Finding Stories That Matter

Before StoryWell was a publisher, it was a house full of books. They were dog-eared and cocoa-stained, read aloud so many times that the adults could recite them in the dark. Every editor here came to this work the same way: as a child who loved a story, and then a grown-up who couldn't stop.

We make books, and we also read them, constantly and widely, and we have strong opinions about them. Today we are opening a space for those opinions: a new Book Reviews section, where our editorial team writes about the children's books that shaped us.

Why review other people's books?

Good publishing begins with good reading. Every picture book we make is measured against the greats: the economy of Goodnight Moon, the emotional honesty of Where the Wild Things Are and the read-aloud joy of The Gruffalo. Understanding why those books work is how we get better at our own.

Parents also ask us all the time what they should read to their child. This is our long answer.

What to expect

Each review is a proper piece of writing that tries to say what a book does, who it is for and why it lasts. We will cover the classics and the lesser-known books, board books for babies and first novels for eight-year-olds, and we will say plainly what works and what does not.

Start here

Our opening set includes The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Charlotte's Web, Matilda, We're Going on a Bear Hunt and more. Browse the full collection with a cup of something warm, and then, we hope, read one to a child.