Articles by Book Centre

When children explore stories from all around the world, they get to see how big, diverse, and beautiful it is. Reading a variety of books makes them feel like they belong, and that they are a part of this vast world - no matter their background. Diversity books can act as a key to unlocking the idea that everyone is different and that is what makes the world so special.

Below are ten wonderful books picked by our expert team with decades of experience in young children’s books.

We are all huge fans of fairytales, whether that be the classic stories we know and love, or discovering new retellings and twisted takes on the originals. Not only are they great fun, engaging in the classroom and familiar to us, but they can also increase your children’s reading ability!

On 6th May 2023, we will be celebrating King Charles III Coronation. To commererate this special occasion, there are a number of wonderful books that have been printed, with titles suitable for EYFS up to KS2.

There have been a range of teacher resources and activities created too, to help schools honour this significant event, and we have pulled together some of them to help inspire you, guide your lessons or help shape your celebrations in school. 

We are so pleased to announce that this year we are celebrating our 35th anniversary. In collaboration with Walker Books we have created a wonderful new Primary and Secondary catalogue, and we are offering a huge 30% discount off the entire collection, for orders of 5 books or more.

The United Nations recognises the importance of happiness and wellbeing and invites people to celebrate the International Day of Happiness on March 20th each year. This year the theme is ‘Be Mindful. Be Grateful. Be Kind.’ Here are some book recommendations that fit into the theme ‘Be Kind. Be Grateful. Be Kind.’, and I hope you will be able to use this to promote happiness in your schools on this years International Day of Happiness.

February is LGBT+ history month. Books can have a huge impact on helping children understand the world in which they live, and can help them to feel seen and understood, whether that's through the characters, or the story itself. Though there are many wonderful titles available with LBGTQ+ representation, below are just 10 books I'm loving lately which would make perfect additions to your bookshelves. I have included both fiction and non-fiction, and while learning about LGBTQ+ history shouldn't happen just on these special occasions, now would be a great time to have that focus in schools.

Bookseller Sophie shares her five reasons to read the bestselling graphic novel series Heartstopper, which has taken the world by storm ever since it was originally published as a web comic, shared by author and illustrator Alice Oseman. 

Having lots of different books written by a wide range of authors helps your children to get excited about the books they've chosen, and enables them to pick up books that they can relate to.  Access to diverse books also means that children can learn about people in different situations to themselves, promoting empathy and kindness, and helps to create a wider reading diet. 

A short review of one of bookseller Helene's favourite children's books.

Mr Bunny owns a chocolate factory where chickens lay eggs so that he can sell Easter Eggs. However, his greed gets the better of him and he loses more than he can believe. Mr Bunny learns a real lesson as all is back to normal at his factory.