11 Enchanting Series for Kids Ages 2 to 12!

For two-year-olds: Gossie, by Olivier Dunrea
Gossie, a small yellow gosling, will charm every barnyard loving toddler with her bright red boots and take charge attitude! The simple but gently amusing text, that includes basic concepts like “in and out” and “over and under,” and the cheerful pictures, combine to make these books ones that little kids will love, and parents will be happy to read out loud.

For three-year-olds: Elephant and Piggie: Today I Will Fly!, by Mo Willems
Piggie and Gerald the Elephant made their debut in 2007, but are already classics. With 25 books in the series, these friends will take your child from being read to, to being an emerging reader; the stories are told in alternating dialogue, which makes them ideal for a shared reading experience with adult and child each taking a part. The humor (they are really funny!) and warm relationship between these two friends will warm the hearts of both young and old readers.

For four-year-olds: Anna Hibiscus, by Atinuke
Here’s a great first chapter book series to read aloud to your child and encourage them to read themselves. Exuberant Anna Hibiscus lives in “amazing Africa” with her father, mother, twin baby brothers, and lots and lots of other family. The books tell of gentle everyday adventures, some exciting, some plain old fun, and some moving, and the many illustrations help make these a lovely window into the life of a little girl who may live far away but who is utterly relatable!

For five-year-olds: Owl Diaries: Eva’s Treetop Festival, by Rebecca Elliott
Brightly drawn young owls with big eyes bounce all over the pages of these fun books, great for kids getting started on reading independently! Eva is a young owl who keeps a diary, chronicling minor troubles at school and strange happenings in her community. She learns some valuable lessons, makes some good friends, and keeps young readers happy in the process!

For six-year-olds: The Princess in Black, by Shannon Hale and Dean Hale
Who says princesses can’t wear black and have adventures? Princess Magnolia is as prim and proper a princess as can be, but when danger threatens, she takes on her other persona, and become the Princess in Black! Her entertaining and action-packed adventures keep the pages turning beautifully.

For seven-year-olds: EllRay Jakes is Not a Chicken, by Sally Warner
EllRay Jakes may be the shortest kid in his class, and may get in to just a bit of trouble from time to time, but mostly he just deals with the drama of the elementary school playground as best he can in these fun stories. He’s not perfect, but is still a good kid, and he’s relatable as all get out. Each book deals with a new situation, and kids will appreciate the ways EllRay tries to set things right!

For eight-year-olds: Dragonbreath, by Ursula Vernon
Danny’s a lot like any other grade school kid: trying to live up to his parents’ expectations, trying to defend his lunch from a bully, writing a report on “the ocean” on the bus ride to school. But Danny is a dragon, and his classmates are other reptiles and amphibians, and his adventures take him far from the playground and off on all sorts of magical adventures! The copious illustrations, including comic book style sections, make these especially friendly for young readers, and the humor appeals to all ages.

For nine-year-olds: Rip and Red: A Whole New Ballgame, by Phil Bildner
Rip and Red and their fifth grade basketball team are a great group of kids, both on and off the court. The fun of basketball is mixed with realistic problems and worries that are solved with the help of each other and supportive adults. A great series for the young sports fan!

For ten-year-olds: All Four Stars, by Tara Dairman
Here’s a fun series for kids who want to cook! Eleven-year-old Gladys has loved cooking since she was little, with no encouragement from her fast-food eating parents. But her big break as a professional foodie comes when she’s mistakenly taken for a grown-up, and hired to review for the big city newspaper. Her adventures with food, friends, and family are tasty reading.

For eleven-year-olds: The Forbidden Library, by Django Wexler
Middle grade kids looking for a substantial (but not too long) fantasy series should step inside this world of forbidden libraries of magic, ruled by Readers who have harnessed demonic beings to warp space and reality. Alice is taken as apprentice by one such Reader, but soon realizes the dark underpinnings of her new magical life. With the help of other apprentices and magical beings, she sets off to build a new, more just society, which means a series of thrilling struggles against all manner of enchantments.

For twelve-year-olds: Lockwood and Co.: The Screaming Staircase, by Jonathan Stroud
In an alternate England plagued by ghosts, the job of fighting the deadly undead falls to the kids, as adults aren’t able to see them. Lockwood and Co. is a small ghost-dispatching business, but the three kids who are its staff are top notch. Great characters, compelling mysteries, and a fascinating world combine to make this series absolutely wonderful, though a strong stomach for supernatural gruesomeness is required.