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Good Bits: Bits of Stories. Endless Fun.
This imaginative collection of engaging short stories is perfect for all kids who love the unexpected.
Good Bits is a highly original collection of short stories for children aged 6-8 that demands to be read. It will excite and inspire young readers not only to read on, but also to write and illustrate their own stories.
Written by award-winning author Kes Gray, this action-packed collection of stories is ideal for kids who need a bit of encouragement to keep them reading. The engaging layout and illustrations make the stories exciting and approachable, and short stories are perfect for a quick adventure somewhere new.
This collection of short stories for kids
Stories by award-winning author Kes Gray, who has written bestselling children’s books like Oi Frog.An early chapter book with intriguing illustrations and an engaging format that will make children want to read on.Shorter stories with fun, exciting plots that will encourage caregivers and children to participate in shared storytelling.
From a spaceship flight into a Black Hole, to a town plagued by zombie beavers, a magical pen that knows all the answers to a test, to a crochet-loving pirate, this collection features the best bits of the story - the brilliant characters, actions and settings that spin a story that demands to be read.
Good Bits is a highly original collection of short stories for children aged 6-8 that demands to be read. It will excite and inspire young readers not only to read on, but also to write and illustrate their own stories.
Written by award-winning author Kes Gray, this action-packed collection of stories is ideal for kids who need a bit of encouragement to keep them reading. The engaging layout and illustrations make the stories exciting and approachable, and short stories are perfect for a quick adventure somewhere new.
This collection of short stories for kids
Stories by award-winning author Kes Gray, who has written bestselling children’s books like Oi Frog.An early chapter book with intriguing illustrations and an engaging format that will make children want to read on.Shorter stories with fun, exciting plots that will encourage caregivers and children to participate in shared storytelling.
From a spaceship flight into a Black Hole, to a town plagued by zombie beavers, a magical pen that knows all the answers to a test, to a crochet-loving pirate, this collection features the best bits of the story - the brilliant characters, actions and settings that spin a story that demands to be read.
178 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 4, 2025
About the author
Kes Gray
178 books124 followersKes Gray is a bestselling, multi award-winning author of more than 70 books for children. He eats Ideaflakes for breakfast, spreads silliness on his toast and lives in a place called Different. Kes was the second bestselling picture book author in 2018.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
September 4, 2025
Son loved these, I laughed.
This was a great idea. A selection of VERY short stories, pretty much what a school student might come up with and get down in an English lesson, complete in itself, but each very different to the others and with some surprising and often hilarious endings.
My 8-year-old didn't know what to make of this at first, but soon saw that each was a different story with different characters, and we both laughed at some of these as I read them aloud.
He'd have been able to manage these himself, but we had them over a few bedtimes together.
Each begins with the name of the young protagonist or the opening words. There are extra-terrestrial night adventures, a dragon in the playground, treasure on the beach, an unusual Christmas morning surprise. One manages to fit in zombie beavers, poisonous snakes and lava! The one that made me laugh aloud was Jimmy's missing belly button. And my son REALLY wants Zoe's magic pen (read it to find out!). Another one seems to have been created purely for a football pun at the end. A sad one with granddad and grandson trying to play their version of football together, despite a challenge or two. There's even a sci-fi fantasy short story about the inside of a black hole. Yup, these are pretty broad in scope.
The author has clearly had a ball here, coming up with crazy story suggestions to show young readers/writers that anything can be a story. You don't need a full novel to tell a tale. Your imagination can take you anywhere and it can entertain in just a few pages.
Inspiring and brilliant. More volumes please! Should be given to every primary teacher.
Oh and yes, you know the name. Kes Gray is known for the Daisy Series and Oi Frog! books. You've already read him, now his fans can grow up and write with him and a little too.
For ages 6-11.
With thanks to Netgalley for providing a sample reading copy.
This was a great idea. A selection of VERY short stories, pretty much what a school student might come up with and get down in an English lesson, complete in itself, but each very different to the others and with some surprising and often hilarious endings.
My 8-year-old didn't know what to make of this at first, but soon saw that each was a different story with different characters, and we both laughed at some of these as I read them aloud.
He'd have been able to manage these himself, but we had them over a few bedtimes together.
Each begins with the name of the young protagonist or the opening words. There are extra-terrestrial night adventures, a dragon in the playground, treasure on the beach, an unusual Christmas morning surprise. One manages to fit in zombie beavers, poisonous snakes and lava! The one that made me laugh aloud was Jimmy's missing belly button. And my son REALLY wants Zoe's magic pen (read it to find out!). Another one seems to have been created purely for a football pun at the end. A sad one with granddad and grandson trying to play their version of football together, despite a challenge or two. There's even a sci-fi fantasy short story about the inside of a black hole. Yup, these are pretty broad in scope.
The author has clearly had a ball here, coming up with crazy story suggestions to show young readers/writers that anything can be a story. You don't need a full novel to tell a tale. Your imagination can take you anywhere and it can entertain in just a few pages.
Inspiring and brilliant. More volumes please! Should be given to every primary teacher.
Oh and yes, you know the name. Kes Gray is known for the Daisy Series and Oi Frog! books. You've already read him, now his fans can grow up and write with him and a little too.
For ages 6-11.
With thanks to Netgalley for providing a sample reading copy.
October 4, 2025
These might be "good" bits – I'm not sure about these being the best bits. We start with a girl woken up by strange lights outside her bedroom window, and can tell what the punchline is going to be. The second short story is in even more of a joke structure, with again a predictable ending, if not quite as early on in proceedings as with the first. But the third is a scenario with no conclusion, and the next seems to be in the same field – pieces we could use in a classroom to extend, but if so are too long in the set-up for us to follow. (Plus, the kids in it are just annoying brats.)
And the rest is more of the same – short story ideas that could well spark our imagination, or just end up being a good joke over-played, a shaggy dog story that needs a dog grooming trim. And when it misrepresents bubble gum and black holes alike, you begin to lose a further chunk of patience. This is sprightly, wacky and intended to be fun, but isn't the kind of material I'd ever recommend – and with a particular pirate is close to dreadful. Its lively jumping around the font options, and kooky arrangement of script, aren't very inclusive, either. What with the art style not to my taste either, I think even two stars would be stretching it – one and a half, it is.
And the rest is more of the same – short story ideas that could well spark our imagination, or just end up being a good joke over-played, a shaggy dog story that needs a dog grooming trim. And when it misrepresents bubble gum and black holes alike, you begin to lose a further chunk of patience. This is sprightly, wacky and intended to be fun, but isn't the kind of material I'd ever recommend – and with a particular pirate is close to dreadful. Its lively jumping around the font options, and kooky arrangement of script, aren't very inclusive, either. What with the art style not to my taste either, I think even two stars would be stretching it – one and a half, it is.
October 13, 2025
Kiddo asked if we could buy this for real life so I'd say that's high praise indeed!
__________________
I read this book with my kids over the course of a few weeks and we all really enjoyed it. With each new bit, we would try to guess what the twist was going to be and we were often wrong!
We each had our own favourite bits from the collection:
Teen's favourite bit was Picnic - he guessed the twist and thought it was hilarious
Kiddo's favourite bit was Dinner Money - he loves a good bit of street justice
My favourite bit was The Dragon - the twist was hilarious and the illustration had me laughing.
We had fun creating scenarios of what might have happened before/after the scene.
There was really diverse representation throughout the book which is a thing I know a lot of parents actively look for when picking new books.
There were a couple of stories where the writing felt stilted to me, my children didn't seem bothered by it though. Some word choices felt unnatural and a bit complex for younger readers - Kiddo wasn't comfortable reading some of the more complicated words and asked for clarification on meanings a couple of times.
All in all, I think this would be a good resource for schools and home bookshelves - there is enough variety to pique most interests and it's a great way to promote creativity and storytelling.
__________________
I read this book with my kids over the course of a few weeks and we all really enjoyed it. With each new bit, we would try to guess what the twist was going to be and we were often wrong!
We each had our own favourite bits from the collection:
Teen's favourite bit was Picnic - he guessed the twist and thought it was hilarious
Kiddo's favourite bit was Dinner Money - he loves a good bit of street justice
My favourite bit was The Dragon - the twist was hilarious and the illustration had me laughing.
We had fun creating scenarios of what might have happened before/after the scene.
There was really diverse representation throughout the book which is a thing I know a lot of parents actively look for when picking new books.
There were a couple of stories where the writing felt stilted to me, my children didn't seem bothered by it though. Some word choices felt unnatural and a bit complex for younger readers - Kiddo wasn't comfortable reading some of the more complicated words and asked for clarification on meanings a couple of times.
All in all, I think this would be a good resource for schools and home bookshelves - there is enough variety to pique most interests and it's a great way to promote creativity and storytelling.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews