We have been reading some super engaging books and can’t help but share our list with you! School holidays are almost started and how to keep kids engaged is as usual a BIG question for parents. Add these books to your reading list and you won’t regret it.

THE TREEHOUSE SERIES

Publisher: Macmillan UK

Available at all good bookstores in Singapore and Malaysia

It all started with the 13-Storey Treehouse and the latest is the 104-Storey Treehouse. We are currently reading and loving this series and can’t wait to complete reading upto the 52-Storey Trreehouse! My boy seems to be loving reading and understanding the fun story that flows along with those awesome illustrations. Andy and Terry have done terrific job with the words and illustrations.

All the books have very vibrant cover pages and great quality of pages. You must hangout in this ever-growing treehouse and be a part of this hilarious adventure. Take a look at the excerpt below:

Andy and Terry live in a tree. And when we say “tree,” we mean “treehouse” and when we say “treehouse,” we don’t mean just any old treehouse, we mean the most amazing treehouse in the world! It’s filled with things like shark-invested see-through swimming pools, secret underground labs, and marshmallow machines that follow you around and automatically shoot marshmallows into your mouth whenever you’re hungry.

The treehouse is also where they make books together. Andy writes the words and Terry draws the pictures… or they would if it weren’t for all the invading pirates, giant gorillas, out of control inventions and evil vegetable attacks that keep distracting them!

CAPTAIN CAT AND THE TREASURE MAP!

Publisher: Macmillan UK

Available at all good bookstores in Singapore and Malaysia from February 2019

This has become a favorite bedtime read of my boy and his Dad now a days. I’m not allowed to interrupt them. I must say that this book is a great read for your preschoolers who have just started to read confidently and of course, parents should be always there to help out.

I am impressed with the author Sue Mongredien and why not? She has had over one hundred children’s books published, including the Oliver Moon and Secret Mermaid series for Usborne, and the Prince Jake books for Orchard. She is also one of the authors behind the internationally bestselling Rainbow Magic series, as Daisy Meadows.

Take a look at the excerpt below:

Patch is a ship’s cat who lives aboard The Golden Earring. Along with her friends, Cutlass the parrot and Monty the monkey, Patch frequently gets the pirate crew out of trouble – although they never realize quite how much she does to save their skins…

In their first adventure, the pirate crew discover a treasure map and set out to find where X marks the spot. But little do they know that the treasure is cursed and it’s up to Captain Cat to stop them, before it’s too late!

Illustrated by the bestselling Kate Pankhurst, Captain Cat and the Treasure Map is a laugh-out-loud piratical adventure from Sue Mongredien, perfect for newly confident readers or to enjoy together.

THE NOTHING TO SEE HERE HOTEL

Simon & Schuster UK

Available at all good bookstores in Singapore and Malaysia

You love magic? you love adventure? Then welcome to this hotel! That’s what is my review after reading initial pages of the book with my daughter. Such books allow kids to imagine what’s beyond reality but something that they can still relate to. I also think that such books encourage the creativity in kids.

There are made up words, the pace is fast, it has lovely illustrations and overall fun fun fun. I guess this book should be there in every school library.

Take a look at the excerpt below:

Welcome to The Nothing to See Here Hotel! A hotel for magical creatures, where weird is normal for Frankie Banister and his parents who run the hotel.

When a goblin messenger arrives at The Nothing to See Here Hotel, announcing the imminent arrival of the goblin prince Grogbah, Frankie and his family rush into action to get ready for their important guest. But it soon becomes obvious that the Banister family are going to have their work cut out with the demandin prince and his never-ending entourage, especially when it turns out the rude little prince is hiding a secret…

THE GIRL WITH THE BROKEN WING

Chicken House

Available at all good bookstores in Singapore and Malaysia

I would like to differ with people who say that don’t judge the book by its cover. This book’s cover is amazing and the contents too! Hilary’s arrival in the lives of James and Amanda and what happens later forms the crux of the story. It’s great read for kids who believe and don’t believe in angels.

Take a look at the excerpt below:

The twins are in bed when it happens. They hear a sound like a wet cabbage hitting the wall, then a clattering on the roof tiles, followed a little later by a tapping at the window. It’s a girl with a broken wing – and she’s come to stay. Who is she? Where has she come from? And more importantly, what does she want? The twins have no idea. Perhaps she’s their guardian angel? But would an angel have filthy feet and snore?

THE HOUSE WITH A CLOCK IN ITS WALLS FILM TIE-IN

Piccadilly Press

Available at all good bookstores in Singapore and Malaysia

Who all watched this movie which did wonderful business and had stalwarts like Cate Blanchett, Jack Black and Kyle MacLachlan? Do you know this movie is based on this book? My daughter loves to read a book and then watch movie based on it or vice-versa. This book is something that she was looking forward to read…and she is now reading it and liking it.

It’s a magical adventure for the whole family – genre that my hubby also loves.

Take a look at the excerpt below:

When Lewis Barnavelt comes to stay with his uncle Jonathan, he expects to meet an ordinary person. But he is wrong. Uncle Jonathan and his next-door neighbour, Mrs Zimmermann, are both witches! Lewis couldn’t be happier. What’s not to like about seeing his uncle practise spells and eating Mrs Zimmermann’s delicious cookies?

At first, watching magic is enough. Then Lewis experiments with magic himself and unknowingly resurrects the former owner of the house: a woman named Selenna Izard. It seems that Selenna and her husband built a timepiece into the walls – a clock that could obliterate humankind.

As the clock can be heard ticking away in the house all the time, it is up to the Barnavelts to find where it is hidden in the walls and stop it. A race against time…

LET HER FLY

Ziauddin Yousafzai
Random House UK
Available at all good bookstores in Singapore and Malaysia

We all know about the immense courage of Malala and she needs no introduction. We should also respect and salute her Dad who went against all odds to ensure that his daughter will get education and there’s nothing called Gender bias.

For over twenty years, Ziauddin Yousafzai has been fighting for equality – first for Malala, his daughter – and then for all girls throughout the world living in patriarchal societies. Let Her Fly is Ziauddin’s journey from a stammering boy growing up in a tiny village high in the mountains of Pakistan, through to being an activist for equality and the father of the youngest ever recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize – Malala.

Let Her Fly looks at what it means to love, to have courage and fight for what is inherently right. There are personal details in the book that have universal theme. It’s a must read for parents and kids both.

BRIEF ANSWERS TO BIG QUESTIONS

Stephen Hawking
Hodder UK

Available at all good bookstores in Singapore and Malaysia

Stephen Hawking is no more with us but this book and his amazing thoughts remain.

The world-famous cosmologist and #1 bestselling author of A Brief History of Time leaves us with his final thoughts on the universe’s biggest questions in this brilliant posthumous work.

How did the universe begin? Will humanity survive on Earth? Is there intelligent life beyond our solar system? Could artificial intelligence ever outsmart us?

After researching about Black Hole, Stephen Hawking turns his attention to the most urgent issues for humankind.
Wide-ranging, intellectually stimulating, passionately argued, and infused with his characteristic humour, BRIEF ANSWERS TO THE BIG QUESTIONS, the final book from one of the greatest minds in history.

Do read not just because it’s a great read but because a percentage of all royalties will go to the Motor Neurone Disease Association and the Stephen Hawking Foundation.

Love our blog which is among TOP 15 Singapore Family and Parenting blogs and Top 30 Lifestyle blogs?…Check our portfolio here. Drop a line on [email protected] to collaborate with us for your products and services or Click here to get in touch with us.