Best Book Week Costume Ideas in Perth 2026

Book Week 2026 runs Saturday 22 to Friday 28 August. This year's theme, in the CBCA's 80th year of the Book of the Year Awards, is “Symphony of Stories”. Schools mark it their own way — some hold a parade or an assembly, plenty just run a dress-up day — and the day itself varies school to school, so check the newsletter before you commit to anything that needs ordering.

The costume almost never has to match the theme. For nearly every school the brief is simply “come as a book character”. If your school does lean into Symphony of Stories, anything musical gets you there — a rock-star wig, a character from a book with a song in it, or a kid carrying a tambourine and total confidence.

One spending tip before the ideas: the photos everyone takes are all head and shoulders. If the budget is tight, put it into whatever sits above the neck — the hat, the glasses, the hair — and build the rest from the wardrobe. Everything below is part of our Canning Vale range, and each tile shows live availability as you browse.

Two decades on, still the most-worn Book Week costume in the country — and our own tills agree: the three best-selling August costume accessories in this store's history are a striped tie, a toy wand and a pair of round specs.

The centrepiece is the kids' Gryffindor robe ($42.99, sizes 6+ and 9+) — the most complete version of the look, and the easiest one to get right. There's also a robe-and-wand set, a tutu dress version, and a wand & glasses kit for kids who already own something black to wear underneath.

On a budget, build it over a white school shirt and grey jumper: round glasses ($5.99), a gnarled wand ($8.99) and a maroon-and-gold striped tie ($8.99) — about $24 all up and recognisable from the back row. Swap in the white wig & beard set ($29) and you've got the headmaster instead.

A Where's Wally costume does the hardest thing in Book Week: everyone recognises it instantly, including the grandparents. The licensed child costume ($39) is the one everyone pictures — red-and-white stripes, bobble hat, round glasses.

Plan B costs half as much: the $19 red-and-white striped bobble-hat costume (there's a girls' version too) reads exactly the same across a crowded quadrangle. And for the kid who wants to be different on purpose, there's a zombie version at $12.77.

Oz is the quiet achiever of Book Week: four strong characters from one book, which makes it the best group costume going — split Dorothy, the Tin Man, the Scarecrow and the Lion between friends and the photo takes care of itself.

Dorothy classic ($49) comes in three sizes; the thrifty version is our $19 gingham pinafore plus two plaits and a soft toy in a basket. The Tin Man and Scarecrow are both on the $19 rack, with deluxe Tin Man and Cowardly Lion versions in the range for anyone going all in.

For older kids who've moved from Oz to Wicked (a novel before it was anything else), there's a deluxe Elphaba costume too.

The Willy Wonka golden-ticket costume ($34.99, 5–8 years) is the strongest Dahl look we stock — and Charlie Bucket is the strongest one you don't need to buy: pyjamas, bed hair, and a golden ticket printed at home.

The deluxe Mr. Fox costume ($39, 3–5 years) is quietly one of the best-made costumes in the store. Grandpa Joe is the genius lazy option: pyjamas again, plus the old-man accessory set ($16.99). And Matilda needs nothing from us except a blue dress, a red ribbon and a stack of borrowed library books.

Teachers, there's an adult Oompa Loompa deluxe in the range as well — a staffroom favourite.

Every dress-up day has one, and every dress-up day is better for it. The licensed Cat in the Hat kids jumpsuit ($63.99) is the full look; the $19 rack still carries a jumpsuit-and-top-hat version, with a toddler size for the younger sibling who refuses to be left out. The Lorax costume rounds out the Seuss shelf — orange, moustachioed and instantly recognisable to every teacher on duty.

For twins, best friends or siblings, the licensed Thing 1 t-shirt ($14.99) over red pants is the fastest matching costume in this guide; the full Thing 1 & 2 jumpsuit ($73.99) is the committed version. Blue hairspray from the accessory wall finishes either.

For Possum Magic — still the best-selling Australian picture book ever — the $19 possum costume does invisible Hush perfectly (a dab of silver face glitter sells the “partly visible” bit). Koala ears at $6.99 over grey clothes covers Koala Lou or Blinky Bill with almost no effort.

And yes, Bluey counts — there are shelves of Bluey books. The classic Bluey costume ($48) is licensed and comes in two sizes, or the Bandit face mask ($12.99) turns a parent on drop-off duty into the world's most relatable dad.

The deluxe Alice costume ($59) is the pick if you want something that survives being worn to three birthday parties afterwards; the $19 Wonderland Hatter with top hat is its chaotic best friend. A deluxe Peter Pan ($45) rounds out the shelf.

From the $19 rack: Red Riding Hood, a storybook princess, and a golden ballgown with a certain tale-as-old-as-time energy. Pirates are always fair game — Treasure Island has that covered — via the pirate dress-up set ($16.99) or the $19 pirate costume, with tricorn hats and hook hands on the accessory wall.

Animal costumes are the under-5s’ sweet spot — nothing to explain, warm to wear, and half the toddler shelf at the library qualifies as source material. The $19 caterpillar is an obvious very hungry favourite; the spotted dog covers everything from Spot to Hairy Maclary’s mates; and the red spotted bug is straight out of What the Ladybird Heard.

Rounding it out: a $19 sequin fish with a strong Rainbow Fish case, a deluxe deer mask, a butterfly costume ($22), and a deluxe dragon — hello, Zog.

Some of the best Book Week costumes are barely costumes. The $19 old lady costume is the whole of There Was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Fly (pin a toy fly to the cardigan and accept the compliments); the vintage nanny costume plus a borrowed umbrella lands somewhere practically perfect.

Also hiding on the rack: a green witch with hat straight off Room on the Broom, a wizard school uniform that says wizarding school without the licensing fee, a caped bat hero for the comic-book kids, and the granny kit and walking cane for turning any kid into the grandparent from any book.

All of these live on the $19 Costume Wall — every costume on it $19 flat. Dressing two or three kids in the same week? Start there.