This is something I hear more often than I'd like when talking to parents about reading with their kids. Often the child is a reluctant reader themselves, struggling to engage with reading, or just stuck on one author, one type of book, unwilling to try something new. These are often children past the picture book stage, late KS1 or into KS2. 'Why not read to your child as a bedtime ritual' I suggest. 'Oh I tried that - but I cant stand kids books, at least not the ones he's into, it's all silliness and fart jokes, I just don't enjoy it'.
It's true, that what appeals to our children may not always appeal to our adult minds, personally I quite enjoy a book with humour, sharing a chuckle with the mini's over a funny story at bedtime is a wonderful bonding experience. But what to do if you want to continue to enjoy reading with your older child, but you want to enjoy the story yourself too? Look upon it as an opportunity to broaden their reading horizons, introduce them to new high quality authors, genres, or books with a message that you'd like to discuss with them as you read. To get a conversation going about bullying, inclusivity, racism, gender identity, kindness. mental health, death and loss. You might be surprised to know that these and many other deep topics are explored in a child friendly way in children's literature these days, and offer you the opportunity to explore these issues with your child through the medium of books.
Or perhaps you just want to share a rollicking adventure filled with mystery and magic with your child at the end of the day as your special time together. There is simply nothing nicer than snuggling up with a good book that you both enjoy!
So - here are a few suggestions for you dear readers. Books that as an adult reader I have loved, sometimes purely for the gripping read that they are, sometimes because they also impart an important message. These are just a few of my guaranteed great reads :)
(Age range given is a suggestion only based on my own opinion as a parent and primary school librarian).
My favourite book of 2019. Scavengers follows the story of a boy called Landfill, living on a walled area of waste ground with his animals and guardian Bubagoo. They survive by scavenging from the dump, but Landfill is told he must NEVER go to the Outside, or put his head above the wall, as the people outside have a sickness.
For me the book explores what it is that makes us human, and what we - as a modern day society have become. When he's eventually forced to encounter the outside world It holds a mirror up to humanity and as a reader I could see that the reflection wasn't pretty. This is a book i would read again, and i never read a book twice. Rec 9+
Another of my faves from 2019. I actually did read this twice - once by myself and then again with my minis as a bedtime read, as my son was studying WW2 in class and I thought this would be perfect for him! We follow a brave little mouse - Pip, from his bombed out London home, to the sewers where he joins with Churchill's underground animal army, and eventually to France where he joins Noah's Ark, the French resistance band of animals, working against the Nazi animal army to help bring peace back to Europe. A fantastic adventure story, and the perfect way to introduce the War topic to KS2 children. I was amazed at the end to discover that the French animal characters were all based on real life French resistance people, who called themselves Noah's Ark and had animal code names! Draws you in and you can't put it down! Some scenes of Nazi aggression 9+
SOOOOO Good! Juniper Greene and her brother, Bear live in a walled city from which ALL nature has been banished even books on the subject, following the outbreak of a deadly man-made disease many years earlier. They've always known about their resistance to the disease, and dream of escaping into the wild to find their Mother. In a post-apocalyptic world there are still the haves and have-nots in society and their lives are very different. They live without nature as nature may re-introduce the virus, with a cleared 'dead zone' around the city to keep nature at bay. Without humans, the wild has regenerated, taken over abandoned cities and is flourishing, and Juniper and Bear long to escape and discover some of the plants and animals they've only seen in the secret books they've kept hidden. But no-one is allowed to leave the city, and it's only when their immunity is discovered and they are hunted by the scientists for research, that they must make a plan and flee for their lives - back to the wild. Contains some peril, ultimately spellbinding. 9+
This book is both immersive and poetic. First - the language in the story is incredible and at times so beautifully lyrical and descriptive that you literally FEEL the pain of joy as you are immersed in the story and bathed with the beauty within. There's a section where the mountain creates music and could feel the heart swell and well - I very nearly cried as I could clearly imagine the beauty of the sound.
Second - It brings the natural world to life as the characters interact with it and each other and can see it fully and individually for the first time. Each reacts very differently but they come to understand the fragility of nature and our role within it and the sheer beauty of what surrounds us - if we only took time now and then to stop still and appreciate it. such an important message in these times of climate change and planetary crisis. There is some peril but nothing too graphic so i rec for 10+
If you love a Steam-punk vibe this is the read for you. A new, incredible technology has been discovered in the city of Medlock, where a secretive guild of inventors have developed a way to capture spirits of the dead in animal-like machines, bringing them back to life.
Prue is a bit of a whizz at working with the machine animals on her family farm and is doing her best to keep things going after her brothers death.
She knows that the "Ghost Guild" might hold the key to bringing her brother back, so when they arrive at the farm to offer her brother an apprenticeship she seizes the stranger's offer to join in his place. Can she learn the secrets of the guild so that her brother can become a 'second-lifer' too? Filled with magic, machinery and adventure, you can explore what it means to be human and what technology might offer in the future! Truly a book that you won't want to put down at the end of the chapter. Recom 9+
Sophie Anderson writes captivating, beautiful stories based on Russian folklore. Her Debut the House with Chicken Legs is the story of Baba Yaga who guides the dead on their journey to the stars.
In her second book - The Girl Who Speaks Bear, we are introduced to Yanka, who was found abandoned in a bear cave as a baby. Knowing that she is somehow different from the others in the village, Yanka has always wondered about where she is from. She tries to ignore the strange whispers and looks, wishing she was as strong on the inside as she is on the outside. But, when she has to flee her house, looking for answers about who she really is, a journey far beyond one that she ever imagined begins: from icy rivers to smouldering mountains meeting an ever-growing herd of extraordinary friends along the way.
A powerful story of self discovery and self acceptance, provoking discussions on learning to love who you are inside and out, and accepting your differences as what makes you special and unique, rather than wrong. Read this with your 8+ year old.
Ok - I admit it, this one has funny in it. But stay with me here for a minute because i've personally read this 3 times now. Once on my own, 2nd time with my own two at bedtime, & a third time as a read aloud to our school students as a bedtime story over zoom.
If you can bear a bit of funny, this book also delivers a great story that children age 7+ will adore. We follow Charlie who has an unfortunate habit of changing into an animal whenever he gets emotionally overloaded. It takes him and his friends awhile to work out that this is the trigger, but then they work on how to help Charlie control his emotional buildup so that he doesn't change into a spider, or a snake... this makes it the perfect book to read with any child who experiences loss of emotional control, as it will allow you to discuss from the viewpoint of Charlie, and what Charlie could do to help himself stay in control. Emotional Intelligence with a funny twist. Several books in the series to keep them reading! Recom 7+
Escapism in a book. What would YOU do if you won an island? Luna's family are facing eviction and their Dad seems to be sleeping all the time, so when she hears a competition on the radio to win an island in Scotland she enters - and wins!
Sure that this will be the solution to all her family's problems and her chance to make her dream of running a donkey sanctuary come true they move to the island, only to discover that sometimes more than a chance of scene is required. Desperate to help her Dad overcome his depression and find his happy again she and her brother along with the help of some locals set about organising a secret festival on their island, but with everything going wrong will they manage to find their happy ending? This book has turned reluctant readers into enthusiastic readers, and if you're inclined - can kickstart hours of fun designing your own dream island and what you would do if you won one! Eagerly awaiting book 2 next year! Recom 7+
Magic and Fantasy and a reminder of the imagination of our childhood playtime..... When Arthur and Rose were little, they were heroes in the Land of Roar, an imaginary world that they found by climbing through the folding bed in their grandad’s attic. Roar was filled with things they loved – dragons, mermaids, ninja wizards and adventure – as well as things that scared them (including a very creepy scarecrow. . .)
Now the twins are eleven, Roar is just a memory. But when they help Grandad clean out the attic, Arthur is horrified as Grandad is pulled into the folding bed and vanishes. Is he playing a joke? Or is Roar . . . real?
You will rediscover your childhood and perhaps your imagination when reading this book with your child. Narnia for the modern child, with good and evil battling for supremacy of Roar. I've recommended this to dozens of students in our library and every single one has LOVED it. Book two out Aug 2020. Some mild peril and an evil scarecrow! Recom 7+
So there we have it, just a few suggestions to get you started and to help you find a book that you might BOTH enjoy reading together :) To be honest I struggled to keep the list short, there are so many amazing books and authors out there right now - we are truly in a golden age of children's literature. So don't get stuck on just buying the same books you read as a child - you can discover brilliant new authors on my pages - just check out the 'Must Reads' page for more books that I'd recommend.
Books Like Wilde, Orphans of the Tide, Orion Lost, A Dragon in the Library, Varjak Paw, The Boy Who Grew Dragons, The Maker of Monsters, Troofriend, Cogheart, The Last Wild, The Girl Who Stole an Elephant, No Ballet Shoes in Syria and oh - SO MANY MORE!
Happy reading! Love, The Book Whisperer xx