Best Usborne books for summer: holiday reads, sticker books and travel activities

Summer is often at its best when there is a little bit of structure tucked inside all the freedom. A good stack of summer books can help with that, giving children something cheerful and absorbing for road trips, quiet afternoons and slower bedtime routines. Usborne’s summer titles are especially useful because they cover lots of different moods and moments, from coloring and stickers to puzzles and crosswords. With a few well-chosen books on hand, it is much easier to keep vacation days feeling fun, flexible and manageable for both children and grown-ups. Adult support still matters, especially for younger children, but the right books can make shared summer time feel calm and easy.

Summer books for younger children who love coloring and stickers

For younger children, the best summer books usually invite them to look closely, make choices and talk about what is happening on the page. My Big Summer Coloring Book is a lovely place to start. It’s a book of summery holiday drawings with more than 90 coloring pages, including sandcastles and ice creams, making it a strong pick for children who enjoy simple creative play and are still building pencil control. It is the kind of book that works just as well at the kitchen table as it does packed in a bag for a long day out.

First Sticker Book Summer is another easy win for sunny days. This is a summer-themed sticker activity book featuring cute animal friends enjoying beach trips, camping, park play and festival fun, with more than 140 stickers to add to the scenes. That makes it especially handy for children who like dipping in and out of activities rather than sitting with one task for too long. It also gives parents and carers plenty to chat about together as children fill the pages.

For kids who enjoy dress-up play, Little Sticker Dolly Dressing Summer Fun brings a slightly different feel. Little ones can dress the dolls for building sandcastles, walking in the woods, making dens and cooling off with ice creams, with over 200 stickers and 10 scenes to complete. The smaller format is designed for on-the-go use, so it is particularly useful for summer outings, travel and those in-between moments when you need something screen-free that still feels special.

Vacation activity books that help fill long summer days

Some summer books come into their own when the day stretches out and children need a little direction. Vacation Activity Book is a great example. This wide-ranging activity book moves through all kinds of vacation settings, from fishing villages and campgrounds to hotels, ski slopes and desert treks, with spotting activities, matching games, patterns and puzzles throughout. This variety makes it particularly useful for families who want one book that can suit several different moods over the course of a trip or vacation week.

There is something very helpful about an activity book that does not feel repetitive. Children can come back to it after a morning out, pull it into the car for part of a journey or use it to settle into a quieter part of the day. Because the tasks vary so much, it feels less like “more of the same” and more like a little collection of summer challenges. For parents and carers, that can make a real difference during the longer vacation months.

Best travel books for road trips and family vacations

When you are choosing summer books for travel, portability matters, but so does replay value. Little First Stickers Travel is a strong choice for younger children because it combines stickers with familiar travel scenes such as cities, rivers and airports. Usborne says it includes more than 150 detailed stickers featuring bikes, cars, buses, boats, trams, planes and trains, and describes it as a perfect companion for trips and days out. It is especially good for children who are fascinated by vehicles and like spotting details in busy pictures.

For older children who enjoy word play, 100 Children’s Crosswords: Travel is a smart addition to a vacation bag. This book is filled with travel-themed crosswords featuring famous landmarks, with puzzles that gradually become harder as children work through them. That gentle increase in challenge makes it useful for confident puzzlers who want something that feels satisfying rather than too easy. It is also a nice fit for quieter travel breaks, when children want an activity that feels independent and grown-up.

Lots of Travel Puzzles and Games is one of the most versatile choices in the group. This is a brightly illustrated book with more than 100 pages of travel-themed activities, including word searches, mazes, spot the difference, Sudoku and pencil-and-paper games for one or two players. For families traveling with siblings or trying to cover several age ranges at once, that breadth is especially useful. It can fill a longer stretch of time and still offer enough variety to feel fresh.

Summer sticker books for children who love imaginative play

If your child likes summer books that feel playful and immersive, sticker titles are often the easiest choice. Sticker Dolly Dressing Summer Camp adds an outdoorsy, adventurous twist, with dolls taking part in activities such as paddleboarding, nature walks, campfire cooking and team-building. It also includes more than 200 stickers and 12 scenes to complete, making it a strong option for children who enjoy returning to a book over several sittings rather than finishing it all at once.

Sticker books can also work surprisingly well across a vacation because they are easy to revisit. A child might do one or two pages in the morning, then come back to another scene later in the day. That stop-and-start rhythm suits summer particularly well. It also allows adults to join in naturally, talking through outfits, scenes and little storylines without the activity ever feeling too structured.

How to choose the right summer book for your child

The easiest way to choose is to think about where and when the book will be used. For creative quiet time at home or on vacation, My Big Summer Coloring Book and Vacation Activity Book are both strong choices. For younger children who love stickers, First Sticker Book Summer, Little Sticker Dolly Dressing Summer Fun and Little First Stickers Travel are especially appealing. For travel days and quieter independent play, 100 Children’s Crosswords: Travel and Lots of Travel Puzzles and Games are likely to go a long way. And for children who enjoy imaginative sticker play with a slightly older feel, Sticker Dolly Dressing Summer Camp is an easy book to recommend.

The best summer books are not always the loudest or busiest ones. They are the books children actually reach for: the one that helps on a long car ride, the one that comes out while waiting for lunch, or the one that turns a hot afternoon indoors into something more relaxed and enjoyable. With a thoughtful mix of coloring, stickers and puzzles, summer can feel a little smoother for everyone.

A few frequently asked questions about summer books

What makes a good summer book for kids?
A good summer book is easy to dip into and easy to take along. Coloring books, sticker books and puzzle books all work well because children can enjoy them in short bursts at home, on vacation or while traveling.

Which summer books are best for travel?
For travel, compact and portable books tend to work best. Little First Stickers Travel, 100 Children’s Crosswords: Travel and Lots of Travel Puzzles and Games are especially well suited to road trips, flights and quiet breaks on the go.

Are sticker books still a good choice for summer?
Yes. Sticker books are especially useful in summer because they are easy to pick up and put down, and they work well for restaurant waits, vacation downtime and rainy afternoons indoors. First Sticker Book Summer, Little Sticker Dolly Dressing Summer Fun and Sticker Dolly Dressing Summer Camp all fit that role nicely.

Find your family’s summer favorites

Whether your child loves coloring, stickers, crosswords or travel games, these Usborne summer titles make it easier to keep vacation days fun, screen-free and varied. Explore the books above and choose the ones that best match your child’s age, interests and summer plans.