On Thursday 5th March 2020 children across the UK will go to school dressed as their favourite book character to celebrate World Book Day Children up and down the land are excitedly planning which costume they will choose to represent their favourite book. This national celebration of books, authors, illustrators and reading has never been more popular. All across the UK schools, publishers, books shops and workplaces take part in the event to encourage a love of reading and a love of literature.
World Book Day Ltd is a small registered charity and, in partnership with National Book Tokens, will be distributing more than 15 million £1 World Book Day book tokens to children. The notion is that by ensuring children have access to books it is more likely that the spark will turn into a fiery passion for books and they will love reading throughout their life.
And so the desperate scramble through the fancy dress box ensues as March 5th swings around, and parents everywhere wonder what costume their little one will wear to school this year for World Book Day?
Here at My Name Label as well as making sure your all your labelling needs are taken care of, we thought we’d help with some of the best World Book Day costume ideas that your children will love too. Because after all, you and your littlies want to spend time reading not thinking about costumes, right?
Easy World Book Day Costume Ideas for Children
Book Characters Who Wear Stripes
Most of us have a striped top somewhere in the wardrobe, so consider these book characters which all wear striped tops:
- “Wally” from ‘Where’s Wally’ Famous for his distinctive red and white striped top, Where’s Wally is a popular costume for World Book Day because it only requires a striped top, bobble hat and blue trousers/jeans.
- “Boy” from ‘Lost & Found’ by Oliver Jeffers This popular book is a great idea for costumes involving striped tops. Combine with bobble hat and suitcase (and even a fluffy penguin!) to transform your child into this intrepid South Pole adventurer.
- “Grace” from ‘Amazing Grace’ by Mary Hoffman This iconic children’s book has Amazing Grace as the heroine and little girls will love the opportunity to dress up as this inspirational character. A striped red top and white shorts/skirt et voila!
- “Burglar Bill” from ‘Burglar Bill’ by Janet and Alan Ahlberg Dressing as a burglar is simply a matter of striped top, eye mask and pillowcase ‘swag bag’ slung over the shoulder. This popular children’s book’s sneaky character is a great idea for a costume for World Book Day.
Book Characters That Wear Pyjamas
Another easy costume for the smoothest bed-to-school transition ever; why not try one of these book characters who wear pyjamas?
- “Sophie” from the ‘BFG’ by Roald Dahl A nightdress and a pair of spectacles is all you’ll need for this simple World Book Day costume of one of Roald Dahl’s most beloved characters.
- “Boy” from the Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg A festive-themed story loved by children of all ages, dressing in old fashioned pyjamas will be a simple costume, and you could even include a mug of hot chocolate for authenticity.
- “Tom” from ‘Tom’s Midnight Garden’ by Phillippa Pearce This entrancing and magical story is one of the best-loved children's books ever written. Pyjamas are all it takes to dress up as Tom -simple!
Famous Witches and Wizards in Children’s Books
A black bin bag and a cardboard coned hat makes the loveliest little witch costume, or stick some cut out stars onto a cape to make a cute wizard with one of these simple book character costume ideas.
- “Harry Potter” from the Harry Potter Series Undoubtedly one of the most popular children’s book characters ever written, Harry Potter costumes will be seen everywhere on World Book Day. A cloak, those iconic round spectacles (and of course the lightning bolt scar) is all you need to dress your little ones up as this magical literary hero.
- “Meg” from ‘Meg & Mog’ by Helen Nicoll and Jan Pienkowski Meg the witch and Mog her cat have been casting magic in the world of children’s books for 40 years. Dress your little witch up as Meg the witch for a simple and effective costume idea.
- “The Witch” from ‘Room on a Broom’ by Julia Donaldson This modern classic features a witch, a cat, a frog, a dog and a bird who all try to ride on the witch’s broom to hilarious effect. Witch costumes for World Book Day are brilliantly simple yet effective!
Book Characters that Wear Football Kits
If your child is football mad, they’ll be wanting to wear their football kit at every opportunity. Here are some fictional children’s book characters who wear football kits so that your little one can dress up in their favourite outfit on World Book Day.
- “James” from ‘Football Academy’ by Tom Parker This footballing hero loves playing football but wants to find his own path in the footballing world. Dress your child in their favourite football kit so they can be James for World Book Day.
- One of the girls from ‘Girls FC’ by Helena Pielichaty A sporty t-shirt, pair of shorts, long socks and trainers is all you’ll need to replicate a football kit with this easy dressing-up idea for World Book Day.
- “Willy” from ‘Willy the Wizard’ by Anthony Browne Willy the chimp loves playing football but doesn’t have any boots. A good dress up idea for a character who wears a football kit (but not noisy/slippery football boots!)
Book Characters that Wear Normal Clothes
And finally, the ultimate easy-fix for World Book Day costumes – characters that wear normal clothes! Because parenting is time consuming enough without having to sew/create fancy dress outfits!
- “Charlie Bucket” from ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’ by Roald Dahl Perhaps one of the most famous Roald Dahl books thanks to the film(s), Charlie Bucket wears normal clothes typical for a young boy such as shirt/jumper and jeans. If you’re feeling crafty you could accessorise with a golden ticket too!
- “Harry” from ‘Harry and the Bucketful of Dinosaurs’ by Ian Whybrow A normal outfit and a beach bucket filled with toy plastic dinosaurs is all you’ll need to create this simple World Book Day costume. You’re welcome!
- “Sophie” from ‘The Tiger Who Came to Tea’ by Judith Kerr Written in 1968, this children’s classic book is a tale about a big stripy tiger who came to visit Sophie and her mummy for tea. All you’ll need for this simple book costume is a dress and a pair of patterned tights. Peasy!
We hope that this has helped you with some great simple World Book Day costume ideas. Feel free to share any pictures of your children all dressed up on March 5th , we’d love to see them on our Facebook and Instagram.
