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Topic: Y2 50 Recommended Reads

Year 2 Booklist: 50 Recommended Reads

Best Books for Y2 (Children Aged 6-7)

This is the BooksForTopics list of 50 recommended books for Year 2 (children aged six and seven). Use this booklist to find the best books to top up your Y2 reading collections with our selection of storytime picturebooks, chapter books, funny stories, illustrated poetry collections, non-fiction texts and more. Keep an eye out for a duck that never blinks (or does it?), fish who can’t be trusted (or can they?) and hens that lay speckled eggs (or do they?) along the way…

Year 2 children often enjoy reading books featuring adventure, friendship, animals, magic and laugh-out-loud humour – and this specially selected Y2 reading list has got you covered with books that have all been carefully matched to the age, developmental stage and interest level of children in Year 2.

This booklist includes popular Year 2 stories such as Marge in Charge, Flat Stanley and George’s Marvellous Medicine , as well as some lesser-known storytime delights that we recommend for Y2, like Don’t Trust Fish, Einstein the Penguin and Jory John’s hilarious gadget-obsessed spud, The Couch Potato.

As well as the Year 2 booklist below to browse, we’ve also got a printable poster, a downloadable checklist and a handy bookmark for you, and schools can purchase full sets of all 50 books via Peters.

Browse the Y2 booklist below or scroll down to find more purchasing options and printable resources.

George’s Marvellous Medicine

Quentin Blake & Roald Dahl

Chapter book

A classroom favourite from the popular children’s author Roald Dahl.

This is the laugh-out-loud tale of George Kranky, who plots revenge on his mean and miserable Grandma by concocting a magic medicine for her. Little does he realise that the medicine will have weird and wonderful effects on the old lady’s body.

This is one of the shorter Roald Dahl chapter books, and suits readers who like anarchic humour or stories with a little bit of unexplained magic. Children love the fun of George’s concoction, the transformations of size when Grandma grows so tall that her head bursts through the ceiling and the supersized farmyard animals.

Marv and the Mega Robot

Alex Falase-Koya & Paula Bowles

Chapter book

We highly recommend the Marv series, about an ordinary boy who finds that his superhero skills are in very much in need!

The story starts with Marvin as an ordinary school boy. When he finds a superhero suit in the attic, he transforms and is required to put his new superhero powers to the test to stop a super-villain with a giant robot from causing destruction.

The book is packed full of illustrations that accompany the action and the story contains themes of friendship, forgiveness as well as endless determination. It also has humour and a real warmth in the characterisation.

The Enchanted Wood

Enid Blyton

Chapter book

This chapter book is part of a classic children’s series that has been entertaining readers for generations. The stories follow children Joe, Beth and Frannie as they stumble upon a magical Faraway Tree, where they embark on a series of thrilling adventures. The tree is filled with intriguing characters and a different land awaits at the top of the tree each time they climb up.

Alongside their companions Moonface, Saucepan Man, and Silky the fairy, the trio travels to the top of the Faraway Tree in each new chapter to uncover which new land awaits them – including the Land of Spells, the Land of Birthdays and the Land of Take-What-You-Want. These classic infant books feature top-notch storytelling that still enchants readers today through simple and magical adventures.

My Very Important World

Non-fiction

This children’s encyclopedia of discovery will inspire little learners to wonder about the world around them.

Our world is an amazing place. It’s full of rivers, mountains, forests, and too many other amazing places to count – but that’s not all. There’s also families, friends, animals, music, technology, language, games, and all other things that make life wonderful. My Very Important World is a celebration of our world and what it’s like to live in it.

On one page children will read about their body and brain, on another they’ll learn about sporting events from around the globe, and on others, they can marvel at wonders of the Earth including The Great Wall of China, awe-inspiring Giant’s Causeway, and the beautiful Rainbow Mountains of Peru.

My Very Important World makes a beautiful gift book with a padded jacket and colourful illustrations and images.

Discover where the coldest place on Earth is, how many languages there are, why we sometimes feel scared, and much, much more.

There’s a big wide world out there – so turn the pages to explore it.

Dear Earth

Clara Anganuzzi & Isabel Otter

Picturebook

Inspired by her Grandpa’s tales of global exploration, a little girl chooses to pen a love letter to the Earth, gently exploring both the diverse beauty and the fragility of our planet.

As Tessa walks with her Grandpa, she listens to his tales of adventures from his days as an explorer. As Grandpa describes different places he has visited, he paints in Tessa’s mind vivid images of the Earth’s diverse natural wonders. Inspired by what she has heard, Tessa decides to write a letter to the planet, letting her imagination flow as she dreams of global explorations of her own. Through Tessa’s imaginative lines, coupled with Clara Anganuzzi’s gently flowing illustrations, the book addresses the aspects of nature that capture a child’s heart and imagination: Tessa imagines sliding down desert dunes, floating in lagoons, gliding like a turtle, flitting with butterflies, sliding and soaring with birds. Tessa wants to revel in the Earth’s natural beauty – to play gleefully in it, to partake, to sense it, to fully experience it, but not for a second spoil it. At the end of her letter, Tessa’s mind falls to thoughts of the Earth’s need for love, care and healing from the damage caused by humans.

Finishing her letter with ‘Love from Tessa’, she holds Grandpa’s hand and together they wander along the beach and discuss what might cause more people to be better at treasuring the Earth instead of harming it. The pair agree that sharing a message of the planet’s wondrous beauty might be the best way to help people to realise how special the Earth is and to begin to take more care of it.

This is a beautifully illustrated picture book that is perfectly gentle and encouraging in its message of appreciation and environmental care. There’s nothing to scare young children here – instead, it simply moves readers towards reflecting on the diversity of the planet’s natural wonders, as the additional facts and tips at the end of the book gently move readers onto positive and achievable steps to help to care for the planet.

Into the Forest

Anthony Browne

Picturebook

A shortcut through the forest to Grandma’s house produces some eerie moments – and some oddly familiar characters – in a strikingly illustrated tale about facing fears.

One night a boy is woken by a terrible sound. A storm is breaking, lightning flashing across the sky. In the morning Dad is gone and Mum doesn’t seem to know when he’ll be back. The next day Mum asks her son to take a cake to his sick grandma. “Don’t go into the forest,” she warns. “Go the long way round.” But, for the first time, the boy chooses to take the path into the forest, where he meets a variety of fairy tale characters.

All Through the Night

Harriet Hobday & Polly Faber

Picturebook

A beautifully illustrated picture book exploring the jobs that keep a city running all through the night, and make it ready for the new day.

The sky is getting dark. In a big city, a little girl is eating her dinner, brushing her teeth and getting ready for bed.

Meanwhile, her mother is putting on her coat and getting ready to go to work. But where will she go, and who will she see along the way?

As the night goes on, follow nurses, cleaners, delivery workers, doctors, police officers, journalists and many more. Meet the people doing the important jobs that help keep the city running all through the night, ready for the next day to come.

Every Nosy Crow paperback picture book comes with a free ‘Stories Aloud’ audio recording – just scan the QR code and listen along!

A Bear’s Guide to Beekeeping

Alex Griffiths & Pip Cornell

Picturebook

Are you a bear considering keeping your very own bees? Can’t get enough of delicious honey? Then this is the book for you! With invaluable tips such as how to make a tiny crown for your queen bee, you can become a master beekeeper in no time! Learn how to care for your new buzzy friends in easy-to-follow steps – but don’t forget to absolutely never hug the bees. A spoof beekeeping manual for bears from debut author Pip Cornell and rising star Alex G Griffiths.

Beegu

Alexis Deacon

Picturebook

Beegu is not supposed to be on Earth. She is lost. She is a friendly little creature, but the Earth People don’t seem very welcoming at all. However, so far she has only met the BIG ones. The little ones are a different matter…

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