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A Book about a Bad Guy: Suggested Reads for Kids

Get ready to broaden your reading horizons! Our Expand Your Shelf program presents you with reading prompts that will challenge you to try something different and introduce you to new genres, authors, and ideas. Check out these suggested reads as you “Read a book about a bad guy.”

User from Mid-Continent Public Library

20 items

  • You've heard the story of the 3 little pigs, or so you think. Here's how the Big Bad Wolf tells it.
    Book, 1989New York, N.Y. : Viking, 1989. — JE SCIESZKA
  • A mischievous child tries to one up his rival through a robot building contest. This is a whimsical story with detailed illustrations.
    Book, 2016New York, New York : Viking, 2016. — JE
  • Fantasy, fairies, elves, mystery, villains, adventure, and criminal masterminds. This series has a little bit of everything and then more.
    Book, 2001New York, N.Y. : Disney-Hyperion Books For Children, [2001] — JF COLFER
  • ad Seed has a bad temper, bad manners, and a bad attitude. But what happens when one mischievous little seed changes his mind about himself, and decides that he wants to be—happy?
    Book, 2017New York, NY : Harper, an imrpint of HarperCollins Publishers, [2017] — JE JOHN
  • A humorous chapter book about a bad kitty that gets sick and must go to the doctor. You can probably tell by the cover that he doesn't quite feel the best about this.
    Graphic Novel, 2023New York : Roaring Brook Press, 2023. — JF BRUEL
  • Sharing thematically with Despicable Me, this book looks at another not-so-evil supervillain, Victor Spoil. For those interested in joining a journey of discovery of what it takes to be good at being bad.
    Book, 2017New York : Jimmy Patterson Books/Little, Brown and Company, 2017. — JF FRY
  • The Big Bad Wolf just wants a quick dinner. But the kids reading his story are tired of the same old fairy tale. So now the Wolf must go through numerous variations of his tale.
    Book, 2022Toronto : Tundra Books, [2022] — JE CALI
  • Fire and Fate

    a Tale of the Lord of Darkness

    Valentino, Serena
    Hades isn't invited to Hercules' birth and that leads the unwilling villain to really turn to villainy after being overlooked for so many years.
    Book, 2023Los Angeles : Disney-Hyperion, 2023. — JF VALENTINO
  • A child spy gets expelled from school after an accident in this witty and plot-driven title. His expulsion leads to an invite from an evil crime organization, which he promptly accepts.
    Graphic Novel, 2024New York : Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, [2024] — JF GIBBS
  • The teenage children of Disney's most notorious villains seek out a magical item so that they can escape the island they are trapped on. Check out if you're a fan of the Disney movie.
    Book, 2015Los Angeles ; New York : Disney-Hyperion, 2015. — JF DE LA CRUZ
  • What happens when a group of bad guys decide to become good? Wolf, Piranha, Snake, and Shark are out to change their image. Cats, dogs, people, and more are finally safe with the bad guys!
    Book, 2017New York : Scholastic Inc., [2017] — JE BLABEY
  • Cautionary Tales

    a Collection of Scary Stories Starring Favorite Disney Villains!

    Pearson, Ridley
    Ridley Pearson is the author of the fun Disney book series, The Kingdom Keepers. Now he brings his deep knowledge of Disney to tell various stories featuring villains.
    Book, 2022Los Angeles : Disney Press, 2022. — JF PEARSON
  • One of the most iconic baddies has absolutely no fears, right? This is a great read about overcoming your fears.
    Book, 2018Los Angeles : Disney/Lucasfilm Press, 2018. — JE STAR
  • Baba Yaga is looking for an assistant! Somebody who is obedient, good at cooking, cleaning, good with heights and has magical inclinations. Masha is just the girl, she is looking for adventure and answers the ad.
    Graphic Novel, 2015Somerville, Massachusetts : Candlewick Press, 2015. — JF MCCOOLA
  • Flora (you may know her as Cinderella's evil stepmother) feels very guilty about all of the bad things she has done. To make amends, she decides to start the Fairy Tale Reform School in order to help all the wicked members of Enchantasia.
    Book, 2015Naperville, Illinois : Sourcebooks Jabberwocky, [2015] — JF CALONITA
  • Kicked out of superhero camp, Mischief and Mayhem turn to supervillainy. Gee, with names like those, it's a wonder they didn't start there in the first place.
    Graphic Novel, 2021New York : Katherine Tegen Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers, [2021] — JF LAMUG
  • The tiny Apprentice Lord of Darkness has no money, no henchmen, and no lair. Will he be able to prove his evilness even through all his hardships?
    Graphic Novel, 2022New York, NY : Yellow Jacket, [2022] — JF CED
  • A funny, gross, and action-packed story of a kid who thinks his neighbor is just too nice! Check out if you're a fan of The Last Kids on Earth series.
    Graphic Novel, 2022New York : Crown Books for Young Readers, [2022] — JF TURNBLOOM
  • This is the classic story of a curmudgeon who wants to ruin Christmas for the Whos, until they prove the power of community.
    Book, 2021New York : Random House, [2021] — JE SEUSS
  • Follow Anne Bonny's story in this graphic novel as she navigates her own ship, a pirate crew, and a fearsome reputation—but a new enemy has her on the run and it’ll take all of Anne’s courage to stay afloat.
    Graphic Novel, 2021New York, NY : Amulet Books, 2021. — JF MAGGS