As an English teacher and children's author, you might imagine my thirteen-year-old son to be the world's biggest reader. That's not quite how things have turned out. It wasn't always this way - back in primary school, he loved reading. Every so often, my phone throws up a photo memory of him snuggled up with a book. I'd like to say I wonder where that boy went, but I know exactly: he was chased away by SATs, 11+ exams, and secondary school homework. And he's not alone: HarperCollins recently released research showing that almost one in three (29%) children aged 5-13 now think reading is "more a subject to learn than a fun thing to do". So here's the question: how do we stop reading from becoming a chore?
"Reading for pleasure is like tending a campfire: it doesn't need grand gestures - just regular attention, the occasional spark, and something to keep it burning."
According to the National Literacy Trust's 2019 Annual Literacy Survey, reading for pleasure levels drop significantly during the transition from primary to secondary school - falling from 72.7% in Year 5 to just 48.8% in Year 8. For any parent or teacher, this won't come as news. The move to secondary school is like reaching a new video game level: you've completed one world, only to find the next is tougher, darker, and full of new challenges. And that's just the parents. OECD data from the 2022 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) suggests that UK secondary students spend an average of two hours a day on homework. Given this, it's no wonder reading for pleasure falls away - especially if the new school shifts the emphasis from reading for fun to reading for assessment.
Reading for pleasure is like tending a campfire: it doesn't need grand gestures - just regular attention, the occasional spark, and something to keep it burning. Left alone for too long, it fades to embers. Neglected completely, it dies out.
So how can we keep the fire burning? Clearly, kids need books that match their interests and their reading level - books that support not just a love of reading, but the habit of it. The danger, however, is the dreaded 'b' word: boredom. I once received a negative Amazon review for one of my children's books, this one written for kids aged 9+, in which the parent bemoaned the struggle their 'precocious' 6-year-old had in reading it. If you give children books that are too difficult, they'll lose momentum. Similarly, if you stick to books that are all illustrations and no substance, they will quickly outgrow them and stall again.
This is where transition books come in. They aren't just about keeping the wheels turning - they help young readers build stamina and confidence for the longer rides ahead. They bridge the gap, offering more complex characters and ideas without abandoning the fun. The Big Cat Read On series is pitched at exactly this spot: accessible but never condescending, post-early chapter books, but pre-full length YA. And in no way boring.
"Books in these key years don't need to be worthy or overly literary. They just need to keep kids reading."
I was lucky enough to be asked to write two books in the first round of Read On. And, in considering what I wanted to write, I didn't overthink it - I wrote what I'd want my son to read at that age. Both Gold Rush and On the Bench are stories that are funny, real, and meaningful. Getting to write about two of my favourite things - Westerns and football - was an added bonus. Because here's the thing: books in these key years don't need to be worthy or overly literary. They just need to keep kids reading.
I realise my thirteen-year-old is unlikely to ever plead with me to bring a book with him on the supermarket drive with the same passion that he begs to be allowed his phone. But as I encourage him to read little and often, I hope the routine will help him rediscover that sense of ease and balance - where reading becomes just another way to enjoy the ride, rather than a task to prepare him for his GCSEs. It's an ongoing mission, and one I think would have been easier had I understood just how bumpy the transition between Year 6 and Year 7 could be.
We want our children to read not because they have to, but because they want to. As parents, teachers, and writers, it's our job to make sure they leave primary school not just with skills, but with stories. With the right books at the right time, we can help sustain their reading habit. They don't need to leap straight to the classics. (Want to kill a child's interest in Shakespeare? Get them to read The Tempest in Year 6.) It's about building the confidence to get there - and keeping the fire gently fed along the way.
Tom Mitchell is mostly a dad, partly a teacher and sometimes a writer. He grew up in the West Country and settled in London after a brief interlude in the East Midlands. He lives in Kent with his wife, Nicky, and sons, Dylan and Jacob. He has written two Read On novels for Big Cat and six middle-grade novels for HarperCollins Children's Books.