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School years

Best books for Year 1

Books for Year 1 (ages 5–6): rhyming read-alouds to chant and predict, warm stories about feelings, and early reads for the children going solo.

21 booksAges 2–8Last reviewed June 2026

Year 1 is the year reading takes off. Phonics is doing its work and children are starting to decode for themselves, but their ears still run ahead of their eyes: they can follow far richer stories than they can yet read alone. So this list does two jobs.

There are rhyming, repetitive read-alouds to chant and predict, the kind that quietly drill sounds and patterns while everyone is having fun, and warm, funny stories for talking about feelings, friends and getting things wrong. A couple of early readers are here for the children ready to go it alone.

The thread running through all of them is the same: books worth wanting to read.

  1. We Are in a Book!

    by Mo Willems · Early Readers · ages 4–7

    A first taste of reading on your own: two best friends discover they are in a book, and that the reader is in on the joke. Short, hilarious and hugely confidence-building.

  2. Forever

    by Beatrice Alemagna · Picture Books · ages 4–8

    A tender, poetic picture book about the fact that many things pass, vanish or change, while love remains. It is beautiful, quiet and unusually useful for gentle conversations about transience without being a grief book exactly.

  3. Giraffes Can't Dance

    by Giles Andreae · Picture Books · ages 2–6

    A modern picture-book staple about Gerald the giraffe finding his own rhythm after the other animals laugh at him. A highly reliable read-aloud for confidence, difference and gentle anti-bullying themes.

  4. Grey

    by Laura Dockrill · Picture Books · ages 3–7

    A sensitive picture book about a child waking up feeling grey and being helped through it with love rather than forced cheerfulness. It is emotionally direct but gentle, making it valuable for conversations about low mood, worry, and mental wellbeing.

  5. The Lost Robot

    by Joe Todd-Stanton · Picture Books · ages 3–7

    A recent Joe Todd-Stanton picture book about a robot searching for memory, home and belonging. Best for children who like gentle sci-fi, emotional journeys and beautifully designed worlds.

  6. Grumpy Frog

    by Ed Vere · Picture Books · ages 3–6

    A bright, funny big-feelings book about a frog who only likes green things and is not very tactful about anything else. Useful for grumpiness, rigid preferences, accepting difference and playful emotional literacy.

  7. The Pandas Who Promised

    by Rachel Bright · Picture Books · ages 3–7

    Two pandas make a promise. One of them finds it harder to keep than expected. A gentle, honest story about the weight of a kept promise, and the lightness that comes after keeping it.

  8. The Grand Hotel of Feelings

    by Lidia Brankovic · Picture Books · ages 4–8

    A beautifully metaphorical emotional-literacy picture book that imagines feelings as hotel guests who all need somewhere to stay. It is especially useful for children learning that difficult feelings do not have to be pushed away.

  9. Aggie and the Ghost

    by Matthew Forsythe · Picture Books · ages 4–7

    A girl named Aggie moves into a house that already has a tenant, a ghost who is very particular about his privacy. Matthew Forsythe's picture book about an unlikely friendship between the living and the dead, rendered with his signature deadpan warmth.

  10. Little Witch Hazel

    by Phoebe Wahl · Picture Books · ages 4–8

    A cosy, folk-art-inflected forest story collection about a tiny witch moving through the seasons. Ideal for children who like gentle magic, woodland creatures, seasonal detail and beautiful illustrated worlds.

  11. The Mouse Who Carried a House on His Back

    by Jonathan Stutzman · Picture Books · ages 3–6

    A warm, generous picture-book fable about a mouse whose tiny house has room for everyone. Best for kindness, hospitality, welcoming others and children who love cosy animal stories with magical interiors.

  12. Stuck

    by Oliver Jeffers · Picture Books · ages 3–6

    A brilliantly escalating read-aloud comedy about a boy trying to rescue his kite by throwing increasingly ridiculous things into a tree. It is one of Jeffers' funniest and most immediately child-pleasing books.

  13. The Great Storm Whale

    by Benji Davies · Picture Books · ages 3–6

    A young girl encounters a great whale during a terrible storm, and the encounter will echo through generations. The fourth Storm Whale book completes the series with a story about family memory and legacy, connecting the world Davies built back to its beginning.

  14. Broken

    by X. Fang · Picture Books · ages 4–8

    A funny, tender picture book about a child who breaks a beloved cup and spirals into guilt before finding forgiveness. It is excellent for children who worry intensely about mistakes or disappointing adults.

  15. Island Storm

    by Brian Floca · Picture Books · ages 4–8

    A dramatic, beautifully illustrated picture book about siblings experiencing a thunderstorm on an island. Best for children fascinated by weather, natural power and the shift from fear to wonder after a storm passes.

  16. Lost and Found

    by Oliver Jeffers · Picture Books · ages 3–7

    A boy finds a penguin at his door and rows all the way to the South Pole to return it, only to realise the penguin wasn't lost at all, just lonely. Oliver Jeffers' warmest book, and the one most likely to make adults quietly well up.

  17. Lights on Cotton Rock

    by David Litchfield · Picture Books · ages 4–8

    A beautiful, wistful picture book about a girl waiting for aliens and discovering what matters as life moves on. It is perfect for children who like space, longing, wonder and emotionally rich illustrations.

  18. The Sea Saw

    by Tom Percival · Picture Books · ages 3–7

    A tender, beautifully illustrated story about a lost teddy, memory and love travelling across time. More emotionally layered than a simple lost-toy story, and a strong choice for gentle conversations about loss.

  19. A River

    by Marc Martin · Picture Books · ages 4–8

    A beautiful, quietly expansive picture book that follows an imagined river journey from the city towards the sea. Best for children who like maps, landscapes, boats, nature and visually rich journeys.

  20. Just One Little Light

    by Kat Yeh · Picture Books · ages 4–8

    A tender, inspirational picture book about how one small act of light can grow and spread. Best for sensitive children, kindness conversations and families looking for a gentle book about hopefulness without heavy peril.

  21. Home

    by Carson Ellis · Picture Books · ages 3–7

    A beautifully illustrated, quietly expansive picture book exploring all the different places and ways beings can live. Best for children who enjoy browsing, noticing details and talking about home, difference and belonging.

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