Children's books

Whether you're a parent, carer, or teacher, browse our recommendations for young readers, activities and quizzes that spark engagement and learning, and competitions to win signed children's books and fun prizes.

Plus, tick 'children's (0-6)' or 'children's (7-12)' in your profile to receive new competitions and updates directly to your inbox.


National Book Tokens Discover

National Book Tokens Discover: the place to be for booklovers.

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Discover Children's Books

 

Competitions

Discover our competitions to win signed children's books and exciting prizes, including National Book Tokens for young readers to spend on even more books!

 

Check back soon for a new giveaway!

Books to Read

Discover the best books for young booklovers to choose with their National Book Tokens, from books for fans of video games and comic books to illustrated books about disability and books written by Black authors. 

10 brilliant children's books by Irish authors

10 brilliant children's books by Irish authors

Celebrate the talent of Irish artists with these highlights from the 2024 Recommended Irish Reads guide!

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24 more children's and teen books out in 2024

24 more children's and teen books out in 2024

The best new children's books, whether they love shipwrecks and survival, feisty friendships, or heart-pounding fantasy.

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9 books for children that champion neurodiversity

Liz and Julie at Next Page Books – a children's bookshop devoted to inclusivity and diversity – share books which feature neurodiverse characters.

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7 illustrated children's books about disability

James Catchpole, author of What Happened to You?, shares his top illustrated books that feature characters with disabilities or are true stories about famous disabled people.

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5 books for children who love video games

Christopher Edge, author of Escape Room, recommends his top books for children – whether to introduce them to even more adventures or to inspire reluctant readers.

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10 brilliant books to read by Black writers

Layla, a bookseller at Round Table Books, recommends brilliant books for both children and adults written by Black authors.

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5 comic book series for kids who love graphic novels

 Jamie Smart shares his top comic book recommendations.

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Long Reads

Discover our longer articles about books and reading, designed to give children the confidence to choose the books they want to read from the bookshops they love. Plus, read exclusive features from Booktime magazine, the essential guide to the most anticipated books of the season.

Divine Comedy: Interview with Stowell

Divine Comedy: Interview with Louie Stowell, author of the Loki series

Norse God-turned-schoolboy Loki meets an arch-enemy in the elf Vinir.

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What a Legend: Interview with Maz Evans, author of the Oh Maya Gods! series

What a Legend: Interview with Maz Evans, author of the Oh Maya Gods! series

Vesper and Aster are swept up in a new adventure involving the legendary King Arthur.

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Top children's authors share their writing tips

Tips for children who want to write!

We asked our favourite authors to share their writing tips and advice for BBC 500 Words.

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Quizzes

Discover our quizzes about popular children's books, authors and illustrators – why not challenge a young booklover to beat your score?

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Calling all young adventurers! Play the Book Island Challenge

Guess which book characters live on each of the islands.

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Which Mr. Men or Little Miss character are you?

Discover your inner Mr. Men Little Miss personality.

Take the quiz

 

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What's your book choosing style?

Do you like the comfort of familiar characters or enjoy challenging yourself to read new voices and stories?

Take the quiz

 

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Help us find the missing book titles

Our bookshelves have fallen down and we've lost some of the words from popular children's books!

Play the quiz

 

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20 years of World Book Day

20 questions to celebrate 20 years of the wonderful charity.

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25 years of World Book Day

To celebrate their big birthday, we created a quiz about World Book Day past and present.

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Activities

Discover activities to do together all around the theme of books and the enjoyment of reading.

Have fun with the Bookily activity sheet

Have fun with the Bookily activity sheet

On the lookout for a rainy day activity? Discover their book choosing style, complete the word search, and more.

Download and print

 

We're going on a... bookshop treasure hunt!

We're going on a... bookshop treasure hunt!

An adventure to the local bookshop is the perfect activity for you and your family. Can you find all 16 books?

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Ask a Bookseller

Discover booksellers' favourite picks. Are you looking for short stories to get your kids into reading, or graphic novels for children who love all things space? Submit a question for our guest booksellers and if it's answered, we'll send you and your young reader a £15/€20 National Book Token to spend in your local bookshop.

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Got a question for a bookseller?

Submit a question and if it's answered, we'll send you a £15/€20 National Book Token to spend in your local bookshop.

Ask now

 

Waterstones Canterbury

Rachel from Waterstones Canterbury recommends

Rachel from Canterbury answers your questions about the best books for children.

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Next Page Books

Liz and Julia from Next Page Books recommend

Liz and Julie from Hitchin answer your questions about the best reads for kids.

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Book Doctor

Discover brilliant book recommendations from bestselling children's authors.

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Rashmi Sirdeshpande, author of Think Like a Boss

Rashmi Sirdeshpande has joined us to provide reading recommendations and advice to young readers.

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Jasbinder Bilan, author of Asha & the Spirit Bird

Jasbinder Bilan has joined us to prescribe the best reads for young booklovers.

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Cressida Cowell and Francesca Simon, bestselling children's authors

Cressida Cowell and Francesca Simon have joined us to prescribe fantastic books and reading advice. for young booklovers.

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Sophie Kirtley, author of The Wild Way Home

Sophie Kirtley has joined us to prescribe some brilliant books for young readers.

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Robin Stevens, author of Murder Most Unladylike

Robin Stevens has joined us to prescribe the best reads for young booklovers.

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Emma Carroll, author of The Tale of Truthwater Lake

Emma Carroll has joined us to prescribe some fantastic books for children and adults.

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Winners

Discover the winners of our biggest giveaways, competitions, and children's activities.

Which schools won £1,000 for their library?

Which schools won £1,000 for their library?

Five schools each won National Book Tokens to rebuild their libraries.

See the winners
Draw your dream pizza

Draw your dream pizza

We gave booklovers the chance to win a signed copy of Peng and Spanners and £50 to spend on pizza.

See the winners
Design a National Book Token

Design a National Book Token

This World Book Day, we invited children to design their own fabulous National Book Tokens!

See the winners
Draw your own Christmas jumper

Draw your own Christmas jumper

To celebrate Jenny Pearson's Operation Nativity, we challenged young readers to design the ultimate festive jumper!

See the winners
Design a new superhero

Design a new superhero

We challenged children to design a new SuperQuesters character.

See the winners
Create your own villain

Create your own villain

Children created their own villain for a chance get their character illustrated by Ryan Hammond and featured on their very own National Book Token.

See the winners
Supporting reading for pleasure for children everywhere

Supporting reading for pleasure for children everywhere

We know that reading for pleasure is the biggest indicator of a child's future success, and has a far-reaching impact on wellbeing. That's why we celebrate books and reading for children through our charity partnerships, as well as through our year-round calendar of fun competitions, reading recommendations and quizzes.

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National Book Tokens Discover, the place to be for booklovers.

Sign up today and we'll enter you to win a £100/€120 National Book Token every month!