Books to Celebrate Literature

There is something so delightful about books that celebrate literature themselves. Whether it’s a retelling of a familiar story, a book about enjoying reading together, a celebration of an author or a collection of thoughts about the wonders of literature, these books are sure to bring joy to readers.

All the Wonderful Ways to Read by Laura Baker & Sandra de la Prada (Little Tiger)

All the Wonderful Ways to Read is a charming picturebook highlighting the magic and adventure of reading. It recognises that people read in different ways – together or alone, fast or slow, fiction or non-fiction, for hours or in small bites. We can all belong to this very special club. This celebration of reading for pleasure will help everyone to see themselves as a reader.

Help! We Need a Story by James Harris & Mariajo Ilustrajo (Little Tiger)

It’s a boring morning in the jungle. Tired of hearing the animals moan, Artie decides to unleash his imagination by writing a book! Soon the others are completely engaged in recreating the adventure. They’re fighting dragons, robot sharks, and even zombie hens! Suddenly, a story has turned their day into something exciting! Help! We Need a Story shows children just how much fun they can have reading and writing their own stories.

This is the Ship that Jack Built by Peter Millett & Sam Caldwell (Buster Books)

The Ship that Jack Built is a brilliant retelling of the classic nursery rhyme and cumulative tale – The House that Jack Built. Full of larger than life, super cute illustrations and fun rhymes, readers will love recalling each repeating line as the story builds. A gentle rhythm and some very silly animals will have children laughing along, exclaiming “oh no!” and building up their under the sea vocabulary. This is definitely a book to be shared!

Big Bad Wolf Investigates: Fairy Tales by Catherine Cawthorne & Sara Ogilvie

Science meets classic stories in Big Bad Wolf Investigates: Fairy Tales. Can wolves really huff and puff? Could you really wear a pair of glass slippers? Wouldn’t a gingerbread house get soggy in the rain? Are big ears really all the better to hear you with?

Each well-known tale is retold in a fun graphic novel style then the Big Bad Wolf unpicks the scientific premises that make these stories so famous. Children who are already familiar with the stories will be completely intrigued by this new take on the probability of them actually happening. This book is perfect for KS1 classes learning traditional tales and KS2 classes finding new ways to retell their old favourites! Much like the brilliant “Until I Met Dudley: How everyday things really work” book of explanations, this book is destined to become a classic itself.

Chicken Little and the Very Long Race by Sam Wedelich (Scholastic)

The Chicken Little series is brilliant. Packed full of personality, this new take on the classic Tortoise and the Hare finds Chicken Little taking on the over-confident hare in his own race. This absolutely engaging story challenges readers to think about what it takes to be successful and the value of hard work.

When the race is first announced, the chicks can’t believe celebrity runner Hare will be coming to their coop. They can’t wait to meet him and have him sign their copy of his brilliant training book, “Hop to It: Hare’s Guide to Running“. Everyone’s working hard – everyone except Chicken Little who really doesn’t like running. When copies of Hare’s book arrive, the chicks all get distracted. Maybe reading the guide, drinking smoothies, and wearing headbands and special sneakers is all they really need to do to run the race. Chicken Little is concerned. Surely they could get hurt if they don’t train – there are no shortcuts to tackling a huge challenge.

Chicken Little decides to enter the race and train properly. When Hare arrives at the coop, will the other chicks be able to hold their own in the race or will Hare win again?

Once Upon a Storytime by Gareth Peter & Natelle Quek (Bloomsbury Children’s Books)

Once Upon a Storytime is a beautiful picture book celebrating the joys of a parent and child sharing a bedtime story. Such rich discussions grow out of this precious time as children reflect on the stories they’ve heard and how they relate to their own lives. Reading this book together will encourage parents to chat with their children and really enjoy losing themselves in a story.

Nia is a little girl who loves snuggling up to read wonderful adventures with her mum. She worries that she might get lost like the children in the stories they read but her mum reassures Nia that she will always come find her. If Nia is trapped in a tower or grabbed by a giant, her brave mum will always come for her. As they let their imaginations soar, Nia realises that she’s brave too. She wouldn’t hesitate to rescue her mum from a sea monster or any other frightening situation. Together they are strong!

A Midsummer Night’s Drama by Louie Stowell & Isobel Lundie (Little Tiger)

Shakespeare comes to the very young in the most delightful way! In this Shakesbearian tale, Bill the bear and his friends are working hard to put on a play at their theatre, The Glade. Today, they’re preparing a brand new play full of magical fairies, a silly sprite and a funny donkey called Bottom. The audience love it and Bill has a wonderful day! Afterwards, he’s so excited he has trouble settling down to sleep. With the help of his good friends, he finally drifts off.

This book is brilliant in so many ways. It’s a fun introduction to William (Bill the Bear) Shakespeare and his plays. Young readers will enjoy seeing the forest animals put on their own version of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The iambic pentameter rhymes that introduce each “act” give a flavour of the rhythm of Shakespeare’s writing while extra information at the back of the book provides a simple description of this great playwright and some fun facts about his words.

This story also helps children to recognise that buzzy, excited feeling after a fun day that makes it really hard to go to sleep. His lovely friends are so encouraging and come up with great strategies to help him settle down.

The Magic Callaloo by Trish Cooke & Sophie Bass (Walker Books)

Based on the classic fairytale Rapunzel, The Magic of Callaloo is a vibrant story of captivity and freedom honouring Africans who made patterns in their cornrowed hair to communicate the route out of slavery.

The story begins “Long, long ago, Somewhere, far, far, away” – in a small village where a magic, wish-granting callaloo plant grew. A greedy man stole the plant and kept every wish for himself leaving nothing for the other villagers. A young couple longed for a baby and were very unhappy. One evening, a wise old woman appeared to the man telling him where to find the last leaf of the callaloo plant. They found the plant, made a wish and soon had a beautiful baby girl with gorgeous Afro hair and a celebratory song of how she came to be. The wicked man heard her song and captured her, locking the girl in his big house far away. After many years, the wise old woman appeared. As the man found the girl’s hair to be a nuisance, the woman offered to plait it for them. Each zigzag, criss-cross and turn represented one of the paths she needed to follow to find her way home. That night, the girl escaped the wicked man and made her way back to her parents.

William Shakespeare: Twelfth Night Retold by Georghia Ellinas & illustrated by Jane Ray (Walker Books)

Introduce readers to the joys of Shakespeare with this detailed picturebook retelling the story of Twelfth Night. Perfect for Year 3+, the longer text, ambitious vocabulary and expressive illustrations will help children understand the plot as well as its impact on each of the characters. This is a book that could be used well into secondary school with children wanting to understand the gist of the play before reading or watching it in its entirety.

Viola and Sebastian are such iconic characters in literature. Developing an understanding of who they are and the themes of this twisted tale will build cultural capital in readers and provide an extremely positive first Shakespearean experience.

The Little Books of the Little Brontes by Sara O’Leary & Briony May Smith (Walker Books)

The Little Books of the Little Brontes is a gorgeous picture book protraying the early life of Charlotte, Bramwell, Emily and Anne and their home in the charming village of Haworth. In a life tinged with sadness and loss, the children were hungry for stories, poetry and art. They read anything they could get their hands on and explored the moors with each other for company. Together, they created the most amazing, tiny books full of adventure. Incredibly creative, these children encouraged each other to pursue their interests and express themselves in what was likely quite a happy childhood.

This story touches on the fact that the children did not live for long into adulthood but that their writing has endured centuries. The power of their imaginations and the impact of their stories will live on forever.

Big Ideas from Literature (The School of Life Books)

Big Ideas from Literature is an intriguing collection of short essays exploring the themes of classic stories and examining how literature impacts our feelings, our outlook on the world and the way we approach life. Literature can have such a profound effect on a reader that they will be changed forever.

From the first printed book – The Gutenberg Bible – to the future of books and readers becoming authors themselves, Big Ideas from Literature is full of thought-provoking ideas that will challenge readers to consider what they read. These would make fantastic discussion prompts for Upper Key Stage 2 or secondary English lessons too.