Is your child starting school soon? Take a look at these great titles on preparing for the big day from the Reading Agency!

Preschool fiction:

Big words for little people: friendship, by Helen Mortimer and Cristina Trapanese

Creating a moment to focus on friendship, this title introduces words to talk about feelings with confidence and in a way that feels good. The engaging art style, fun characters and picture book feel make it perfect to share.

Jessica's box, by Peter Carnavas

'Jessica's Box' is a picture book about a small girl who attempts to make friends as she begins school. She takes something different in her cardboard box every day until she discovers that all she needs to present is herself.

I am every good thing, by Derrick Barnes and Gordon C. James

Step inside the mind of the confident narrator of this book! He is proud of everything that makes him who he is. He's got big plans, and will see them through. He's creative, adventurous, smart, funny. A good friend. A superhero. Sometimes he falls, but he always gets back up. And other times he's afraid, because he's often misunderstood. So, slow down, look and listen as he shows you who he really is.

Ballet bunnies: the big audition, by Swapna Reddy and Binny Talib

In Millie's latest adventure, her favourite TV show, 'Ballet Beat', is coming to town! One lucky person will get the chance to appear on the show, but is Millie brave enough to audition? All she needs is a little encouragement from her friends, the Ballet Bunnies. With a Ballet Bunny on your side, fun and laughter are never far away.

Take off your brave: poems just for you, by Nadim Shamma-Sourgen and Yasmeen Ismail

Everybody has love. Even baddies. The poems in this book are uniquely memorable - in large part, because they came from a four-year-old. Nadim is the latest discovery of award-winning poet Kate Clanchy, who shared a few of his best poems alongside the work of her prodigious teenage students on Twitter. They met with a warm and fascinated response, which resulted in this debut collection, 'Take Off Your Brave'.

Junior fiction:

Locker hero, by Rachel Renée-Russell

Introducing Max Crumbly, the new Dork on the block. Max is about to face the scariest place he's ever been - South Ridge Middle School! He has been home-schooled by his grandmother until now, and he's begged his parents to finally let him start attending a real school. He's starting to question that choice, though, with the Doug aka Thug Thurston Problem. As in, Thug keeps stuffing Max in his locker. If only Max could be like the hero in all the comics he likes to read - or the ones he draws - and magically escape the locker and defeat Thug. Unfortunately, Max's uncanny, almost superhuman ability to smell pizza from a block away won't exactly save any lives or foil bad guys. But that doesn't mean Max won't do his best to be the hero his school needs!

Everything all at once, by Steven Camden

Zooming in across our cast of characters, we share moments that span everything from hoping to make it to the end of the week, facing it, fitting in, finding friends and falling out, to loving lessons, losing it, and worrying, wearing it well and worshipping from afar. In this collection of poems, Steven Camden's poems speak to the kaleidoscope of teen experience and life at 'big school'.

School's cancelled, by Serena Patel and Emma McCann

I've been working sooo hard with Milo and Govi to make our super-erupting volcano for the school science fair. I really thought we might win first prize - a trip to the National Space Centre. But now we're in BIG trouble. One minute we were in the lab practising our science demo, and the next thing we knew, our volcano exploded and flooded the corridors. School had to be cancelled! But did we really get our project so wrong - or is someone else trying to win first prize? Looks like a case for Anisha, accidental detective!

Sona Sharma, looking after planet Earth, by Chitra Soundar and Jen Khatun

Sona Sharma combats climate change. When Sona learns about the climate crisis at school and is very worried that no one is doing enough to combat it, she takes up the challenge herself. But Appa isn't amused when Sona throws out her baby sister's nappies and Thatha isn't happy when she tells him to get rid of his colour-coded plastic files. When Sona learns that many of the kolams - the traditional art that people draw in front of their homes to celebrate the winter months and the festival season - are not organic, she sets out to make some big changes by getting everyone involved.

The funniest back to school joke book ever, by Joe King and Nigel Baines

This title provides a collection of hilarious jokes for a new school year. The book is illustrated throughout in black and white by Nigel Baines.

Monsters go to school, by Zanna Davidson and Melanie Williamson

Billy's pet Mini Monsters really want to go to school with him. Billy really doesn't want them to come. He's got enough trouble with the school bully, Basil Brown. But perhaps having monsters around will be more helpful than Billy imagines.

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