Best books for 5 years olds
Hairy Maclary from Donaldson's Dairy
By: Lynley Dood
Hairy Maclary goes off for a walk with a few of his friends – and comes up against a nasty surprise in the shape of Scarface Claw!
Kuwi's First Egg
By Katherine Q. Merewether
Find out how Kuwi the Kiwi looks after her newly laid egg. She knits a scarf, sings a waiata and takes it out to play but Egg doesn’t seem too impressed. When the egg begins to crack Kuwi thinks she has not done a very good job – what can she do? Read this delightful imaginary story for kids about a clueless kiwi looking after her egg.
The Day the Crayons Quit
By Drew Daywalt and Oliver Jeffers
This Number One New York Times Bestseller is an imaginative story that will have children laughing and playing with their crayons in a whole new way.
Poor Duncan just wants to colour in. But when he opens his box of crayons, he only finds letters, all saying the same thing: We quit! Beige is tired of playing second fiddle to Brown, Blue needs a break from colouring in all that water, while Pink just wants to be used. Green has no complaints, but Orange and Yellow are no longer speaking to each other. The battle lines have been drawn. What is Duncan to do?
The Pigeon HAS to Go to School
By Mo Willems
This hilarious story is perfect for those children about to start school. The Pigeon is about to get SCHOOLED. Do YOU think he should go? Why does the Pigeon have to go to school? He already knows everything! Well … almost everything. And what if he doesn’t like it? What if the teacher doesn’t like him? I mean, what if he learns TOO MUCH!?!
Parents will enjoy this book as Mo Willems is one of those children’s book authors who makes children’s books fun for parents too.
New Zealand's Backyard Beasts
By: Ned Barraud
In the garden, creeping along branches, hiding under stones or flitting from flower to flower, a whole universe of creatures is waiting to be discovered in your backyard. Did you know that chorus cicadas live underground for most of their life? That bumblebees have smelly feet? That some species of stick insect are all female? Or that earwigs don’t actually crawl into ears?
In New Zealand’s Backyard Beasts, children (and adults) can learn to identify some of the creatures most commonly found in the backyard. Beautiful illustrations are accompanied by informative text and fascinating facts about bees, wasps, beetles, butterflies, moths, stick insects, paying mantises, bees, wasps, beetles, spiders, snails and more.
The Gruffalo
By: Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler
Find out what happens when the clever mouse meets a hungry Gruffalo in the nation’s favourite bedtime story!
A mouse took a stroll through the deep dark wood. A fox saw the mouse and the mouse looked good. Walk further into the deep dark wood, and discover what happens when a quick-witted mouse comes face to face with an owl, a snake … and a hungry Gruffalo!
The Gruffalo is an undisputed modern classic and has become a best-selling phenomenon across the world. This award-winning rhyming story of a mouse and a monster has found its way into the hearts and bedtimes of an entire generation of children and will undoubtedly continue to enchant children for years and years to come.
Thelma the Unicorn
By Aaron Blabey
Thelma is an ordinary pony who longs to be more. But when Thelma’s dream to be a unicorn comes true she discovers that fame isn’t all it’s cracked up to be!
Giraffes Can't Dance
By Julia Donaldson and Alex Scheffler
How the cat purred and how the witch grinned, As they sat on their broomstick and flew through the wind. The witch and her cat fly happily over forests, rivers and mountains on their broomstick until a stormy wind blows away the witch’s hat, bow and wand. Luckily, they are retrieved by a dog, a bird and a frog, who are all keen for a ride on the broom. It’s a case of the more, the merrier, but the broomstick isn’t used to such a heavy load and it’s not long before… SNAP! It breaks in two! And with a greedy dragon looking for a snack, the witch’s animal pals better think fast.
A very funny story for kids about quick wits and friendship. Parents will enjoy reading this one too.
Room on the Broom
By Julia Donaldson and Alex Scheffler
How the cat purred and how the witch grinned, As they sat on their broomstick and flew through the wind. The witch and her cat fly happily over forests, rivers and mountains on their broomstick until a stormy wind blows away the witch’s hat, bow and wand. Luckily, they are retrieved by a dog, a bird and a frog, who are all keen for a ride on the broom. It’s a case of the more, the merrier, but the broomstick isn’t used to such a heavy load and it’s not long before… SNAP! It breaks in two! And with a greedy dragon looking for a snack, the witch’s animal pals better think fast.
A very funny story for kids about quick wits and friendship. Parents will enjoy reading this one too.
You can also buy a te reo Maori translation of this story He Waihi i te Puruma.
Green Eggs and Ham
By: Dr. Suess
When Sam-I-am persists in pestering a grumpy grouch to eat a plate of green eggs and ham, perseverance wins the day, teaching us all that we cannot know what we like until we have tried it! The classic children’s story by Dr. Seuss is a perfect book for early readers.
Where the Wild Things Are
By: Maurice Sendak
One Night Max puts on his wolf suit and makes mischief, his mother calls him ‘Wild Thing’ and sends him to bedwithout any supper. Alone in his room, Max enters a magical world and sets sail across the sea to the place where the wild things are.
Baa Baa Smart Sheep
By Mark Sommerset and Rowan Sommerset
Little Baa Baa is bored. When Quirky Turkey arrives on the scene, the opportunity to make some mischief proves too hard to resist.
With snappy dialogue and fun illustrations, Baa Baa Smart Sheep is a laugh-out-loud story that will leave you thinking sheep aren’t as stupid as we might think.
The Little Yellow Digger
By Betty Cilderdale and Allan Gilderdale
When little yellow digger gets stuck in the mud, a range of bigger diggers are sent to finish the job. Cover may vary.
Tu Meke Tui!
By New Zealand author Malcom Clarke and illustrated by graffiti arists Flox.
A delightful story of friendship and discovery, Tu Meke Tui! teaches young readers that sometimes it is our differences that make us truly special.
We're Going on a Bear Hunt
By Michael Rose and Helen Oxenbury
Unfold all the fun of the bear hunt in this award-winning children’s classic picture book.
Follow and join in the family’s excitement as they wade through the grass, splash through the river and squelch through the mud in search of a bear. What a surprise awaits them in the cave on the other side of the dark forest!
Wonkey Donkey
This very funny, cumulative song tells us something new about the donkey on each page, until we end up with a spunky, hanky-panky cranky stinky dinky lanky honky-tonky winky wonky donkey, which will have children in fits of laughter!
The Cat in the Hat
By Craig Smith and Katz Cowley
The one and only Cat in the Hat is an iconic classic children’s book by Dr. Seuss. When Sally and her brother are left alone, they think they’re in for a dull day , until the Cat in the Hat steps in on the mat, bringing with him mayhem and madness! The wonder book is ideal for budding readers to tackle on their own.
Five Little Ducks Went Off to School
By New Zealand author Peter Millett and illustrated by Stevie Mahardhika
Five little ducks went off to school, over the splishy-splashy pool, and one little duck with a schoolbag on her back, she led the others with a QUACK, QUACK, QUACK! Its back to school with a QUACK, QUACK, QUACK! An adorable new picture book and sing-along set for the back-to-school season. Five little ducks need to get to classbut oops, what have they each forgotten?
The Proudest Blue
By: Ibtihaj Muhammad, Hatem Aly and S. K. Ali
Asiya’s hijab is like the ocean and the sky, no line between them, saying hello with a loud wave. It’s Faizah’s first day of school, and her older sister Asiya’s first day of hijab – made of a beautiful blue fabric. But not everyone sees hijab as beautiful.
This is an uplifting story about a child’s first day of school and being proud of who you are from Olympic medalist and social just activist Ibtihay Muhammad.
How Maui Slowed the Sun
By Peter Gossage
Faced with too short days and long nights Maui comes up with a plan to slow the sun’s passage through the sky. With the help of his brothers, Maui sets out for the home of the sun to catch it and make it move more slowly.
Who Sunk the Boat?
By Pamela Allen
Besides the sea, on Mr Peffer’s place, there lived a cow, a donkey, a sheep, a pig, and a tiny little mouse. One warm sunny morning for no particular reason, they decided to go for a row in the bay.
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