About this list

The Guardian, 25 Books

This list presents a curated set of 25 essential reads—one recommended for each year of life up to 25—designed to help young readers (and those introducing them to books) rediscover the pleasure and formative power of reading rather than impose a rigid syllabus; selections were guided by age-appropriateness, enduring emotional or cultural value, and the ability to spark enjoyment, and the compiler framed the choices as a buffet of suggestions rather than a prescriptive regimen. It was created for The Guardian by Sam Leith, who assembled the recommendations by consulting leading children’s and literary writers and critics and by prioritising titles that might kindle or rekindle a lifelong love of reading; the notable methodological points are that the list pairs one title with each year up to 25, explicitly leans on expert recommendations, and acknowledges that many worthy books were necessarily left out.

Who Voted: unknown people voted -- Jacqueline Wilson, Michael Rosen, Katherine Rundell, Frank Cottrell-Boyce, Nicolette Jones and others

This list was originally published in 2026 and was added to this site about 2 months ago.