Top 10 Sailing Books for Kids

1. Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome

A classic series of sailing adventure stories from the British Isles in the 1930s and is still as relevant today. 

The Walker children (John, Susan, Titty and Roger) are on school holiday in the Lake District and are sailing a borrowed catboat named Swallow, when they meet the Blackett children (Nancy and Peggy), who sail the boat, Amazon. 

Uncle Jim (better known as Captain Flint) is too busy writing his memoirs to be disturbed. So the children camp together on Wild Cat Island where a plot is hatched against Uncle Jim when their hired deckhand tells them a daring yarn of his younger days. Soon their boat is on its way to the Caribbean on a treasure hunt and they come up against a shark, a storm, an earthquake, and the vilest eavesdropping pirate.

The Swallows and Amazons Series Collection of 4 Books includes the titles Winter Holiday, Peter Duck, Swallowdale, the book that started it all Swallows and Amazons.

Also made into a movie available on DVD. See links below to amazon.com for purchase. If you use our links, amazon gives us a small commission on the sale. 

2. The Sailor Dog by Margaret Wise Brown

Scuppers the Dog wants to be a sailor. He was born at sea and he wants nothing more than to return to the water. Finally, after a long time, Scuppers gets the chance to go out into the deep blue ocean -- but his ship gets wrecked! But Scuppers won't let that bother him. He fixes his boat and gets right back to it!

3. The Little Sailboat by Lois Lenski

Captain Small and his dog Tinker sail and fish together. When a storm comes, Captain Small heads for the safety of the shore. A maritime adventure story full of information about sailing! A comforting, nostalgic story. 

4. Toy Boat by Randall de Sève

A little boy had a toy boat. He made it from a can, a cork, a yellow pencil and some white cloth. The toy boat gets separated from its owner and has an adventure on the high seas. This is that toy boat's story. Toy Boat will sail into young hearts and stay there.

5. Ten Little Pirates by Michael Brownlow

The Ten Little Pirates are sailing out to sea ... But what will the Ten Little Pirates do when they meet a singing mermaid? And a whooshing hurricane? And a HUNGRY shark?  An action-packed counting rhyme adventure. 

6. Danger, Dolphins, and Ginger Beer by John Vigor

While their father is away at a medical conference, Sally, Peter, and Andy Grant set up camp at the edge of a lagoon on Crab Island and become involved in an adventure involving a wounded dolphin and drug smugglers.

7. Sail Away, Little Boat by Janet Buell 

Through charming illustrations and rhyming verse, readers follow a toy sailboat on its journey from brook to river to sea. Along the way, the boat passes by a variety of habitats and creatures, from beetles to bears to bullfrogs.

8. The Little Island by Margaret Wise Brown

Winner of the 1947 Caldecott Medal, this beautifully moving story centres around a little island in the midst of the wide ocean and the curious kitten who comes to visit. As the seasons pass, the island and the creatures who call it home witness an ever-changing array of sights, smells, and sounds - proving that, no matter how small, we are all important in this world.

9. The Lion's Paw by Robb White and Ralph Ray

The story of three children -- two orphans and 15-year-old Ben -- who commandeer Ben's sloop, the Lion's Paw, to escape their pursuers. As they blend their skills and strengths to overcome all sorts of new challenges and hardships, they learn to trust each other, work as a team, ignore pain, have fun, and never give up!

10. Little Tim and the Brave Sea Captain by Edward Ardizzone

This is a reissue of the first title in the much-loved Little Tim series. A young boy wants to be a sailor, but his parents say he is much too young. Tim grabs the chance to stow away on a steamer, but little did he expect hard work, a stormy sea and a sinking ship! Little Tim's adventures at sea have delighted generations of children ever since the first book was published in 1936. Edward Ardizzone, who illustrated more than 170 books in his lifetime, received the prestigious Kate Greenaway medal for Tim All Alone in 1956.