Keeping children occupied has been a challenge for many of us but books can certainly help. Whether purchased as e-books or ordered online for delivery, the following titles are among the Times’ teams favourites.

Irish rugby players may boast of being together, standing strong’, but only Kiwis know how to kia kaha!

Best suited to little ones aged three to seven years of age, this book is a rousing celebration of all the many cultures that call Aotearoa home.

And, thanks to its accompanying CD (which can be downloaded instead), they can learn a heart-warming song in both Maori and English.

June Pitman-Hayes, Ngaere Roberts (Maori lyrics)&Minky Stapleton (illustrator): Kia Kaha — Together, standing strong |Scholastic

After her multi-champion pony suffers a severe injury, Vicki must turn to a beautiful, although inexperienced,   mount to compete.

Although she is sure Jackamo has the X factor, has she actually bet everything on the wrong horse?

The latest addition to Kelly Wilson’s popular series, this book is a tale of tenacity (韧性) and overcoming the odds through commitment and hard work.

Kelly Wilson: Showtym Adventures 7 — Jackamo the Supreme Champion l Puffin

The “force” is strong with Cece! Designed to make science more accessible to young minds, this book sees Cece and her fiend Isaac team up to discover the opposing forces of push and pull can be used to help Cece’s dog, Einstein.

Fostering a love of learning, this series might just help a few older ones—to whom science class is a distant memory — discover how the universe works too!

Shelli R Johannes, Kimberly Derting &Vashti Harison: Cece Loves Science—Push and Pull l HarperCollins

One of the most well-known characters in modern children’s literature — Greg Heffley, aka the Wimpy Kid—is up to his old tricks once again.

When the Heffleys receive an unexpected inheritance (遗产), major home improvements become their focus. How will this affect Greg? There’s only one way to find out!

Jeff Kinney: Diary of a Wimpy Kid — Wrecking Ball |Puffin

Bark

Cover Price: $19.80            Price: $15.00($2.50 / issue (期)

You save: $4.80 (24%)        Review: By Pat Kane

I absolutely love Bark magazine! I love the “smiling” pages and the tips on every issue. I am a dog lover and have saved all of my dogs from either death row or from people who were going to put them down. Everyone should have a chance to live and Bark stresses that with its articles. This magazine is a MUST HAVE for any dog lover!

Dog Fancy

Cover Price: $54.00            Price: $14.99 ($1.25 / issue)

You save: $39.01 (72%)       Review: By Berner Mom

Don’t waste your money on this magazine. 60-70 percent of it are advertisements, and the articles offer little useful information. It might be suitable for children, but not adults who are serious about educating themselves about dogs.

Dog World

Cover Price: $48.88            Price: $14.99 ($1.25 / issue)

You save: $33.89 (69%)       Review: By one critic

Dog World has many very interesting and thought-provoking (令人思考的) articles for people involved in dog showing, breeding(饲养), performance events, etc. However, over half of the magazine is devoted to breeder ads, which is boring. Still, as a whole, I recommend(推荐) it for the articles. Good articles, but tons of ads.

Modern Dog

Cover Price: $45.00             Price: $15.00 ($3.75 / issue)

You save: $30.00 (24%)        Review: By Dinah

My new favorite magazine! Beautiful photos, smart and amusing articles, fashion, art, interviews with famous people… all with a dog focus！Cover models range from Paris Hilton and Tinkerbell to Virginia Madsen and her dogs. Thanks to Modern Dog I now know how to give a dog-friendly cocktail party and how to actually get my dog to come when she’s called. Surely worth checking out.

I loved reading when I was little. I think that’s the reason I love writing for children. My parents were both English teachers, and our home was full of books. Dickens was a family favourite. But the book that really fired my imagination was King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table by Roger Lancelyn Green, which my father read to me at bedtime when I was around 12.

I’m a fool for a classic, and I’m so glad I finally came across Diary of a Nobody by George and Weedon Grossmith. It began life as a serial in Punch, with text by Ceorge and illustrations by Weedon. Put simply, it’s the funniest book I’ve ever read, and the model for so many brilliant first-person narratives like Adrian Mole and Bridget Jones. The short pitch is that it follows the social climbing of a London clerk, Charles Pooter but of course it’s so much more than that, poking fun at all things from middle class.

It’s never too late to have your life changed by a book, and it happened to me again recently when I read Ted Chiang’s Exhalation. Ted Chiang wrote Story of Your Life, which inspired the sci-fi alien-visitation classic Arrival. I love that too, but each and every piece in Exhalation is its match in writing skills. If there are super-intelligent aliens in the galaxy seeking to communicate important truths, Ted Chiang may well be one of them.