Lovereading4kids Weekly Staff Picks
Reading is fundamental to the development of children and countless research shows the links between good reading skills from an early age and future success in life. However, finding books children want to read or authors that excite them, can be difficult; the choice is daunting and guidance rather thin on the ground.
So, Lovereading4kids was created to be the best recommendation site for Children’s Book from toddlers to teens. It has been created using the experience we have as parents and book lovers, who want our children to read great books. Secondly, it has been created from what we have learned from setting up our first book site lovereading.co.uk
Books for all ages! Top downloads
Baby and Toddler
- Goodnight Everyone by Chris Haughton
- Roald Dahl's Opposites by Roald Dahl
- Play by Jez Alborough
3+ readers
- Mr Pegg's Post by Elena Topouzoglou
- Baby's First Bank Heist by Jim Whalley
- I Want My Dad! by Tony Ross
5+ readers
- Town Is by the Sea by Joanne Schwartz
- Norman the Norman and the Very Small Duchess by Philip Ardagh
- The Day War Came by Nicola Davies
7+ readers
- Junkyard Jack and the Horse That Talked by Adrian Edmondson
- Dog Diaries by Steven Butler & James Patterson
- Tyrannosaurus Rex Prehistoric Beasts Uncovered - King of the Dinosaurs by Dougal Dixon
9+ readers
- Boy Underwater by Adam Baron
- Kat Wolfe Investigates by Lauren St.John
- Mirror Magic by Claire Fayers
11+ readers
- Where the World Ends by Geraldine McCaughrean
- Cogheart by Peter Bunzl
- Suffragette The Battle for Equality by David Roberts
13+ readers
- The Family Tree by Mal Peet
- My Messed-Up Life by Susin Nielsen
- The Tiger on His Back by Bernard Ashley
YA readers
- The Weight of a Thousand Feathers by Brian Conaghan
- All of This Is True by Lygia Day Penaflor
- Before I Die by Jenny Downham
Register now – FREE for a unique range of services specifically created to help parents and anyone who likes to buy books for children choose the best books for boys and girls of all ages.
- Download and print off the Opening Extract of every ‘featured book’ on our site, even the picture books.
- Discover new writers through our unique children’s author ‘like-for-like’ recommendation service.
- Read our exclusive online book reviews by Julia Eccleshare, author and children’s books editor at the Guardian.
- Enjoy regular emails to keep you up to date on the latest and best in your chosen age ranges. (Please be reassured that your e-mail address will remain confidential to Lovereading and not sold to any of those horrible spam people).
Register now and try it out. We know choosing books for children will become a joy!
It’s so easy to find the right book for your child. Such an easy-to-use, yet in-depth website. 100% reliable.
Pippa, Jack, Liam & Matthew Wils
I love all the books they recommend & put up for me to review. I also love the fact that they give new authors the chance to share their boo
Daisy Pennock – age 15
I love ‘LoveReading 4 kids’ because they let you read and learn things you’d never dreamed of learning before.
Emily Horncastle – age 11
You give me age appropriate ideas of books I can read and buy for the children and find out what other children their age think of them too.
Katie Lonsdale
It is fantastic, you get to read lots of books and you always find something new and amazing in them.
Erica Motoc, age 7
I am so pleased to have signed my kids up as they are reading a much wider range of books and even choosing books out of their comfort zone.
Angela East
I love finding new books to read. My mummy and me look at the new ones coming out. I have written reviews of some of them!
Jessica Cobbin – age 7
Lovereading4kids is great, we get books really early never late. We love to read and review, and think you would like it too. The excitement
Jasmine Harris-Hart, age 12
This month's 'featured books':
Bedtime Reading
The Wardrobe Monster
Bryony Thomson
A Julia Eccleshare Pick of the Month April 2018 A charming story of
bedtime fears with a neat twist to it. Dora and all her toys wake
up grouchy and…
The Everywhere Bear
Julia Donaldson
Illustrated by Rebecca Cobb
Best-selling duo Julia Donaldson and Rebecca Cobb reunite in a
lovely story that begins in a Year One classroom before taking us
on an exciting,…
There's a Snake in My School!
David Walliams
Illustrated by Tony Ross
David Walliams has his finger firmly on the funny bone of the
nation's youth, and little children will love this story of school
turned…
Let's Join in
Shirley Hughes
A Julia Eccleshare Pick of the Month July 2017 Four simple bedtime
stories capture the precious yet everyday moments in pre-school
and…
Whatever Next!
Jill Murphy
A Julia Eccleshare Pick of the Month January 2018 Celebrating
thirty-five best-selling years, Whatever Next! is a classic story
of a child's…
A Perfect Day
Lane Smith
A Julia Eccleshare Pick of the Month May 2018 | Longlisted for the
UKLA 2018 Book Award Award winning Lane Smith celebrates the simple
delights of…
This month's 'featured books':
Reviewed by Children
The Hippo at the End of the Hall
Helen Cooper
A Julia Eccleshare Pick of the Month June 2018 Award-winning
illustrator Helen Cooper's debut novel is a richly imagined
and…
My Box-Shaped Heart
Rachael Lucas
In a Nutshell: Fractured families | First love | Fresh starts |
16-year-old Holly feels like an outsider, except when she's…
Ottoline and the Purple Fox
Chris Riddell
In a nutshell: nonstop surprises in the Big City | This is the
fourth adventure for Ottoline and her best friend Mr Munroe, and
it…
The Knights and the Best Quest
Kaye Umansky
Illustrated by Ben Whitehouse
Interest Age 8+ Reading Age 8 A masterly and hilarious retelling of
King Arthur and the Knights of the Round…
Dog Diaries
Steven Butler & James Patterson
Illustrated by Richard Watson
June 2018 Book of the Month | In a nutshell: It's a (very funny,
very readable) dog's life Narrated at breathless speed by
super-excited…
The Adventures of John Blake Mystery of the Ghost Ship
Philip Pullman
Illustrated by Fred Fordham
A Julia Eccleshare Pick of the Month June 2018 | Master
story-teller Philip Pullman is as brilliantly creative in this
gripping,…
This month's 'featured books':
Books of the Year
I am Bat
Morag Hood
One of Our Books of the Year 2017 | This must be one of the
brightest and best picture books of the year. With minimalist
illustrations –…
A Song for Will and The Lost Gardeners of Heligan
Hilary Robinson
Illustrated by Martin Impey
One of Our Books of the Year 2017 | May 2017 Book of the Month |
This deeply moving story perfectly conveys the devastating impact
of the First…
Flip Flap Dogs
Nikki Dyson
Illustrated by Nikki Dyson
One of Our Books of the Year 2017 | February 2017 Book of the Month
Open the book and turn its divided pages carefully, top and bottom
half together,…
Cream Buns and Crime
Robin Stevens
One of Our Books of the Year 2017 | April 2017 Book of the Month |
In a nutshell: a tasty treat for would-be sleuths and fans
of…
Alex, Approximately
Jenn Bennett
One of Our Books of the Year 2017 | In a Nutshell: Rolling waves of
romance in the Californian sun Feel-good fiction at its best:
moving,…
The Giant Jumperee
Julia Donaldson
Illustrated by Helen Oxenbury
One of Our Books of the Year 2017 | April 2017 MEGA Book of the
Month | A Julia Eccleshare Pick of the Month April 2017 | Julia
Donaldson and…
This month's 'featured books':
Fascinating Facts
The Sports Timeline Wallbook
Christopher Lloyd, Patrick Skipworth
Illustrated by Andy Forshaw
Ernest Hemingway might have said there are only three real sports
– motor racing, bull-fighting and mountaineering – but
even he might…
Animals Behaving Badly
Nicola Davies
Illustrated by Adam Stower
In a lively, highly readable book Nicola Davies examines ways that
man and animals interact, highlighting species whose intelligence
and adaptability…
The Colours of History
Clive Gifford
Illustrated by Marc-Etienne Peintre
A fascinating information book, The Colours of History takes
readers to different places at different times to show how humans
have used colour in…
The Barefoot Book of Children
Tessa Strickland, Kate DePalma
Illustrated by David Dean
Innovative and inclusive, The Barefoot Book of Children empowers
young readers to learn about the different lives of children around
the globe. …
Chronologica The Incredible Years That Defined History
Whitaker's Almanack
Written and compiled by the team behind Whitaker's Almanack,
Chronologica provides a eye-opening tour through over 2500 years of
world history,…
You Do the Maths: Launch a Rocket into Space
Hilary Koll, Steve Mills
Illustrated by Vladimir Aleksic
One of four new titles which uses maths to help solve problems in a
range of exciting activities and helps show how useful maths is in
everyday life.…
This month's 'featured books':
UKLA 2018
Goodnight Everyone
Chris Haughton
Longlisted for the UKLA 2018 Book Award Perfect for the end of
every day, award-winning Chris Haughton captures the soothing time
as the sun goes…
Black Light Express
Philip Reeve
Longlisted for the UKLA 2018 Book Award In a nutshell: dazzling
journeys into other worlds | Philip Reeve continues to turn
us…
Yours Sincerely, Giraffe
Megumi Iwasa
Illustrated by Jun Takabatake
Shortlisted for the UKLA 2018 Book Award Giraffe is bored, as
usual. He'd love a friend to share things with. So he writes a
letter and sends…
Colin and Lee, Carrot and Pea
Morag Hood
Shortlisted for the UKLA 2018 Book Award One of our Books of the
Year 2016 | July 2016 Debut of the Month Simplicity is the charm of
this…
Encounters
Jason Wallace
April 2018 Book of the Month | Shortlisted for the UKLA 2018 Book
Award | In a Nutshell: Alleged alien encounter inspired by true
events…
Mind the Gap
Phil Earle
One of Our Books of the Year 2017 | Longlisted for the UKLA 2018
Book Award A Julia Eccleshare Pick of the Month | February 2017
Book…
This month's 'featured books':
Books for Boys
Hamish and the Neverpeople
Danny Wallace
Illustrated by Jamie Littler
One of our Books of the Year 2016 | February 2016 Book of the Month
Hamish and the Worldstoppers was one of my favourite kids' books of
2015,…
Radio Boy and the Revenge of Grandad
Christian O'Connell
In a nutshell: tune in for more hilarious radio-show action
Christian O'Connell follows up his debut with another
laugh-out-loud story…
Chaos Descends
Shane Hegarty
Illustrated by James De La Rue
In a nutshell: monster monster-hunting fun Book three in Shane
Hegarty's Darkmouth series serves up another helping of
monster…
I Saw Anaconda
Jane Clarke
Illustrated by Emma Dodd
Jane Clarke and Emma Dodd have enormous fun reinventing the story
of the old woman who swallowed a flea, transposing the setting to
the Amazon jungle…
How Pirates Really Work
Alan Snow
Do pirates really like singing rollicking songs, burying their
treasure and parrots? Do they really eat Ship's biscuits with worms
and…
Alfie Outdoors
Shirley Hughes
Standing in his pyjamas in the garden in the morning sunshine,
Alfie is an unmistakeable little figure. Shirley Hughes has an
extraordinary…
This month's 'featured books':
Reluctant Readers
Laugh Out Loud
James Patterson
In a nutshell: lively, comic story celebrating kids' reading and
determination James Patterson creates books kids love, and his
latest book is…
The New Friend
Jenny Colgan
Illustrated by Thomas Docherty
In a nutshell: reassuring funny story about overcoming shyness and
making friends | Polly is starting big school but not looking
forward to…
Jacky Ha-Ha: My Life is a Joke
James Patterson
Spending time with the eponymous Jacky (Ha-Ha because she's both
funny and a stammerer) is always great fun and, as ever, there's
lots to…
The Forever Man
Eoin Colfer
The heroes of Eoin Colfer's wonderful time-travelling W.A.R.P.
series, Victorian orphan Riley and Shawnee FBI juvenile consultant
Chevie are…
Stormbreaker Graphic novel
Anthony Horowitz, Antony Johnston
Brilliantly visualised, these graphic novel versions of the
best-selling stories of boy spy Alex Rider add a fantastic new
dimension to the original…
Fame Thing
Jonathan Meres
Illustrated by Jake McDonald
One of our Super Readable Books of the Year 2016 | Interest Age
8-12 Reading Age 8 | In a nutshell: funny story of football,
fandom…
This month's 'featured books':
Super-readable Dyslexia-friendly
Mad in the Back
Michael Rosen
Illustrated by Richard Watson
A Dyslexia Friendly Picture Book for Parent and Child It's hard to
know who will laugh more at this new picture book, children or
their…
Who's a Big Bully Then?
Michael Morpurgo
Illustrated by Joanna Carey
Interest Age 8-12 Reading Age 8+. How do you see off the school
bully? Sick of being picked on and called ‘chicken' the
narrator of this…
Rugby Academy: Surface to Air
Tom Palmer
Illustrated by David Shephard
Interest Age 8-12 Reading Age 8+ Good rugby stories for young
readers are thin on the ground, but Tom Palmer's Rugby Academy
books…
The Lion Roars
Alan Gibbons
Illustrated by Chris Chalik
The story of a young footballer from Africa who achieves his dream
of winning a place at one of the top UK clubs, this short novel is
both a…
Shona, Word Detective (4u2read)
John Agard
Illustrated by Michael Broad
Interest Age 8-12 Reading Age 7 Shona loves words and discovering
new ones, so she's fascinated by the professor on TV talking about
her…
Free Lance and the Lake of Skulls
Paul Stewart, Chris Riddell
Illustrated by Chris Riddell
Interest Age 8+ Reading Age 8 | In a nutshell: magic, knights and
double-dealing Free Lance is a knight for hire, and sometimes has
to take…
