I’ve always been a bookworm and many of my best childhood memories are tied up in books. I remember being totally engrossed in my first Trixie Belden book, sprawled across my sister’s bed in our house in Alice Springs, NT. The fact that the Trixie Belden book was my sister’s and I was reading it despite being told not to might explain the fact that I was reading the book with one eye only – the other being trained nervously on the bedroom door.
Books are cool, aren’t they? I mean, we know that now, but chances are that many of you weren’t as excited about books as I was between the ages of 7 and 16. My own daughters are reluctant readers, preferring to spend their ‘down time’ doing art and craft and writing – but they are slowly coming to the party as I entice them with books I know are even more fun than art and craft.
My son, Max, is just like me: he’ll read anything and everything, but it wasn’t always the case. For a while there I thought I had somehow managed to birth three non-readers – gasp! But it turned out that I just wasn’t offering him the right books and he quickly caught on once he’d found the Tom Gates series (read on!).
Trust me, there is a series out there that will open the rad world of reading for your child too. To help you get your own reluctant readers across the line, I’m giving you a list of all the books that finally got my kids interested in reading.
More quiet fun for kids:
- 10 Coolest Kids Books Ever
- How to Teach Your Kids to Meditate
- 15 Books Every Girl Should Read Before Age 5
20 Extra Good Book Series to Tempt Reluctant Readers - AU
-
20 Extra Good Book Series to Tempt Reluctant Readers
In this list of books you are sure to find the series that finally entices your non-reader into the world of books.
-
Tom Gates - Liz Pichon
Probably my favourite 'modern' kids' series, Tom Gates is packed full of original humour and fun ideas. It's genuinely LOL funny, even for us grown ups. All three of my kids love this series about a Year 5 boy who loves doodling and carrying out fun experiments, proving that just because a book stars a boy, doesn't mean that girls won't go for it too. Which is a welcome idea, given that there are so many cooler 'boy' series out there than 'girl' series.
Books in the series: 10 and counting
-
Nancy Drew + the Clue Crew - Carolyn Keene
This series is a relaunch of the original Nancy Drew Notebooks series which featured a younger Nancy. She's still just as clever (I always wanted to be Nancy, did you?), but her eight-year-old version tackles mysteries that are more suited to the younger reader. Each book includes an activity to do (think crafty ideas or sleuthing suggestions). When the books first relaunched in 2006 there were plans for an online club, but that doesn't appear to have taken off. As your kids grow, they'll be able to graduate to the 56+ book Nancy Drew series - Nancy all the way!
Books in the series: 40 and counting
-
The Mapmaker Chronicles - A L Tait
Disclaimer: A L Tait just happens to be my sister, so it's understandable if you find me biased. BUT don't let that stop you from getting your hands on this wonderful series. I've yet to meet a kid who has read it and not loved it to bits (and believe me, I've been giving these books out to every kid I know!). Set back in 'olden times' during a race to map the world, it's the race-along plot and rich characterisation that sets these books apart. I fell in love with the characters and my kids did too. The series also features pirates, mystical creatures, curious cultures and incredible friendships that kids will want to have as their own.
Books in the series: 3
-
Weirdo - Ahn Do
Ahn Do - comedian, artist, TV show host, author - is a national treasure. He's just such a super-clever, super-nice man and that comes out in every word of his award-winning and hilarious Weirdo series. Like all the best comedy, Weirdo is funny because of it's underlying serious themes - acceptance, compassion, fitting in and being different.
Books in the series: 5 and counting
-
Ivy + Bean - Annie Barrows
The reader begins a love-at-first-word affair with these darling best friends the moment we meet them. They are just so delightful!
Ivy is the quiet one and Bean the noisy one, but together they manage to get up to all sorts of mischief that will give your kids a giggle. Formulaic story lines, with all the usual messages about 'true friendship', but the writing is good and the plots are generally on point, so what's not to like? All three of my kids will happily pick up an Ivy + Bean book and they are always, always all out on loan at the library.
Books in the series: 10 and counting
-
The Famous Five - Enid Blyton
I've popped two Enid Blyton series in this list and it was hard to choose just two. But I couldn't leave The Famous Five out because I think it is the best series of the lot. The suspense keeps kids reading and the themes give them a lot to think about while they do. There are always lots and lots of questions after the kids have read a Famous Five book and I think that's just as it should be. A small warning: the books might be quite scary for today's protected kids. Blyton's kids go wandering in the dead of night, getting into all kinds of 'scrapes'. My kids were quite shocked when we read the first book aloud together, but that didn't stop them from wanting to read more.
Books in the series: 21
-
Sophie - Lara Bergen
A sweet series about liking yourself, the books follow Sophie Miller who knows she is special, but she's just not sure exactly how. The books are a fun way for kids to explore what being 'best' means and they are an easy read for early readers.
Books in the series: 7 and counting
-
Encyclopedia Brown - Donald J Sobol
I was obsessed with the Encyclopedia Brown books when I was a kid and so was my husband. We have yet to introduce our kids to the series, but you can bet it's on the list. The clever plots and interesting characterisation sets these books way ahead of the pack. Your child will definitely add 'detective' to her list of future occupations after reading this and I'm quite certain it sparked my enduring interest in psychology!
Books in the series: 29
-
Big Nate - Lincoln Peirce
Big Nate books were a big hit with my son when he was around 8 years old. The books are actually based on a comic strip and they are great fun - the perfect format to get 'non-readers' reading! Nate Wright is in Year 6 and he's not exactly a model student. The series focuses on Nate's family, his school and friends and the conflict between Nate and his social studies teacher, Mr Godfrey. It deals with important themes about friendship, motivation and being yourself.
Books in the series: 8 and counting
-
Deltora Quest - Emily Rodda
This amazing fantasy series is more literary than many of the choices here, but the plot is so good that most children will be happy to tackle the higher-level writing. As with most fantasy series, the plot is complex and intricate, but in a nutshell it involves main characters Lief, Barda and Jasmine on a quest to create a magical belt. To finish the belt they must visit new worlds in Deltora and embark on a series of heart-stopping challenges in order to claim a new gem for the belt. Readers will be hooked by the quests, the gems and the wonderful characters.
Books in the series: 15 and counting
-
The Treehouse Books - Andy Griffiths
The Treehouse series really needs no introduction - after all, Andy Griffiths (author) and Terry Denton (illustrations) are the dynamic duo of Australian kids' books. The Treehouse series is the craziest, funniest, silliest series you're ever likely to read. I honestly couldn't finish a single one of the books, but I'm not eight years old so we'll leave it at that.
Books in the series: 5 and counting
-
Geronimo Stilton - Geronimo Stilton
This fun series started in Italy in 2000 and was the brainchild of Elisabetta Dami, the co-owner of the publishing house. Presumably the books are now written by any number of authors, all writing under the pseudonym Geronimo Stilton, but however that works is kept very hush-hush by the publishing house. As far as they are concerned, these books really are written by a talking mouse.
MIld-mannered Geronimo lives in New Mouse City on Mouse Island and works as a journalist for The Rodent Gazette. He gets into all sorts of pickles as he chases down breaking stories. The series is lots of fun and the narrative pulses along, quickly snagging the reader and keeping them hooked.
Books in the series: 63 and counting
-
Diary of a Wimpy Kid - Jeff Kinney
Your child has no doubt heard of Greg Heffley and his friendship battles - if not via the book series, then certainly via the movies. These books are packed with funny cartoons and LOL jokes, making them accessible and endlessly readable. The books started as an online series and took off from there.
Books in the series: 10 and counting
-
Ranger's Apprentice - John Flanagan
My mate's dad writes these incredibly good fantasy books, so naturally I introduced the kids to them as soon as I thought they were ready. Which was after they had tackled a couple of 'funny' book series - Tom Gates and Wimpy Kid. I think the funny books are an easier introduction to reading, but once they are hooked then an intricate series like Ranger's Apprentice will keep them engrossed for hours.
Books in the series: 12
-
The Kaboom Kid - David Warner
If International Test Cricketer David Warner can't get a 'sporty' boy interested in books, who can? The Kaboom Kid series stars a group of cricket-mad primary school boys, led by little Davey Warner, who just want to play cricket but something keeps getting in the way. The books are good for both boys and girls and feature characters from many cultures and walks of life. A welcome snapshot of the way Aussie kids live.
Books in the series: 4
-
Dear Dumb Diary - Jim Benton
The fact that a male author is writing from the perspective of a primary school girl lends an interesting tone to the Dear Dumb Diary series. One that boys can really get into too. My son Max sneaks his 'sister's' copies to read, but I would have no qualms buying them for him even without her. The books tackle all things primary school with irreverent humour and cheekiness.
Books in the series: 18 and counting
-
The Faraway Tree - Enid Blyton
The three Faraway books are such a good reminder that even sophisticated modern kids love a bit of make-believe. Blyton's pixies, fairies and goblins still come to life through her colourful writing and her wise, old-fashioned voice still guides curious children through many current day ups and downs. This is the perfect series to read-aloud together, no matter how old your children.
Books in the series: 3
-
Dork Diaries - Rachel Renee Russell
All of my kids love reading this series, and they are 7 (girl), 10 (girl) and 11 (boy). It's a fairly innocuous series, to be honest, but as the title suggests, they do butt-style humour very well indeed. The main character, Nikki Maxwell, is 14 years old, but the humour is definitely primary school level (as is Nikki's maturity level). Think Wimpy Kid but not quite as clever. The kids find these books amusing and I'm always happy to see their nose in a book (any book), so it's a win-win really.
Books in the series: 9 and counting
-
A Series of Unfortunate Events - Lemony Snicket
This exciting series features the three Baudelaire orphans and their crooked distant cousin, Count Olaf. As Count Olaf plots to take all of the children's inheritance, they embark on a series of cliff-hanger adventures, determined to find out how their parents really died. The deadpan humour is very, very dark, but the books are mainly menacing, rather than scary.
Books in the series: 13
-
Toad - Morris Gleitzman
Cane toads are rather vile creatures, but if you read this series you may think very differently. Morris Gleitzman's toads are sweet, caring, adventurous and funny. Limpy is on a mission to discover why humans hate cane toads so much. He risks everything in his one-toad PR campaign to make humans love his species. Kids absolutely adore Limpy and his quest for the truth, but be prepared to be pestered about getting a cane toad for a pet. Erk.
Books in the series: 3
