SRC 2026 for Kids 6-8

This year's Summer Reading Club theme is "Under the Sea." Discover fiction and non-fiction books all about the ocean and deep sea! Age recommendations are just a guide, not rules! Every reader is different, and the best book for you is the one you enjoy.

Updated March 10, 2026
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Greater Victoria Public Library
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Momo sees the sea
Dwivedi, Avani
Paper Book
Dive into an underwater hide-and-seek adventure! Part of the new Seuss Studios line of Beginner Books inspired by never-before-seen sketches by Dr. Seuss, this whimsical story invites readers to seek out the magic that's hidden in the world around them. When Momo's ball falls...

Reader

Crossing the current
Yolen, Jane
Paper Book
From critically acclaimed and prolific author Jane Yolen comes a vibrant Level 1 Ready-to-Ready story about a fish becoming an assistant crossing guard! A fish has an exciting new responsibility when he becomes the assistant crossing guard at his school! We hold...

Reader

Pete the cat : scuba-cat
Dean, James
Paper Book
New York Times bestselling author and artist James Dean brings Pete the Cat's world to life under the sea in this new I Can Read book. Pete the Cat is going scuba diving! Before he hits the water, Captain Joe tells him about all the sea creatures he can encounter, and Pete is super excited...

Reader

Ocean animals
Musgrave, Ruth
Paper Book
Help your child power up their reading skills and learn about all kinds of different pets with this fun-filled nonfiction reader carefully leveled to help children progress. DK Super Readers Pre-Level: Pets will introduce kids to a parade of pets--from cute hamsters and...

Reader

In the ocean
Szymanski, Jennifer
Paper Book
Dive into the waves and under the sea to meet the unique, amazing, and totally weird creatures that call the ocean home! This National Geographic Kids Level 1 Co-Reader is perfect for practicing reading out loud with an adult. Discover all types of animals under the sea,...

Reader

The strangest thing in the sea : and other curious creatures of the deep
Poliquin, Rachel
Paper Book
A feathery tutu dancing through the water? A tiptoeing rock wearing a wig? A mountain of skulls on the ocean floor? Not everything is quite as it seems in this fascinating exploration of 12 bizarre and little-known sea animals. The question-and-answer approach and gatefolds in this innovative and...

Primary non-fiction

How the sea came to be : and all the creatures in it
Berne, Jennifer
Paper Book
***THREE STARRED REVIEWS*** A New York Public Library Best Book for Kids  A Chicago Public Library Kids Best of the Best Book Bank Street College of Education Best Children's Books of the Year List - STEM & Outstanding Merit <...

Primary non-fiction

Earth's incredible oceans
French, Jess
Paper Book
Enter the world of oceans and discover all the interesting animals that live in them! Swim with jellyfish, wonder at the busy life of a seagrass meadow, and fence with narwhals in this lovingly illustrated children's book. Take kids on a fascinating underwater journey, showing...

Primary non-fiction

What fish are saying : strange sounds in the ocean
Pendreigh, Kirsten
Paper Book
Perfect for curious kids ages 4-8, parents, and educators seeking fun and educational reads! Did you know that fish grunt, shellfish crackle, and some sea creatures even burp and boop to communicate? Dive into a fascinating underwater adventure as one little shellfish guides...

Primary non-fiction

Ocean Secrets: A Guidebook for Little Underwater Adventurers
Grindler, Sarah
Paper Book
The newest book in the Little Explorers series takes young readers from the seashore to the ocean floor, finding fascinating plants and animals and solving ocean mysteries along the way. Let's meet some of the amazing sea life that calls the ocean home. What creatures...

Primary non-fiction

Lots of things to know about seas and oceans
Bone, Emily
Paper Book
An intriguing collection of facts exploring the fascinating watery world of seas and oceans. You'll never guess how many teeth a shark has, how surfers have their own language, when a blobfish isn't a blobfish, or just how noisy the ocean is. All is revealed in this delightful...

Primary non-fiction

Everything awesome about sharks and other underwater creatures!
Lowery, Mike
Paper Book
Discover the ULTIMATE, 128-paged book about all things sharks and underwater creatures, from the creative brain of Mike Lowery! Featuring fun facts, jokes, comics, maps, and more.Did you know that sharks can be as small as a banana, or bigger than a bus? Or that whale sharks have more than 3...

Primary non-fiction

The brilliant deep : rebuilding the world's coral reefs : the story of Ken Nedimyer and the Coral Restoration Foundation
Messner, Kate
Paper Book
The Brilliant Deep is the proud recipient of the ALA Notable Children's Books Award, the NSTA-CBC Best STEM Trade Books Award, the Junior Library Guild Selection and the ILA Teacher's Choices. All it takes is one: one coral gamete to start a colony in the ocean, one person...

Primary non-fiction

The tide pool waits
Fleming, Candace
Paper Book
Dive into the rich ecology of tide pools and watch a hidden world spring in this masterful nonfiction picture book for very young readers. Twice a day when the tide goes out, an astonishing world is revealed in the tide pools that form along the Pacific Coast. Some...

Primary non-fiction

Beasts from the deep
Ralphs, Matt
Dive down if you dare and discover the world's strangest,scariest, and most magnificent sea creatures in this breathtaking gift book from the University of Cambridge and Nosy Crow! Did you know that there is a place on Earth that has hardly been explored at all?...

Primary non-fiction

Anglerfish : the seadevil of the deep
Alexander, Elaine M.
Paper Book
Deep in the darkest part of the ocean, visit a primordial, fierce-toothed fish that draws in prey with its own bioluminescent lure. Dive thirteen thousand feet below the ocean's surface, where no ray of sunlight can penetrate. Resources are scarce, and fellow inhabitants scarcer....

Primary non-fiction

West Coast wild at low tide
Hodge, Deborah
Paper Book
Explore the wild shoreline of the majestic Pacific west coast and discover the spectacular array of colorful creatures living in rhythm with the tides. At the edge of the Pacific Ocean, where land and sea meet, lies a narrow strip of beach called the intertidal zone. Endless tides move...

Primary non-fiction

Welcome to Barnacle Bay
Curll, Jana
Paper Book
Selected for the 2026 Little Maverick Graphic Novel Reading List A Best Graphic Novels for Children 2025 ALA Selection "Perfect for fans of the visual style and humor of Ben Clanton's Narwhal and Jelly, and also a useful introduction to marine...

Primary graphic novel

A Narwhal and Jelly book. unicorn of the sea / 1, Narwhal
Clanton, Ben
Paper Book
"The most lovable duo since Frog and Toad." --Dav Pilkey, bestselling creator of Dog Man and Captain Underpants The funny and adorable New York Times bestselling kids graphic novel series starring happy-go-lucky, waffle-loving Narwhal and somewhat cynical sidekick, Jelly.

Primary graphic novel

Squidding around. 1, Fish feud
Sherry, Kevin
Paper Book
This wonderfully silly young graphic novel from Graphix Chapters about fin-tastic friends and first fights is perfect for fans of Narwhal and Jelly! Get drawn into reading with Graphix Chapters! Graphix Chapters are ideal books for beginning and newly independent...

Primary graphic novel

Surviving the wild. Sunny the shark
Lai, Remy
Paper Book
Planet Earth meets Narwhal and Jelly in this funny and suspenseful early reader graphic novel series featuring heroic animals surviving in the perilous wilderness! Inspired by true events, the story includes facts about climate change, sharks, and how kids can help protect the...

Primary graphic novel

Shark princess
Chanani, Nidhi
Paper Book
A new early reader graphic novel series from the critically acclaimed creator of Pashmina, perfect for fans of Narwhal and Jelly. Meet Kitana-a Shark Princess and the first of her kind. Her allergy-ridden, best friend, Mack, wants to be one too, but he worries that his...

Primary graphic novel

Dark day in the deep sea
Osborne, Mary Pope
Paper Book
The #1 bestselling chapter book series of all time celebrates 25 years with new covers and a new, easy-to-use numbering system! The magic tree house leads Jack and Annie to a tiny deserted island in the middle of the ocean. The brother and sister team are soon rescued by a ship of...

Primary fiction

Narwhal adventure!
June, Jason
Paper Book
Half mermaid, half unicorn, and totally adorable! Sugar crusted sea shells! Lucky, Ruby, and the whole Fin-tastic Four are entering a very special baking competition with their new undersea bestie Nelia the Narwhal. Ruby really wants to win, and Lucky really wants to help her. Lucky has a...

Primary fiction

Sejal Sinha swims with sea dragons
Prasad, Maya
Paper Book
This second book in the chapter book series about a young Indian American girl who loves science and has a big imagination introduces readers to an incredible sea creature--perfect for fans of The Magic School Bus and Over the Moon! Sejal and her brother, Abu, are...

Primary fiction

Sink or swim
Katschke, Judy
Paper Book
The Magic School Bus is back and in the Branches line!This series is part of Scholastic's early chapter book line called Branches, which is aimed at newly independent readers. With easy-to-read text, high-interest content, fast-paced plots, and illustrations on every page, these books will boost...

Primary fiction

The Secret Explorers and the sunken treasure
King, SJ
Paper Book
Learn all about life in the desert with this nature-themed installment of DK Books' new educational fiction series for children aged 7 to 9 years. Meet the Secret Explorers - a band of brainiac kids from all around the world, here to take young readers on a series of fact-filled...

Primary fiction

Seas the day!
Reef, Cora
Paper Book
Simon gives his friend a proper send-off before she moves away in this eighth book in The Not-So-Tiny Tales of Simon Seahorse chapter book series. Simon's friend DeeDee is moving away! He's really going to miss her and decides to show her the best last day ever before she...

Primary fiction


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