Browse by real life
Children's books for the problem you are solving
Almost nobody searches for a theme. They search for a situation - the baby arrives in three weeks, school starts on Monday, the four-year-old has started saying she is scared of everything. These 5 lists are named after the situation, and every book on them carries its read-aloud time, word count and a re-read score, because a book you will read twice a day for a month is a different decision from one you will read once.
1 list
Big feelings
Worry, anger and the feelings a preschooler cannot yet name. These get read in the middle of the situation, so length matters more than usual.
1 list
Starting something new
School, nursery, kindergarten. Read in the fortnight before, usually more than once a day, and almost always by a parent who is more nervous than the child.
3 lists
Growing up and changing
The transitions with a before and an after - a potty, a new baby, a bigger bed.
8 measured booksPotty Training BooksPotty training books with real read-aloud times and an honest note on which survive being read twice a day for a month. Most are one to two minutes.Browse Potty Training Books
8 measured booksBooks About Being a Big Brother or Big SisterBooks about being a big brother or big sister, with read-aloud times and an honest note on which handle jealousy rather than just announcing the baby.Browse Books About Being a Big Brother or Big Sister
14 measured booksPreschool Books About FamilyPicture books about families for three to five year olds - new siblings, grandparents, separation and love - each with its read-aloud time and re-read score.Browse Preschool Books About Family
Not a problem, an occasion
Books for the time of year
Halloween and Christmas used to sit in the list above, which was wrong: a parent buying a Christmas book is not solving anything. They have their own lists.
12 measured booksHalloween Books for KidsHalloween books for kids with real read-aloud times and an honest note on which ones frighten a sensitive 3 year old - and which are genuinely not scary.Browse Halloween Books for Kids
12 measured booksChristmas Books for KidsChristmas books for kids with real read-aloud times, from a one-minute board book to the full Grinch - and each one labelled secular or nativity.Browse Christmas Books for Kids