Yay, it’s World Book Day!  What have your kids dressed up as?  We love this day so much and get excited about it from weeks before – choosing a character, planning the outfit and eventually making it.  This year Anya is going as Violet Beauregarde – our school will celebrate tomorrow so we are still putting the finishing touches on the outfit. We just got a tracksuit in a slightly larger size, dyed it violet and will stuff her up with cushions and padding to make her look like a blueberry!

To celebrate this day and our love of books I wanted to share 9 must have children’s books.  Most of these books are ideal for ages 5 – 9 years but many can be enjoyed by younger and older and they are all keepers.  We’ve got them all and I can’t rate them highly enough:

Maps
Travel the world with this super large atlas. Each country’s map has many details of things like famous landmarks, local animals, national food dishes and so much more all beautifully illustrated often with humour thrown in too.  When I first wrote about this book, so many readers bought it and contacted me to say how much their kids loved it.

The Amazing Human Body Detectives
This is a fab little book is bursting with fun and interesting facts about the human body.  The facts are shared in a fun and engaging way and the drawings are also playful and colourful.  Curious minds will be hooked on this book and will soon be quizzing you!

Shackleton’s Journey
This beautiful book is a visual story of Shackleton’s expedition to the South Pole. It’s illustrated and told in a way which kids will absolutely love and engage with but adults will love it too.  This award winning book is one that I think everybody needs on their shelves.

Ramayana: The Divine Loop Hole
An epic book with the most stunning illustrations I have ever seen in a book.  This tale, based on Indian mythology, is a story about the triumph of good over evil.  We’ve had this book for 3 years and many new books since but Anya still says its her favourite book ever.  Just check out the illustrations and you can’t help but be enchanted no matter what age you are!

Enormous Smallness
This is a non-fiction book about the poet E.E. Cummings.  His wonderful poems are seamlessly weaved in to the book and his life is presented in a way that will make kids curious about him.  The underlying message that it takes bravery to follow your visions and dreams is so apt for children too.  An intelligent and inspiring book.

Once Upon an Alphabet
If you’re going to buy one alphabet book, make it this one.  Although this isn’t a straightforward alphabet book.  Each letter is accompanied by a short story full of humour, wit and unexpected twists.  So it’s not for toddlers really but more for 4+ years.  Although younger kids will enjoy looking at the pictures.

Roald Dahl box set
Roald Dahl needs no introduction but I couldn’t create an unmissable list of kids books without including these timeless, imaginative books.  Get the box set of all the stories, snuggle up in bed and enjoy it with your kids. Charlie & the Chocolate Factory & Matilda are our absolute favourites.

Captain Coconut and the Case of the Missing Bananas
This is such a fun kids book – full of crazy humour that kids (and adults) will love. Quirky Captain Coconut is a detective who is called in to solve the mind-boggling case of the missing bananas.  In this absurd yet logical tale, we not only get a story but some fun maths thrown in too.

The Day the Crayons Quit & The Day the Crayons Came Home
A pair of Oliver Jeffers books that are unmissable.  In the first book, each coloured crayon has something to moan about and in the second book they come back crosser than ever!  This is a pair of whimsical and funny stories about crayons that have feelings and the book has gorgeous childlike drawings to match.

Each of these books has something unique, special and enlightening to offer kids and therefore I think that each one of them is a must have.  Do you have any must have children’s books to add to this list?  Do let me know as I am always on the hunt for extraordinary books for children.