New children's books we love
Every month, we review dozens of books for children and teenagers. Here are the ones we liked best in January: guaranteed to get your child reading...
Whether they're a teeny toddler or a very particular teen, this is where you can find your child's next amazing book: just scroll down to find books for a range of ages.
You can also keep track of the latest titles by looking at our past reading recommendations in:
Bizzy is helping out all over the zoo: visiting the lions in their den, rather alarmingly brushing a crocodile with a broom, and feeding the penguins with a bucket of fish. Children will love spotting all the animals and this bright, bold and brilliant fun!
Pip and Posy: The Christmas Tree
Pip and Posy are putting up the Christmas tree. Mysteriously, when Posy goes to get some candy, she returns to find that one of the biscuits has gone. What happened? And why does Pip suddenly feel sick? A lovely picture book with a gentle moral.
There are lots of new friends to discover in this bright and colourful board book that celebrates polar animals. Even the tiniest book-lovers will be able to interact with this board book with its easy-to-turn and sturdy card pages.
A lovely story about a pet that lives in a city apartment block, this is a nice reminder that many children also live in cities, as well as the moral that things don’t make people as happy as friends and family – and freedom – do.
Even if you're not sure where the phrase 'as mad as a box of frogs' comes from, Howard Calvert’s story appears to be proof that with a box of frogs, madness ensues. Seriously silly fun that is sure to make little ones laugh.
The Elephant that Ate the Night
Children and families will enjoy this calming lullaby of a book, with its gentle refrain, muted colours and fairy tale-like charm. It's a great one for children who are scared of the dark, and it's perfect for bedtime and settling down for the night.
Bunny Wunny belongs to Imelda. He has been her favourite toy ever since she was a baby. However, it’s not always easy being the favourite toy of such a bad-tempered girl. A wickedly funny story that highlights the importance of manners and respecting others.
The Wall in the Middle of the Book
Jon Agee is a well-known picture book author-illustrator in the US and this deceptively simple concept about walls, and what they keep in and out, is exceptionally well executed. A thought-provoking, topical book about relating to others.
Beautifully illustrated, this is a warm and reassuring story, dreaming of the future and knowing there are no limits to what children can grow up to be.
Introducing the concept of mental wellbeing, this picture book helps children to recognise and understand difficult emotions. The result is a contemplative and ultimately uplifting tale.
This month-by-month almanac is a whizz-bang tour of nature and culture that includes simple indoor activities as well as inspiration for outdoor fun like rockpooling or looking for bats. A wonderfully colourful, inclusive and joyous exploration of our world.
Dog Man is a comic masterclass, perfect for the surreal sense of humour of the average six- to nine-year-old. It’s a full-colour comic throughout with five to six simple panels per page and split into eight chapters, so kids can feel like they’re reading a lot quickly.
This is a delightful picture book with an extra element of brilliance in the five letters included in the book. Dragon Post manages to be a book about animal conservation, friendship, letter-writing and freedom, all wrapped up in a rather special little package.
Jack Dash and the Great Custard Cake-Off
This crazy, carefree story has plenty of laugh-out-loud moments and some wild, imagination-stretching storylines, such as a peahen falling in love with a penguin, and a cake so hard from overbaking it causes a castle to crumble.
Nadiya’s Bake Me a Celebration Story
With bright illustrations and a smart finish, this is a real treat for any blossoming bakers. The stories themselves are short and sweet with funny dashes of modern life. Like Nadiya herself, this book is full of joy and love for all things family and food.
Robot: Meet the Machines of the Future
Organised in different sections, highlighting the history of robotics, robots in the home, robots in the workplace, surgical robotics and even “hero” robots, Robot is an excellent introduction to current robot technology and development.
Catvinkle's peaceful cat existence is disrupted when her owner brings home Ula the Dalmatian. Against the odds, the pair become pals. But how will the other cats react? A chapter book with the inclusive message that friendship should extend to everyone.
The Ice Monster is an epic, loosely historical adventure that is funny, easy to read and shoots along at a rocket pace. Tony Ross’ glorious cover and artwork on almost every page are also a joy.
Jakob Wegelius’ graphic novel prequel to the novel The Murderer’s Ape tells the gorilla Sally Jones’ sad origin story with great compassion. It reminds us of the terrible ways humans have treated gorillas and orangutans.
An exciting first volume in an attractive series of graphic novels for junior readers, this tale successfully combines science fiction, humour, family difficulties and environmental concerns in an accessible and entertaining format.
Young Heroes: Inspirational Children from Around the World
This collection of remarkable young people’s achievements is truly inspirational. With a gentle guide to being a hero yourself at the back of the book, and a look back at great children of the past, these amazing young people give us all hope for the future.
Read more about Young Heroes: Inspirational Children from Around the World
This beautifully illustrated portrait of one year in nature is put together by poet Joseph Coelho, with each month assigned a relevant and resonant poem. It reassuringly shows that emotions come and go, like the seasons – and the bad times always pass.
Fantastic People who Dared to Fail!
This book's premise is that failure is a necessary part of success as it builds resilience, determination and perseverance. It explores the setbacks that inspiring people have overcome to achieve their goals and tries to motivate children to have more self-belief.
The wonderful Jason Reynolds has written this seamless long-form poem about achieving your dreams and reaching your potential. A small but perfectly formed and utterly delightful book: an ideal pick-me-up for everyone.
This is an unusual adventure story that successfully holds the reader under its spell. A growing sense of danger rumbles in the background and it combines a convincing contemporary context with timeless mystery and magic.
An empowering and fun, relatable read for tweens, Royal Rebel presents a young girl growing up in a matriarchal community and navigating family responsibilities alongside school, friends and being herself.
The Extremely Weird Thing that Happened in Huggabie Falls
An utterly nonsensical but engaging romp through the weirdest town in the world, featuring a warty witch, a creepy scientist, vegetarian piranhas and a dastardly plot that could change the town forever.
Read more about The Extremely Weird Thing that Happened in Huggabie Falls
The Girl with the Shark’s Teeth
When mysterious men kidnap her mother, Minnow has to set sail alone for the magical, dangerous and beautiful Wild Deep. This book is full of lyrical, breathless prose and Burnell’s imagination is marvellous.
The Peculiar Peggs of Riddling Woods
Is there something in the woods stealing children? A creepy, compelling and deliciously dark modern fairytale. For maximum tension and thrills, try reading under the covers by torchlight.
Mylo Affinito knows there's no such things as Martians... until an alien spaceship crash lands near his family's farm! A funny, warm tale which delicately deals with issues of grief, depression and tolerance.
Fitting into a new school isn’t easy, as Kirby discovers. This full-colour graphic novel in a school setting has an intriguing mystery and a trio of wacky, talking primates, which wittily explores "otherness" in a number of ways.
Fourteen-year-old Ro Snow’s got a secret: her house is filled to the doors with her mother’s hoarded rubbish. A brilliant, thoughtful read that explores Bonnie’s mental health issues and their effect on Ro with compassion.
Thank you!
A big thank you to everyone who donated to the BookTrust Christmas appeal. With your amazing support, we have reached over 11,500 children who are vulnerable or in care with a festive book parcel, and made them feel special this Christmas.
Find out how to support BookTrust in 2019 and help get books to more children
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