Fans pick 80 books like The Wonder Book

By Martin Handford,

Here are 80 books that The Wonder Book fans have personally recommended if you like The Wonder Book. Shepherd is a community of 12,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Book cover of Stephen Biesty's Cross-Sections Castle

Deborah Niland Author Of Annie's Chair

From my list on to happily lose yourself for hours.

Why am I passionate about this?

Being a children’s illustrator and writer, I have built up a well-loved collection of childen’s books over the years. They must have great drawings and imaginative concepts. They are books I can come back to again and again. The books I have chosen are ones where you can lose yourself in their intricate detailed worlds and forget about day-to-day troubles for a while. These books can also help reluctant readers by enticing them into a visual world first and then into appreciating the written word. 

Deborah's book list on to happily lose yourself for hours

Deborah Niland Why did Deborah love this book?

This book describes and shows what life was like in a 14th-century castle. If you have ever wondered how hundreds of people lived and worked in a castle then this is the book. The mind-boggling detail in the illustrations keeps me poring over them for ages. Each page reveals a cut-away of the castle interior from turrets to dungeons! All the books in this series are incredible in their detail and knowledge.

By Richard Platt, Stephen Biesty (illustrator),

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Stephen Biesty's Cross-Sections Castle as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 7, 8, 9, and 10.

What is this book about?

History comes alive in this incredible children's illustrated book about castles. Slicing through different areas of a medieval fortress, extraordinary views reveal the people busy inside, and preparing for battle as an enemy army approaches.

Packed with facts, you'll find out what it takes to build a massive 14th-century castle, dress a knight in armour, or prepare a feast fit for a king or queen. From the drawbridge to the dungeon, Cross-sections Castle swarms with the people who keep the castle ticking over - the workers, craftsmen, and servants. And, as you pore over every page, look out for the…


Book cover of Apartment Book

Deborah Niland Author Of Annie's Chair

From my list on to happily lose yourself for hours.

Why am I passionate about this?

Being a children’s illustrator and writer, I have built up a well-loved collection of childen’s books over the years. They must have great drawings and imaginative concepts. They are books I can come back to again and again. The books I have chosen are ones where you can lose yourself in their intricate detailed worlds and forget about day-to-day troubles for a while. These books can also help reluctant readers by enticing them into a visual world first and then into appreciating the written word. 

Deborah's book list on to happily lose yourself for hours

Deborah Niland Why did Deborah love this book?

This book has so much detail to keep the reader fascinated. It’s like looking inside a doll’s house with its constant activity from all the families and residents living there and what they get up to over the course of a day. Each page is a gem and the intricate detail keeps you engrossed in their lives. Adults would enjoy this book too. I still have my well-loved copy from 1995.

By Richard Platt, Leo Hartas,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Apartment Book as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 9, 10, 11, and 12.

What is this book about?

Illustrates a day in the life of an apartment building by showing activities going on in different units at various times between 7:00 a.m. and 1:00 a.m.


Book cover of Yellow Yellow

Deborah Niland Author Of Annie's Chair

From my list on to happily lose yourself for hours.

Why am I passionate about this?

Being a children’s illustrator and writer, I have built up a well-loved collection of childen’s books over the years. They must have great drawings and imaginative concepts. They are books I can come back to again and again. The books I have chosen are ones where you can lose yourself in their intricate detailed worlds and forget about day-to-day troubles for a while. These books can also help reluctant readers by enticing them into a visual world first and then into appreciating the written word. 

Deborah's book list on to happily lose yourself for hours

Deborah Niland Why did Deborah love this book?

I have kept my copy of this book since the 1970s! The story is simply told but the illustrations drawn in black ink and one colour are so full of weird and quirky things that appeal to my imagination. Every time I look at it I see something new!  A great book for beginner readers and eagle-eyed children and adults. A perfect picture book.

By Frank Asch, Mark Alan Stamaty (illustrator),

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Yellow Yellow as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Yellow Yellow is a charmingly simple story of a child whose playground is a gritty urban cityscape, written by Frank Asch and drawn by Mark Alan Stamaty. With no parent in sight, the boy wanders the sidewalks to find a yellow construction hat that quickly becomes his favorite belonging, earning him many compliments from strangers on nearby stoops. Eventually the boy meets the owner of the hat and must return it, leading the child to make his own yellow hat. Yet the story comes alive via the visual feast of urban oddities that the Who Needs Donuts? cartoonist Stamaty packs…


Book cover of The Animal Atlas: A Pictorial Guide to the World's Wildlife

Deborah Niland Author Of Annie's Chair

From my list on to happily lose yourself for hours.

Why am I passionate about this?

Being a children’s illustrator and writer, I have built up a well-loved collection of childen’s books over the years. They must have great drawings and imaginative concepts. They are books I can come back to again and again. The books I have chosen are ones where you can lose yourself in their intricate detailed worlds and forget about day-to-day troubles for a while. These books can also help reluctant readers by enticing them into a visual world first and then into appreciating the written word. 

Deborah's book list on to happily lose yourself for hours

Deborah Niland Why did Deborah love this book?

I love to see beautifully drawn animals and this book has it in abundance. For animal lovers who want to know more about animal habitats worldwide. Find out interesting facts about hundreds of rare and common species and enjoy the detailed and beautiful artwork of Kenneth Lilly. This book is a delight for any age group.

By DK, Kenneth Lilly (illustrator),

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Animal Atlas as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 9, 10, 11, and 12.

What is this book about?

Explore the animal kingdom with this pictorial atlas of the world's wildlife.

Where do animals build their homes? How do they survive in very hot and cold climates? Why are so many species endangered?

Discover the answers to all these questions and many more in The Animal Atlas. Learn where in the world different animal species are found; what kind of habitats they live in; what they eat; and how they find their mates.

The Animal Atlas is packed with beautiful, life-like depictions of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and insects. Each species is carefully hand-drawn to show details of fur,…


Book cover of Behind the Scenes at the Museum

Jennifer Saint Author Of Elektra

From my list on grief and complicated family dynamics.

Why am I passionate about this?

For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated with the unbroken chain of storytelling that stretches from the ancient world to the present day, which is why I write mythological retellings. So many myths tackle grief and families in all their myriad forms and shapes, and their continued existence shows us how storytelling is a healing process and always has been. We can see our own complicated family relationships and the profound impact of love and loss reflecting back to us across the centuries. Fiction continues to do this for us today too and I’ve chosen the modern books which I think do this the best. 

Jennifer's book list on grief and complicated family dynamics

Jennifer Saint Why did Jennifer love this book?

My copy of this book is battered, dog-eared, and creased from the sheer number of times I’ve read and re-read it. It’s an absolutely glorious family saga, recounted by Ruby who narrates her own conception in the first chapter and takes us back through generations weaving together all the different stories that lead up to the events of her own life. It’s brilliantly funny and heartbreaking and it skewers the oddities and dysfunction of family relationships so perfectly. Characters wrestle with their grief, they deny it and suppress it and it rears up to overwhelm them but ultimately they find their way through. I’m with them every step of the way, unable to put the book down whenever I pick it up again…and again! 

By Kate Atkinson,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Behind the Scenes at the Museum as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Whitbread Book of the Year, 1995. Ruby was born while her father was in the pub. Her mother, Bunty, had never wanted to marry him, and dreamt of being swept off to America by a romantic hero, but instead, was stuck in a flat with her three children. This is the family's story.


Book cover of City Lights: A Street Life

Chris Nickson Author Of Brass Lives

From my list on Leeds as it was.

Why am I passionate about this?

I was born and raised in Leeds and moved back here in 2013. My ancestors first came here a couple of hundred years ago. The place is my passion, but it’s also in my DNA. I write historical crime novels, many of them set in Leeds between 1730 and 1957. I know this place through the soles of my feet. My work means constantly researching its history, trying to understand this city, how it shifts and changes, and the people who call it home. The longer I continue, the greater my fascination, and the deeper I dive to keep learning more. These books all beat with the heart of Leeds.

Chris' book list on Leeds as it was

Chris Nickson Why did Chris love this book?

Waterhouse was famous as a journalist, dramatist, and novelist. But this memoir of growing up in Leeds from the 1930s-50s brings the place and time completely alive. He didn’t have a privileged upbringing, by any means, and Waterhouse captures the day-to-day of poor areas and estates, and well as the magic of the city centre. The novel Billy Liar brought him fame, and while the location was unnamed, it was the Leeds he’d known, right down to the funeral home where he worked after leaving school. Waterhouse innately understood Leeds and its people, and they jump off the page – even if he leaves at the end (something Billy Liar could never bring himself to do). Read this and you’ll carry a magnificent picture of the city in your head.

By Keith Waterhouse,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked City Lights as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Keith Waterhouse was born in a world that has now vanished - a soot-blackened, tramcar-rattling provincial city. It happened to be Leeds. Waterhouse was a true city-boy, deeply mistrustful of grass and trees. In early childhood, he would roam the covered markets, the carillon-chiming arcades. As a youth he came to know the cinemas and the theatres. Then, as a junior reporter, he trod the tiled corridors of civic power. Moving "down south", his first impression of London was the sign in Piccadilly Circus; picked out in electric light bulbs, it was a heart-warming replica of the Bovril sign in…


Book cover of Living the RV Life: Your Ultimate Guide to Life on the Road

Alyssa Padgett Author Of A Beginner's Guide to Living in an RV

From my list on living in a RV for a beginner.

Why am I passionate about this?

In 2014, Alyssa Padgett convinced her husband Heath to take her to all 50 states for their honeymoon. Somehow he tricked her into doing it all in an RV. They’ve lived and traveled in an RV ever since. With her husband, Alyssa runs The RV Entrepreneur Podcast, a resource for anyone who wants to run a business while RVing.

Alyssa's book list on living in a RV for a beginner

Alyssa Padgett Why did Alyssa love this book?

In addition to sharing a ton of helpful insight into what RV life is like, this book is beautifully designed and full of colorful photos. It includes profiles of RVers, tips for starting RVing, and plenty of inspiration to hit the road. It’s a perfect coffee table book!

By Marc Bennett, Julie Bennett,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Living the RV Life as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Whether you’re downsizing or thrill-seeking—or anything in between—find out if the RV lifestyle is right for you, and learn how to transition from a life of traditional home-ownership to one on the road.

Do you love traveling? Meeting new people and seeing new places? Are you craving a life that feels meaningful and new? The RV lifestyle could be the answer.

Both aspirational and practical, Living the RV Life is your ultimate guide to living life on the road—for people of all ages looking to downsize, travel, or work on the go. Learn if life in a motor home is…


Book cover of Not Tonight, Josephine: A Road Trip Through Small-Town America

Jacqueline Lambert Author Of Year 1 - Fur Babies in France

From my list on funny road trip memoirs.

Why am I passionate about this?

I'm Jackie, and I quit work in 2016 to hit the road permanently with my husband and four dogs, so road tripping is close to my heart. Initially, we were Adventure Caravanners, who aimed To Boldly Go Where No Van Has Gone Before. Now, we’re at large in a self-converted six-wheel army lorry, with Mongolia in our sights. I have published four books Fur Babies in France, Dog on the Rhine, Dogs ‘n’ Dracula, and Pups on Piste, all within one of my favourite genres; light-hearted travel memoirs. My forthcoming books will chronicle a tour of Poland in a pandemic and our new life as Trucking Idiots.

Jacqueline's book list on funny road trip memoirs

Jacqueline Lambert Why did Jacqueline love this book?

Impecunious Brits George and his friend Mark decide to search for the ‘real’ America, crossing the continent from east to west in a clapped-out old car. 

At every point, amid clouds of smoke, impending mechanical Armageddon, and brushes with the law, it seems unlikely that they’ll make it. One night, in the middle of nowhere, when ominous sounds emanating from the engine, George pleads, “Not tonight, Josephine…!”

The author has a humorous conversational style and paints an unforgettable portrait of the unlikely places he passed through. I thoroughly enjoyed this bump-start, clunk, and judder across the States with the frustrating but lovable Josephine!

By George Mahood,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Not Tonight, Josephine as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

“…exceptionally entertaining writing…”
“…George is genuinely hilarious…”
“…everything you could want in a travel memoir and more…”
“…hilarious, cringe-worthy and totally chaotic. A brilliant read…”
“…amusing, informative and heart-warming…”
“…I laughed out loud throughout…”
“…I learned more about our great US of A from this BRITISH author than I did in history class…”

Two Brits, George and Mark, set off from New York City to explore the back roads of America. In this calamity-ridden travel tale, George sets out in true clichéd fashion to discover the real America.

Throw in plenty of run-ins with the police, rapidly dwindling finances and…


Book cover of Old Age Comes at a Bad Time: Wit and Wisdom for the Young at Heart

E.J. Lamprey Author Of The Christmas Caper

From my list on getting older with style and panache.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve been a columnist in a national magazine, book reviewer on a daily newspaper, journalist on a small rural paper, commercial blogger for hire, copy-editor, and critiquer, usually alongside more conventional roles in the not entirely thrilling world of corporate finance. In my fifties, I took a belated gap year courtesy of a good redundancy package and started writing full-time under a couple of different names, mainly EJ Lamprey but here as Clarissa. The gap year never really ended . . . At the heart of all my books is the exuberant celebration of finding in autumn the best season of our lives.

E.J.'s book list on getting older with style and panache

E.J. Lamprey Why did E.J. love this book?

It’s a little book of quotes, the sort of book you could keep in the guest loo (if you don’t mind losing your guests for half an hour), but it is stuffed full of oomph and I’ve carted it with me through three migrations because it has been giving me quotes, when I needed something pithy and to the point, for thirty years. I really hope it is still in print because nobody’s getting their hands on my copy. Relevance to my theme? Picked at random – “the first forty years of life gives us the text, the next thirty years supply the commentary” (Arthur Schopenhauer). “If I had my life to live again, I’d make the same mistakes – only sooner”. (Tallulah Bankhead)   

By Eliakim Katz (editor),

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Old Age Comes at a Bad Time as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Book by Katz, Eliakim


Book cover of Jimi: An Intimate Biography of Jimi Hendrix

Corey A. Washington Author Of Jimi Hendrix Black Legacy (A Dream Deferred)

From my list on the genius of Jimi Hendrix.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am an educator, author and Jimi Hendrix Historian who has been studying Jimi Hendrix for over 20 years, with a concentration on promoting him to the youth and people of color. One of my prime objectives is to ensure that Jimi's ENTIRE legacy is covered and given the proper respect. Once you incorporate my two books on Jimi (Nobody Cages Me, and Jimi Hendrix Black Legacy) and my forthcoming documentary into the research that already exists on Jimi, only then, can you get a fuller picture of the complexities of Jimi Hendrix. I had to sift through many books, magazine articles, and a wide variety of multi-media to try to get a grasp on the REAL Jimi Hendrix. I started seeing holes in what was being presented, so I decided to talk to people that were there. Many of these people didn’t appear extensively in these source documents. This list is just a start. In order to TRULY understand the genius of Jimi Hendrix, you must dig a lot deeper.

Corey's book list on the genius of Jimi Hendrix

Corey A. Washington Why did Corey love this book?

I mentioned that David Henderson’s book was the first SERIOUS biography on Jimi Hendrix. It was not to take a dig at this book, which was the first biography written on Jimi Hendrix (1974). It was written by his friend and early musical collaborator, Curtis Knight, who was really the first person to let Jimi spread his wings musically. Jimi was his bandleader and shared the spotlight with Curtis. Since this bio was written so early, you can’t really say that Curtis was trying to cash in on the Hendrix craze that exists now. At that time, there was no market for a Jimi bio. I have always respected that. This was the first Jimi bio that I read.

(Sidenote: With Curtis’ second published book on Jimi Hendrix in 1992 called Starchild, he was the only author to have written TWO books on Jimi Hendrix. This is until I…

By Curtis Knight,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Jimi as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Cover worn, owner's inscription. Shipped from the U.K. All orders received before 3pm sent that weekday.


Book cover of Stephen Biesty's Cross-Sections Castle
Book cover of Apartment Book
Book cover of Yellow Yellow

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