They’re at that difficult reading stage where they still enjoy picture books, but they’re not challenging enough anymore.
Therefore, you may feel at a bit of a loss when it comes to finding appropriate reading material for them.
There are thousands upon thousands of great books for 7 year olds out there, so don’t fret at all.
Below, we’ve attempted to compile what we believe to be some of the best books for today’s young readers.
You’ll find everything from adventure books, magic books, and moralistic tales. Whatever you’ve been searching for, we can guarantee that you’ll find it below.
Now, we couldn’t begin any list for young readers without putting Harry Potter in our top spot.
These books are known for being the best-selling children’s novels of all time.
In these magical tales, we follow a young boy called Harry, who wants nothing more than to escape the clutches of his evil aunt’s family.
Then one day, lo and behold, his wishes come true. He’s visited by a very large and very strange man who appears to be a half-giant.
He tells Harry that he’s not just any ordinary boy, but a wizard, and one of the most famous wizards that’s ever lived for that matter.
All of a sudden, Harry finds himself swept away into a world of magic and wonder and shopping for his new school term by purchasing a new broomstick and wand.
Hogwarts is no ordinary school and is designed for young wizards and witches to learn all about magical practices, providing lessons about riding a broomstick, and taking care of magical creatures.
Your 7 year old is bound to adore the Harry Potter books and will enjoy immersing themselves into this magical world.
Pros
Immersive – These books are completely immersive, and your 7 year old will feel like they really are at Hogwarts too.
Magical – The magical elements in this book are so detailed and intricate.
Part Of A Larger Series – Because the book is the first in a large series, readers will have plenty to get through.
Cons
Lengthy – These books are a bit lengthier than the others on our list, which might be a little intimidating for younger, more reluctant readers.
If you’re looking for one of the very best authors for young readers, then please allow us to point you toward Roald Dahl, who is one of the greatest children’s fiction writers of all time.
He has released so many classics, and you’ll find a few of them mentioned on our list here.
We think that one of the most underrated and enjoyable books published by Dahl is George’s Marvelous Medicine.
This book follows a young boy called George, who is given the unpleasant task of taking care of his grandmother whilst his parents are out shopping.
The issue is that his grandmother is known for being just a little bit rude. Well, that’s an understatement, as George actually suspects that she might be a witch.
She asks George for his medicine repeatedly, but as he’s so fearful of her, he decides to stay as far away from her as possible.
Eventually, he decides that he’s going to concoct his own medicine for his grandmother, potent enough to blow her through the roof.
And so begins George’s journey to creating the perfect medicine.
He moves through each room, placing all sorts of things in his pot, ranging from toothpaste, to deodorant, to shoe polish.
After he’s done, the mixture he’s concocted oozes and sparkles. As he finally feeds it to his grandmother, something incredibly unexpected happens. She actually grows twice the size she was before.
How is George going to fix this in time before his parents arrive home?
Pros
Easy Read – This is an incredibly easy read for younger readers, and Dahl is great at playing with fun yet simple language.
Language – We love the rhymes and wordplay in this book, which is a true joy to read. Entertaining – Young readers are guaranteed to be entertained whilst reading this book.
Cons
Very Short – Although this isn’t necessarily a con for younger readers, this is one of Dahl’s shortest books. Children may feel as though they want to read more of a story.
We’d recommend this book for 7 year old readers, as the protagonist is of a similar age group, and therefore the content might feel relatable for children.
This book is essentially written in the stream of consciousness format by a young child called Greg.
Greg is given a diary at the beginning of the novel, which acts as the basis of our book.
In this book, he writes about everything which takes place during the school year.
It is a form of catharsis for Greg, and we get to hear about all of his misadventures and various insights about topics.
At the beginning of the book, Greg wants nothing more than to be one of the popular kids in school.
This is one of the things which he documents throughout the course of the diary, and he gets himself in all manner of sticky situations during the process.
We loved how relatable Greg was, and how authentic the story felt. A very easy read and great for those just getting started out with chapter books.
Pros
Easy To Understand – We’d say that one of the best things about this book is that both the language and content are very easy to understand, which is great for children who are starting to get accustomed to longer, chapter based books.
Relatable – We think that young children will find Greg to be a highly relatable character.
Fun Concepts – This book is full of weird and wonderful concepts dreamt up by Kinney, such as forbidden CDs, and a cursed piece of cheese.
Cons
Protagonist – Some young readers might find Greg, the protagonist, to be a little abrasive at times.
If you’ve been on the hunt for a classic book to read with your 7 year old, then we’d definitely recommend picking up The Lion The Witch And The Wardrobe by C. S Lewis.
Known for being one of the greatest children’s classics of all time, it’s not hard to see why so many people love it.
This book follows the adventures of three young children who go to stay in a large manor house as a result of the war.
They can think of nothing worse than being stuck in such a dreary old place, but all of that is about to change.
The youngest sibling, Lucy, decides that she’s going to explore, and in one of the rooms upstairs, discovers a curious looking wardrobe standing by itself.
For some reason, her curiosity takes over, and she feels the need to see what’s inside.
Well, she gets much more than she bargained for, as the wardrobe actually acts as a portal to a different world.
A beautiful world that is covered in thick layers of snow. She immediately returns back through the wardrobe and tells her siblings about what she’s found.
They don’t believe her at first, but as they too enter the wardrobe, they find themselves in an other-worldly place called Narnia.
Here they find all manner of strange creatures, the first of which is called Mr. Tummnus, who looks like a regular man, save for his goat-like legs and hooves.
The children find out that the world of Narnia is in great danger, and they are the only ones who can rescue it from its terrible fate.
World Building – Despite being a relatively short novel, C. S Lewis does a great job of world-building. Young readers will feel as though they are too, traversing through Narnia.
Anthropomorphic Animals – Young readers will enjoy reading about the anthropomorphic animals in the book.
Adventure – This book is packed full of adventure, and will leave your children sitting on the edge of their seats.
If you’re looking for a fun picture book for your children, then we’d recommend that you check out this one called The Dot. Peter H. Reynolds, who is both the writer and illustrator for this tale, creates a truly heartwarming story that children will adore.
It all takes place within an art class, where a young girl called Vashti feels entirely out of place.
The children have been told to draw anything they like and to fill up the page with their imagination.
This is a problem for Vashti however, as she feels as though she’s the least creative person in the world.
Throughout the course of the class, she refuses to draw anything, and when her teacher prompts her to create something, she creates a simple ‘dot’ mark with her pencil on the surface of the page.
Vashti is surprised however, as she finds her dot drawing on the wall of the classroom with all the other students’ illustrations the following day.
As time progresses, and with some gentle encouragement from her teacher, she gradually builds her confidence and draws more and more elaborate items.
This story is an important tale of the relationship between students and teachers, and how these relationships can foster confidence and creativity.
This book is a very inspiring tale too, and will hopefully encourage your children to try new things and not be afraid of exploring different and unfamiliar hobbies.
Pros
Helpful Moral – This one teaches children about the importance of always giving things a try.
Fun Illustrations – The illustrations in this book are incredibly simple, but that’s a part of their charm.
Heartwarming – This is a heartwarming tale about the relationship between students and teachers.
Cons
Not Challenging Enough – Depending on your 7 year olds skill level when it comes to reading, they might not find this book to be challenging enough.
If you’re struggling with a young child who’s afraid of the dark, then this book is a great tool for helping them to conquer their fears.
This heartwarming tale tells the story of a young barn owl called Plop who isn’t like the rest of his family, and who enjoys nothing more than venturing out at nighttime, in order to hunt down some food to eat.
Instead, he prefers to stay inside the confines of the barn, away from the darkness where he feels most comfortable.
His mother urges him to venture outdoors, and one night, he agrees despite feeling afraid of what might happen when he does.
He ventures out, and every night that he does, a different woodland creature teaches him something new about the importance of darkness.
He learns that darkness can be fun, kind, fascinating, and filled with wonder.
By the end of the book, Plop doesn’t feel afraid in the slightest and has instead come to appreciate the dark night sky outside.
This book is great for helping younger readers to conquer their fears and has even been recommended by clinicians to treat children with their phobias.
This book doesn’t even necessarily need to be targeted toward children who have an explicit fear of the dark, as the moral of the story can be altered to any phobia that they might be struggling with.
Pros
Valuable Lesson – This book teaches younger children a valuable lesson about overcoming their fears.
Beautiful Illustrations – This book is packed full of beautiful illustrations that young readers will adore.
Fun Characters – Young children will enjoy meeting a different woodland creature in each of the different chapters.
Cons
Very Simple – Some readers might find the book to be too simple.
The next book that we’d like to recommend is another classic written by Roald Dahl.
Roald Dahl is known for creating a number of popular tales, and perhaps one of the most well-known is this one, titled Matilda.
Matilda follows the journey of a young girl, who’s always felt as though she’s a little bit different from the rest of her family.
Her father is a scrupulous used car salesman, who likes nothing better than conning other people out of their money.
Her mother, who is likewise very dissimilar to her daughter, would rather attend her next hair appointment than have a conversation with Matilda.
In order to escape her dreary surroundings, Matilda reads countless books as a form of escapism.
This is what eventually leads her to develop a friendship with her kind and gentle teacher, Miss. Honey.
One day, they both discover that Matilda is an incredibly special young girl, as she appears to have magical powers. She is able to move things with her mind.
This power comes in handy, as Matilda is going to have to combat several unruly characters throughout the course of the book, including the terrible Miss. Trunchbull, who is the headmistress of the school.
This book is a fantastic tale about the power of being different.
Pros
Expertly Written – Roald Dahl knows just how to appeal to younger children through his expert use of language.
Valuable Lesson – This book teaches a very important lesson – that it’s okay to be different, and can even be powerful.
The Importance Of Reading – This book also teaches young readers how valuable books can be. Matilda uses them as a form of escapism in the book, in order to surround herself with positivity. It also allows her to make connections with others.
Cons
Book Length – This is one of the longer books on our list, and young readers will likely need some help and guidance along the way.
Buyers Guide
Now that we’ve taken a look at some of the very best books on the market for 7 year olds, we can move on to discuss our buyer’s guide.
Here, we’ll be talking about all of the different things to take into account before purchasing a book for your young readers.
Illustrations
Although children who belong to this age group are typically ready to transition to chapter-based books, this doesn’t mean that they don’t need some guidance when it comes to pictures.
It’s a good idea to check out whether or not the books you’ve chosen have illustrations inside which can help your young readers along.
This is especially true for some of the more challenging books on our list, such as Harry Potter or The Lion The Witch And The Wardrobe.
Both of these have had multiple editions released throughout the years, some of which don’t include these all important illustrations.
Picture Books VS Chapter Books
7 years of age is a very transitional period for young readers.
Many who have been reading picture books for years will be ready to move on to more challenging, chapter-based books.
Some reluctant readers who don’t enjoy looking at books in their spare time, however, might not feel quite comfortable enough to make this leap.
Remember that every child is different, and will progress at differing levels.
Genre
Each child will have different themes and tropes that they gravitate towards when it comes to books, so make sure that you’re paying attention to the kinds of genres that they like.
Perhaps they like fun and lighthearted books with anthropomorphic novels, or perhaps they prefer adventure books where there’s a lot going on.
Either way, notice the kind of books that they’re currently enjoying, and use this information to guide you when purchasing in the future.
Final Thoughts
To sum up, there are a whole host of fantastic books out there for your 7 year old.
Whether you’re looking for a picture book for them to read through independently, or you’re searching for a more challenging novel that you can read together, there are lots out there to choose from.
Remember that when you’re choosing the perfect book for your 7 year old, you’re making sure that it has illustrations inside to help them to understand the content.
As well as this, it’s important to always choose books that match your child’s reading level, and that they’re not overwhelmed in the transition to chapter-based novels.
Finally, it’s always important to choose books that you think your child will enjoy, and that you choose according to the genre.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do 7 Year Olds Read Chapter Books?
7 or 8 are typically the ages when children become ready to transition to chapter books.
It will depend on the individual child, but if yours has been particularly enthusiastic about the picture books you’ve been reading, then they’re probably ready to branch out.
What Age Group Are David Walliams Books Written For?
David Walliams books are quite broad in their readership. The short stories can be read by children as young as five, whilst his longer books are typically geared toward children who are around 8 years of age.
Noah Burton works as a Librarian full time, and is a blogger in his spare time. His goal is to write compelling recommendations for all of the most popular books he can find, from science fiction to romance.
With a passion for books, a drive to find new reads to get stuck into, and a love for sharing book recommendations with others, Noah can help you find the next novel for your bucket list.
