Harry Potter and his journey from the neglected boy under the stairs to the triumphant hero has left his mark on the hearts and minds of children for more than 25 years. But once your kids have read or re-read the series, there are plenty of books like Harry Potter yet for them to explore. Read on to see what titles will delight your little witches and wizards.
The Uncommoners Trilogy by Jennifer Bell
$8 BUY NOWHarry Potter fans will be thrilled to discover the secret underground city below London, where everything ordinary is magic: think yo-yos as weapons, buttons that can heal, belts that help you fly. When their grandmother is taken to the hospital, siblings Ivy and Seb are forced to flee their home and find themselves the strange city of Lundinor where they begin to discover their family is not as ordinary as they thought. Recommended age: 8 to 11
The Marvellers by Dhonielle Clayton, illustrated by Khadijah Khatib
$13 BUY NOWMarvellers from around the world attend the prestigious Arcanum Training Institute, a school in the sky where students come to practice cultural arts, including bartering with Irish pixies and brewing Indian spice elixirs. Hot off the press in May of 2022, this fantastic new series brings readers into the world of 11-year-old Ella Durand, the first Conjuror to attend the school. But being the first is fraught with difficulty—some of the other students mistrust Ella’s magic. But Ella befriends other misfits at the school and together, they must fight the world’s most dangerous criminal. The connection to discrimination against people of color and the fight against the white patriarchy will not be lost on your child. It’s beautifully done, a Hogwarts for the next generation. We can’t wait to read anything and everything this author writes. Recommended age: 8-12
The Young Wizards Series by Diane Duane
$11 BUY NOWThis first book in this epic series of ten books, "So You Want to Be a Wizard," was published in 1983, so it pre-dates Harry Potter by a good ten years. That year it won the American Library Association "ALA Quick Pick for Reluctant Young Adult Readers" award. Exceptionally well written and engaging, the series starts with a bullied young girl taking refuge in the library, where she runs her hands along a bookshelf. She feels a loose thread in the spine of a book. She pulls it from the shelf and discovers it is a "So You Want to Be a Wizard" book. That night she takes the Wizard's Oath, which sets her on a path of discovering her true powers and those around her who are wizards. After reading the first book, they'll be thrilled to learn that nine more are to go. Recommended age: 8 to 12.
This funny, cute series follows little Mildred Hubble and her magical misadventures at Miss Cackle's Academy for Witches. As you might have guessed, Mildred is not exactly the best at flying on her broomstick without crashing or doing her spells right. And she's also got a Draco Malfoy-like problem: the teacher's pet, Ethel. Your kids will enjoy cheering for Mildred throughout this seven-book series. It's a chapter book, but even younger kids can enjoy it as a read-aloud or read together. Recommended age: 5 to 10.
The Lost Years of Merlin Series by T.A. Barron
$9 BUY NOWThis epic twelve-book series follows a young boy who washes up on the shores of Wales—Merlin—before he was the infamous wizard. The saga is set to be adapted to film by Disney, though no exact release date is known, which means they’ve got plenty of time to devour every book. There’s a decidedly “Lord of the Rings” quality to this book, and we mean that as a compliment. Recommended age: 10 to 13
The Thirteen Witches Trilogy by Jodi Lynn Anderson
$7 BUY NOWThis fantasy trilogy features a young girl as the heroine, Rosie. She is the caregiver to herself and her mother because a curse is stealing her mom’s memory. Rosie vows to break the curse but must face dark magic and dark things to triumph. Recommended age: 9 to 13 or even a little older.
The Wizards of Once series by Cressida Cowell
$9 BUY NOWWritten by the author of the How to Train Your Dragon series, Cressida Cowell, who has artfully created another beautiful and epic landscape of adventure and magic. The books will have your kids hooked from page one. Read them in order—one to four—to track the escapades of Xar, son of the King of Wizards, and Wish, daughter of the Warrior Queen, who are driven together despite being from two opposing worlds. Recommended age: 8 to 12
Forthcoming: How to Heal a Gryphon by Meg Cannistra
$17 BUY NOWThe first book in the brand new Giada the Healer series won’t be out until October of 2022, but it’s a well-worth a pre-order for holiday gift-giving. As Giada Bellantuono approaches her thirteenth birthday, she knows she will need to decide whether to join the family business as a healer or follow her heart and her dreams. Though she is a gifted healer and specifically skilled at healing animals, she also wants to heal magical creatures, which is strictly forbidden. Get in on this series from the start, as it promises to be just what Harry Potter fans, or fans of magical fiction in general, are craving. Recommended age: 8 to 12.
Forthcoming: The Gingerbread Witch by Alexandra Overy
$17 BUY NOWA clever “fractured fairy tales” type of witchscapade, order this book now for its fall release date, just in time for Halloween. Told from the point of view of the gingerbread-turned-human-daughter of the witch (Agatha, of course!) in Hansel and Gretel, Maud storms off after a fight with her mother. Upon her return, she discovers that her mother has been pushed into the oven by a couple of nasty witch hunters—Hansel and Gretel. This forces Maud into a quest to find a magical spellbook that will hopefully bring her mother back. Incredibly clever, this would make a delightful autumnal bedtime story to read together. Recommended age: 8 to 12.
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