When you’re a kid, there is almost nothing better than finding a book that you love and then discovering that there is a whole series featuring your new favourite characters or – even better – that the author is still going with writing them. The possibilities seem endless. There are so many options when it comes to the best book series for kids; beloved and timeless classics could fill this entire list before you even start looking at anything published more recently. But diversity is also something we should be very aware of when it comes to the books we give to children, so any good list of recommendations should also include a wide range of characters and situations. With all that in mind, here are our picks for some of the best book series for kids in alphabetical order.
The Best Book Series For Kids
1. A Series of Unfortunate Events – Lemony Snicket
A Series of Unfortunate Events is a staple now in many school libraries, and with good reason. Few book series for kids truly teach their young readers about the reality of humanity in the same way that these books do. Snicket (himself a character, invented by author Daniel Handler) never talks down to his readers, but he also shows them darkness in a way that is accessible and – often – really very funny.
When the Baudelaire children are orphaned when a fire kills their parents, they are shunted around in a system that sees them being dropped in the laps of an increasingly weird collection of relatives. The most dastardly of these is Count Olaf, now an iconic character, who will stop at nothing to get his hands on the Baudelaire fortune.
2. Beetle Boy – M.G Leonard
Beetle Boy, and the sequels Beetle Queen, and Battle Of The Beetles, are a more recent addition to this list of the best book series for kids, but these novels have some serious chops. Leonard writes in a confident, funny, kind-of-Roald-Dahl-vibe style, and as well as being a cracking read, it isn’t possible to read these books without learning a heck of a lot about beetles. This series could also be a good recommendation for kids scared of creepy-crawlies. They might just love them by the end.
Darkus Cuttle, aged thirteen, is not having a good time; his father has gone missing, and he’s got some pretty gross new neighbours. When Darkus makes friends with a beetle named Baxter, the two of them have to brave some pretty scary times as they hunt for Darkus’ dad, uncovering links to a fashion designer who happens to love beetle-themed jewellery. These books are great for smart kids who like a bit of a scare.
3. Captain Underpants – Dav Pilkey
Captain Underpants has been around for a while now. He first hit the shelves back in 1997, and since then has spawned eleven more books and a fairly decent film too, which came out in 2017. For a certain section of the adult population, Captain Underpants’ inclusion on a list of the best book series for kids is practically a crime because the books are – shock and horror – graphic novels. But kids love them, and we grown-ups have no right to gatekeep these things; anything that gets kids reading and falling in love with books is a good thing, and that includes Captain Underpants.
George Beard and Harold Hutchins are two fourth-graders with a penchant for pranking and comics; they often sneak into the secretary’s room at school and make copies of their comics to sell on the playground. Captain Underpants, one of their creations, becomes the alter-ego of their mean headmaster when he is hypnotised into thinking he’s the superhero, and chaos ensues for twelve glorious books. If you know a reluctant young reader, switch them onto Captain Underpants.
4. Logan Family Saga Book Series – Mildred D. Taylor
For slightly older kids now, we turn to Mildred D. Taylor’s Logan family. You’ve probably heard of the most famous installment, Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, but did you know that there are seven other books or short stories in the saga?
The series began in 1976, but they are as fresh as if they were written today. They’re also, sadly, still super relevant; exploring the African American experience of Mississippi through the 20th century, with examinations of the prejudice, racism and oppression that characterised that era, the Logan family saga will still give today’s young readers a lot to think about.
Cassie Logan, the main character of the series (which jumps back and forth, visiting other characters and other times) is a girl growing up in the Great Depression and beyond. Life in 1930s Mississippi is hard for a young African American, and Cassie must navigate violent encounters and oppression to find her own voice in a world that wants her silent.
5. Murder Most Unladylike – Robin Stevens
Stevens is one of the most prolific children’s authors of the last decade, and the Murder Most Unladylike series was her focus for that time; in the seven years since 2014, she published eight full length volumes and four shorter books. The series proper ended in 2020, with Death Sets Sail, but young fans have been delighted by the news that the world of Murder Most Unladylike will live on in a new series, currently being written.
The charm of the Murder Most Unladylike series is the vivid, larger than life characters of Daisy Wells and Hazel Wong, who set up a detective society at their boarding school and end up as crime fighters extraordinaire. The books are so much fun, and so clever, beloved by Stevens’ fans the world over. In more recent entries to the series, there is also excellent LGBTQ+ representation – something that’s generally sorely lacking when it comes to middle grade fiction.
6. Percy Jackson & The Olympians – Rick Riordan
Rick Riordan is a universally beloved children’s author, creator of five series of books in the last sixteen years, almost any of which could have been on a list of the best book series for kids. Indeed, if your young reader gets on with Percy Jackson, you could do much worse than encourage them to keep checking out Riordan’s work for as long as it takes them to get through it. Percy Jackson is Riordan’s OG character, son of Poseidon, who also acts as very positive representation for kids with ADHD and dyslexia.
When Percy’s mother is killed in an attack by the minotaur, Percy discovers he is a demi-god and ends up at Camp Half Blood, a training place for other kids like him. In The Lightning Thief, book one of the five book series, Percy is accused of stealing Zeus’ lightning bolt, and must clear his name as well as trying to stop the gods going to war. Every book Riordan added to the series is rich in Greek mythology, non-stop action and humour. Kids devour these books, and you should definitely encourage them to do so.
7. Sam Wu – Katie and Kevin Tsang
Fresh on the scene of kid’s books is Sam Wu, who is NOT a scaredy-cat (except when he is). Sam, the creation of husband and wife team Katie and Kevin Tsang, is a character who teaches young kids that it is okay to be scared of things as diverse as ghosts, spiders, the dark or staying away from home for the first time. He’s a nervous child with normal child worries, and he reassures kids that these fears can be addressed and overcome. The Tsangs have really hit on a winning combination here, with their relatable and funny stories.
In book one, Sam Wu Is NOT Afraid Of Ghosts, a trip to the space museum goes wrong, and Sam wants to prove to the school bully that he isn’t scared of anything. A ghost hunt is the perfect way for Sam to prove his bravery – if only he can be strong enough to pull it off.
8. The Chronicles of Narnia – C.S Lewis
The Chronicles of Narnia is, of course, a beloved children’s classic series which requires little introduction, but does deserve its place on any list of the best book series for kids.
Being set almost entirely in a fantasy world gives the books a timeless feel that means kids who might be picky about classics probably won’t even notice for the most part that they’re reading something so old-school. Compared to some of the more recent entries on this list, there are some aspects of the Chronicles that haven’t aged quite so well – Susan’s depiction as a ‘fallen woman’ by the end of the last book is a bit on the nose, and very dated – but for the most part, these stories are still as charming as they ever were, and great for imaginative kids.
The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe is the most well known installment of the series, when Lucy, Edmund, Susan and Peter stumble through a wardrobe into the magical land of Narnia, and find that they are destined to save it from an eternal winter. There is a lot of magic and wonder in these novels, but also more subtle themes such as the passing of childhood and the march of time that add up to a rich and layered series of books.
9. Track Series – Jason Reynolds
Jason Reynolds is a reliable pair of hands when it comes to literature for young adults, and with his Track series he turned his hand to writing for older kids – probably around ten years and onwards. There are four books in the series – Ghost, Patina, Sunny, and Lu – with each book following a member of an elite track team. Each kid could qualify for the Junior Olympics, if they set their minds to the task, but they each have a lot to prove – not only to the other kids but to themselves too.
If you’re familiar with Reynolds’ other work, then you already know the kinds of themes that the Track series will cover; the reality of urban life, self-discovery, class divides, overcoming the past for the better. Ghost, book one, gives us a boy who has a natural talent for speed, but struggles to stay on track thanks to his troubled home life. He’s running from his past, and he has to go quickly to escape from it. These books will take any kid out of their bubble and show them lives that they never even knew existed.
10. Warriors Series – Erin Hunter (Cherith Baldry, Kate Cary, Tui T. Sutherland)
It’s impossible to make a list of the best book series for kids without acknowledging one of the phenomena of modern children’s publishing: the series with multiple authors which manages to produce an unholy number of books in a very short time.
Warriors is one of the best examples of this, as since the original six book series, there are seven more sub series, six of which also have six books, with the seventh still being written. There are a tremendous amount of books in this series, and if you have a kid that burns through books like there is no tomorrow, then this could be a great one to start them on. It will give you five minutes of peace as they work their way through.
Writing under the pseudonym of Erin Hunter, Baldry, Cary and Sutherland begin with Rusty, a housecat who joins ThunderClan, a warrior group who live in the forest. Rusty has to learn the warrior code, become a good leader, and save the clans from tearing themselves apart. From these humble beginnings comes book after book in which complex relationships are explored, along with themes such as the nature of good vs. evil, acceptance, the greyness of morality and the power of faith.
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