Read-alouds and series
Book series to binge at ages 10 to 13
Older kids who want sixty hours of the same world have more choices than you might guess. These start strong and keep a long arc going.
Titles, authors and publication details were checked against Open Library in October 2026; age ranges follow publisher and library guidance and are approximate. Series order is the order of publication. Checked 2026-10-25. Nobody paid to be here. The buy links are plain search links, not affiliate links, so Peabody earns nothing from them.
Keeper of the Lost Cities
Shannon Messenger · Ages 9-13
Sophie, a telepath, finds out she is an elf. Order: Keeper of the Lost Cities, Exile, Everblaze, Neverseen, Lodestar, Nightfall, Flashback, Legacy, Stellarlune, Unlocked (a companion).
Watch for: Ten long books.
Buy: Bookshop.org · Amazon
The Land of Stories
Chris Colfer · Ages 8-12
Twins fall into a fairy-tale land. Start with The Wishing Spell.
Buy: Bookshop.org · Amazon
The Mysterious Benedict Society
Trenton Lee Stewart · Ages 9-13
Gifted children in a puzzle-filled spy plot. Start with The Mysterious Benedict Society.
Buy: Bookshop.org · Amazon
The Chronicles of Prydain
Lloyd Alexander · Ages 9-13
A pig-keeper becomes a hero. Order: The Book of Three, The Black Cauldron, The Castle of Llyr, Taran Wanderer, The High King (Newbery Medal, 1969).
Watch for: War and death in the last books.
Buy: Bookshop.org · Amazon
Artemis Fowl
Eoin Colfer · Ages 9-13
A twelve-year-old criminal mastermind kidnaps a fairy. Start with Artemis Fowl.
Buy: Bookshop.org · Amazon
The Spiderwick Chronicles
Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi · Ages 8-12
Three kids find a field guide to faeries. Start with The Field Guide.
Buy: Bookshop.org · Amazon
A Series of Unfortunate Events
Lemony Snicket · Ages 9-13
Three orphans chased by a count. Start with The Bad Beginning; thirteen books.
Watch for: Peril, parents die, an unresolved ending.
Buy: Bookshop.org · Amazon
Ranger's Apprentice
John Flanagan · Ages 10-14
A boy is taken as an apprentice to a ranger. Start with The Ruins of Gorlan.
Watch for: Battles with deaths.
Buy: Bookshop.org · Amazon
Gregor the Overlander
Suzanne Collins · Ages 9-13
A boy falls through a grate into an underground world. Five books by the author of The Hunger Games; start with Gregor the Overlander.
Watch for: War with deaths.
Buy: Bookshop.org · Amazon
Fablehaven
Brandon Mull · Ages 9-13
Two siblings spend a summer at a sanctuary for magical creatures. Start with Fablehaven; five books.
Buy: Bookshop.org · Amazon
More lists
Book series to binge at ages 8 to 10
At eight to ten, many children want a long run of books and will read one every night.
Books to read after Harry Potter
Kids who finish Harry Potter want a school, a hidden world and a mystery.
Mo Willems books beyond Elephant & Piggie
Mo Willems made more than the famous pair.
Top 15 chapter books to read aloud to a Pre-K or kindergartener
Reading a chapter a night builds attention and vocabulary well before a child reads one alone.
Best picture book read-alouds for ages 2 to 4
Toddlers and preschoolers want rhythm, repetition and pictures they can point at.
Best picture book read-alouds for ages 5 to 7
By five, kids can follow a real plot and enjoy a joke the grown-up has to deliver well.
Chapter books to read aloud to the whole family
A good family read-aloud works for a six-year-old and a ten-year-old at the same time, and the adult does not mind the fortieth chapter.
Best bedtime books for kids
A bedtime book should slow down by the last page.