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
- Oi Dog! Board Book by Kes Gray, Claire Gray
- Where Is Little Fish? by Lucy Cousins
- Count with Little Fish by Lucy Cousins
3+ readers
- No, Nancy, No! by Alice Tait
- The Darkest Dark by Chris Hadfield
- Forever or a Day by Sarah Jacoby
5+ readers
- The Great Big Book of Friends by Mary Hoffman
- King of the Sky by Nicola Davies
- The Great Big Book of Feelings by Mary Hoffman
7+ readers
- The Book Case by Dave Shelton
- Max Champion and the Great Race Car Robbery by Alexander Mccall Smith
- The Chocolate Factory Ghost by David O'Connell
9+ readers
- The Infinite Lives of Maisie Day by Christopher Edge
- To the Edge of the World by Julia Green
- You Are Awesome by Matthew Syed
11+ readers
- The City of Secret Rivers by Jacob Sager Weinstein
- Twelve Nights by Andrew Zurcher
- The Goose Road by Rowena House
13+ readers
- Truly, Wildly, Deeply by Jenny McLachlan
- Rebound by Kwame Alexander
- Holes by Louis Sachar
YA readers
- I Have Lost My Way by Gayle Forman
- Encounters by Jason Wallace
- I Stop Somewhere by T. E. Carter
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!
We love Lovereading as my 5 year old loves to read new books before anyone else has a chance, she says it makes reading exciting!
Tracey Chorley
I love Lovereading as it provides an honest opinion and showcases a range of fiction. Suited to both parents & kids alike, it’s a must-use.
Georgie Rowe – age 16
It is fantastic, you get to read lots of books and you always find something new and amazing in them.
Erica Motoc, 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
I love Lovereading4kids because I get an opportunity to put my opinion forward and to try new books
Elosie Clarkson – age 11
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
We love Lovereading4kids because they put books in front of us we wouldn’t otherwise have read. They make us more adventurous readers!
Emily Jacques
It’s really exciting to read and review new books, thrilling to see my reviews online and I love finding the final published copies on sale.
Sam Harper – age 10
This month's 'featured books':
Bedtime Reading
Time for Bed, Fred!
Yasmeen Ismail
Longlisted for the Kate Greenaway Medal 2014 It's time for bed. But
will Fred go to bed? You bet he won't! From hiding up trees, and
splashing…
Dozy Bear and the Secret of Sleep
Katie Blackburn
Illustrated by Richard Smythe
This book is dedicated to tired parents, grandparents and children
and could prove a real godsend to them all. It's designed and
written…
Bedtime with Ted
Sophy Henn
It's bedtime for Ted, but he's just too busy yet – flip the
flaps and you can see why: Ted is in the bath with some penguins,
busy…
Are You Sitting Comfortably?
Leigh Hodgkinson
March 2016 Book of the Month Leigh Hodgkinson's picture book is a
stylish investigation into how and where to read a book.…
Mrs Mole, I'm Home!
Jarvis
April 2017 Picture Book of the Month | A Julia Eccleshare Pick of
the Month April 2017 | Morris Mole can't find his glasses anywhere
at…
Tufty
Michael Foreman
Tufty the little duck grows up in the grounds of Buckingham Palace
(his parents are very fond of the Royal Duck and Duckess (sic) who
give the ducks…
This month's 'featured books':
Reviewed by Children
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…
Uncle Shawn and Bill and the Pajimminy-Crimminy Unusual Adventure
A. L. Kennedy
Illustrated by Gemma Correll
In a nutshell: Dahl-esque story in defence of Unusualness Children
who like their stories filled with larger-than-life characters,
crazy comedy and…
Welcome to Nowhere
Elizabeth Laird
Shortlisted for the UKLA 2018 Book Award In a nutshell: the lives
of a Syrian family brought vividly and sympathetically to life for
young readers…
The Heart of Mars
Paul Magrs
In a Nutshell: Martian odyssey meets classic quest Ingeniously
inventive, involving and wildly witty, this thrilling finale of the
Lora…
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…
What the Ladybird Heard Next
Julia Donaldson
Illustrated by Lydia Monks
Best-selling duo Julia Donaldson and Lydia Monks have gone back to
the farmyard for a second adventure featuring the clever and
resourceful ladybird!…
This month's 'featured books':
Books of the Year
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,…
Old Hat!
Emily Gravett
One of Our Books of the Year 2017 | Longlisted for the UKLA 2018
Book Award June 2017 Book of the Month | A Julia Eccleshare Pick of
the…
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…
The Island at the End of Everything
Kiran Millwood-Hargrave
One of Our Books of the Year 2017 | Shortlisted for the 2018 Blue
Peter Awards - Best Story | Shortlisted for the Costa Children's
Book…
Orbiting Jupiter
Gary D. Schmidt
One of Our Books of the Year 2017 | Shortlisted for the UKLA 2017
Book Award Before meeting his new foster brother, Jack understands
what he…
Sunk!
Rob Biddulph
One of Our Books of the Year 2017 | No child's bookshelf is
complete without one, and preferably more than one of Rob
Biddulph's joyful,…
This month's 'featured books':
Fascinating Facts
The Street Beneath My Feet
Charlotte Gullian
Illustrated by Yuval Zommer
Shortlisted for the UKLA 2018 Book Award Detailed, ingenious and
graphically beautiful this information book opens, as the best do,
with an…
Cool Physics
Sarah Hutton
Illustrated by Damien Weighill
An amazing guide to the wonders of physics, handily broken down
into accessible bite-sized chunks and particularly helpful for
anyone new to or…
Books! Books! Books!
Mick Manning
Illustrated by Brita Granstrom
April 2017 Book of the Month Who better to take young readers on a
guided tour of the British Library than Mick Manning and
Brita…
Cool Mythology
Malcolm Croft
Illustrated by Damien Weighill
Stories, gods, heroes and villains from the world's great
mythologies are all featured in this compact and appealing
information book. It is…
Coder Academy
Sean McManus
Illustrated by Rosan Magar
October 2017 Non-Fiction Book of the Month This well-designed,
interactive workbook provides a really good introduction to coding
for children. It…
What If a... Could a Monkey Waterski?
Camilla de la Bedoyere
Illustrated by Aleksei Bitskoff
Discover some amazing and unusual facts about monkeys in this
imaginative book full of humorous scenarios that children can
relate to. Using everyday…
This month's 'featured books':
UKLA 2018
Podkin One-Ear
Kieran Larwood
Illustrated by David Wyatt
Longlisted for the UKLA 2018 Book Award Winner of the Blue Peter
Book Award 2017 - Best Story In a nutshell: rabbit heroes |…
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…
Out of Heart
Irfan Master
Longlisted for the UKLA 2018 Book Award Donating your heart is the
most precious gift of all. Adam is a teenage boy who lives with his
mum and…
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…
The Bone Sparrow
Zana Fraillon
Longlisted for the UKLA 2018 Book Award | Shortlisted for the CILIP
Carnegie Medal 2017 and awarded the Amnesty CILIP Honour |…
The Pest in the Nest Book 2
Julian Gough
Illustrated by Jim Field
Longlisted for the UKLA 2018 Book Award Gorgeously illustrated and
with a classic feel, this is a brilliantly funny story of a rabbit
and a bear who…
This month's 'featured books':
Books for Boys
Monster Slayer
Brian Patten
Illustrated by Chris Riddell
One of our Books of the Year 2016 | Interest Age 7-10 Brian Patten
tells the story of the hero Beowulf in vivid, accessible prose; in
Barrington…
Fenn Halflin and the Fearzero
Francesca Armour-Chelu
Julia Eccleshare's Pick of the Month, June 2016 Debut author
Francesca Armour-Chelu has created a desperate flooded dystopian
world in this…
How Harry Riddles Made a Mega-amazing Zombie Movie
Simon Mayle
June 2014 Debut of the Month Harry's an optimistic kid who never
gives in but when Harry's dad loses his job he fears his
mega-amazing…
Demolition
Sally Sutton
Illustrated by Brian Lovelock
“Bang! Clang! Crack! Thud! Creak!! Wham! ” The noises
of the building site provide a background to this vigorous story of
destruction.…
Rory Branagan (Detective)
Andrew Clover
Illustrated by Ralph Lazar
April 2018 Debut of the Month | In a nutshell: in his own words,
quirky, super-readable saga of a ten-year-old…
Eddie's Kitchen And How to Make Good Things to Eat
Sarah Garland
One of our Books of the Year 2014 A birthday party needs to be got
ready in a hurry! Mum has forgotten that it is Grandad's…
This month's 'featured books':
Reluctant Readers
Rook
Anthony McGowan
Shortlisted for the CILIP Carnegie Medal 2018 | Interest Age Teen
Reading Age 8 | In a nutshell: sharply realised slice of
real…
Treasure Hunters: Peril at the Top of the World
James Patterson
In 3 words : in it together The Kidd family, stars of some of James
Patterson's liveliest and most boisterous…
Danger is Still Everywhere: Beware of the Dog
David O'Doherty
Illustrated by Chris Judge
Shortlisted for the Laugh-Out-Loud Book Awards 2016, 9-13 years
Category Dr Noel Zone is without doubt the world's greatest…
Hari and His Electric Feet
Alexander Mccall Smith
Illustrated by Sam Usher
February 2018 Book of the Month | In a nutshell: joyful story of a
boy and his dancing feet Hari lives in a biggish city in India
with…
Top of the Class (Nearly)
Liz Pichon
From the winner of the Roald Dahl Funny Prize, the Best Book for
Younger Readers - Red House Children's Book Award, the Waterstones
Children's Book…
The Royal Rabbits of London
Santa Montefiore, Simon Sebag Montefiore
Illustrated by Kate Hindley
In a nutshell: rabbits save the queen | You may not know this, but
whenever a rabbit hears the words ‘the Queen', they…
This month's 'featured books':
Super-readable Dyslexia-friendly
We are Not Frogs
Michael Morpurgo
Illustrated by Sam Usher
One of our Books of the Year 2016 | March 2016 Book of the Month -
A Dyslexia Friendly Picture Book for Parent and Child New
on…
The Beast
Michaela Morgan
Illustrated by Chris Mould
Interest Age 7-12 Reading Age 7 Clever telling keeps this story
spooky and surprising. Chapter one and Robbie and Gareth are
local…
Ghost for Sale
Terry Deary
Illustrated by Stefano Tambellini
Interest Age 8-12 Reading Age 7 A hilarious, riddling tale from the
international bestselling author of Horrible Histories, Terry
Deary. Without…
Mad Iris and the Bad School Report
Jeremy Strong
Illustrated by Scoular Anderson
One of our Dyslexia Friendly Books of the Year 2015 - Interest Age
8-12 Reading Age 8Firm favourite Mad Iris returns for a third
madcap…
Rugby Academy: Combat Zone
Tom Palmer
Illustrated by Dave Shephard
Interest Age 8-12 Reading Age 8+ Tom Palmer is brilliant at
capturing the passion of sport and the drama it creates. Woody is
an…
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…
