
Join the YKNR community!
Your Kid’s Next Read is a Facebook community made up of parents, teachers, authors, librarians, booksellers, bloggers, publishers and other interested parties, all ready to help you find just the right book for the young reader in your life.
We believe it takes a village to raise a reader – and so we created our own.


The Your Kids Next Read story
Your Kid’s Next Read is an idea that became a community, a podcast and more. It grew, as so many things do, from a need, followed by a conversation between friends.
In 2017, Allison Tait, Megan Daley and Allison Rushby started a Facebook group aimed at helping parents in the same boat that they were in – trying to find great books to engage their very different young readers.
Today the group has 30,000+ members – parents, friends, teachers, booksellers, authors, publishers, bloggers, reviewers, grandparents, aunts, uncles and other interested parties – all interested in one thing: getting and keeping the kids in their lives reading.
Your Kid’s Next Read operates under the ethos that there is always a terrific ‘next read’ for every young reader – from those who love reading to those who need more encouragement. The challenging part is finding it.
With the Your Kid’s Next Read community on your side, you’re likely to have too MANY choices rather than too few.

The Your Kids Next Read book lists
The Your Kid’s Next Read book lists are famous – and justly so. We gather the best book recommendations from many sources, including our Facebook community, industry experts and, of course, our combined experience and knowledge.
We update these lists as regularly as we can, so keep an eye on this page!
Here are some of the most popular Your Kid’s Next Read book lists.

Early childhood
- 2021 Best books for 0-18 months
- 2021 Best books for 2-4 year olds
- Books for children on separation and divorce
- 5 picture books that explore cultural diversity with grandparents
Lower primary
Middle-upper primary
- 2021 Best books for 8-10 year olds
- YKNR: Books for readers aged 10+
- 24 books for tween boys with ‘nothing to read’
- What to read after Harry Potter and Percy Jackson
- 31 books for tween girls with ‘nothing to read’
- More spooky stories for kids 8+
Middle-grade
- 2021 Best books for 10-12 year olds
- 40 YA books for tweens (+25+ MG books that feel like YA)
- 24 books for tween boys with ‘nothing to read’
- What to read after Harry Potter and Percy Jackson
- 31 books for tween girls with ‘nothing to read’
- 15 amazing Australian novels for readers 10+ (on their way to YA)
Kids 13+
- 2021 Best Books for 12-14 year olds
- 21 tried-and-tested books for 13/14 year old boys
- 15 more tried-and-tested books for 13/14-year-old boys (+ 13 expert choices)
- 60 more tried-and-tested books for 13/14-year-old boys
- 33 New #LoveOzYA book gifts for teens
All ages
- 25 books about Muslim life for kids of all ages
- YKNR best books of 2022
- 21 children’s and YA books about gender identity
- The ultimate Your Kid’s Next Read best books of 2021 Holiday Reading List
- 12 books with insights into autism and neurodiversity, from picture books to YA
- 21 books for kids who like science (and kids who don’t like science YET)
Of course, all the very best groups have…
Merchandise
The Facebook community that spawned a podcast now has merch!
We’ve got Your Kid’s Next Read t-shirts for adults (seen above – we missed our calling as models) and kids, as well as a tote that is librarian-blessed for use as a school book bag! See all products and buy here.
Team YKNR is super-excited to be partnering with the fabulous Tilly & Wilbur – who offer quality, sustainably produced garments sourced from other Australian businesses with a strong ethical vision.
We donate 10 per cent of profits towards the Indigenous Literacy Foundation and put the rest put towards running costs for the podcast and the community.
