Your Child Doesn't Enjoy Reading? Start With Books They Already Love
Maybe your child doesn't hate reading. Maybe they just haven't found a book they actually like yet. Sixteen places to start, by age and by what they're already into.
Your Child Doesn't Enjoy Reading? Start With Books They Already Love
Sixteen starter books by age and interest, plus a few simple ways to make reading something they look forward to.
The whole idea, in one line Start with what they're already interested in. Let them enjoy it. Bring in other kinds of books slowly. |
How it started in our house
A librarian once told me something very simple. Instead of choosing every book for your child, let them pick stories about the things they already like.
It reminded me of what worked with my boys. We watched The Lion King, so we got the book. They loved Charlie and Lola, so we got those too. We started with characters they already knew, then slowly brought in other kinds of stories.
These days, before we watch anything, they'll ask me whether it was a book first.
The point isn't to get through a pile of books or to quiz them after every story. It's to make reading feel like something they want to do. And if what they want is comics, football facts or books that are mostly pictures, that's a perfectly good place to start.
Before you choose a book
About the ages These are starting points, not targets. Picture books and read-aloud stories stay enjoyable well past the age band they sit in. |
Birth to around 2
Pictures, flaps and your voice
Book | Good for | Try this |
Where's Spot? Eric Hill | Flaps, animals, hide and seek | Lift the flap together and name what you find. |
Dear Zoo Rod Campbell | Animals and surprises | Make the animal sounds together. |
Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes Mem Fox, illustrated by Helen Oxenbury | Babies, family, gentle rhymes | Point to their fingers and toes as you read. |
Tummy Time! Mama Makes Books | Baby faces, mirrors, looking closely | Let your baby just look at the faces and the mirror. |
Ages 3 to 5
Big pictures and stories they recognise
Book | Good for | Try this |
Handa's Surprise Eileen Browne | Animals, fruit, African settings | Guess which animal is coming next. |
Anna Hibiscus' Song Atinuke, illustrated by Lauren Tobia | Family, happiness, African life | Ask what makes your child feel that happy. |
I Will Not Ever Never Eat a Tomato Lauren Child | Charlie and Lola, humour | Let them point out and describe their favourite character. |
The Very Hungry Caterpillar Eric Carle | Food, colours, insects | Count the fruit, or talk about what caterpillars turn into. |
Ages 6 to 8
Humour, hobbies and easy ways in
Book | Good for | Try this |
Too Small Tola Atinuke, illustrated by Onyinye Iwu | Nigerian family life, funny short stories | Let them choose which of the three stories to start with. |
Dog Man Dav Pilkey | Comics, superheroes, fast humour | Ask them to talk you through a page they found funny. |
Football School
Alex Bellos and Ben Lyttleton
Football, facts, science
Let them pick the first fact to read out to you.
Tyrannosaurus Drip
Julia Donaldson, illustrated by David Roberts
Dinosaurs, rhymes, funny stories
Read the rhyming bits in silly voices.
Ages 9 to 12
Illustrated stories, humour and finding out about the world
Book | Good for | Try this |
Diary of a Wimpy Kid Jeff Kinney | Funny diaries, school life | Let them read one entry and tell you what made them laugh. |
The Brilliant World of Tom Gates Liz Pichon | Doodles, school, humour | Ask them to draw their own diary page. |
Planet Omar: Accidental Trouble Magnet Zanib Mian, illustrated by Nasaya Mafaridik | Family, friendships, funny mishaps | Talk casually about Omar's friendship trouble. |
Africana Kim Chakanetsa, illustrated by Alabi Mayowa | Africa, history, geography, facts | Pick one country and look it up together. |
What if she only wants cartoon books?
Then that's where you start.
If she loves The Lion King, Charlie and Lola or whatever is on at the moment, find a storybook with those characters in it. Let her recognise the story and tell it back to you.
After a while, try something with one familiar thread running through it. Animals, maybe, or siblings, or the same kind of humour. You're building a bridge, not narrowing her choices.
A simple way to start this week
If reading is still hard
Not being interested is only one reason a child avoids books. Some children genuinely struggle with sounding out words, reading smoothly, or holding on to what they've read.
Keep reading together, but speak to her teacher if she's consistently stuck or getting upset about it.
In the UK, the school SENCO can help you work out what support is available. In Nigeria and elsewhere, start with her class teacher or the head, and ask whether the school can refer you to someone who assesses reading difficulties.
Choosing books she likes helps. It shouldn't stand in for proper support when reading is genuinely hard.
You don't have to buy any of this
Borrow from a library. Swap with other families. Buy second-hand. Use whatever the school has.
And if she wants the same book over and over again, that still counts. That's a child who likes books.
A reminder If she wants to read the same story again, let her. You're trying to make books feel welcoming, not compulsory. |
Keep track of what works
Use this after a library trip or a few reading sessions. You don't have to fill in every box. It's just a way to notice what she actually likes.
What she's into | Book we tried | What she liked, what to try next |
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Tell us what worked for you
Which book got your child interested in reading? Share it in the comments. What worked in your house might be the thing another mum has been looking for.
Useful places to look
A note on the books: suggested ages are flexible and can differ between editions. What's available varies by country and by shop. These are suggestions, not recommendations to buy from anywhere in particular.
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