From bedtime high jinks to gritty thrillers – here is our pick of the best picture books, chapter books and young adult fiction for Christmas. And if you’re looking for grownup recommendations, read our guide to 2025’s best novels, nonfiction, poetry and graphic novels.
Sleep Tight, Disgusting Blob by Huw Aaron (Puffin, £7.99)
This alternative bedtime story finds a grownup blob coaxing its precious slimy green offspring away from playing Lego and off to bed. Huw Aaron’s witty rhyming verse takes readers through the evening routine of the blob and other “creatures grim and evil”: baby Dracula is brushing his fang, Medusa has washed her snakes and one poorly little demon has had his Calpol. The bright illustrations burst with amusing details and the book has a sweet overriding message that little monsters the world over – no matter how slimy – crave the same loving cuddles at bedtime.
Gozzle by Julia Donaldson and Sara Ogilvie (Macmillan, £12.99)
The queen of picture books, Julia Donaldson, has done it again with this brilliant odd-couple comedy starring a freshly hatched gosling and the gruff brown bear she adopts as her reluctant daddy. Reunited with illustrator Sara Ogilvie, her collaborator on The Detective Dog, Donaldson totally nails the voice of a cute but persistent naif gradually charming a grumpy loner, while Ogilvie’s colourful comic-strip style adds pace and a lovely sense of the passing seasons. A charming look at home and family, Gozzle also effortlessly weaves in themes of hibernation and migration.
Seven Babies by Forest Xiao (Walker, £12.99)
A talent to watch, Forest Xiao barrelled into view this year with her outrageously cute debut, Seven Babies, exploring the chaos of new parenthood. One Thursday morning: ding-dong, a box of seven babies arrives at the door of a fresh-faced couple and, before long, the tots are eating the rug, eyeing up the goldfish, attacking the bookshelves and generally feeling “very much at home”. Xiao’s exquisite newborns, with their round, quizzical faces, recall the illustrations of the mighty Helen Oxenbury.
Shadow Thieves by Peter Burns (Farshore, £7.99)
Paced like a grownup thriller, the debut children’s book by Peter Burns is an immersive page-turner that opens in a counterfactual early 20th-century London, but doesn’t stay there long. Britain is an obscure backwater; France, Prussia and Japan boss the globe. Tom is a 13-year-old homeless orphan who gets by on his wits – just the kind of new blood needed by Beaufort’s School for the Deceptive Arts (think Hogwarts, but for spies and saboteurs). Tasked with keeping order amongst the shifting alliances of the world powers, Beaufort’s is just as riven by internal intrigue. Tom must call on all his resourcefulness to outwit the dark forces swirling around him.
Small Wonder by Ross Montgomery (Walker Books £7.99)
The author of the superb animal adventure I Am Rebel (2024) has done it again with Small Wonder, a timeless thriller fable set in an imaginary kingdom. Tick and his small brother, Leaf, were once looked after by their grandfather in a remote cabin. But he is no longer with them, and the perils soon begin to mount up for Tick when he and Leaf are forced to flee invading forces threatening the troubled realm of Ellia. The road towards a mountain sanctuary is paved with foes and blizzards, but they have Pebble, their grandfather’s wise old horse, and all the knowledge he has taught Tick. Strangers are often not what they seem here – but neither are these two boys, as they eventually discover, in this coming-of-age delight for readers aged 9+.
People Like Stars by Patrice Lawrence (Scholastic £7.99)
In a world where fantasy is all the rage, children urgently need books that reflect the real world. The lives of three 13-year-olds collide in this compassionate but gripping tale – less a whodunnit than a “why-dunnit”. Overprotected Ayrton, who was almost abducted as a baby, unexpectedly makes friends with Stanley, whose estranged grandmother might have been responsible for the failed attempt. Meanwhile, Senna and her mum are precariously housed, lodging with a mysterious Banksy-like female artist called Vixen. Years of deceit – albeit well meaning – are unravelled in this funny, moving, one-of-a-kind book by the award-winning Patrice Lawrence.
A Language of Dragons by SF Williamson (HarperFire, £9.99)
In an alternative 1920s England, dragons soar through the skies and unrest simmers through a society controlled by a rigid class system. When her rebel parents are arrested, budding polyglot Vivian Featherswallow is recruited to Bletchley Park, tasked with deciphering a secret dragon language, the key to saving her family. A smart and original young adult riff on the dark academia aesthetic, SF Williamson’s book is a glorious mix of dragons, rebellion, language and romance, and the world-building is a joy. The sequel, coming in January, is just as good.
Traumaland by Josh Silver (Rock the Boat, £8.99)
This is a dark and gripping YA psychological thriller exploring mental health and emotional connection. After a near-fatal car crash, Eli is plagued by fragmented memories and emotional numbness. His quest to feel something again drives him to an underground club where virtual reality simulations immerse patrons in horrific scenarios seen through the points of view of different characters. When Eli enters the story of a boy called Jack, he begins to uncover darker truths – about the club and the source of his own pain. Raw and compelling, with dystopian undertones.
Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins (Scholastic, £19.99)
A Hunger Games prequel set 24 years before the events of the original trilogy, this is the origin story of fan favourite Haymitch Abernathy, the reclusive alcoholic who becomes mentor to Katniss Everdeen. Here, Abernathy is a courageous young tribute who readers already know will be forever haunted by his win. Expectations for this book were high, and Suzanne Collins succeeds in delivering a brutal, tender tale that adds depth to the franchise, weaving pertinent themes of misinformation and propaganda around the thrills and action.
Illustration by Luke Best
Editor’s note: our recommendations are chosen independently by our journalists. The Observer may earn a small commission if a reader clicks a link and purchases a recommended product. This revenue helps support Observer journalism