Must Read Kids Books for May 2025

Explore the Solar System and space with this push, pull and slide book!

This interactive book is full of out-of-this-world rockets, planets and astronaunts to move, turn and learn about!

Each page contains something to push, pull or slide, making the fun space pictures come to life! The simple, easy-to-read story accompanies bright, space-tastic illustrations of busy scenes that feature lots of things to see and say as you read through the book.

Written by award-winning children’s book author, Bobbie Brooks, winner of the BookTrust Storytime prize 2023.

Sturdy card pages and moving pieces are perfect for little hands to push, pull and play with as they move the space pictures.

Discover space-themed facts on each fun scene.

From Onjali Q. Rauf, the bestselling and award-winning author of The Boy at the Back of the Class, and award-winning illustrator Pippa Curnick, comes a moving picture book that helps young children understand and empathise with the refugee crisis, and shows the power that friendship, kindness and generosity can have.

There’s a new girl in my class. She has eyes as wide and as golden as a tiger’s, skin as pale as a glass of milk, and hair as shiny as a mirror. I’d like to be her friend. But she never plays with me in the playground or makes sandcastles in the sandpit. She doesn’t even like Story Time.

The cleverest people I know say that the new girl is sad because she had to leave her home, her family, her school, her toys, her books and all her friends too.

But I’ve got an idea! There is something I can do to make her feel better when she’s missing everything she’s left behind

Celebrate the 10th birthday of this bestselling story about confidence, self-esteem and a shy little mouse who sets out on a journey to find his roar. The Lion Inside has sold over 5 million copies worldwide in 42 languages.

In a dry dusty place where the sand sparkled gold,
Stood a mighty flat rock, all craggy and old.
And under that rock in a tinyful house,
Lived the littlest, quietest, meekest brown mouse.

Fed up of being ignored by the other animals, Mouse wishes he could roar like Lion. But, as he discovers, even the biggest, bossiest people are scared sometimes . . . and even the smallest creatures can have the heart of a lion!

This special new edition features shiny gold foil on the cover and includes notes from Rachel and Jim to the reader, as well as a sneak peek at some early sketches of Mouse and Lion! The perfect gift for new and existing fans of this modern classic from award-winning and bestselling creators Rachel Bright and Jim Field.

A great rhinoceros, plagued with sorrow, learns a lesson from the sun about the secret to happiness. In the ancient forest, a beautiful rhinoceros was wondering why he felt sadness in his heart, and asked for help. What follows is an enchanting fable about the importance of kindness and empathy, vividly illustrated by Catalina Vásquez and movingly penned by the award-winning writer Ondjaki.

Find out what delicious dishes children from all around the world are eating in this beautifully illustrated book!

From pasta to passionfruit, baguettes to biryani, ramen to rambutan, there are so many different dishes and delicacies all around the world. In this fascinating book, young children can learn all about what people in other countries eat for breakfast, lunch and dinner, as well as where our food comes from, and the stories, cultures and traditions behind what we eat.

Do we use the same ingredients in all parts of the world? What ingredients are different? And which are the same? Did pasta really originate in China? Find out the answer to these questions and more.

A unique, warm-hearted book that will teach children understanding, empathy and respect of differing experiences, cultures and tradition.

As Amrita prepares for her sister’s wedding, she naturally wants to wear the brightest colours. In spite of the unwanted ‘advice’ from her aunties about her complexion, Mum gives Amrita a ‘sunflower-yellow’ lehenga to compliment her brown skin. At the wedding, Amrita spots her best friend Kiki in the most vibrant colours too, at her own family wedding! Inspired by the joy in the colourful celebrations, the girls make a pact to always be ‘sunflower sisters’, sending them on a stylish journey of self-love and sisterhood, empowering dark-skinned women everywhere.

Welcome to the joyous world of Mina and best friends Reema and Mobeen!Mina, Reema and Mobeen can’t wait to go on their school trip, an overnight stay at Shiremoor Oaks Adventure Centre . . . until somebody spooks them with stories about Bertie Blackteeth: who haunts the woods, who sharpens her toenails with twigs, who is waiting to skewer her next unfortunate victim all over with cheese-and-onion crisps!With Bertie Blackteeth lurking and the school bully seeming to have become the teacher’s pet – this trip will test their friendship, courage and love of potato chips to the limit.

Dive back into the UNIverse with Neon for another unicorn-tastic adventure from Sibéal Pounder, the bestselling author of the Witch Wars and Bad Mermaids series.

Neon Gallup is a unicorn. No, not a horse thing with a horn. That’s just something REAL unicorns made up to distract the humans.

Until now, Neon thought she was the only person from our world who knew unicorns existed, but when she discovers her mum has been hiding a secret from her the whole time, she’s got to get to the bottom of it – with a little help from her friends Moya and Geldie, some outrageous fashion choices and a whole lot of goo magic.

Princess Ava loves Mrs Paws” Magic Pet Shop – after all, Mrs Paws helped her find her magical best friend, Pugicorn! Mrs Paws always knows the perfect owner for every animal that comes to her shop.

When Mrs Paws needs a break, Princess Ava and Pugicorn are happy to jump in and lend a hand. They”re excited to help princes and princesses adopt magical animals and get a group of baby flutterbunnies ready to go home!

But when one of the flutterbunnies goes missing, it”s up to Princess Ava and Pugicorn to find her and save the day!

PUGICORN TO THE RESCUE is the first book in an enchanting new series from the creators of the Pugicorn picture books. With accessible text and adorable illustrations throughout, this is perfect for newly independent and developing readers.

Need your magical crime solved?

Call the Witch Coven.

Hester, Anadil, and Dot are legendary across the Endless Woods as vigilante detectives and protectors of the peace. The famed trio are not only talented witches, but also ride-or-die friends who’ve never left a case unsolved.

That is, until the Coven answers a call for help from a mysterious new world―Red Isle, where the Light and Dark Lands are on the brink of all-out war, each blaming the other for a grim spree of deaths. Now the Coven must work together and unmask the killer before Red Isle tears itself apart. Little do they know: the real enemy might be hiding in plain sight …

From the New York Times bestselling author of the School for Good and Evil series, Soman Chainani, and artist Joel Gennari, comes a bold graphic novel experience that explores how even in our darkest moments, the truest of friends can bring us back into the light.

An outstanding, highly original and unputdownable read. Following on from I AM WOLF, this is a bold, thought-provoking adventure perfect for fans of MORTAL ENGINES and THE LAST WILD.

Once, Brann belonged to Raven. She flew high above the world and she was fearless. But Raven was destroyed by Dragon. Brann’s home is gone and her crew is missing.

Determined to find the truth, Brann heads north. But what she and her friends learn will change everything. What happened to Raven’s crew? And what is the secret Brann is hiding?

Return to the underwater realm . . .

Following the infiltration of Hok Woh and possession of her friends, Zhi Ging sets out on a dangerous mission to find Reishi, the Silhouette Scout, whom she believes has been lured into a dangerous trap.

With her adorable now-phoenix Malo by her side, Zhi Ging must fight off dangerous sand spirits, power-hungry enemies and magnificent dragons if she is to save her friends and her new home in the world of the immortals.

But as secrets are uncovered and new enemies emerge, can Zhi Ging figure out who to trust? And, more importantly, how to survive?

Join Zhi Ging and return to the magical underwater realm of Hok Woh in this highly anticipated follow-up to Paper Dragons: The Fight for the Hidden Realm. Perfect for fans of Nevermoor and Dragon Mountain.

Two strangers, each with their own complicated relationship to Death-Cast, help each other learn to live.

Paz Dario stays up every night, waiting for the Death-Cast call that would mean he doesn’t have to keep faking his way through this lonely life. After a devastating day, Paz decides he’s done waiting around for Death-Cast. If they say he’s not dying, he’ll just have to prove them wrong. But right before Paz can die, a boy saves his life.
 
Alano Rosa is heir to the Death-Cast empire that encourages everyone to live their best lives, but he doesn’t feel in control of his own existence thanks to his father. And with a violent organisation called the Death Guard threatening Alano, his End Day might be closer than he thinks. It’s time to live.
 
Fate brings Paz and Alano together. But they must survive the tragic trials ahead so no one dies at the end.
 
This book contains themes that some readers may find difficult.

James Anderson had a plan. Or half of one. He managed to do what his older brother, the famous Aaron Warner Anderson, never did: infiltrate Ark Island, the last refuge of The Reestablishment. No outsider has breached the stronghold of the authoritarian regime, but James is in. In a prison cell, sure, but as far as James is concerned, a win is a win.

It’s been ten years since the notorious duo Juliette Ferrars and Aaron Warner Anderson led a worldwide rebellion and established the New Republic of the West. But The Reestablishment is ready to make a devastating move, and they have the perfect assassin for the job.

Rosabelle Wolff had a plan. She always has a plan. On Ark Island, where constant surveillance is packaged as security, even emotions must be experienced with caution. Her every movement is monitored—and when she’s given an order to kill, she never hesitates.

Brimming with pulse-pounding action and torturous romance, Watch Me is an explosive journey through a dystopian landscape where enemies-to-lovers has never felt more impossible. Step into a beloved and breathtaking world that demands an answer to a desperate question—

Who are we when no one is watching?

Sink your teeth into a deliciously gothic enemies-to-lovers vampire romance, set in the world of the New York Times bestselling series Serpent & Dove!

Full of everything I love: a sparkling and fully-realized heroine, an intricate and deadly system of magic, and a searing romance that kept me reading long into the night. – Sarah J Maas on Serpent & Dove

Célie’s life is over. She took her final breath trying to save the people she loves—including the powerful and enigmatic vampire king, Michal, who refused to let her go. When Célie wakes, she cannot walk in the sun; she can hear her friends’ heartbeats and she craves their blood. Michal has cursed her to the eternal existence of a vampire.

But Célie isn’t the only dead roaming the earth. Her sister, Filippa, has returned as a shadow of her former self, and other revenants are rising from their graves intent on revenge. The fragile balance between life and death has broken, awakening an even darker force—and he is coming for Célie, ready to claim her as his Bride. With the fate of their world at stake, Célie and Michal must set aside their searing attraction to mend the veil and right the balance, once and for all.

In the thrilling conclusion of the duology set in the world of the New York Times bestselling Serpent & Dove series by Shelby Mahurin, a vampire and the woman who tried to kill him prove that true love can conquer anything, even Death.