Good Books for 10 Year Olds

There are lots of fantastic books for 10 year olds. 10 year olds are likely to have moved onto chapter books which means there is a wide range of books of all types of genres to choose from. So how do you go about choosing the best book for a 10 year old? Having worked in a library with children for a few years and having children of my own means I have a few ideas of how to choose the right book.

1). Get your child to help you choose. Go to the library, bookstore or even look online with your 10 year old so they can help choose a book they would like to read. Why not show your child the list below and see if they would enjoy any of them.

2.) Get recommendations. Ask friends, family and others with children the books their children have enjoyed. If you go to the library, ask the librarian for suggestions. Also don't forget your child's teacher is often a good source. Look online and read reviews to get ideas of books your child may enjoy.

3.) Try a book out. Don't feel that because you have started to read a book, you have to finish it. Choose a wide selection of books to borrow from the library or friends and ask your child to start reading them to see if they like them. If they don't like them, they can move onto another choice.

There are lots of suggestions of great books suitable for 10 year olds in the article. I hope to have covered popular titles such as Harry Potter, classic books, science fiction, fantasy and mystery. There are lists of some of the best books for 10 year old girls and the best books for 10 year old boys. Like 10 year old readers the books do vary in terms of level of reading but they are all aimed at children at the age of 10. Also don't forget to check out non fiction books, I haven't mentioned them in the article as they are so wide ranging but a quick search on amazon should give you some ideas.

Read on for some suggestions of good books for 10 year olds.

Some books become very popular reads with many 10 year olds. The Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney is one well known book that falls into this category as well as the books below. Parents may not be so keen on some of the choices but kids love to read them and enjoyment of reading is the most important thing.

To check out some current popular books for 10 year olds it's also worth check out the New York Times Bestseller Lists for Middle Grade. The list is updated every week.

There are new books being published all the time and it can be difficult to keep up with the current most popular books. As well as the bestseller lists at the New York Times, it's worth checking out amazon bestseller lists and editors picks to see which books are currently popular.

Other websites to check out include the publishers weekly which has bestsellers lists for kids fiction. If you're in the UK, check out the Sunday Times bestseller lists.

Many 10 year olds may be reluctant to read. If you have a reluctant reader here are some ideas to encourage them.

Don't limit what they can read - Many kids may not want to sit down and read a chapter book but they may be keen to read a non fiction book, a comic or a magazine. Whatever they are reading will help improve the concentration and vocabulary so don't feel that they have to read certain novels. Non fiction books can mean they are analyzing and comparing stats or learning about the world around them so they are developing their literacy in another way.

PIck books which are part of a series - If a child starts reading a book which is the first in the series and enjoys it they are more likely to read more and more of the same series. Once that's completed they will be keen to look for another series which fills the void.

Be a good role model- Kids copy their parents even at age 10. So if they see you always reading and see that you enjoy it, they are more likely to read themselves.

Read to them- 10 is not too old to share a book together. Offer to read to them before bed. If they enjoy the story they will be more likely to pick the book up and read it on their own.

Sometimes it's great for parents to give their 10 year olds the books they enjoyed as children. If you can remember the books you enjoyed at age 10, it's likely that your children will still enjoy the stories as much.

Roald Dahl and CS Lewis are all authors parents of 10 year olds may have enjoyed themselves.

Book series such as Goosebumps were also popular.

The great thing about these books is that they have stood the test of time so you know that 10 year olds will enjoy them as much today as their parents did.

Here are a list of books that may particularly appeal to 10 year old girls, although there is nothing to stop 10 year old boys reading them too!

For more ideas check out this list of books for 10 year olds which have great girl role models put together by the search function on common sense medial.

Here are some great options of books for 10 year old boys, although girls will probably love them too. There are some great fantasy and science fiction choices that boys will love.

Here is a list of books for 10 year olds which have boys as great role models by common sense meda.

If you want more fantasty choices keep on reading below too.

There are hundreds of fantasy books appropriate for this age group.

I have suggested some below but for more ideas check out this list at common sense media.. I love the common sense media website as you can search for books by age and by genre. So as well as looking for books suitable for 10 year olds in the fantasy and magic category you could refine your search to other genres including categories such as sport and martial arts, science and nature, superheros, and great role models. There are numerous categories to choose from.

The book featured below has won awards and has excellent reviews.

If you're looking for something a little bit special, check out some ideas below.

For more suggestions check out award winning books on The Barnes and Noble website.

There are lots of great mystery books suitable for 10 Year olds who won't be able to stop reading to find out why, who and how? Many mystery books for this age group tend to come in series of books. Series are great for reluctant readers as if they like the first book they tend to be more likely to read the rest in the series without any encouragement.

Ideas include the following series.

Mayflower Treasure Hunt - The A to Z mysteries cover mysteries beginning from A and ending with Z.

Nancy Drew - the female detective that 10 year old girls in particular will identify with.

The Hardy Boys Mystery books

And The Maze of Bones featured below

Choose from timeless books that have entranced children of generations before. There have been a couple of classic books already featured in the article but there are plenty more. Ideas include Guilliver's Travels, Pippi Longstocking and The Hobbit.