Recommended children's booklists sorted by age or topic

Topic: Y1 50 Recommended Reads

Paddington

Picturebook

The Paddington Bear books by Michael Bond are classic stories for children and have been enjoyed for years. Paddington is a real bear, all the way from darkest Peru, and his well-meaning misadventures in England are funny.

Paddington moves in with the Brown Family in London and has a series of accidental adventures with his new clan. The stories have a timeless appeal and there is something charming about all the mishaps that Paddington finds himself in.

Paddington is a loveable and memorable iconic children’s character and the stories are really well told, with warmth and gentle humour that is perfect for children aged 5-8.

Search and Find A Number of Numbers

AJ Wood & Allan Sanders

Picturebook

Take a ride through 26 fully illustrated search and find spreads, each one themed on a number.

Count the animals going into Noah’s Ark two-by-two, spot 13 scary skeletons at the haunted house on Halloween and visit Farm Fifteen where everything from one scarecrow through to 15 apples need to be found. Allan Sanders’ weird and wonderful drawings are packed full of funny things to spot and plenty of Where’s Waldo style humour, making this the best way to learn your 1, 2, 3s…

Great for parents and guardians to use with kids, or for young readers to enjoy independently, the 26 fun puzzles will keep readers entertained for hours.

Monster Hungry Phone

Fred Benaglia & Sean Taylor

Picturebook

Monster is HUNGRY. He wants PIZZA. And he’s got a PHONE! But uh oh . . . who is he going to call?

Hold the line – Monster is in for a wild ride!

WARNING: This book may make you laugh your socks off!

A hilarious picture book that’s perfect for anyone who’s ever REALLY wanted PIZZA. With bold, bright illustrations by the talented Fred Benaglia, it’s an unmissable treat, and perfect for fans of Oi Frog!

Kitty and the Twilight Trouble

Jenny Løvlie & Paula Harrison

Chapter book

Paula Harrison’s early reader series features a girl called Kitty and her crew of felines as they embark upon brave rooftop adventures in the moonlight.

Illustrated in cool blacks and oranges, these fun-filled mystery adventures with talking cats are likely to be a purrrfectly popular independent reading choice among ages 6-8. Brilliant for fans of Isadora Moon or for those looking to make the leap into chapter books for the first time.

How Airports Work

James Gulliver Hancock & Lonely Planet Kids & Tom Cornell & Clive Gifford

Non-fiction, Picturebook

Where does luggage go after check in? What happens in the control tower? How do planes actually fly? This interactive, lift-the-flap book takes you behind-the-scenes to uncover the hidden secrets of the airport – from a peek inside the cockpit to the hustle and bustle of departures.

In this follow-up to How Cities Work , we explore the earliest airports through to today’s giant transport hubs and what airports could look like in the future. Packed with amazing facts and illustrations from James Gulliver Hancock, it’ll surprise and delight readers young and old, ensuring they never look at air travel in the same way again.

Created in consultation with Tom Cornell, VP Airspace / Airfields, Americas at Landrum & Brown.

Contents include:
Airports Through the Ages
The Great Get-to-the-Airport Race
Find Your Way Round the Airport
The Maintenance Hangar
In the Terminal
Inside an Aircraft
The Control Tower Sees All
Preparing Planes
Ship That Cargo
The Incredible Luggage Journey
Airports of the Future

That Rabbit Belongs to Emily Brown

Cressida Cowell & Neal Layton

Picturebook

This is a highly recommendable, award-winning picture book that tells the story of a little girl whose favourite toy rabbit is kidnapped by order of the Queen, who likes the look of the toy for herself. Emily Brown is not willing to let her beloved rabbit go without a fight and goes on to teach the Queen an important lesson about the value of treasured toys.

We absolutely love this story from storytelling maestro Cressida Cowell, and grown-ups who love to read dramatically and ‘do the voices’ will have just as much fun as children listening.

Harry the Poisonous Centipede

Lynne Reid Banks & Tony Ross

This is a deliciously fun story that minibeast fans will love!

This classic chapter book follows the story of Harry, who is a poisonous centipede, and his best friend George. It’s not easy being small and navigating a world where everything bigger feels confusing and scary, especially flying swoopers, furry biters and the most dreaded creatures of all – Hoo-Mins!

Children love the centipede’s-eye-view world of the story, told with brilliant humour and a dash of empathy. A great chapter book choice for Year 1 and Year 2 children.

Man on the Moon

Simon Bartram

Picturebook

This excellent picture book has enough depth to captivate pupils and is an entertaining storytime choice for Year 1 and 2. It follows the story of Bob, an ordinary man with the extra-ordinary job of keeping the moon clean and entertaining moon tourists. Readers will delight in spotting all of the aliens that Bob misses noticing as he goes about his work as the man on the moon. Highly recommended!

Stick Man

Axel Scheffler & Julia Donaldson

Picturebook

The heartwarming modern classic from the number one bestselling author and illustrator of The Gruffalo, Stick Man and Zog – perfect for sharing at Christmas.

‘Stick Man lives in the family tree

With his Stick Lady Love

and their stick children three.’

But it’s dangerous being a Stick Man.

A dog wants to play with him, a swan builds her nest with him. He even ends up on a fire!

Will he ever get back to the family tree in time for Christmas? Perhaps Santa can help…

Shiny foil highlights on the cover makes this a special gift for toddlers.

A modern classic picture book about family, courage and adventure from the UK’s number one picture book author and illustrator.

Perfect read-aloud rhyming text and stunning pictures on every page with lots of details to spot.

This perfect gift book is a journey through the seasons with a gloriously festive Christmas Eve ending.

There’s a Tiger in the Garden

Lizzy Stewart

Picturebook

As read by Tom Hardy on CBeebies!
Winner of the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize 2017, Illustrated Books Category.

When Grandma says she’s seen a tiger in the garden, Nora doesn’t believe her. She’s too old to play Grandma’s silly games! Everyone knows that tigers live in jungles, not gardens. So even when Nora sees butterflies with wings as big as her arm, and plants that try and eat her toy giraffe, and a polar bear that likes fishing, she knows there’s absolutely, DEFINITELY no way there could be a tiger in the garden . . . Could there?

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