16 No‑Cost and Low-Cost Book Hacks: Keep Children Reading All Summer

Keeping children reading over the holidays doesn’t have to mean buying lots of new books. Even if money is tight or you don’t live near a bookshop, there are plenty of simple, non‑patronising ways to surround your child with stories. A little planning now can make a big difference to their confidence and enjoyment when they go back to school in September.

Here are some parent‑friendly ideas to find low‑cost or free books this summer:

1. Visit your local library regularly and let your child choose their own books.

2. Check if there’s a mobile library that visits nearby villages, estates or community spots.

3. Sign up for any holiday reading schemes or the Summer Reading Challenge if it’s running locally.

4. Look for Little Free Libraries and community book boxes on your usual walking routes.

5. Hunt out swap shelves in cafés, community centres, churches or village halls.

6. Browse the book corner at your local reuse or recycling centre, where children’s titles are often very cheap.

7. Visit car boot sales, where you can often pick up bundles of children’s books for pennies.

8. Look for second‑hand book stalls at local markets or school fairs.

9. Try online second‑hand sellers such as Books 4 People and charity bookshops for discounted children’s titles.

10. Use Facebook Marketplace or local Facebook groups to find free or low‑cost bundles of children’s books.

11. Suggest a “book swap” post in your school’s parent group so families can offer books their children have finished.

12. Set up a simple WhatsApp book‑swap group for your child’s class, year group or street.

13. Encourage your child’s school to run an end‑of‑term “bring one, take one” book table.

14. Keep a small box or shelf at home for books to pass on, so sharing becomes a normal habit.

15. Use the free Pageticker app to log what your child reads and celebrate their progress.

16. Set gentle reading goals together (for example, “ten minutes a day” or “three books this month”) and mark small milestones. You can also set reading reminders, reading targets and view reading progress with the free Pageticker app.

With a bit of creativity and community spirit, you can give your child a rich summer of reading without stretching the budget or making it feel like a chore.

Is your child transitioning to secondary school?

Whether your child is preparing to start secondary school or is still finding their feet, our hand-curated booklist is here to help.

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