Books featuring letters or diaries
Letters or diaries can be brilliantly purposeful ways to learn and practise reading and writing skills. There is a certain magic and excitement to writing a message and sending it out into the world, knowing that somebody somewhere will read it and respond to you. Letters can be as simple or as complex as your need demands, whether you are writing to wish someone a happy birthday, to invite people to an event, to your future self in the form of a diary or perhaps to persuade or inform with a more formal tone.
The following books are for a mixed primary age-range and all feature letters or diaries in a variety of forms. We hope that they will help children to see the value in letter writing and maybe inspire them to write a few of their own!
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Only One of Me: A love letter from Mum
Author: Lisa Wells and Michelle Robinson Illustrator: Catalina Echeverri
Interest level: 4-5
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Only One of Me: A love letter from Mum
Author: Lisa Wells and Michelle Robinson Illustrator: Catalina Echeverri
Interest level: 4-5
Reading age:
A mum facing terminal illness reassures her daughter that she will always love her, in this beautiful, tender rhyming book written…
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The Day the Crayons Quit
Author: Drew Daywalt Illustrator: Oliver Jeffers
Interest level: 3+
Reading age: 7+
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The Day the Crayons Quit
Author: Drew Daywalt Illustrator: Oliver Jeffers
Interest level: 3+
Reading age: 7+
Award-winning illustrator and artist Oliver Jeffers has teamed up with film writer and director Drew Daywalt to create this gorgeo…
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The Day the Crayons Came Home
Author: Drew Daywalt Illustrator: Oliver Jeffers
Interest level: 4-6
Reading age: 6+
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The Day the Crayons Came Home
Author: Drew Daywalt Illustrator: Oliver Jeffers
Interest level: 4-6
Reading age: 6+
One day, a surprising stack of postcards arrives for Duncan. They are all from his old forgotten crayons, demanding to be brought …
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Diary of a Wimpy Kid
Author: Jeff Kinney
Interest level: 8+
Reading age: 8+
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Diary of a Wimpy Kid
Author: Jeff Kinney
Interest level: 8+
Reading age: 8+
Greg Heffley is a normal American kid, albeit one with a habit of getting into (and out of) trouble.
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Dear Greenpeace
Author: Simon James
Interest level: 7+
Reading age: 7+
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Dear Greenpeace
Author: Simon James
Interest level: 7+
Reading age: 7+
A simple, warm hearted and humorous book with charming illustrations. The correspondence could spark ideas for letter writin…
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The Jolly Postman or Other People’s Letters
Author: Allan Ahlberg Illustrator: Janet Ahlberg
Interest level: 5+
Reading age: 6+
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The Jolly Postman or Other People’s Letters
Author: Allan Ahlberg Illustrator: Janet Ahlberg
Interest level: 5+
Reading age: 6+
Brilliantly designed with lots of little details to spot, this old favourite will be enjoyed time and time again
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Meerkat Mail
Author: Emily Gravett
Interest level: 4-6
Reading age: 5+
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Meerkat Mail
Author: Emily Gravett
Interest level: 4-6
Reading age: 5+
Sunny lives on an arid plain with his extensive and loving meerkat family; they work together, play together and together do their…
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The Hidden Story of Estie Noor
Author: Nadine Aisha Jassat Illustrator: Sandhya Prabhat
Interest level: 9-11
Reading age: 9+
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The Hidden Story of Estie Noor
Author: Nadine Aisha Jassat Illustrator: Sandhya Prabhat
Interest level: 9-11
Reading age: 9+
Estie feels her truth is unheard when she is expelled from school and sent to Scotland for the summer. When she discovers a secret…
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Herman's Letter
Author: Tom Percival
Interest level: 3+
Reading age: 6+
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Herman's Letter
Author: Tom Percival
Interest level: 3+
Reading age: 6+
Herman the bear and Henry the raccoon have been friends for as long as anyone can remember - but then Henry has to move away.
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Hercules: The Diary of a (Sort Of) Hero
Author: Tom Vaughan Illustrator: David O'Connell
Interest level: 9-11
Reading age: 8+
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Hercules: The Diary of a (Sort Of) Hero
Author: Tom Vaughan Illustrator: David O'Connell
Interest level: 9-11
Reading age: 8+
Hercules' plan to play it cool when he starts secondary school goes awry when he becomes a target for the school bully. With the a…
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Cogheart
Author: Peter Bunzl Illustrations by Becca Stadtlander
Interest level: 7+
Reading age: 10+
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Cogheart
Author: Peter Bunzl Illustrations by Becca Stadtlander
Interest level: 7+
Reading age: 10+
This ambitious debut is set in 1896, but in an alternative history - almost steampunk - with clockwork servants, silver airships a…
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Noah's Gold
Author: Frank Cottrell-Boyce Illustrator: Steven Lenton
Interest level: 9-11
Reading age: 9+
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Noah's Gold
Author: Frank Cottrell-Boyce Illustrator: Steven Lenton
Interest level: 9-11
Reading age: 9+
Eleven-year-old Noah finds himself marooned on a deserted island that turns out to hold all kind of treasure. A book with a r…
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The Offline Diaries
Author: Yomi Adegoke and Elizabeth Uviebinené Illustrator: Tequitia Andrews and Ruthine Burton
Interest level: 9-11
Reading age: 9+
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The Offline Diaries
Author: Yomi Adegoke and Elizabeth Uviebinené Illustrator: Tequitia Andrews and Ruthine Burton
Interest level: 9-11
Reading age: 9+
Centred around some typical pre-teen issues, including friendship, loyalty, bullying and sibling relationships, the book also sens…
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I, Spy: A Bletchley Park Mystery
Author: Rhian Tracey Illustrator: David Dean
Interest level: 9-11
Reading age: 9+
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I, Spy: A Bletchley Park Mystery
Author: Rhian Tracey Illustrator: David Dean
Interest level: 9-11
Reading age: 9+
When war is declared in 1939, Bletchley Park becomes a hive of covert activity and Robyn is tasked with looking after the homing p…
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Planet Omar: Accidental Trouble Magnet
Author: Zanib Mian Illustrator: Nasaya Mafaridik
Interest level: 8-11
Reading age: 8+
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Planet Omar: Accidental Trouble Magnet
Author: Zanib Mian Illustrator: Nasaya Mafaridik
Interest level: 8-11
Reading age: 8+
Planet Omar has all of the everyday life family drama and silly humour of Tom Gates and Sam Wu, and it's wonderful to read a …
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I Am Lenny Brown
Author: Dan Freedman Illustrator: Kajsa Hallström
Interest level: 9-11
Reading age: 7+
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I Am Lenny Brown
Author: Dan Freedman Illustrator: Kajsa Hallström
Interest level: 9-11
Reading age: 7+
An accessible story about how a boy who can’t speak finally finds his voice and realises that there is no such thing as ‘normal’. …
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Dear Dinosaur
Author: Chae Strathie Illustrator: Nicola O’Byrne
Interest level: 3-6
Reading age: 5+
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Dear Dinosaur
Author: Chae Strathie Illustrator: Nicola O’Byrne
Interest level: 3-6
Reading age: 5+
Filled with bright illustrations and fold-out letters, postcards and cards, Dear Dinosaur has a very interactive and playful feel.…
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