The Best Early Readers & Chapter Books of 2024

Looking for the best books for your growing readers ages 6 to 9? These early readers and chapter books are my favorites of the year. They’re engaging, kid-friendly, and fun to read, which is especially important for growing readers!

The Best Early Readers & Chapter Books of 2024

Bear and Bird are Best Friends written by Jarvis
EARLY READER
It’s true there are a LOT of early reader friendship books. Maybe too many. But I still would make space for this new title on my bookshelf because it’s sweet and fun with personality-filled main characters and relatable adventures like a picnic and telling bad jokes.

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Lone Wolf Goes to School written by Kiah Thomas, illustrated by K-Fai Steele
EARLY READER
The ending of this book is THE BEST — I cracked up, and so will your readers. Wolf wants to be left alone! There are people everywhere, which makes him growl. He tries school, the movies, and the beach. Finally, Wolf figures out a plan, a perfect plan, to be by himself. And you will love it!
Also read: Lone Wolf Gets a Pet

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The Cozy Home written by Ame Dyckman, illustrated by Mark Teague 
EARLY READER
In this charming story with appealing art, Cat, Bat, and Rat move into a new home together where they share, read, sleep, and play jokes on each other. The text includes a good amount of repetition, which I like, and there are only one and two-syllable words.

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Inside Scouts Help the Kind Lion (Acorn) written by Mitali Banerjee Ruths, illustrated by Francesca Mahaney 
EARLY READER
You will adore this super creative Acorn early reader series about siblings who shrink to fix problems INSIDE THE BODY! How cool is that? In this first book, the siblings need to help a lion’s heart. With dialogue bubbles, short sentences, and repetition, this is a great choice for your beginning readers.

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Sky & Ty Howdy, Partner! by Steve Breen 
EARLY GRAPHIC NOVEL
Kids will love this charming and funny early graphic novel about a girl named Sky who wants a pet dinosaur. And she does find a dinosaur named Ty who informs her that he is no one’s pet! With Western flare (hot diggity, yee-haw) they’ll have a dance-off with a bear, deliver a package for Mr. Rigby, make a slogan for themselves, and go to a hootenanny. Finish the book with a fun “Learn to Speak Western” section.

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Orris and Timble The Beginning written by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Carmen Mok 
CHAPTER BOOK
I highly recommend this sweet, sweet story about a rat named Orris who peeks out of his hole in the wall and sees a barn owl named Timble stuck in a trap. “Make the good and noble choice,” he repeats to himself several times as he considers if he should save the predator that might eat him. He considers the Lion and the Mouse story and decides to risk it! And the two unlikely animals become friends. Awwww…

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Stella & Marigold written by Annie Barrows, illustrated by Sophie Blackall
CHAPTER BOOK
I’m a sucker for a sweet sibling story like this one. Stella is the big seven-year-old sister and Marigold is the little four-year-old sister. Sometimes, Marigold makes up stories (lies), and always Stella makes her feel better with a story. Sometimes, Marigold on purpose accidentally gets lost, and always Stella tells her a story to help her feel better. These sisters are close, loving, and charming.

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Bunny and Clyde written by Megan McDonald, illustrated by Scott Nash 
CHAPTER BOOK
In this funny and charming story, Bunny and Clyde (a chipmunk) decide they’re sick of being good…In fact, they want to be rotten. First, they read books to learn how to be bad. They read books like Bad Kitty and Interrupting Chicken. (You’ll laugh at their bad examples. Interrupting is so naughty!) Then, they go on a bad, bad, bad spree. Unfortunately, badness doesn’t work out because, somehow, their attempts always help others. Which makes them so mad! Being bad never was so good.

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Great Puptective by Alina Tysoe 
CHAPTER BOOK GRAPHIC NOVEL
In a home with a cat and a puppy, the Poppy, the puppy, is determined to be a detective! But Truffles the cat only wants peace and quiet–and to get Poppy in trouble. Readers will love Poppy’s adorable exuberance and laugh at Truffles’s frustration.  Then, when the worst happens and Poppy is gone, Truffles feels guilty (gasp!) for his bad behavior and decides to save his puppy friend using the detective skills he learned from Poppy. Engaging cartoon illustrations, this is sure to be a new favorite series for growing readers.

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Squirlish: Shark in the Park written by Ellen Potter
CHAPTER BOOK
In this second book, Cordelia teams up with the shark-obsessed squirrel prince on a hunt to find the missing Royal Scepter. Their hunt takes them to the Natural History Museum, where, among other things, she and the squirrel prince learn the important history of Seneca Village, a 19th-century settlement of African-American landowners in what is now Central Park. I adore this series and loved this playful sequel!

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Ava Lin Best Friend by Vicky Fang 
CHAPTER BOOK
A strong voice and a fun main character who has a zest for life and discovery. Ava is in first grade and wants to make a best friend. To do so, she must navigate communication issues with new people, which isn’t as easy as she thought it would be. Also, Ava loves collecting treasures, but she needs pockets. Without a pocket, she stores her special pebble in her ear–which doesn’t go well! Ava is a cute, relatable girl who kids will love.

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Felix Powell, Dog Boy written by Erin Entrada Kelly
CHAPTER BOOK
Something magical happens, transforming Felix into a dog! He LOVES being a dog and playing with his own dog, Mary Puppins. They even talk to the grumpy neighborhood cat, who tells them a story about a human girl who turned into a cat. But when Felix can’t turn back into a boy, will the cat tell them how the girl transformed back? This cute story will appeal to all pet-loving kids who would love to be a dog for an afternoon, too.

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