Young readers love this quirky, funny, highly-illustrated, fiction series which follows life’s ups and downs of the chaotic but loveable Tom, Delia, his old sister, his parents, his best friend Derek and his arch enemy, Marcus. Written by award-winning author and illustrator Liz Pichon, Tom is a master of excuses (especially when it comes to homework), creative storyteller and doodler and middle-school comedian extraordinaire.
There are now more than 25 books in the Tom Gates series with 21 books in the main series and a variety of activity books to support the series. And in terms of an age recommendation, I think these are great books for ages 8+ and if you want to start at the beginning, the first Tom Gates book is The Brilliant World of Tom Gates, which was first published in 2011.
Love this series? Check out our list of the Best Illustrated Fiction Series for 9 and 10 year olds
You don't have to read the Tom Gates books in order, but if you do want to, you can see the correct order below.
All the Tom Gates books in order:
Book 1: The Brilliant World of Tom Gates (2011)
Book 2: Excellent Excuses (And Other Good Stuff) (2011)
Book 3: Everything's Amazing (Sort Of) (2012)
Book 4: Genius Ideas (Mostly) (2012)
Book 5: Tom Gates is Absolutely Fantastic (at Some Things) (2013)
Book 6: Extra Special Treats (not) (2014)
Book 7: A Tiny Bit Lucky (2015)
Book 8: Yes! No (Maybe) (2015)
Book 9: Top of the Class (Nearly) (2016)
Book 10: Super Good Skills (Almost...) (2017)
Book 11: Dog Zombies Rule (for Now) (2017)
Book 12: Family, Friends and Furry Creatures (2018)
Book 13: Epic Adventure (Kind of) (2018)
Book 14: Biscuits, Bands and Very Big Plans (2018)
Book 15: What Monster? (2018)
Book 16: Mega Make and Do (and Stories Too!) (2019)
Book 17: Spectacular School Trip (Really.) (2019)
Book 18: Ten Tremendous Tales (2021)
Book 19: Random Acts of Fun (2021)
Book 20: Happy to Help (2022)
Book 21: Five Star Stories (2023)
Book 22: Tom Gates Ha! Ha! Hilarious (2024)
World Book Day: Best Book Day Ever! (So Far) (2013)
Activity Book: Tom Gates: Big Book of Fun Stuff (2020)
Activity Book: Big Book of Everything (2024)
More to Explore
You can see other titles, not in the main series, like Tom Gates Music Book, if you click on the "Other Titles" tab below.
My little brother bought this book and loved it so much he read the whole thing in a day...
Tom has an end of term party at school and he has to come up with a new song and a new look whilst the other schools are showing off.
A really funny...
We absolutely loved this book. It is so funny and relatable. The doodles and different styles of text make it so interesting and easy reading. We read...