According to a new study, teen boys are “stuck” reading elementary school books like Diary of a Wimpy Kid, while girls their age are gravitating toward a wider range of novels.
Among boys aged 11 to 14 who were surveyed, eight of the 10 most read books were from Jeff Kinney’s Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. Girls’ reading spanned a wide range of authors and genres, including Alice Osman’s Heartstopper, Holly Jackson’s A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, and Suzanne Collins’s The Hunger Games.
Conclusion, published in What are children reading annual report Published by education technology company Renaissance, it demonstrates the extent to which boys’ and girls’ reading preferences “diverge” by the time they reach Key Stage 3.
The report analyzes more than 23 million reading quizzes completed by almost 1.1 million children in schools across the UK and Ireland during the 2024-25 academic year.
The researchers suggest that this pattern reflects wide differences in reading habits outside of school. Of earlier Research by National Literacy Trust found that by age 14 to 16, less than 10% of boys read daily in their free time, compared to 18% of girls.
Devoted reading time in school often declines rapidly after primary education. A separate Renaissance survey found that only 28% of secondary schools set aside at least 15 minutes for reading every day, compared to 62% of primary schools.
Bernadetta Brzeńska, Renaissance’s head of research, said: “Children read best when they like what they read… This is not an argument against popular series. Familiar authors and box-set fiction draw in reluctant readers. The question is what happens next. Students who are inspired by new authors and difficult books keep reading while those who stick with the same series stop.”
The report also found that students demonstrated stronger comprehension when reading the books they chose, scoring an average of 92% on quizzes about their favorite titles compared to 76% across all books.
Martin Galway, Head of Professional Learning and Partnerships at the National Literacy Trust, said: “The growing gap we see in secondary school, particularly for teenage boys, is a clear call to action. Too many young people are ‘stuck’ or turning away from reading altogether, often because they have not yet found books that they find relevant, accessible or inspiring.”
The findings come as the Government’s National Year of Reading campaign has identified teenage boys as one of the groups most in need of support after enjoyment of reading among children fell to the lowest level on record last year.
Most read books in 7 to 9 years: Boys
1. Diary of a Wimpy Kid
2. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Getaway
3. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone
4. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Roderick Rule
5. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Last Straw
6. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days
7. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: No Brainer
8. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Ugly Truth
9. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Meltdown
10. The Hunger Games
Most read books in 7 to 9 years: Girls
1. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone
2. The Hunger Games
3. Heartstopper Volume 1
4. A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder
5. The shameful life of Lottie Brooks
6. Heartstopper Volume 2
7. Diary of a Wimpy Kid
8. Lottie Brooks’s disastrous friendship fail
9. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
10. Lottie Brooks’s totally disastrous school trip
