This list supports emotional intelligence, kindness, resilience, empathy, faith, and positive character development.

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​👶 Babies, Toddlers & Preschool

• Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes – Mem Fox
Celebrates the joy, wonder, and universality of new life.

 

• It’s a Mitzvah! – Suzy Ultman
Introduces everyday acts of kindness, peace, and good deeds.

 

• Little Blue Truck – Alice Schertle
Shows the power of friendship, teamwork, and cooperation.

 

• Wrapping Things – Linda Burgess
Explores welcoming a new baby and family bonding.

 

• Before You Close Your Eyes – Scott Stuart
Encourages reflection, gratitude, and calm before bedtime.

 

• How Big Is Love? – Carl Merrison & Hakea Hustler
Reassures children of the boundless depth of love.

 

• Shmoof – Heidi McKinnon
Teaches responsibility, care, and compassion toward pets.

 

• World of Colour – Jess Racklyeft
Encourages wonder, curiosity, and appreciation of nature.

 

• Peanut Butter and Cupcake – Terry Border
Celebrates friendship, differences, and acceptance.

 

• I’m Not Just a Scribble – Diane Alber
Builds self-confidence, creativity, and self-expression.

 

• Stick and Stone – Beth Ferry & Tom Lichtenheld
Highlights loyalty, bravery, and standing up for friends.

 

• My Many Coloured Days – Dr Seuss
Helps children understand and express a wide range of emotions.

 

• In My Heart: A Book of Feelings – Jo Witek
Encourages emotional awareness and acceptance of all feelings.

 

• Why Is Baby Joe Crying, Papa? – Anna Mills
Normalises emotions and builds empathy and understanding.

 

• We’re Going on a Bear Hunt – Michael Rosen & Helen Oxenbury
Teaches bravery, resilience, and perseverance through challenges.

 

• When I’m Feeling… Collection – Trace Moroney
Helps children identify, manage, and understand emotions.

 

• Magic Beach – Alison Lester
Celebrates imagination, play, and joy in nature.

 

• Giraffes Can’t Dance – Giles Andreae
Encourages self-belief, confidence, and embracing uniqueness.

 

• Alexander’s Outing – Pamela Allen
Highlights family protection, caution, and care.

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• The Magic Pudding - Norman Lindsay

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• Snuggle pot and Cuddle Pie - May Gibbs

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🎒 Early Primary

• Another Year Around the Sun – Katrina Germein
Appreciates family, nature, and the passing of time through the seasons.

 

• A Thread of Kindness – Leah-Perl Shollar
Shows how small acts of kindness connect us all.

 

• The Invisible String – Patrice Karst
Explains emotional connection and love even when apart.

 

• The Giving Tree – Shel Silverstein
Explores generosity, giving, and unconditional love.

 

• Have You Filled a Bucket Today? – Carol McCloud
Teaches kindness, empathy, and emotional wellbeing.

 

• Not That Question Again – Belinda Blecher
Encourages meaningful parent-child communication.

 

• Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge – Mem Fox
Explores memory, ageing, and empathy.

 

• Be Kind – Pat Zietlow Miller
Shows how small acts of kindness make a big difference.

 

• Kindness Makes Us Strong – Sophie Beer
Encourages everyday kindness and empathy.

 

• The Carrot Seed – Ruth Krauss
Teaches patience, hope, and belief.

 

• Prayer for a River – Andrew Kelly
Encourages gratitude for water and environmental awareness.

 

• Here Come the Cousins – Maggie Hutchins
Celebrates extended family, togetherness, and belonging.

 

• The Friendship Book – Zanni Louise
Explores how friendships grow through kindness and care.

 

• The Little Engine That Could – Watty Piper
Inspires perseverance, optimism, and determination.

 

• The Good Deeds Dogs – Emma Chichester Clark
Encourages kindness and helping others.

 

• Sundays Under the Lemon Tree – Julia Busuttil Nishimura
Celebrates family tradition and togetherness.

 

• Ten Small Things I Can Do to Help My Planet – Melanie Walsh
Builds environmental responsibility and awareness.

 

• A Hatful of Dreams – Bob Graham
Celebrates grandparent-grandchild relationships and imagination.

 

• Giant Parsnip Soup – Daniela Sosa
Shows cooperation, teamwork, and friendship.

 

• Between – Anna Walker
Explores empathy, emotional connection, and belonging.

 

• Grandpa’s Guide to Happiness – Andrew Daddo
Shares wisdom, perspective, and life lessons.

 

• Where Would You Go? – Alison Lester & Jane Goodwin
Encourages imagination, curiosity, and family connection.

 

• One Race – Gregg Dreiser
Promotes unity, inclusion, and shared humanity.

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📚 Primary

• How to Heal a Broken Wing – Bob Graham
Teaches compassion and care for the vulnerable.

 

• The Humble Pie – Jory John
Encourages humility, growth, and self-reflection.

 

• Noah and His Special Friend – Susan Sara Feiga Zimmerman
Introduces moral responsibility and universal values.

 

• What Should Danny Do? – Adir Levy
Shows how choices shape outcomes and character.

 

• I Wish You More – Amy Krouse Rosenthal
Encourages reflection, gratitude, and life aspirations.

 

• All Kinds of Strong – Kris Wiltse
Celebrates emotional, mental, and physical strength.

 

• Listen With Your Heart – Raizy Metzger & Esty Raskin
Builds sensitivity, inclusion, and compassion for children with challenges.

 

• I Wish You Happiness – Michael Wong
Shares heartfelt wishes for a meaningful, joyful, and kind life.

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• Heidi - Johanna Spyri

• Nancy Drew - Carolyn Keene (Good values)

• Gulliver’s travels - Jonathan Swift

• Wind in the Willows - Kenneth Grahame

• Marigold at Grandmother’s house - Joyce Lankester Brisley

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OLDER TEENS & YOUNG ADULTS

• Night - by Elie Weisel
Holocaust classic

 

• All Charles Dickens
Social justice

 

• All Jane Austen
Marriage

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high schools

• Little Women - Louisa May Alcott

• Little Men - Louisa May Alcott
  Good Values
   

• Around the World in Eighty Days - Jules Verne
  Good deeds
   

• A Wrinkle in Time - Madeline L’Engle
  What is truth and what is false
   

• The Green Kingdom - Cornelia Funke and Tammi Hartung
  The sacredness of the plant world
   

• To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee

• The Diary of Anna Frank - Holocaust classic

• Heidi – Johanna Spyri

• The Secret Garden - Frances Hodgson Burnett
   

• Karen - Marie Killilea
  The story of a girl born with Cerebral Palsy told by her mother
   

• The Getting of Wisdom - Henry Handel Richards

• My Place - Donna Rawline and Nadia Wheatley

• My Brother Jack - Norman Lindsay