Irresistible Book Series for Kids

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To become a reader, your child needs that one story that makes him or her fall in love with reading. That story that transports; one that he can’t put down.

But, finding that story can be hard.

ALL of these books are series that I’ve read and highly recommend. See if one will be that perfect book for your child!

And, feel free to ask me questions in the comments — it’s my FAVORITE thing matching kids with books. 🙂

FIND BOOK SERIES FOR EVERY AGE GROUP HERE!

Irresistible Chapter Book Series for Kids



Irresistible Book Series for Kids


Irresistible Book Series for Kids
Never Girls by Kiki Thorpe (ages 6 – 9)
My 8-year old daughter whizzes through this book series and loves them. She only hates that there aren’t 20 books in the series yet. (YET.)



Irresistible Chapter Book Series for Kids
Rescue Princesses by Paula Harrison (ages 6 – 9)
Princesses who love and want to save animals who are in trouble.  This is another great book series option for your daughters who are ready to get hooked on a good book series.

Irresistible Chapter Book Series for Kids
Galaxy Zack
by Ray O’Ryan (ages 5 – 8)
What a fun concept for a new reader, illustrated chapter book series — moving to a new planet! I enjoyed reading Galaxy Zack. It’s fun and relatable. Boys (and girls) are sure to devour this far-out series.

Irresistible Chapter Book Series for Kids
Captain Awesome
by Stan Kirby (ages 6 – 9)
Can Eugene aka. Captain Awesome, comic-book and superhero fan, save the town from villains without revealing his secret identity? Totally funny — and a good action-packed adventure series.

Irresistible Chapter Book Series for Kids
The Imaginary Veterinary
by Suzanne Selfors (ages 7 – 10)
I totally love this entertaining adventure series! It’s got action and fantasy with both boy and girl main characters who discover the secret veterinary when trying to help a baby dragon and capture an escaped Sasquatch in the first book. As apprentices to the veterinarian, they encounter more mythological creatures — some nice and some not so nice.

Animals Cover_MOCKUP.indd
Spirit Animals
by various authors (ages 8 – 12)
Our main characters are some of the rare children who when of a certain age, can summon a spirit animal. These heroes must use their new bonds with their animals and each other to save the world from a dark and evil force.  I haven’t read this chapter book series yet but my 11-year old says it’s awesome and highly recommends it.

Irresistible Chapter Book Series for Kids
Diary of a 6th Grade Ninja
by Marcus Emerson (ages 8+)
Sarcastic and funny, this is one diary, er, chronicle, that totally rocks. There’s never a dull moment for a ninja. Even in sixth grade. Love it.

Stick dog
Stick Dog
by Tom Watson (grades ages 7 – 12)
Stick Dog is hilarious. Why is he called Stick Dog? Because our author / narrator can’t draw. And also, because he likes sticks. The funny cartoonish illustrations make this story of stray dogs easy to read, and very entertaining series for kids.

Irresistible Chapter Book Series for Kids
Ever After High
by various authors (ages 8 – 12)
We love this clever, new series about characters from fairy tales in school together! Follow the children of fairy tale legends as they make their own way in the world (eg. the evil queen’s daughter rejecting her mother’s evil path.) Excellent!

Secret Zoo
The Secret Zoo
by Bryan Chick (ages 8 – 12)
Action from the first paragraph of the first book, these stories draw you in immediately. First, Megan sees zoo monkeys on the rooftop. Then, she disappears. Her brother Noah and their friends find that something IS going on at the zoo. And the fate of the world is at stake. Your kids will love this series.

Irresistible Chapter Book Series for Kids
The Strange Case of the Origami Yoda
by Tom Angleberger (ages 8 – 12)
Middle school. Is weird. Even weirder when Dwight’s paper-folded Yoda finger puppet begins giving sage advice with dorky Dwight seemingly clueless. Before long, Jabba the Puppet, Darth Paper, and the Fortune Wookie get involved in middle school life, too. (I told you middle school was weird.) Excellent books for kids!

good chapter book series for kids
All Four Stars
 by Tara Dairman (ages 8 – 12)
We loved this engaging series about food-enthusiast Gladys who is suffering in her house of microwaving parents without a taste bud between them. Gladys not only appreciates good food, she loves to cook, and wants to be a food critic. She already has lots of practice writing her daily notes about her parents horrid creations. When a mix-up in a writing contest has the editors of a paper thinking she’s an adult, can she actually write a published review without letting anyone know she’s 10 years old? The entire 3-book series is well-written and relatable, especially if you like writing and food. 🙂

Irresistible Chapter Book Series for Kids
The Last Dogs
 by Christopher Holt (ages 8 – 12)
In this dystopian world, dogs rule and humans have disappeared. This chapter book series is full of action, adventure, mystery, and danger. I loved it — and I don’t normally like books with animals as main characters. Great writing!

Tale Dark & Grimm
A Tale of Dark and Grimm
by Adam Gidwitz (ages 8 – 12)
The first and third book ARE dark and creepy, at least for me. Maybe for your kids, too. The second book is one of my all time favorite books EVER. That being said, this is a series that will engage kids with compelling writing and a unique and very Grimm-like life lessons.

Cell 25
The Prisoner of Cell 25
by Richard Paul Evans (ages 11+)
This is one of those can’t put-it-down book series! Michael Vey’s mom has been hiding him because of his powerful electrical abilities — like zapping people when he gets mad. When his mom is kidnapped, he and his friends discover the Elgin Academy where other electric kids are either held as prisoners or are helping the evil men who seek world domination. A fantastic adventure!

best book series
Psion Gamma
by Jacob Gowans (ages 11+)
I generally dislike self-published children’s books. But not self-published YA books. This is one of those book series — self-published and excellent! A dystopian world where some have unique powers (psion powers) that he can use to fight the ongoing battle for a better world. Loved it!

Maze Runner
The Maze Runner
by James Dashner (ages 11+)
I loved this series . . . mostly. I didn’t love the last books and how the story ended — but that often happens with series doesn’t it? Series are hard, especially when the first book starts out so strong. In this dystopian world, kids are either killed or must kill to survive. There are tons of plot twists which I loved.

best book series
Above World
 
by Jenn Reese (ages 11+)
I love this series and can’t wait for the third book. The world’s humans have been genetically modified into part-human, part animal species — horses, snakes, mer, and birds. Aluna must convince the different to band together in order to fight the evil man who started the genetic modifications and controls the tech.

best book series
Dead City
 
by James Ponti (ages 11+)
You’ve been wondering when I’m going to get to the zombies, right? Well, here you go. Non-stop action, this is a fantastic creative series — that isn’t too creepy. Molly’s recruited to hunt zombies in New York City, just like her mother, who is either dead or a zombie. I am looking forward to this book series.

best book series
Rot & Ruin
by Jonathan Maberry (ages 11+)
I’m a total wimp with scary books but I really liked this book. Even though it did creep me out. But, the writing was stellar – and the plot kept me engaged and in suspense. The world is infested with zombies, cities are barricaded. At age 15, Benny must either fight zombies like his brother Tom or find a different job, or else his rations will be halved.  So many of the “zoms” are people he once knew – and loved – and soon Benny learns there are people in the world who are worse than the zombies.

Lunar Chronicles
The Lunar Chronicles
by Marissa Meyer (ages 11+)
Loosely based on Cinderella, we follow the story of a half-android, a second-class citizen in a futuristic China threatened with intergalactic war from the Lunar queen who wants to marry Prince Kai, who Cinder meets and falls in love with when she helps repair his android. It’s Cinder mysterious past that might be the key in saving Kai and the world. Fantastic!

best book series
Penryn & the End of Days
by Susan Ee (ages 11+
Angels (not the friendly kind, the warrior kind) rule the world using humans for experiments, and disposable arm candy. Penryn’s sister is kidnapped, and she is determined to rescue her. On her journey, she meets Raffe, an angel whose wings were brutally cut off. The two work together and what they discover at the angel compound will make the world even worse off than it already is. I couldn’t put this book down — totally mesmerizing!

best book series
Daughter of Smoke and Bone
by Laini Taylor (ages 11+)
Probably THE most creative fantasy series I’ve ever read, this isn’t your normal angel vs. beast story. At all. Forever enemies, what would happen a chimera and angel fell in love?  And when their betrayal was discovered? I don’t even want to give away anything – but let me just say that even my non-fiction reading husband loved this book series!

Any other best book series you’d to add to this list?

Want more ideas? Read “24 Chapter Books in a Series.”

Adventure Books for Kids

Fantasy Books for Kids

Funny Books for Kids

Historical Fiction Books for Kids

Mystery Books for Kids

Nonfiction Books for Kids

I’ve added each of these books to my new master book lists by age.

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21 Comments

  1. Wanted to add that she likes info books as well. She likes animal encyclopedias, animal track books, books on the human body, math facts, presidents and their pets. She has a How To Speak cat and Dog book that she has read half a dozen times each. Hope that helps make any recommendations. 🙂

  2. My daughter is 7 1/2. She reads at a 5.5 reading level. She started the Imaginary Veterinary series when she was 5 and has read then over and over. We have a hard time finding a series we like as much though that is still age appropriate. We’ve tried Chronicles of Narnia, The Green Embers, Warriors, etc. We get a couple chapters in and it just doesn’t grab her like the Imaginary Veterinary series did. She has dreams of being a veterinarian herself some day and so she loves books. I’m seeing if our library (or lending library) have any of the books on the this list and hopefully we find another winner. Thanks! Any recommendations are appreciated.

    1. LOVE that series — so glad she found it.
      I have all my fantasy book reviews here: https://imaginationsoup.net/best-fantasy-books-kids/ including these possibilities that she might like:
      Whatever After by Sarah Mlynowski
      Tuesdays at the Castle by Jessica Day George
      The Familiars by Adam Jay Epstein and Andrew Jacobson
      The Land of Stories by Chris Colfer
      Dragon Slippers by Jessica Day George

      Some finished series here that might be interesting: https://imaginationsoup.net/best-boxed-chapter-book-sets-kids-teens/

      Nonfiction ideas: https://imaginationsoup.net/nonfiction-books-for-9-year-olds/ The Weird But True books are always engaging as is the Almanac or World Record books.

      Does that help?

  3. Melissa- I love your site! It has a lot of great reads. I am working with a new book series, Founders Force (www.foundersforce.com), that is awesome for preschool age children and early grade school children. The books take the Founding Fathers and turn them into superheros, so it teaches children about our U.S. history in a fun and engaging way. I would love to send you a PDF copy and if you like them even feature them on your site! Looking forward to hearing from you. Lauren

  4. Great list! We’re planning on starting a family book club after one of my 4th graders’ parent-teacher conference revealed difficulty with reading comprehension. It will be both parents, two 4th graders, and two preschoolers. Obviously, I will be reading to the preschoolers, while the 4th graders will read on their own and then we’ll set aside a weekly discussion time. Any suggestions for books that would appeal to all of us? Thinking about starting with Harry Potter because I love books (none of the other 5 have ever read them before), but worried about engaging the preschoolers with them

    1. The only thing with Harry Potter is that the books are really long and there are some scary parts. A few other ideas: Lulu and the Brontosaurus, The Imaginary Veterinarian books, The Land of Stories, or Dragon Slippers.