As you may have noticed, I love reading and think it’s a great activity. If you want to inspire your reader, here are ten book series that got me into reading.

#1: The Pigeon Books, picture books by Mo. Williams. In these books, an energetic Pigeon tries to convince the reader why they should or shouldn’t do something. My favorite titles include Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus, The Pigeon Finds a Hot Dog, and Don’t Let the Pigeon Stay Up Late. These books are great for a younger audience who are becoming more interested in reading. The Pigeon is hilarious! I highly recommend these books.

#2: Elephant and Piggie Books are another book series by Mo. Williams. Elephant and Piggie are best friends, and the wording is very simple. These are great book series for a younger audience. After I read Bob Books, these were the first book series I practiced reading aloud on my own. I enjoyed rereading these books.

#3: Ricky Ricotta’s Mighty Robot books by Dav. Pilkey. Ricky Ricotta is a young mouse who gets bullied because of his size. One day, Ricky discovers the evil rat scientist Dr. Stinky McNasty has created a robot to destroy Earth. However, the robot doesn’t want to destroy Earth, so Dr. Stinky McNasty zaps the robot with a gun. To protect the robot, Ricky kicks a ball at Dr. Stinky McNasty. Because of this act of selflessness, the robot befriends Ricky, and they decide to team up to fight crime.

I feel nostalgic about these books because I grew up with them and read them so much. They’re great at helping kids transition into a higher reading level because they are super small chapter books with tons of entertaining pictures. I love many of Dav Pilkey’s books, and this one is no exception. It’s probably my favorite. I highly recommend these books and think they are great for young readers.

#4: Captain Underpants by Dav Pilkey is about two elementary school boys named Harold and George who (to sum up a long explanation) hypnotize their principal and turn him into an original comic book character they created, Captain Underpants. There are 13 books in this series, all of which are a lot of fun. There is a lot of toilet humor in these books, which I absolutely loved as a kid. 

# 5: Amulet by Kazu Kibuishi. Amulet is a graphic novel series of nine books. I read books 1-8 in my childhood, and after many years of waiting, the 9th and final book of the series finally came out after 6 years of waiting! It was worth it! The 9th book definitely took a tamer path than some of the other books, with its main purpose being to finish the series. 

Amulet is a bit on the darker side. It never bothered me, but just for reference, the first scene in the first book is of the main character, Emily, in the car with her mom and dad when they get in a major car accident. Emily is able to get out of the car, and she drags her mom out, but sadly, she can’t get her dad out, and the car falls down the cliff, and he dies. Amulet has a deep and mature story that both kids and adults alike would enjoy.

#6 Zita the Spacegirl and Mighty Jack are both graphic novels written by Ben Hatke. There are three books in the Zita the Spacegirl series, two Mighty Jack books, and one crossover book with both Zita the Spacegirl and Mighty Jack. 

In Zita the Spacegirl, Zita and her friend Joseph see a portal open, and a creature from another world takes Joseph into the portal. Zita goes through the portal to try and save Joseph and, in the process, becomes a hero. We meet so many unique and interesting characters through Zita’s journey, and while there is a lot of action, there is also a sophisticated humor to these books.

In Mighty Jack, Jack and his sister Maddy buy seeds, which their mother disagrees with them purchasing. When they plant the seeds, magical plants grow and give them unique abilities when they eat the plants. Both of these books are very good, and lighter than the Amulet series.

#7: A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket (which I’ve talked about more here https://www.opaandrews.com/post/spooky-show-book-review-a-series-of-unfortunate-events) is about the Baudelaire children whose parents die in a fire, causing them to live with the mysterious actor named Count Olaf. I’m keeping this one short just because I have a full review on this series, but I will say that this book series is phenomenal and I highly recommend it whether you’re a kid or an adult.

#8: Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling is a popular book series and movie franchise. An orphan boy named Harry discovers he’s not a “muggle” (just an average person with no magical abilities) but a wizard. Harry ends up going to a school for wizards called Hogwarts, where he learns to use his abilities to his abilities to the fullest potential. Voldemort, or “He who must not be named,” continually tries to kill Harry whenever possible. Now, I would give a bunch of reasons for why I like these books and why I recommend it, but it’s Harry Potter, one of the best-selling book series of all time. 

#9: All the book series by Rick Riordan. Rick Riordan has created many book series, and I have read almost all of them! Topics of his books include Greek Mythology, Roman Mythology, Egyptian Mythology or Norse Mythology. I’ve read Percy Jackson and the Olympians, The Heroes of Olympus, The Kane Chronicles, The Trials of Apollo, Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard, and Demigods and Magicians. Not all of these book series are as good as the others, with The Kane Chronicles and Demigods and Magicians being the weakest.

I would recommend starting with the Percy Jackson books, then The Heroes of Olympus, and after that, try the other books and see which ones you like more than the others. These are all great book series that I highly recommend. I love that these books are finally starting to get the credit they deserve because they are awesome.

#10 Goosebumps by R.L. Stine means a lot to me as it inspires my books and how I write. In case you don’t know, Goosebumps is a children’s horror book series in which every book has an evil monster, like Slappy or Dr. Maniac.

There are many different Goosebumps series, whether it’s the original series, Goosebumps 2000s, or Goosebumps Haunted Halloween (to name a few), but all of them still have the same writing style and same Goosebumps charm that makes it such a memorable series. I still enjoy re-reading these books.

Honorable Mentions: 

The Bad Guys by Aaron Blabey is about a group of villains who team up to make the ultimate villain team. In the process of being evil, they realize that they only act this way because they’ve never been given the option to act differently. I love this book series.

Dog Man by Dav Pilkey is incredibly similar to Captain Underpants' tone and humor. The main character is a combined person with a policeman's body and a Dog head, Dog Man. This graphic novel series and the writing is hilarious. I’ve continued to read the new books as they’ve come out just because the storylines are so fun. 

That concludes my top 10 book series that turned me into the reader I am today. I hope some of these series interest you, your kid, niece/nephew, or someone you know. Thanks a lot for taking the time to read this. Reading a little bit each day is a great habit, and I’m glad to help.

But now, with all of that being said, I have a question for you. What book series did you grow up with? Let me know, and always remember to keep on shivering.