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ESL teacher

Suggested reading for all ages: literature books for Primary, Secondary and University

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Reading for pleasure from a young age can improve vocabulary, language and listening skills and improve your child’s imagination and understanding. This can be done together, or separately for as little as 5-10 minutes per day. Encourage your child to read aloud to help with pronunciation and confidence.

It can also be a good idea to discuss books gasp your child’s understanding, which can grow into wonderful analytical and lively discussions as they become older. Below we will provide a few books for each age group to give you some inspiration.


Let’s start with a book for ALL ages, young children and adults alike with beautiful drawings and heartfelt messages. This might be just the quiet and deliberate positivity everyone needs right now:


The Boy, The Mole, The Fox & The Horse – Charlie Mackesy


1. Primary (ages 5-7)


Fun filled fiction books, great for boosting the imagination. Engaging characters that are perfect for your child to read aloud.

  • Meg and Mog – Helen Nichol
  • The Tiger Who Came to Tea – Judith Kerr
  • The Very Hungry Caterpillar – Eric Carle
  • Clarice Bean, That’s Me – Lauren Child
  • The Enchanted Wood – Enid Blyton
  • Mog the Forgetful Cat – Judith Kerr
  • Mr Majeika – Humphrey Carter


2. Primary (ages 7-9)


Creative books, sure to increase the vocabulary of inquisitive minds. Interpretative skills can also be put to the test, indulge in light post-reading discussions.

  • Where the Wild Things Are – Maurice Sendak
  • My Naughty Little Sister – Dorothy Edwards
  • Flat Stanley – Jeff Brown
  • The Worst Witch – Jill Murphy
  • Fairy Tales – Terry Jones
  • Charlie & the Chocolate Factory – Roald Dahl


3. Primary (ages 9-11)


Fantasy books, serious moments for reader who is maturing but still with a touch of magic. Longer texts that are suitable for lone reading.

  • A series of unfortunate events – Lemony Snicket
  • Harry Potter & the Philosophers Stone – J.K Rowling (books 1-4 are suitable)
  • The Hobbit – J.R.R Tolkien
  • Danny the Champion of the World – Roald Dahl
  • Peter Pan – J.M Barrie


4. Secondary (ages 11-13)


Adventure books, touching on travel and self-discovery. A good mix of styles and themes to challenge the reader; dreamlike sequences, down to earth imagery and words created by Shakespeare.

  • The Great Gatsby – Scott F. Fitzgerald
  • The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn – Mark Twain
  • The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time – Mark Haddon
  • The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams
  • The Secret Garden – Frances Hodgson Burnett
  • A Midsummer Night’s Dream – William Shakespeare


5. Secondary (ages 13-16)


Classic books, exploring deeper meanings and staggering imagery. A great source of inspiration to those working on their own creative writing.

  • The Catcher in the Rye – J.D Salinger
  • Frankenstein – Mary Shelley
  • To Kill a Mockingbird – Harper Lee
  • Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen
  • David Copperfield – Charles Dickens
  • Wuthering Heights – Emily Bronte
  • Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? – Phillip K Dick


6. University Students: Prose

Thought provoking books, a mix of Classics and American Literature. A range of discovery, reality and debates of race and gender. Many of these authors also write theoretical work that make for fascinating back reading and great essay quotes.

  • Not So Quiet on the Western Front – Helen Zenner Smith
  • Ulysses – James Joyce
  • Black Water – Carol Joyce Oats
  • Songs of Solomon – Toni Morrison
  • Paradise Lost – John Milton
  • Invisible Man – Ralph Ellison
  • The Colour Purple – Alice Walker
  • Moon Palace – Paul Auster
  • The Awakening – Kate Chopin
  • Erasure – Percival Everett
  • Moby Dick – Herman Melville
  • The Scarlet Letter – Nathaniel Hawthorne
  • Native Son – Richard Wright


7. University Students: Poetry

Authors who write beautifully. Works that range from short and accessible to pieces that require more time. Great for new devices and best read aloud. Themes include; race, politics, modernism, nature and life.

  • W.E.B Du Bois
  • Langston Hughes
  • Gertrude Stein
  • William Carlos Willaims
  • Robert Frost
  • Ezra Pound
  • T. S. Eliot
  • Claude McKay
  • Countee Cullen
  • Emily Dickinson
  • Walt Whitman

By Emily G, graduate of English and American Literature.

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