Horrid Henry Books

Horrid Henry is the ultimate antihero, and his adventures have brought delight to children the world over through these fantastic kids fiction books. Horrid Henry is a fun-filled, larger-than-life series about child iconoclast Henry. He knows that life’s not fair. The teachers are after you, your neighbours hate you, and it’s always one rule for the grown-ups and another rule for you. You know the score! As the leader of the Purple Hand Gang, Henry’s determined to get his own back on everyone - no matter the cost.

Henry's pranks delight kids and parents alike as he puts down the bullies, outwits the grown-ups, and causes havoc for his family. There's never a dull moment where Horrid Henry is involved, and his clever ideas for getting back at those who upset him often lead to unpleasant results for everyone. These kids fiction books aimed at children aged between 7-9 are wonderfully written by Francesca Simon and hilariously illustrated by Tony Ross, this series is perfect for reluctant readers and fans of Dennis the Menace and Diary of a Wimpy Kid. If you haven’t already, you need to get on board with Horrid Henry.

Who’s it for?

The Horrid Henry books are perfect for readers aged 7-9 who like stories filled with mayhem, wicked deeds, and outrageous humour. Filled with memorable characters such as Perfect Peter, Moody Margaret, Rude Ralph, and more, children will laugh their socks off at Henry’s horrible adventures.

Horrid Henry has been a publishing phenomenon since 1994, and there’s no stopping him any time soon. The books have been published in 27 languages, selling over 21 million copies worldwide. This collection includes Horrid Henry and the Abominable Snowman, which won the Children’s Book of the Year Award in 2008. The Bafta-nominated TV series began on CITV in 2006 and ran for 250 episodes over thirteen years. The series has now moved to Netflix, which are producing new one-hour specials due to its continued popularity. The live-action Horrid Henry: The Movie was released in 2011, and there has also been video games and a stage play.

About the authors

Francesca Simon is an American author who lives in North London with her family. Having previously worked as a journalist for publications from The Sunday Times to Vogue, she began writing children’s books after reading them to her son Joshua. Now, she’s one of the UK’s most popular children’s authors and has written over fifty books for kids of every age. In 2019, she was the third most borrowed author from libraries and the fifth most borrowed overall. She’s been a judge for literary prizes, been involved in many literacy charities, and was awarded a Gold Blue Peter badge.

Tony Ross is the award-winning illustrator of over two thousand books. He is most famous for his work for children the Horrid Henry and Little Princess series, as well as for illustrating the works of David Walliams. Born in 1938 in Wandsworth, South London, Ross previously worked in teaching and advertising.