Books & Reviews
25 Books Every Family Should Have at Home
A shelf for every age in the house, from first stories to the ones you'll read together at fourteen.
2 min read
Stories
Stories about reading,
children and family life.
Personal essays and practical ideas about raising readers, reluctant readers, family evenings and relationships, and the books that sometimes help us understand all of it.
Editor's selection
Books & Reviews
15 Books to Read Before Your Child Turns 7
Not a checklist. A shelf of stories worth sharing while they still want you to read them aloud.
2 min read
Books & Reviews
7 Books That Keep 5-Year-Olds Interested
Seven picture books that hold a five-year-old's attention: funny, a little scary, full of rhythm and surprises. Why each one works, and what kind of child it suits best.
2 min read
Reading Life
The Books We Remember From Childhood, and Why They Stay With Us
Most of us can't remember the plot of a book we loved at eight, but we remember exactly how it felt. Why childhood books stay with us for life, and what that means for the stories we give our children now.
2 min read
The Weekly Letter
One letter a week about reading and family life.
Once a week: a short personal note, one article about reading or family life, one practical idea to try, and a question you can answer just by replying. One email a week, never a sales pitch.
Parents & Children
Reading with children is rarely only about books.
Parents & Children
How to Help a Child Who Reads Slowly Without Making Them Feel Behind
Speed is the thing everyone notices. It's rarely the thing that matters most.
1 min read
Love & Relationships
Stories about the ways we find each other, lose each other and sometimes find our way back.
Love & Relationships
20 Questions to Ask Your Partner Instead of “How Was Your Day?”
“Fine” is not an answer. It's a door closing politely.
1 min read
Reading Life
Our odd, changing, lifelong relationship with reading itself.
Reading Life
The Books That Find Us When Life Isn't Going Well
Some books arrive exactly when we need them. That isn't a coincidence.
1 min read
More from Reading Life
I Took the Stars Off ALMA
3 min read
Books & Reviews
Reviews with a point of view: what a book understands about people, and what didn't work.
Books & Reviews
Funny Story by Emily Henry: Whose Story Was It, Really?
A real review, not a press release dressed up as an opinion.
Life & Us
The ordinary, unglamorous parts of being a person, and the books that sometimes help with them.
Life & Us
Put the Phones Away. Pick One Book. Try This Tonight.
A small screen-free evening for the whole family, no planning required.
1 min read
Latest stories
Parents & Children
How to Create a Reading Corner Your Child Will Actually Use
Beautiful reading nooks often go unused. How to create a reading corner for kids that they choose on their own: light, comfort, the right books at the right height, and very little else.
1 min read · 3 November 2026
Parents & Children
Your Child Keeps Choosing the Same Book. Should You Let Them?
Why do children want the same book read again and again? Rereading builds confidence, language and comfort. Why it's worth saying yes, and gentle ways to add something new without taking the favourite away.
1 min read · 2 November 2026
Parents & Children
How to Choose Books for a Reluctant Reader
Choosing books for a reluctant reader is less about levels and more about hooks. How to find books a child who avoids reading will open, finish and ask about, with simple questions to guide every choice.
1 min read · 28 October 2026
Parents & Children
Is My Child Behind in Reading? What Parents Should Look For
Is my child behind in reading, or just reading at their own pace? What's normal varies more than parents think. The signs worth paying attention to, the ones that aren't, and when to talk to a teacher.
2 min read · 26 October 2026
Parents & Children
10 Questions to Ask Your Child After Reading a Book
Ten questions to ask children after a story that open a real conversation instead of testing them. No right answers, no comprehension quiz, just ways into what your child noticed and felt.
1 min read · 22 October 2026
Parents & Children
What to Do When Your Child Says “Reading Is Boring”
“Reading is boring” is one of the most common things children say about books. What it usually means, what not to say back, and practical ways to help a child find a book that isn't.
1 min read · 21 October 2026