Looking for some of the best books for 7 year olds to read and enjoy? These 12 children’s books are a great place to start!
At this stage of development, children are learning to read more complex books. They’re also busy at school every day, and they are constantly learning and growing.
Children at this age still enjoy a bedtime story as a moment of connection with their parents or carers after a long day, and they may enjoy the opportunity to listen to more complex stories without having to decode the words.
The following books are beautiful stories to share with 7-year-olds. They’re longer than books for younger kids, with more complex storylines, and some of them have some useful lessons in terms of navigating friendships, dealing with loss, and overcoming fear.
While they may contain fewer illustrations than books for younger kids, they’re still designed to hold children’s attention, and some of them make gorgeous gifts.
Whether you’re looking for a reworked fairytale or a useful reference book for non-fiction lovers, here are 10 of the best books for 7-year-olds.
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Best Books for 7-Year-Olds
The Truth Pixie by Matt Haig
Matt Haig’s books are wildly popular. Often touching on difficult subjects like mental health, heartbreak, and bereavement, his books tend to be emotional and witty at the same time. His children’s books are similarly moving, while still being age-appropriate.
This book, The Truth Pixie, is the story of a pixie who can only tell the truth. This puts her in some difficult situations, and she quickly becomes lonely and alienated.
Eventually, the pixie bumps into a young girl, Ada. Ada asks her some difficult, painful questions, and the pixie has no choice but to give her the truth, even though it hurts.
Their growing bond is sweet to watch, and the Truth Pixie eventually learns to love herself. It’s a sweet story, and it briefly touches on the subject of bereavement, in a gentle way that may be useful for children going through a loss of their own.
Queen Sardine by Kate Willis-Crowley
Ivy is a young girl with a talking cat. The cat, ‘Queen Sardine’, is demanding, and regal. She deserves respect, and she will get it, no matter what.
It’s a classic story about a kid on an adventure, as she tries to keep her talking cat a secret from her parents. The main character is funny and savvy as she navigates various adventures with her pet.
It’s a short story with plenty of illustrations and is ideal for 7-year-olds to enjoy at bedtime with their parents or carers.
Older kids may be able to read this one on their own, too. The Queen Sardine books are funny and silly, and there are a few in the series if your child gets on with it, including Queen Sardine in Kitten Chaos and Queen Sardine and Princess Persia.
Luna by Holly Webb
Holly Webb’s books are popular with primary-aged kids, and Luna is a particularly beautiful one. Set in Dresden, it follows the main character, Hannah, after she stumbles upon a magical wooden bear puppet at a Christmas market.
When the toy is broken, Hannah is devastated: but in the middle of the night, it transforms into a real bear.
Obviously, this is a problem for Hannah. What does a child do with a bear cub? Kids will love reading about Hannah’s quest to release Luna back to the wild, and the descriptive writing is great for kids this age.
It’s not too complex for keen readers to understand, but it depicts the snowy landscape beautifully, making it a cozy book for Christmas.
It’s the ideal Christmas book for kids to curl up with on a cold winter’s night. The hardback cover is gorgeous, too, and looks lovely on a bookshelf.
The Nothing To See Here Hotel by Steven Butler
The Nothing To See Here Hotel is a funny, magical story that will appeal to Roald Dahl fans. The writing is imaginative and witty, and the story is packed with all kinds of creatures, from witches to trolls to the descriptively named Stink Demons.
The main character, Frankie, lives in a hotel owned by his parents. The hotel attracts all kinds of interesting guests, and in the first book of the series, they are preparing for the arrival of the goblin prince Grogbah. Of course, things start to go wrong, and the resulting fallout is hilarious.
The Nothing To See Here Hotel may be too difficult for 7-year-olds to read alone, but it’s a great bedtime story to enjoy with parents or carers. The illustrations are cute, too, and the page layout is interesting enough to keep children busy.
There are several books in the series if kids get into these, and the box set containing the first 4 volumes makes a great birthday or Christmas gift.
Matilda by Roald Dahl
An absolute classic, Matilda is one of Roald Dahl’s finest books for children. 7-year-olds will love the story of Matilda, a bookish, incredibly intelligent young girl with a horrible family. Matilda discovers that she has magic powers.
How can she use them to change her life, as well as the life of her beloved teacher, Miss Honey? Kids will love watching Matilda use her wits to outsmart the devious Miss Trunchball.
Many parents enjoyed Dahl’s work as a child, and there’s something special about sharing a book you loved with your own children.
The story of Matilda is a timeless classic (and has spawned a movie, a stage show, and now a movie of the stage show) and is an absolute must-read for children. If you haven’t already watched the movie, definitely try to read the book first!
With plenty of illustrations by Quentin Blake, this is an engaging story for children.
It goes without saying that Roald Dahl has tons of books for children to enjoy if they get on with Matilda. 7-year-olds will enjoy The Witches, The Twits, and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
Max the Detective Cat: Catnap Caper by Sarah Todd Taylor
Max is a crime-solving cat with a can-do attitude! Max is intelligent, perceptive, and has a thirst for justice. So in this volume, when cats belonging to the famous singer Madame Emerald are kidnapped, he’s the right person (or animal) for the job.
Children will love watching Max overcome obstacles to solve the mystery, while the humans remain oblivious to his efforts.
The Max the Detective Cat series is funny and silly, with just enough drama to keep a 7-year-old engaged. The illustrations are cute, but there aren’t many of them, so this book may be a good step toward more ‘grown-up’ chapter books.
There are three books in the series, including The Phantom Portrait and The Disappearing Diva, and they’re perfect for children aged 7-9 years old.
The Day I Fell Into a Fairytale by Ben Miller
If you love to share fairy tales with your children, this could be a great bedtime story for you. The Day I Fell Into a Fairytale combines the classic story of Sleeping Beauty with a more modern tale.
The main character Lana is feeling lonely: her older brother, Harrison, is getting too old to play with her, and she doesn’t know how to occupy her time anymore.
But then a supermarket springs up in her neighbourhood, seemingly overnight.
Hidden in the depths of the supermarket is a portal to a fairytale world, and Lana quickly realises that there is danger ahead.
It’s a sweet book about how to hang onto the idea of magic, even as you begin to grow up. Parents will enjoy the humour and the interesting re-telling of Sleeping Beauty, and many kids will be able to identify with Lana’s mixed feelings about growing up.
Plus, the idea of a magical pop-up supermarket is a unique concept, and it’s quite fun to imagine what children would have in their ideal superstore.
Timmi Tobson: The Legend of the Star Runner by J.J Wagner
Do you remember those choose-your-own-adventure books everyone seemed to be reading back in the day? The Timmi Tobson series is bringing them back, but these aren’t just your average stories – these are updated interactive books, packed with interesting puzzles and mysteries for children to solve.
In The Legend of the Star Runner, Timmi hopes to save a friend, but only has 24 hours to find a long-lost pirate ship.
Children have to solve a problem at the end of each chapter: how can Marvin break into his friends’ house? How can the secret entrance to the pirate ship be opened?
Using clues from the text and the beautiful full-colour illustrations, children and parents can solve the mystery together.
These books are a lovely screen-free activity to enjoy on a rainy day, and may be engaging for children struggling to enjoy chapter books with their parents.
Plus, each chapter tends to end on a cliffhanger, which means kids will be keen to get stuck in again the next day!
The Sneetches and Other Stories by Dr Seuss
At this age, children may have grown out of some of the classic Dr Seuss stories. However, The Sneetches and Other Stories are so hilarious, 7-year-olds will love every moment. The Sneetches are creatures divided into two groups: those with stars on their bellies, and those without.
The star-bellied Sneetches feel superior to the Sneetches, until the enterprising Sylvester McMonkey McBean turns up to give stars to all Sneetches.
It quickly descends into chaos, and the Sneetches realise that their made-up class system is kind of ridiculous after all.
This is a great book for parents or carers to share with their kids. Other stories, including the hilarious Too Many Daves, are laugh-out-loud funny, and many of them contain a simple message about friendship and how to treat others with kindness.
Plus, this book has the excellent story What Was I Scared Of? in which a person stumbles upon a pair of green trousers with nobody inside them. This is one of the funniest and sweetest Dr Seuss stories.
DK My Amazing Body Machine by Robert Winston and Owen Gildersleeve
There are some brilliant non-fiction books by DK, and curious kids will enjoy discovering how the human body works in My Amazing Body Machine.
The book is split into sections: Super Structures, Control Centre, Heart and Blood, Lungs and Breathing, Under Attack, Fuelling the Machine, Waterworks, and Life Cycle. Each section goes into enough detail to keep primary-aged kids entertained, while not being too complex for them to understand.
Packed with colourful illustrations by Owen Gildersleeve, this is a surprisingly detailed book with many facts about how the body works.
Interesting and informative for children and adults alike, this is a great book to have on the shelf to dip into every now and then.
It’s also a great way to answer questions, and it tackles the subject of reproduction in an age-appropriate way.
The book comes with a free poster, which gives an overview of the human body, including digestion, breathing, the skeletal system, muscles, and nerves.
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I hope this has helped you to find the best book for 7-year-olds! This is the perfect age to enjoy longer, more complicated stories with children, and any of them would make meaningful presents for the younger members of your family.
Many of the books on this list are good for the 7-9 age range, so even if your child doesn’t click with them immediately, it’s worth keeping them around to try again at a later stage.
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Best Books for 8-year-olds
Best Books for 9-year-olds
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Megan Bidmead
Guest writer
Megan is a freelance writer based in Somerset, England. When she’s not writing about books, video games, and pop culture, she’s running around after her two kids and trying to squeeze in the occasional walk in the countryside.