Books and resources for parents

Find book recommendations and resources for parents, including library books and free books from Bookstart.

We provide resources in the form of books and DVDs, which can be useful in:

  • helping you tackle some of the challenges of parenting
  • offering activities for you and your child to do together

Library book lists on parenting topics

Suffolk Libraries has lists of books on parenting advice: books to help with raising every sort of family.

Bookstart: free books for children

Bookstart is a national book-gifting scheme that gives free books to every child in England.

The core Bookstart packs include:

  • Bookstart Baby pack for one-year-olds
  • Bookstart Treasure pack for three and four-year-olds
  • Dual-language books for those who speak English as a second language

They also offer packs for children with additional needs, which include:

  • Bookshine for children who are deaf
  • Booktouch for children who are blind or partially sighted
  • Bookstart Star for children with conditions affecting their fine motor skills

Book recommendations for parents and children

Parents and family support practitioners from the Early Years teams recommend these books for parents and children.

List of book recommendations
TitleAuthor
All Cats Have Asperger SyndromeKathy Hoopmann
All Dogs Have ADHDKathy Hoopmann
Aspergirls: Empowering Females with Asperger SyndromeRudy Simone
Attachment-Focused Parenting: Effective Strategies to Care for ChildrenDaniel A Hughes
Brain-Based Parenting: The Neuroscience of Caregiving for Healthy AttachmentDaniel A Hughes and Jonathan Baylin
Can I Tell You About...? (series)Jude Welton
Freaks, Geeks and Aspergers Syndrome: A User Guide to AdolescenceLuke Jackson
Hot Stuff to Help Kids Chill Out: The Anger Management BookJerry Wilde
How to Talk so Kids Will Listen and Listen so Kids Will TalkAdele Faber and Elaine Mazlish
How to Talk so Teens Will Listen and Listen so Teens Will TalkAdele Faber and Elaine Mazlish
Inside I'm Hurting: Practical Strategies for Supporting Children with Attachment Difficulties in SchoolsLouise Bomber
My Social Stories BookCarol Gray and Abbie Leigh White
Raising Boys: Why Boys are DifferentSteve Biddulph
Raising Girls: Why Girls are DifferentGisela Preuschoff
Siblings Without Rivalry: How to Help Your Children Live Together So You Can Live TooAdele Faber and Elaine Mazlish
Starving the Anger Gremlin: A Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Workbook on Anger ManagementKate Collins-Donnelly
Starving the Anxiety Gremlin: A Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Workbook on Anxiety ManagementKate Collins-Donnelly
Teach Your Child to Sleep: Solving Sleep Problems from Newborn Through ChildhoodMillpond Sleep Clinic
Ten Things Every Child with Autism Wishes You KnewEllen Notbohm
The Guide for Separated Parents: Putting Children FirstKaren and Nick Woodall
The Truth About HormonesVivienne Parry
The Whole-Brain Child: 12 Proven Strategies to Nurture Your Child’s Developing MindTina Payne Bryson and Daniel Siegel
What Every Parent Needs to KnowMargot Sunderland
What to Do When You Worry Too Much: A Kid's Guide to Overcoming AnxietyDawn Huebner and Bonnie Matthews
When Your Child is BulliedJenny Alexander