10 Easy Reader Books for Young Readers

According to the website right-writing.com, easy readers books are for children just starting to read on their own. They usually have illustrations like a picture book, but begin to have the format of chapter books. The length of the books can vary greatly and are told mostly through action and dialogue. The following are 10 of my picks for easy reader books. 



If You Give a Mouse a Cookie

Numeroff, L. J. (2015). If You Give a Mouse a Cookie. New York, NY: Laura Geringer Book.

In this delightful tale, a young mouse crosses path with a boy who kindly offers him a cookie. Little did the boy know that this friendly gesture would trigger a sequence of events in which the mouse runs the boy ragged. Even though it was a tiring day, the boy and mouse bonded and formed a friendship.

This book has been a beloved children's book for decades and is a great book for beginning readers. Its cyclical and repetitive nature makes the book fun to read. The simple, colored pencil illustrations are captivating to young readers, while the story teaches the lesson of kindness and hospitality. This is a great easy reader for ages 4-6. 

To read more from this author, visit lauranumeroff.com/books to see her books. 


Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes

Litwin, E. (2014). Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes. New York, NY: HarperCollins Childrens Books.

In this musically entertaining book, Pet the Cat is enamored with his brand new white shoes. He loves them so much he can't help but sing about them. However, these shoes are not white for long when Pete steps in a pile of strawberries and his shoes are now red and the shoes are changed quite a bit throughout the rest of the book. This doesn't get Pete upset or sad. He embraces the changes to his shoes and keeps right on singing.

Young readers really embrace this book. Pete loves music and sings the words in his books quite often. This makes it very fun to read aloud and beginning readers enjoy singing along too. I would recommend readers ages 4-6 read this book. 

Visit petethecatbooks.com/books to see the other books in this series.



Sesame Street: The Monster at the End of this Book

Stone, J. (1999). Sesame Street: The Monster at the End of this Book. New York, NY: Golden Books.

In this treasured classic, Grover reads the book right along with us. He is greatly disturbed at the title of this book and want to do any thing to prevent the reader from getting to the end of this book. However, Grover is relieved to find that the monster at the end of this book is none other that good old Grover himself. 

If your young reader is a fan of Sesame Street they will love this book. Even if they have never seen the program they will still enjoy the pure silliness that Grover displays. Young readers have a lot of fun trying to ready the book in Grover's animated voice. I would recommend this to readers 4-7. 

Visit youtube.com to see this hilarious book narrated by Grover himself!


Clifford Takes a Trip

Bridwell, N. (2016). Clifford Takes a Trip. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc.

Clifford the Big Red Dog series centers on Clifford and his best friend, Emily. This story centers on the summer Emily's family decided to leave Clifford with the neighbors and take a vacation to the mountains. Poor Clifford was so sad without his best friend and had to set out to find her. In usual Clifford fashion, he gets in some hi jinx along the way. He get to Emily just in the nick of time to help her thwart off an angry mama bear and Emily vows to never go on vacation again without Clifford. 

Clifford books are always a delight to read and each page has detailed illustrations that aid in narrating the text. This makes a great bedtime book due to its short length. I would recommend this for young readers ages 4-6.

To see all the books in this series, visit scholastic.com/clifford.


Little Bear

Minarik, E. H. (2004). Little Bear. New York, NY: HarperCollins.

This is the first book in the Little Bear series originally written in 1957 and centers around the titular Little Bear and Mother Bear. This particular book contains 4 stories. Little Bear is concerned with what to wear in the cold in the first story, hosting his friends for his birthday party in the next, going to the moon in the third and in the last story Mother Bear helps him to fall asleep.  

This book is a great introduction into chapter books for young readers.  It is a very calm and soothing book which makes it great for bedtime. The loving and nurturing relationship between Little Bear and Mother Bear is very heartwarming and comforting to children. I would recommend this for children 6 to 8. 

To see more works of this author, visit scholastic.com/else-holmelund-minarik.


Amelia Bedelia, Bookworm

Parish, H. (2003). Amelia Bedelia, Bookworm. New York, NY: HarperCollins.

The Amelia Bedelia book series has been beloved by children for over 50 years. Amelia is a housekeeper who takes all things said to her very literally. In this installment of the series, Amelia attempts to help out at the library after seeing the librarian needing help for an upcoming visit from the head librarian. Amelia means well by her literal nature causes some confusion when she unknowingly steals the book mobile. In the end, the head librarian and librarian were charmed by the excitement and fun activities going on in the library and they all attended the town's parade.

This book is a fun exercise in expressions for the children reading it. Students can read new and unfamiliar phrases in this book and expand their vocabulary while also laughing at Amelia's literal take on them. Readers ages 6-9 will enjoy this book.

Visit ameliabedeliabooks.com to see the other books in this series.


Oliver and Amanda: Amanda Pig, First Grader

Leeuwen, J. V. (2013). Oliver and Amanda: Amanda Pig, First Grader. New York, NY: Puffin Young Readers.

In this book from the Oliver and Amanda series, Amanda Pig is entering first grade. She is so excited to be treated a big kid with new responsibilities and fun things to do at school. It is not all fun though when she realizes that reading isn't as easy as she thought and big kids can be bullies to her and her friends. Amanda perseveres and with the help of her friend, teacher and principal, overcomes her issues with reading and bullies.

This book is a great introduction for readers who want to advance to chapter books. Students will be able to sympathize with Amanda and the issues she faces in this book, I would recommend this book for readers ages 6-8. 

To see the other books in this series, visit penguinrandomhouse.com/oliver-and-amanda


Tales for Very Picky Eaters

Schneider, J. (2011). Tales for Very Picky Eaters. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

This book contains 5 silly tales of creative and sometimes gross descriptions of foods the picky eater James doesn't want to eat. His father does his best to encourage James to try these unfamiliar foods by narrating funny stories about these foods. Ultimately James discovers that sometimes new foods can be tasty and not to be so picky.

Young readers will be amused by the creative descriptions of the food in the book and most children and adults can relate to picky eaters. The hilarious illustrations perfectly accompany the narration of the book. I would recommend this book for readers aged 6-9. 

Visit hmhco.com/Josh-Schneider to see other books by this author. 


Arthur and the Baby

Brown, M. T. (2011). Arthur and the Baby. London, England: Little, Brown Young Readers.

In this book of the series, Arthur’s mom announces Arthur and D.W. will son be a new big brother and sister to a baby girl. While D.W. is excited, but Arthur is very worried. His friends scare him by telling him all the awful things that will happen once the baby arrives. Arthur isn't sure he can handle the change but discovers, after being left in charge of Kate, that he loves his new sister and if he listens to her things will work out fine.  

This book is great reading for those children who will be older siblings soon. This book can help alleviate any anxieties they may be having about the changes in the family. I recommend this book for readers ages 5-7. 

To see the other books in the Arthur series, visit marcbrownstudios.com/arthur


Fancy Nancy and the Posh Puppy

O'Connor, J. (2007). Fancy Nancy and the Posh Puppy. New York, NY: HarperCollins.

In this installment of the series, Fancy Nancy is trying to find the perfect dog for her and her family. Nancy wants a fancy dog of course but her family prefers a lower maintenance dog. Only after dog-sitting for her neighbor, who has a spoiled dog named Jewel, Nancy realizes that maybe she should look for other qualities besides fanciness. Her and her family find a pooch named Frenchy at the dog pound and her uniqueness wins Nancy over. 

This book is itself unique in it's detailed drawings and creative text. Readers will appreciate Nancy's explanations of new and unfamiliar words. Parents will love the message of this book that uniqueness is superior to fanciness. I would recommend this book for reader ages 5-7. 

Visit fancynancyworld.com to see the other books in the series and find fun Fancy Nancy printables and activities.  

Comments