Dover’s 2026 Summer Reading Program: Building a Lasting Love of Books for Ages 3-12
Made plans for the kids this summer? Road trips, vacation flights, train rides, camping adventures, or simply lounging at home? Whatever your summer plans are, be sure to grab some good books to keep those young imaginations busy and screen-free. Start their reading adventures with Dover’s 2026 Summer Reading Program, a curated book list for readers ages 3 to 12. The program begins on May 25th, offering an 8-week budget-friendly escape into timeless classics and our latest bestsellers, and ends with a survey closing on July 20, 2026. Get kids started on a fun-filled summer of reading packed with creativity and discovery. Find your age group, choose four of your favorite books, and start your adventures now!
Stories, Picture Books & Motor Skills for 3-5 Years Old
Interactive and multisensory books are perfect introductions for little readers! Engage young senses with Colors to Touch: Red and Marley Bear at the Farm, featuring fun touch-and-feel experiences. Pop-Up Pals: Let's Splash, Penguin! is a delightful story about a penguin’s first swim and ends with a 3D pop-up surprise. Snuggle up with Twenty Dinosaurs at Bedtime, a vibrant dinosaur adventure that blends storytelling with counting. Generational classic The Berenstain Bears' Storytime Treasury offers four timeless tales perfect for reading anytime. Super Simple Color Your 123s and The Little ABC Coloring Book provide creative outlets that build fine motor skills and spark imaginations through coloring. Add these thoughtfully chosen books to children’s first home library to help inspire a lifelong love for reading.
Exciting Discoveries for 6-8 Years Old
Growing up has never been more fun! In Now We Are Six, A. A. Milne, author of Winnie-the-Pooh, captures the wondrous inner voice of childhood discovery. Author Dawn McMillan offers the hysterically funny tale of a boy’s troublesome backside in I Need a New Butt!. Environmental awareness is the focus of McMillan’s other book, Seagull Sid and the Naughty Things His Seagulls Did!, about a seagull’s mischievous plan to save our planet from littering adults. Long-standing family favorites, The Real Mother Goose, and Newbery award-winner My Father's Dragon continue their reign as beloved read-aloud fantasy stories. The Berenstain Bears' Big Book of Science and Nature provides an exciting foundation for young STEM learners, featuring science projects about animals, nature, and the seasons. Play, Learn, Explore Space will take little ones out of this world and into the cosmos! Get ready for takeoff with a boarding pass, stickers, posters, and lots of fun activities to guide you through the universe.
Adventures and Mysteries for 9-12 Years Old
These independent minds are ready for big adventures, fantasy, and mystery! An undiscovered island where a race of mystical humans co-exists in harmony with intelligent dinosaurs leads readers into the imaginative world of Dinotopia, A Land Apart from Time. The timeless classic, Adventures of Don Quixote, highlights the hilarious adventures of the idealistic would-be knight and his "squire," Sancho Panza, in a humorous tale of friendship reminiscent of the streaming HBO hit A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms. Teen detectives The Hardy Boys and Nancy Drew continue to fascinate millions of readers around the world with classic mystery stories that trigger curiosity in The Tower Treasure, The Hardy Boys Book 1, and The Secret of the Old Clock. Pollyanna has brightened readers’ lives since 1913 with the bubbly nature of its lively eleven-year-old orphan protagonist, Pollyanna Whittier. The Box-Car Children is ranked among the all-time National Education Association's "Teachers' Top 100 Books for Children.” This popular, long-running favorite is a survival story about four orphaned runaways living in an abandoned boxcar. Kids excited by the recent Artemis II trip around the moon will love My First Book About Outer Space, a Moonbeam Award-winning children’s book offering budding astronauts answers to questions about the universe and coloring fun.
Make this summer one to remember with a reading program designed to spark a lasting love of books in children ages 3-12. Start your summer reading now!
Please note: The program officially begins on Monday, May 25th, 2026, and the survey will close on Monday, July 20th, 2026.
