Books about friendship

Once there was a sad, lonely penguin who appeared at the door of a young boy. The boy decided he must be lost, so he set off to find his home.

Colin is a carrot, and Lee is a pea. An amusing and deceptively simple look at friendship and difference, this is a lovely book for young readers.

Squirrel and Bear are the best of friends, but sometimes they don’t see things in quite the same way. For instance, when Squirrel decides they should have a party, Bear is very into the idea until anxiety strikes and he starts to feel that perhaps it would be better for everyone if he just went to bed.

Three children find the magic in their tower block – showing that nature and adventure is for everyone. A beautifully illustrated, lyrically told story.

No child’s library could be complete without A A Milne’s stories about Pooh, Christopher Robin and their friends in the Hundred Acre Wood.

This is the tale of how a little girl named Fern – with the help of a friendly talking spider called Charlotte – saved her pig, Wilbur, from the usual fate of nice fat little pigs.

Gerald the elephant thinks that pigs make him sneeze, but his best friend is a pig! What is he to do? A very funny simple story told in speech bubbles – perfect for beginner readers.

Bumble and Snug have teamed up with a unicorn! But when the unicorn creates chaos with too much magical ​‘help’, the friends must find a way to still have fun, but consider others. Fantastic fun.

Bear and Bird are best friends, and, like many friends, sometimes one or the other of them makes a mistake or gets cross or jealous of the other. Luckily, though, they’re good enough friends to get past any hiccups or mishaps they might encounter, and get on with the important stuff: enjoying each other’s company and being a bit silly, now and again.

This modern fairy-tale with a brilliantly inspiring young heroine is one of Roald Dahl’s best loved stories.

Greg Heffley is a normal American kid, albeit one with a habit of getting into (and out of) trouble.

When Frankie starts secondary school, she wants to make friends and be cool, but also be herself and not be too different. How can she find her voice?

When Ginika meets a boy who lives in the sea, they strike up a secret friendship – but what will happen when he gets ill? A very exciting, unusual and truly imaginative adventure story which is expertly told.

Can Jason and his friends find the big cat roaming the Valleys and win the reward for a photo of it? A fantastic story of friendship, adventure and sibling bonds, in 1974 Wales.

Exploring a ramshackle garage with his new-found friend Mina, Michael discovers a strange, magical creature who needs his help. A contemporary classic.

The first part of J R R Tolkien’s epic masterpiece The Lord of the Rings, this is the story of young hobbit Frodo Baggins, who finds himself faced with an immense and terrible duty.

Can Lizzie and Belle solve an attempted murder in eighteenth-century London? A cracking mystery inspired by real Black historical figures.

Callum is a Nought but his best friend Sephy is a Cross – the daughter of one of the most influential politicians in the country.