Reading lists for KS3 pupils

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Books for KS3 children and teens aged 11-14 – our recommendations

Please find below our suggested reading lists for Year 7 (11-12-year-olds), Year 8 (12-13-year-olds), and Year 9 (13-14-year-olds). These book choices are regularly updated and feature titles from a wide range of genres to appeal to both confident and reluctant readers.

In KS3, students should be exploring a mix of adventure, classics, realistic fiction, and non-fiction – books that challenge their thinking and introduce them to different perspectives. Standout titles like The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke, The Giver by Lois Lowry, Wolf Brother by Michelle Paver, and The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank offer a great starting point, but variety is key. Adventure lovers might enjoy The London Eye Mystery by Siobhan Dowd or The Letter for the King by Tonke Dragt, while those drawn to classics could try Animal Farm by George Orwell or Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery. For realistic fiction, Refugee Boy by Benjamin Zephaniah and The Breadwinner by Deborah Ellis provide compelling narratives, while fantasy and sci-fi fans might prefer The Giver Quartet by Lois Lowry.

Beyond genres, good reading choices help students develop critical thinking – grappling with themes like identity, justice, and prejudice, analysing characters’ motivations, and seeing the world through different perspectives. Encouraging them to choose books based on their interests, whether that’s history, adventure, or graphic novels, can make all the difference, especially for reluctant readers. Some great picks by year group include Skellig by David Almond and The Seeing Stone by Kevin Crossley-Holland for Year 7, The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke and Trash by Andy Mulligan for Year 8, and The Giver by Lois Lowry for Year 9. Whatever they choose, the goal is to make reading feel less like homework and more like an adventure.