TV shows based on children's books

The Little Prince

Check out our favourite kid's TV shows based on children's books.

Some are classics, some are new, while others you may be surprised to find out were books first!

  • Kipper's Balloon

    Kipper's Balloon

    Author: Mick Inkpen
    Publisher: Hachette
    Interest age: 0+
    Reading age: 5+

    The latest in a range of good books about the popular Kipper and his friends, this is a stunning pop-up and lift-the-flap book with sounds, which tells of a great adventure and a fantastic balloon ride.

  • Supertato by Sue Hendra and Paul Linnet

    Supertato

    Author: Sue Hendra and Paul Linnet
    Publisher: Simon & Schuster
    Interest age: 3-6

    It’s night-time in the supermarket and all is quiet and still. But wait. Something has escaped from the freezer, something with evil plans. This little escapee (or escapea?) wants to cause chaos. Can Supertato save the day? A hilarious and anarchic story with truly brilliant characters – one that you'll be asked to read again and again.

  • Winnie-the-Pooh

    Winnie-the-Pooh

    Author: A A Milne Illustrator: E H Shepard
    Publisher: Methuen
    Interest age: 4+
    Reading age: 7+

    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.

  • The Tale of Peter Rabbit

    The Tale of Peter Rabbit

    Author: Beatrix Potter
    Publisher: Warne
    Interest age: 3-6
    Reading age: 5-7

    Beatrix Potter's iconic tale of the naughty rabbit has been a favourite with children and parents ever since it was published in 1902 - it has a timeless charm.

  • The Little Prince

    The Little Prince

    Author: Antoine de Saint-Exupery Translator: Katherine Woods
    Publisher: Farshore
    Interest age: 7-11
    Reading age: 8+

    An air pilot makes a forced landing deep in the Sahara Desert. There, he makes a mysterious Little Prince, who tells him a series of wise and enchanting stories.

  • Horrid Henry

    Horrid Henry

    Author: Francesca Simon Illustrator: Tony Ross
    Publisher: Orion Children's Books
    Interest age: 4+
    Reading age: 6+

    Stories about naughty characters have been told for centuries, and Horrid Henry is a modern-day rogue in the tradition of Dennis the Menace and Just William.

  • The Worst Witch

    The Worst Witch

    Author: Jill Murphy
    Publisher: Puffin
    Interest age: 6+
    Reading age: 7+

    Long before Harry Potter first went to Hogwarts, trainee witch Mildred Hubble embarked on life at Miss Cackle's Academy for Witches...

  • Five on a Treasure Island

    Five on a Treasure Island

    Author: Enid Blyton
    Publisher: Hodder Children's Books
    Interest age: 7+
    Reading age: 9+

    Meet Enid Blyton's most famous characters - Julian, Dick, Anne, George and of course the ever-loyal Timmy the dog - for the first time in this, the first book in the classic Famous Five series.

  • Finn Family Moomintroll

    Finn Family Moomintroll

    Author: Tove Jansson Translator: Elizabeth Portch
    Publisher: Puffin
    Interest age: 5-8
    Reading age: 6+

    Moomintroll is cheerful and chubby and lives in the magical Moominvalley with his mother, Moominmamma, his father, Moominpappa and all of their friends.

  • The Queen's Nose

    The Queen's Nose

    Author: Dick KingSmith
    Publisher: Puffin
    Interest age: 7+
    Reading age: 8+

    Harmony's Uncle Ginger sends her on a treasure trail - which ends in finding a 50p piece.

  • The Worst Witch

    The Worst Witch

    Author: Jill Murphy
    Publisher: Puffin
    Interest age: 6+
    Reading age: 7+

    Long before Harry Potter first went to Hogwarts, trainee witch Mildred Hubble embarked on life at Miss Cackle's Academy for Witches...

  • The Story of Tracy Beaker

    The Story of Tracy Beaker

    Author: Jacqueline Wilson Illustrator: Nick Sharratt
    Publisher: Random House
    Interest age: 8+
    Reading age: 8+

    Tracy lives in a children's home but constantly hopes that her absent, glamorous Mum will come and take her away.

  • Stig of the Dump

    Stig of the Dump

    Author: Clive King
    Publisher: Puffin
    Interest age: 8+
    Reading age: 8+

    Exploring an old chalk pit, Barney meets a strange boy who wears a rabbit skin and speaks in grunts.

  • Goggle-Eyes

    Goggle-Eyes

    Author: Anne Fine
    Publisher: Penguin
    Interest age: 10-14
    Reading age: 10+

    Kitty is not only a great storyteller, she is also the world's leading expert in mothers with unwanted boyfriends.

  • First Term at Malory Towers

    First Term at Malory Towers

    Author: Enid Blyton
    Publisher: Hachette
    Interest age: 7+
    Reading age: 8+

    We're rooting for Darrell Rivers as she starts boarding school, and learns to cope with her fiery temper and decide for herself which friends are genuine.

  • Anne of Green Gables

    Anne of Green Gables

    Author: L M Montgomery
    Publisher: Puffin
    Interest age: 9-13
    Reading age: 9+

    Anne Shirley is one of literature's finest heroines, and this first book of her adventures is the perfect book about growing up, friendship and family.

  • Feather Boy

    Feather Boy

    Author: Nicky Singer
    Publisher: HarperCollins
    Interest age: 12+
    Reading age: 11+

    Robert is having a tough time at school, being bullied by Nicker; he's also trying to deal with the break-up of his parents' marriage.

  • The Series of Unfortunate Events: The Bad Beginning

    The Series of Unfortunate Events: The Bad Beginning

    Author: Lemony Snicket Illustrator: Brett Helquist
    Publisher: Farshore
    Interest age: 9+
    Reading age: 9+

    The Bad Beginning is the first of 13 volumes in the appropriately named collection, A Series of Unfortunate Events.

  • A Kind of Spark

    A Kind of Spark

    Author: Elle McNicoll
    Publisher: Knights Of
    Interest age: 9-11
    Reading age: 9+

    When 11 year old Addie, who is autistic, learns about the 16th century women who were persecuted for witchcraft, she starts to lobby for a local memorial in her small Scottish village. With the help of a new girl at school, she fights valiantly against injustice and oppression.

  • Lockwood & Co: The Screaming Staircase

    Lockwood & Co: The Screaming Staircase

    Author: Jonathan Stroud
    Publisher: HarperCollins
    Interest age: 10+
    Reading age: 11+

    Best known for his sarcastic djinni creation Bartimaeus, Stroud returns with an equally engaging new series, this time following a young set of ghost hunters

  • Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief

    Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief

    Author: Rick Riordan
    Publisher: Puffin
    Interest age: 9+
    Reading age: 9+

    In this leftfield comic fantasy novel, 12-year-old Percy Jackson discovers that the Greek gods of Olympus are alive and living in modern-day New York.

  • Geek Girl

    Geek Girl

    Author: Holly Smale
    Publisher: HarperCollins
    Interest age: 10+
    Reading age: 12+

    Everyone at school knows Harriet Manners is a geek.

  • heartstopper cover

    Heartstopper

    Author: Alice Oseman
    Publisher: Hachette
    Interest age: 12+
    Reading age: 12+

    An utterly charming, slow-burn love story between two boys. This heart-warming graphic novel captures every moment of the joy and terror of having a crush on someone.

  • A Good Girl's Guide to Murder

    A Good Girl's Guide to Murder

    Author: Holly Jackson
    Publisher: Electric Monkey
    Interest age: 12-14
    Reading age: 12+

    A school project intended to reinvestigate the evidence of an old murder case brings new dangers and too many secrets to light 

  • Shadow and Bone

    Shadow and Bone

    Author: Leigh Bardugo
    Publisher: Indigo
    Interest age: 13+
    Reading age: 13+

    In this richly-imagined and beautifully-written novel, Leigh Bardugo has created a vivid fantasy world drawing on Russian traditions and folklore