As a parent, you may find it tricky to choose the right books for your 8-year-old child. At this age, they have longer attention spans and are developing more profound interests, stronger reading skills, and a wider vocabulary. It’s also a time when learning differences may become apparent, requiring appropriate support.
But don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. In this guide, we’ve gathered some of the most exciting picture books and captivating chapter books for 8-year-olds. By finding books that your child will love and that are written at their level of understanding, you can help them cultivate a lifelong passion for reading. So, let’s dive in and explore the best books for 8-year-olds.
In This Article
HappyBabyHub’s Best Books For 8-Year-Olds Picks
1. Encyclopedia Brown, Boy Detective
The ten-year-old lead investigator in the Idaville neighborhood is Leroy Brown, also known as Encyclopedia Brown. He runs his own detective business and solves mysteries for the local youngsters thanks to his incredible talent for trivia. But since his father also serves as the police chief of Idaville, Encyclopedia assists him every evening at dinner in cracking some of the city’s most perplexing cases. Additionally, each book has ten puzzling puzzles that may be solved by Encyclopedia, and the reader is also given all the answers.
2. The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street
The brownstone on 141st Street has been the Vanderbeekers’ home for all of their time. It almost constitutes a new family member. The five siblings have eleven days to execute whatever actions are necessary to keep living in their beautiful house and persuade the terrible Beiderman of how lovely they are when their reclusive, grumpy landlord decides not to renew their lease. And when it comes to defending their house, everything is fair in love and war.
3. Wayside School Boxed Set
As you journey through the hilariously wacky Wayside School, you’ll encounter a motley crew of students, including Todd who always gets sent home early, John who reads upside down, and the infamous Mrs. Gorf, the meanest teacher around. Despite the school’s peculiarities, things get even more interesting when Sammy, the new kid, arrives and Halloween rolls around. And did we mention that the school has 30 floors stacked on top of each other? That’s right, 30 levels of classrooms all in one building! No wonder this school is always up to something unpredictable and amusing.
4. From the Notebooks of a Middle School Princess
Olivia Grace Clarisse Mignonette Harrison is a 12-year-old girl who is typically normal in height, weight, brown hair length, brown skin tone, and hazel eyes. Her name, which is too long and has a princess theme, her talent for drawing animals (useful for her future work as a wildlife illustrator), and the fact that she is a half-orphan who has never met her father and is compelled to live with her aunt and uncle (who treat her almost like their own children, so she doesn’t want to complain) are the only things that set her apart from the average person.
On a seemingly ordinary day, everything goes wrong: Annabelle Jenkins, the most popular girl in school, threatens to beat her up; the principal docks her points; she is knocked to the ground at the bus stop. Prior to this, Princess Mia Thermopolis of Genovia pulls up in a limo and invites her to New York to meet her father. He then extends an invitation for her to move in with him, Mia, Grandmère, and her two magnificent poodles. Perhaps Olivia Grace Clarisse Mignonette Harrison is not as ordinary as you would think!
5. Dragons in a Bag
Jaxon learns that the nasty old woman his mother named Ma is a witch instead of his grandmother when he is ordered to spend the day with her. She wants his assistance getting newborn dragons to a safe magical world.
When it comes to dragons, there are two rules: don’t let them out of the bag, and don’t give them anything tasty to eat. Before he realizes it, Vikram and Kavita, two of Jax’s buddies, have breached both rules! Will Jax be able to birth the baby dragons without incident? Or will they stay forever lost in Brooklyn?
6. The Pink Umbrella
When it’s sunny outside, Adele welcomes everyone who enters her café with open arms. She is the center of her neighborhood. However, she is compelled to remain indoors, tucked beneath the covers, when it rains. Due to Adele’s dedication to providing for her friends and clients, one of them chooses to do the same for her and gradually presents her with small gifts that make her smile on a gloomy, rainy day. The Pink Umbrella honors caring friendships which are important for 8-year-olds and features adorable drawings.
7. Mindy Kim and the Yummy Seaweed Business
There are only three things that Mindy Kim wants: a dog, to be accepted at her new school, and for her father to be content once more.
But it turns out that doing all three items on her list is much more difficult than she anticipated. On her first day of school, Mindy’s dry seaweed snack isn’t quite a hit with the other students at the lunch table. Fortunately, Mindy’s new classmates think the snacks are great thanks to her new buddy Sally, so they decide to launch the Yummy Seaweed Business in an effort to generate money for that dog!
Mindy loses more than she bargained for when a fellow student chooses to attempt to undermine their business, and she begins to doubt her ability to ever fit in. Will Mindy be able to get over her fear and have the guts to be who she truly is?
8. Epic Zero Series: Books 1-3: Epic Zero Collection
Elliott Harkness’s only desire is to become a superhero. Superheroes are his parents. He has a superhero sister. Even his dog is a superhero, in fact. Elliott, however, has a problem: He is a “Zero,” which is superhero lingo for someone who is helpless. He is forced to struggle through middle school while his family is out battling crime.
Elliott thinks he is just like everyone else, but then a mystery female changes everything. She thinks Elliott is the one person who can stop a mega-powerful, alien orb from falling into the wrong hands, for whatever reason. Will Elliott be able to find the strength to be the epic hero he’s always wanted to be, or will he always be simply an Epic Zero? With threatening supervillains and world-conquering aliens closing in quickly.
9. Actual Size
Caldecott Medalist Steve Jenkins depicts both large and small creatures in this aesthetically striking picture book. How large are crocodiles? What about the biggest spider in the world or a tiger? Can you picture having a tongue two feet long or eyes the size of your head? Facts and data don’t always provide a complete picture. Sometimes it’s best to observe things up close and in their true dimensions.
10. Make Way for Dyamonde Daniel
Dyamonde Daniel may be a newcomer to the area, but she quickly builds a name for herself. With a positive outlook and a brilliant mind, she completely dominates the area. She is only perplexed by the other new student in her class. He is grumpy, but Dyamonde is determined to figure out why and make a friend.
11. The Great Cake Mystery: Precious Ramotswe’s Very First Case
Have you ever thought about what it would be like to work as a detective? Well, let me tell you a story about a girl from Africa who feels the same way. Her name is Precious. One day, when a slice of cake goes missing from her classroom, a boy with an average build is accused of being the thief. However, Precious doesn’t believe it. She sets out to find the real culprit and soon learns that first impressions can be deceiving. In the process, she develops some serious detective skills.
12. Olga and the Smelly Thing from Nowhere
Olga is thrilled to meet a strange critter and learn that she is the first child to find the species olgamus ridiculus! What food consumes an olgamus? How does it urinate? Why does its burp have a rubbery sound to it? Olga embarks on a mission to do science with the aid of her go-to observation notebook, a library, a shopkeeper, and a few acquaintances. She gathers information about her stinky, nearly hairy friend and looks for him when he goes missing. The greatest way to learn anything is through the scientific approach!
13. The Secret Lake: A children’s mystery adventure
The disappearances of Harry, their elderly neighbor’s tiny dog, confound Stella and Tom as they settle into their new London house. What does he do next? And why does he keep making a wet-through reappearance? Over the course of the summer break, they attempt to solve the puzzle and uncover a boat hidden behind a grassy mound and a tunnel that lead to a hidden lake.
The boy rowing toward them appears to be so afraid — who is he? And whose sounds may be heard coming from beyond the trees on the wind? Stella and Tom quickly realize that they have been transported to their house and grounds almost a century earlier. They meet both allies and foes while exploring the astonishing parallels between the past and the present.
14. Awesome Jokes That Every 8 Year Old Should Know!
This book is a punchline powerhouse that will have mothers muttering, grandfathers sighing, and best pals pleading for more. All of them are included: timeless jokes, bizarre originals, and great new jokes. Kids will adore this book from the very first page forward since it is simple to read and has illustrations throughout for added giggles. Give your 8-year-old the opportunity to rule the roost with the best jokes in town!
15. 5,000 Awesome Facts (About Everything!)
This book is a treasure trove of fascinating and entertaining facts that will captivate and intrigue your 8-year-old. Who would have thought there were so many delightful tidbits to learn about chocolate or that a single page could be packed with a dozen mouth-watering facts about peanut butter complete with jelly splotches to entice our taste buds?
As you turn the pages, a menacing shark with razor-sharp teeth introduces himself, and other pages provide an abundance of information on topics such as games and toys, historical puzzles, robots and reptiles, sports and espionage, peculiar phrases, and much more. This book will amuse both the casual browser and the extremely detail-oriented enthusiast.
It’s a visual delight, with vibrant photographs surrounded by swirling, tilting, expanding, and ascending nuggets of information in a high-energy design that is sure to keep children engaged.
16. Smile
Raina only desires to be a typical sixth-grader. After Girl Scouts, she stumbles and falls, breaking both of her front teeth. What comes next is a protracted and difficult path that includes surgery, unsightly headgear, on-again, and off-again braces, and even a retainer with false teeth attached. Additionally, there are still other issues to contend with, like a significant earthquake, boy confusion, and unfriendly friends.
17. Ivy and Bean’s Treasure Box
Ivy and Bean are two extremely different pals who never intended to get along with one another. Bean is obnoxious, crazy, and silly. She enjoys playing games and meddling in other people’s affairs. Ivy is thoughtful and reserved. She spends most of her time being a witch. Each girl considers the other to be strange. Both girls believe that they could never be friends. However, due to their differences, opposites may occasionally become the best of friends.
Ivy & Bean’s Secret Treasure Box, which contains the first three volumes in the series, is a fun introduction to these vivacious characters and has a great surprise inside a hidden treasure box!
18. Dragons and Marshmallows
In the first volume of the series, Zoey unearths a luminous photograph and finds a remarkable mystery. Magical creatures in need of assistance begin to arrive in their backyard barn! It’s up to Zoey and Sassafras to figure out what’s wrong when a sick young dragon materializes. Will they have time to intervene before it’s too late for tiny Marshmallow?
In every novel in the Zoey and Sassafras series, a different magical animal faces a challenge that calls for scientific investigation. Each novel is different; Zoey sometimes needs to do experiments, other times she needs to look into a mystery, and yet other times she needs to conduct research.
In each narrative, Zoey demonstrates how to maintain a scientific diary through her handwritten entries. A dictionary of the kid-friendly meanings of the scientific words used is included with each narrative. The themes presented in the series, which emphasize child-led scientific inquiry, are in line with both Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards.
19. Silly Jokes for Silly Kids
This children’s joke book called Silly Jokes for Silly Kids has hundreds of amusing jokes for kids along with drawings. Children who may easily become weary of reading line after line can benefit from the images’ visual help. Kids will soon be cracking jokes and laughing with everyone. It’s fantastic for young readers! Beware, some of these jokes are very, seriously, seriously ridiculous. It’s difficult not to chuckle since it’s so absurd!
20. Fantastic Mr. Fox
The three cruelest farmers in the area have been victims of theft, and they know who the perpetrator is—Fantastic Mr. Fox! Working alone, they were unable to capture him; now, after teaming up, obese Boggis, squat Bunce, and lean Bean have Mr. Fox and his family in their sights. They are dealing with a special kind of fox; Mr. Fox would sooner die than give himself up, which is something they are unaware of. Now, only the most amazing scheme will save him.
How To Choose Books For 8-Year-Olds?
- Reading Level: While some 8-year-olds might be able to read books intended for 10-year-olds, others might still be reading at a 6-year-old level. It’s important to choose books that are at the right level for the child, as this will help them to best understand and enjoy the story.
- Interests: If they love animals, look for books with animal protagonists or stories set in the animal kingdom. If they’re fascinated by space, seek out books about space exploration or aliens. By finding books that match the child’s interests, you’ll help to ensure that they’re engaged and enthusiastic about reading.
- Theme: It is important to consider the child’s maturity when choosing books. Some eight-year-olds may be ready for books with more mature themes, while others may still prefer books that are light and fun.
What Are Some Reading Milestones For 8-Year-Olds?
Every child develops at their own pace, but there are certain milestones that are considered typical for their age group. These are the milestones for 8-year-olds (1):
- Being able to read independently for long periods of time
- Being able to read aloud with ease and confidence
- Understanding and being able to discuss the stories they read
- Demonstrating strong comprehension skills
- Being able to read and understand a variety of different genres of text
- Having a large vocabulary and being able to use sophisticated words and phrases in their writing
How To Encourage Your 8-Year-Old To Read?
- Create a comfortable and inviting reading space in your home
- Take your child to the library or bookstore to pick out books that interest them
- Read aloud to your child every day (2)
- Have your child read aloud to you
- Talk about the stories you’re reading together
- Encourage your child to ask questions about the stories they’re reading
