brother in the Land, with its nuclear war backdrop.

For more titles that explore dystopian societies, we recommend the gripping, futuristic New You For Ever by Steve Cole, alongside Veronica Roth’s Divergent, Lois Lowry’s The Giver, and Soyoung Park’s Korean YA thriller, Snow Globe.

To further explore the theme of rebels taking on the establishment, young adult readers could try Malorie Blackman’s classic Noughts & Crosses, or Philip Reeve’s Mortal Engines.

 

best books for fans of skandarIf you like Skandar, try these…

A. F. Steadman’s Skandar saga offers a blend of adventure, magic, danger and destiny, set in a world where unicorns are dangerous and powerful beasts. The series is an enormous hit with readers who enjoy adventures in fantasy worlds with magical creatures.

We’ve put together a list of ten similar books for fans of Skandar. Readers who love stories that feature mythical, fantastical creatures might enjoy Magicalia, Dragonborn or Dracula and Daughters or Katherine Rundell’s incredibly popular Impossible Creatures.

Those looking for new epic sagas or fantasy quests could try Daisy’s gripping adventures in Greenwild, the captivating Inkbound with it’s magical world-building, or the prehistoric monster-hunting journey in Fireborn.

For chapter books featuring secret schools and elite academies, we recommend Tola Okogwu’s Onyeka and the Academy of the Sun, Jacob North’s Ice Apprentices or Peter Burns’s Shadow Thieves.

 

best books for fans of pamela butchartIf you like Pamela Butchart’s books, try these…

Pamela Butchart’s books are fast-paced, funny and highly relatable. With themes of friendship and school life, the stories celebrate individuality and teamwork with plenty of action and chaos. Some of the books are colour-illustrated early chapter books, like Wigglesbottom Primary, and so are high-illustrated longer chapter books with appeal to reluctant readers or those who enjoy illustrated humour.

We’ve put together a list of ten similar books for fans of Pamela Butchart’s books.

Readers who are looking for more classroom capers have plenty of choice in this list, including Daisy and the Trouble with School Trips, The Worst Class in the World, and Charlie Changes into a Chicken.

For more zany adventures to make readers laugh out loud, we recomment Anisha: Accidental Detective, An Alien in the Jam Factory, The Day that Aliens (Nearly) Ate our Brains, and Frank Cottrell-Boyce’s Millions.

Pamela Butchart’s chapter books are highly illustrated, appealing strongly to children moving on from picturebooks or school reading schemes. These younger readers who loved the format of Wigglesbottom Primary might enjoy Izzy the Inventor the series next.

best books for fans of max & chaffyIf you like Max & Chaffy, try these…

Packed with adventure, puzzles and eye-catching illustrations, the Max & Chaffy books are hugely popular with early readers. These are early graphic novels suitable for children aged 5-7, and readers enjoy the comic style format and quirky animal companions.

We’ve put together a list of ten similar books for fans of Max & Chaffy. Readers looking for more fun animal adventures in a graphic novel style might enjoy John Patrick Green’s popular graphic novel series InvestiGators, Mo O’Hara and Jess Bradley’s master of disguise, Agent Moose, or Aoife Dooley’s undersea adventure Squid Squad.

Those seeking more high-energy, comic-book style fun will find plenty to enjoy in brightly coloured graphic novel adventures Max Meow, Press Start! and Happy Hills.

For more graphic novel stories featuring quirky companions and partnerships, we recommend Narwhal, Meet the Mubbles and Peanut, Butter & Crackers for younger readers in particular.

 

best books for fans of lokiIf you like Loki, try these…

Louie Stowell’s Loki is a hugely popular character with young readers, offering a hilarious modern spin on mythology and magic. This highly-illustrated, humorous series is a hit with children in KS2 who love a little dose of mischief and doodle-style illustrations.

We’ve put together a list of ten similar books for fans of the Loki books. Readers who love the anarchic humour in the Loki books will find more chaotic comedy in Grimwood, Fairy vs Wizard and Trixie Pickle.

Those who enjoy funny fiction inspired by history and mythology have plenty of choice in this list, including Pamela Butchart’s Icarus was Ridiculous and Maz Evans’s Who Let the Gods Out. There’s even more mythological mayhem in Medusa Gorgon’s Bad Hair Day and Hercules: The Diary of a (Sort of) Hero.

Readers looking for more illustrated, diary-style books might enjoy Phil Earle’s Finn’s Epic Fails, or Rashmi Sirdeshpande’s Hari Kumar: Ultimate Superstar.

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