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Gifts

Books for grandparents buying for a 5–7 year old

Broadly appealing books that land with almost any child of this age: for when you don’t know what they’re into.

20 titlesAges 3–11Last reviewed June 2026

Buying a book for a five-, six- or seven-year-old you don't see every week is genuinely hard: you don't know what they've already got, what they're into this month, or what's too babyish or too old. This list is built for exactly that problem: books with the broadest possible appeal, the ones that land with almost any child of this age regardless of their particular obsessions.

There are funny comics that turn into a whole collection, read-aloud picture books that bear the hundredth reading, and first chapter books for a child just finding their feet. We've leaned towards the joyful and the giftable over the worthy.

If you want a safe bet, start at the top; if you'd rather give something a little special, the beautiful ones are further down. Any of them will be welcome.

  1. Dog Man

    The safest bet for almost any 6–7-year-old: funny, addictive, and there are a dozen more to follow if it lands.

  2. Frog and Toad are Friends

    The one a grandparent might remember themselves, and it still works exactly as well as it did.

  3. Narwhal: Unicorn of the Sea!

    Narwhal is possibly the most enthusiastic creature in the ocean, Jelly is determinedly unimpressed, and their friendship is immediately one of the best odd-couples in children's books. Three short comic stories, waffles as a recurring motif, and a Geisel Honor for good reason.

  4. Dino Feelings: The Worrysaurus

    Worrysaurus loves a picnic but can't stop 'what-iffing', until something small and beautiful shows him another way to look at the world. The go-to picture book for anxious children; widely used in schools and beloved by parents who recognise the spiral themselves.

  5. Arthur and the Golden Rope

    A visually rich mythic adventure that sits between picture book, comic and first chapter-book gateway. Excellent for children who like maps, monsters, Norse mythology and unlikely heroes.

  6. Kid Spy: Mac Undercover

    Mac Barnett, aged ten, is recruited by the Queen of England to be a spy. The series premise is ridiculous and perfect: the hybrid fictionality embeds real historical facts into absurdist comedy, and the second_person narration makes every reader feel personally chosen.

  7. Rabbit and Bear: Rabbit's Bad Habits

    Rabbit wakes Bear from hibernation by accident, and the friendship that follows is one of the best odd-couples in British children's fiction. Julian Gough writes with genuine literary wit; Jim Field's illustrations are excellent. A step up from Narwhal and Jelly in prose and ambition, and a natural bridge to longer chapter books.

  8. Hilda and Twig: Hide from the Rain

    A younger, gentler Hilda spin-off that puts Twig at the centre of a rainy forest adventure. Excellent for early graphic-novel readers who want Hilda's world in a softer, more accessible format.

  9. Firefly

    If you’d rather give something that feels like a gift: a beautiful, quieter book to grow into.

  10. Hilda Graphic Novels

    The definitive Hilda experience: beautiful, strange, funny and folkloric graphic novels that grow from quiet adventure into darker, richer fantasy.

  11. Looshkin: The Maddest Cat in the World

    A brilliantly anarchic comic collection for children who like their stories fast, daft and almost impossible to predict. Looshkin is especially strong for Bunny vs Monkey fans, reluctant readers and children who respond to visual comedy more than tidy plotting.

  12. Oi Frog and Friends

  13. Wombats! Go Camping

    A glamping wombat and an enthusiastic camping buddy, the odd-couple setup is simple and the comedy is perfectly pitched at 5–8s. The warmest possible introduction to the graphic novel format for young readers who like their adventures with a cosy blanket nearby.

  14. The Future Book

    A playful Mac Barnett and Shawn Harris picture book about imagining tomorrow in silly, surprising ways. It is a better fit for families who like deadpan concept books than for readers who need a conventional plot.

  15. Pablo and Splash

    Best for 6-9s who like funny animal comics, time travel, dinosaurs, history and easy-to-follow visual adventure.

  16. Blue, Barry & Pancakes

    Best for 5-8s who want their comics silly, fast, colourful and emotionally safe.

  17. Super Happy Magic Forest

    Five cheerful forest creatures, a mushroom, a fairy, a gnome, a unicorn, and a talking flower, must go on a dangerous quest to save their magical home. Matty Long's debut is a maximally dense, maximally funny visual feast: a picture book you read with a magnifying glass and a crowd.

  18. Super Happy Magic Forest and the Humongous Fungus

    The Super Happy Magic Forest gang make the leap to chapter books, and nothing has been lost in translation. A humongous fungus is threatening the forest, and our heroes' combined incompetence is now spread across 190 pages of illustrated comedy gold.

  19. Bear & Bird

    Best for early readers who want gentle illustrated stories with the emotional intelligence of Frog and Toad but a fresh, modern look.

  20. Max and Chaffy

    Best for 5-8s who want friendly comics with cute creatures, island adventures, search-and-find detail and very safe emotional stakes.

How we choose these books

Every list here is shaped by hand. We begin from our catalogue’s structured data, age fit, tone, theme and reading load, then read back through the candidates and keep only the titles that genuinely belong, in an order that helps a child grow into the subject. Nothing is generated and left to stand; a person decides what stays.

Questions parents ask

What age are these books for?
The titles on this list suit roughly ages 3–11, though every child reads at their own pace; the age on each book is a guide, not a rule.
How were these books chosen?
We start from our catalogue's structured data, age fit, tone, theme and reading load, then read back through the candidates by hand and keep only the ones that genuinely belong, ordered to help a child grow into the subject.

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