Libraries are the perfect place to get children interested in reading! They can browse the shelves, choose their own books, and sit and read in a cosy nook.
Take a look at our favourite children’s books about visiting the library and the joy of reading. All of these books and more are free to borrow with your library card, and we don’t charge for overdue or lost children’s titles!
Want more suggested books? Take a look at our recommendations.
Find Spot at the Library: A Lift-the-Flap Story
Eric Hill
It’s fancy dress day at the library! Which book characters will Spot, Helen and Tom dress up as?
Join Spot and his friends as they explore all the different corners and books in the library. Going to the library is an exciting first experience for toddlers, and Spot is no different – he loves reading!
All the Wonderful Ways to Read
Laura Baker
Books take us on journeys that we can all share and give us the power to go anywhere! This picture book will inspire a love of reading in any child!
Celebrate all different types of books in a story that encourages children to read whatever, however and wherever they choose.
I Love Books
Mariajo Ilustrajo
This brightly illustrated adventure story is perfect for kids who claim to hate reading, as the enchanting narrative opens their eyes to a fantasy world created by words on a page.
In this spellbinding story, we meet a little girl excited for the end of term. No more school! However, she’s given the very unreasonable task of reading a whole book over the holidays. She HATES books. Luckily, her sister takes her to the library and says she has just the thing.
Slowly, the little girl is drawn into a world of adventure inside her own imagination, for the very first time.
So You Want to Build a Library
Lindsay Leslie and Aviel Basil
There is no better place in the world than a library. Especially a library that kids create themselves!
A million storeys high? Sure. Bathtubs? Absolutely. A full-service sundae bar? Of course. Everything is possible in this library – just like in books!
Author Lindsay Leslie puts the reader in charge as the architect of a fantastical library in this imaginative picture book celebrating libraries and the joys of reading.
Stanley’s Library
William Bee
It’s another busy day for Stanley and friends at the library!
Stanley has stocked his bookmobile with lots of great books to take to the local park. Everyone stops by to borrow a book that Stanley selected just for them, and later Stanley arrives back at the library just in time for a special event.
The Library Book
Gabby Dawnay and Jan Morris
Zach isn’t convinced that books are for him – they’re too long, they’re boring and he would rather watch TV. But thanks to his friend Ro’s stubborn efforts, Zach falls for books hook, line and sinker, and loses himself in a world of dinosaurs, princesses, pirates, football and rocketships – anything and everything the library has to offer.
The benefits of reading for pleasure are well researched. As well as being linked to academic attainment, reading for pleasure can increase empathy, our understanding of our own identity, and improve mental health.
Through lively rhymes and dynamic illustrations, ‘The Library Book’ helps early readers understand the plethora of books available to them through their local library.
Leilong the Library Bus
Julia Liu
Leilong’s friends are taking him to story time at the library. But it’s difficult for a large brontosaurus without a library card to follow all the rules. Especially when Leilong gets caught up in the story and joins in. Is Leilong too big for the library, or is the library too small?
This library-loving picture book reminds us how it feels to be transported by story. And what at first seems a problem for Leilong the dinosaur becomes a triumph.
A Child of Books
Oliver Jeffers and Sam Winston
In this inspiring, lyrical tale about the rewards of reading and sharing stories, a little girl sails her raft ‘across a sea of words’ to arrive at the house of a small boy. There she invites him to come away with her on an adventure.
Through forests of fairy tales and across mountains of make-believe, the two travel together on a fantastical journey that unlocks the boy’s imagination. Now a lifetime of magic lies ahead of him. But who will be next?
Just One More Story
Perry Emerson and Sean Julian
Pip and Bun are two very different bunnies. Pip LOVES reading. Bun does not. “Books are SO boring!” Bun says.
One day, Pip is happily reading her book while Bun impatiently waits to play with her. Then Bun stumbles upon a book filled with action and adventure. Could it be the perfect way for the little rabbit to learn to enjoy reading?
Moose’s Book Bus
Inga Moore
Moose is the most fantastic storyteller. Every night after dinner, he sits with his family around the fire and tells an enchanting story.
But, one evening, Moose can’t think of a single tale he hasn’t told before! What he needs is a book of stories. What they all need is a library.
With help from the friendly librarian in town, Moose recycles an abandoned bus from the junkyard and makes a mobile library – a book bus! Now the whole neighbourhood can experience the magic of stories together.
This Is a Story
John Schu and Lauren Castillo
With a sea-horse kite in hand, a child heads out with Dad to the library. On the way they stop at a park, joining lots of people, some of whom are flying kites, too. At the library, a person toting a big pile of books hands over a story on a favorite subject: the sea horse.
All around, there are readers poring over books, each with their own questions, ideas to explore, hopes for the future, and imaginations ready to spark.
Little Red Reading Hood
Lucy Rowland and Ben Mantle
Little Red Reading Hood loves reading books and making up stories of her own. When she meets a cunning wolf while on her way to the library, he convinces her to stray from the path and read for a little while. But hasn’t she read this in a story before? Perhaps it’s time she came up with a new ending…
With a playful rhyming story by Lucy Rowland and Ben Mantle’s entertaining illustrations, Little Red Reading Hood will inspire children, and adults, about the magic of books and reading.
The Story Thief
Graham Carter
Olive is a shy girl who prefers reading about adventures to having them herself. But when a mysterious figure steals all of the books in town, Olive decides to set out straight into an adventure of her own.
The thief, meanwhile, doesn’t quite know what to do with the stories he’s stolen. Olive must track down the thief and teach him the joys of reading – and sharing – stories.
Dzień Luny Kocha Bibliotekę
Joseph Coelho i Fiona Lumbers
Luna loves library day: that’s the day she spends with her dad. Exploring the shelves they find magic, mystery and even start to mend their own history.
An inspiring story from one of the UK’s greatest up-and-coming poets for children, captured in all its flights of fancy by newcomer Fiona Lumbers
Little Bo Peep’s Library Book
Cressida Cowell
Little Bo Peep goes to the library to look for a book called How To Find Sheep. But there are other characters browsing the shelves too! Will she find those troublesome sheep before the Big Bad Wolf finds her?
Step inside this amazing book, discover the true magic of reading and meet all your favourite nursery rhyme characters, including Little Boy Blue, Mother Goose, the Big Bad Wolf and the Queen of Hearts.
Our Incredible Library Book (and the Wonderful Journeys it Took)
Caroline Crowe
This is the story of one incredible library book and all the children who’ve borrowed it. It’s been hugged, lost, torn, chewed by a dog and soaked in the rain. It’s been read in apartments and in tents, in the park and in the classroom; by children in costumes and pyjamas, reading alone or with their friends, their siblings and their parents.
Each time it returns to the library it’s a little more worn, but a lot more loved. For every rip, scribble or stain there’s a child who has found adventure or escape, comfort or excitement in its pages. That’s the magic of a library book!
Nikhil and Jay Save the Day
Chitra Soundar
In Nikhil and Jay’s family, there’s always fun and mischief! Jay wants to do things by himself on his birthday, but sharing with Nikhil turns out to be more fun.
Then they all go to visit Grandad and Nana – but where is the story dragon?
On Pancake Day, Amma makes yummy dosa, Indian pancakes.
And last but not least, Nikhil and Jay help to save their local library.
Nour’s Secret Library
Wafa’ Tarnowska and Vali Mintzi
Forced to take shelter when their Syrian city is plagued with bombings, young Nour and her cousin begin to bravely build a secret underground library.
Based on the author’s own life experience and inspired by a true story, ‘Nour’s Secret Library’ is about the power of books to heal, transport and create safe spaces during difficult times.
Illustrations by Romanian artist Vali Mintzi superimpose the colourful world the children construct over black-and-white charcoal depictions of the battered city.
We Want Our Books
Jake Alexander
Rosa wants a book. But when she gets to the library, she finds it is closed.
What could be the end of the story is just the beginning, as Rosa and her sister Maria try everything they can think of to bring their community together and fight to get back their precious library.
A defiant, moving and joyful picture book about the power of protest and the importance of books.
The Reading Adventure: 100 Books to Check Out Before You’re 12
Katherine Ahmed
Packed with reviews, recommendations, and exclusive author interviews, this book will inspire young readers to discover books beyond the curriculum.
From mystery to autobiography, the book is organised by genre, so you can jump to the section that interests you the most. Hidden gems, award-winners, classics, and current bestsellers are brought to life by vibrant illustrations. There’s truly something for everyone!
Librarian Detective: The Book Case
Dave Shelton
Nothing is as it seems at St Rita’s, an exclusive girls’ boarding school. The floor has holes from canonballs, the smell in the dining room is disgustingly foul, and the librarian doesn’t really exist.
But there is a librarian’s assistant, Emily Lime. And she’s really a crime-solving genius, who’s looking for a new assistant of her own. And booksmart Daphne is just the girl for the job.
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