Parent Hacks is part of the MotherTalk book tour for The Kids' Book Club Book (email mess be damned!). This book is a great resource for kids and parents alike, especially with long summer days ahead. Here's a complete how-to for starting a book club with your kids, or for kids looking to set up their own clubs. Book recommendations by grade level, jumping off points for discussion, related projects (make a snow globe while reading about frigid Narnia in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe!) and even recipes for easy, themed snacks. It's all here, and more.
My first thought was that this would be a lovely resource for homeschoolers, but anyone who wants to share their bibliophily with their kids can benefit from a read.
Win it! It's been far too long since we had a giveaway on Parent Hacks! To get in the running, comment with the title(s) of the book(s) you most look forward to sharing with your kids. At 4pm tomorrow (PST) I'll pick a winner at random. I can't wait to hear your book suggestions. Mine: the Narnia books and The Little Prince.
I’m so looking forward to introducing my daughter to “The Secret Garden”, “A Little Princess”, “Little Women”, and “A Tree Grows In Brooklyn.” I know they’re all very old-school, but I loved them so much when I was a small girl, and I hope she feels the same way!
I’m looking forward to sharing the “Anne of Green Gables” books, as well as the Madeline L’Engle books (Wrinkle In Time, Swiftly Tilting Planet, etc)
Giveaways are FUN! I’m looking forward to Shel Silverstein sharing where my little guy can actually GET why it’s funny.
I’m so looking forward to my daughter getting into the Nancy Drew series. She hasn’t shown a lot of interest yet, but I keep suggesting. Those were my most favorite books of all time!
I’m looking forward to sharing “The Fat Cat,” by Jack Kent, and “The Happy Hockey Family,” by Lane Smith with my daughter.
I can’t wait until my son is old enough to read SuperFudge! I don’t think he’ll enjoy Are You There God….
The Island of Blue Dolphins, The Fledgling, and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. And more, more, more of course! So many good books to share…
Goodness! There are so many, and she’s only two and a half, so I’m trying to be patient! The first books that come to mind are the Little House series and Where the Wild Things Are. I love that several people have mentioned A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, but my oh my I’ll have to be very patient for that one!
Here are my suggestions:
1. There’s a Boy in the Girls Bathroom by Louis Sachar
2. Where the Sidewalk Ends
Oh my! Where to begin? The Narnia series for sure, but also the Time Quartet series by Madeleine L’Engle, all the Ramona books by Beverly Cleary, and (much later) A Bridge to Terabithia.
I would like to share books like Charlotte’s Web and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn…i hope my children will like the the anne of green gables,trixie belden, and hardy boys series. When my son was 7 weeks old and sick in the hospital his dad and i took turns reading him little prince. he is now 18 months and the book is in his library, i hope he will read it when he gets older.
I’m looking forward to sharing the Tolkien books with him. We’ll start off with The Hobbit, of course. I’m hoping to not let him watch the movies until after he’s read the books a few times.
I’m looking forward to sharing the Anne of Green Gables series as well as Little Women and Little Men.
I am really excited about The Princess and the Goblin, The Chronicles of Narnia, and the Little House Series. I’m also excited about Madeleine L’Engle’s books. And every other book….. 🙂
Oh my! The Secret Garden, Madeleine L’Engle, The Enchanted Forest books, James and the Giant Peach… so many more.
I can’t wait to read many of the above mentioned ones with my children as well as the Harry Potter series and Ursula Le Guin’s Wizard of Earthsea series.
Charlie & the Chocolate Factory! The entire Narnia series! Harriet the Spy (and of course I’ll encourage her to wear a belt with a magnifying glass and a notebook and stuff hanging off of it)!
I am anxious to share the book Ann Likes Red. This was the first book that I could read by myself. It is unknown how many times I checked it out at the library. The little girl seemed so lucky- she got to go to the store and pick out a red outfit from hat to shoes. Guess what my favorite color is??
We just received a family copy of Robert Louis Stevenson’s Treasure Island, with illustrations by Howard Pyle. It was a landmark book for me as a kid, and I cannot wait to read it to my boys.
When the Sky is Like Lace. I found it when my daughter was young, and now I’m looking forward to sharing it with my new son. It’s mysterious, goofy, poetic and gorgeously illustrated – everything I need in a baby book
Ooohhh, I couldn’t wait! We have read to our children since they were babies! I started with Anne of Green Gables. I’ve read through the whole series out loud now.
(I loved reading out loud and felt like the sound of my voice reading might be soothing as my babies fell asleep. )
I can’t wait until my kids are old enough for the Harry Potter books. I love them so much that I kind of named my youngest after him.
I know my son is going to love Watership Down. Also Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH, and Lord of the Rings.
Without a doubt: The Hobbit, and The Lord Of The Rings! Books first, then she can watch the movies. Since my husband and I are such geeks, we’ll have to include the animated versions by Rankin/Bass (as bad as it was). Also Watership Down. And Witch Cat.
I can’t wait until my daughter is old enough to enjoy all of my favorite classic books. Julie of the Wolves, The Witch of Blackbird Pond, Johnny Tremain, the Little House series, Anne of Green Gables, The Flame Trees of Thika, and so many others…
my first thought is the Little House books…I actually expected a lot more mentions of that series. i was totally captivated by it as a kid, even though i was not a fan of the tv show at all.
And thanks to MamaChristy for reminding me about Shel Silverstein! I have a 7 year old nephew that will love his stuff…I can’t believe I hadn’t thought of it myself!
Frecklejuice… definitely
Definitely going to read A. A. Milne’s Winne the Pooh and House at Pooh Corner. Also the Little House series. Anything by Shel Silverstein, Judy Blume, Beverly Cleary and Madeline L’Engle. My older kids still love Dr. Seuss, too….
Just gotta get my toddler to tolerate sitting to listen. 😉
i got a kick out of my daughter reading nancy drew and the little house series – but i can’t WAIT until she starts the Anne of Green Gables series!
My dad and I read Little Women together chapter by chapter when I was younger and looked up all the words I didn’t know, during the same time frame he did the same with my brother and the book Little Joe Otter. So those are definitely on my list, I can’t wait to do the same with them someday. Baby is due in three weeks and I already have several versions of the Winnie-The-Pooh stories to share as bedtime stories appropriate for different ages (Board books to very nice collector hardbacks). Babies very first story will be Pooh and the honeybees, it was the inspiration for the mural in the nursery. Also on the list is Tom Sawyer, Huck Finn, To Kill a Mockingbird, Anne of Green Gables, The Secret Garden, The Little Princess, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Lord of the Rings & The Hobbit, and anything and everything by Enid Blyton.
Our baby won’t be born until September, but I’m already looking forward to introducing the Little House books and the Winnie the Pooh books, as well as the “All Of A Kind Family” books. My husband will undoubtedly start him/her on The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings entirely too early. And if I can find it, s/he will have a copy of There’s A Rainbow In My Closet, which I must have checked out of the library a hundred times.
We do a lot of reading aloud. My girls LOVE the Little House books, anything by Roald Dahl,and the My Father’s Dragon series by Ruth Stiles Gannett. Next on our list is The Trumpet of the Swan. I can’t wait to read Encyclopedia Brown, A Secret Garden, Charlotte’s Web, Mr. Popper’s Penguins, The Littles, Stuart Little… Oh, and these weren’t around when I was a girl, but I’ve heard great things about the American Girl series. Unfortunately they open the door to pricey doll purchases.
Oh the list is long! So many (all?) that have been already listed. Thanks to all for reminding me of books to re-read, and how fun to see books I loved and forgot, like Trixie Beldon and The Witch of Blackberry Pond! But for now, for my 11 month old son, more immediate wishes are Pooh (we’ve already read some), Dr. Seuss, Don’t Let the Bird Drive the Bus, Harold and the Purple Crayon, Diary of a Worm…
“Harriet the Spy” and all the Judy Blume books, especially the Ramona books.
Tale of the Flopsy Bunnies for the little one, the Five Little Peppers and How they Grew for the bigger.
I’m looking forward to sharing Henry Hikes to Fitchburg by D.B. Johnson (it’s Thoreau for kids, really) with my daughter when she’s a little older.
Every little girl (and big girl) should read CinderEdna by Ellen Jackson-it’s my favorite! And of course the Little House series, Harry Potter, Princess Bride, Little Women, Fablehaven… the list could go on forever, I have so many great memories of books, I want my kids to grow up with the same feeling for books!
I am a big fan of the Brian Jacques Redwall series. We are looking forward to a summer full of reading adventures. I also enjoy a Wonder Book for Girls and Boys by Nathaniel Hawthorne. This is an awesome book that introduces children to Greek Mythology with six different stories.
I’m anticipating the Harry Potter books (when she’s old enough for them), the Borrowers series, Bridge to Terebithia, and the Wrinkle in Time series. To start. There are so many…!
There are so many good books out there that I am slightly embarrassed to say that I loved the Sweet Valley High series when I was younger. Hahaha, my mom used to call it schlock, and now I know why!
I love reading Shel Silverstein with my kids, and my 7 year old and I just finished the Lemony Snicket series. We can’t wait for book 7 of HP to come out either!
Great list so far…
For our bedtime reading right now we’re reading Arthur and the Minimoys by Luc Besson. But we’ve also really enjoyed James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl,
and Half Magic by Edward Eager.
I was an early reader, and I’ve loved books all my life. Hopefully, I can spark some of that interest in my step-daughter. I got started on the original Grimm’s Fairy tales, now I look back and I’m shocked at how scary they are! So I’ll have to wait for much later to share them, if at all! I loved the Mrs. Piggle Wiggle series, the Anne of Green Gables series, The Ordinary Princess, My Side of the Mountain, and From The Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. Anything that took me on great adventures to magical places!
The Phantom Tollbooth, and Mistress Masham’s Repose. Great books – both of them!
I was going to say the Phantom Tollbooth!! Now I need another one… Beezus and Ramona is great for kids with siblings, but ours will probably remain an only – although it would teach her why not to put rubber dolls in the oven… I’ll go with Runaway Ralph.
Looking forward to reading the Indian in the Cupboard series and more Munsch.
What a fun topic! My son is 13, but my daughter is just 2 – so I have to remember all the good stuff all over again! Ds and I enjoy things now like “The Belgariad” series. We’ve already started reading aloud the good stuff to dd, although she’s not REALLY there yet – Black Beauty, Little House, etc. Follow our adventures at our blog: http://www.tiffanyblitz.com/blog
So many! But Tuck Everlasting and the Half Magic series top the list.
Books are like lifeblood in my family. . . I can’t wait to share:
1. Little Women
2. To Kill A MockingBird
3. Huckleberry Finn
4. Leaves of Grass (I used to read it to DD in utero)
5. And, of course, ANYTHING by Judy Blume.
Here’s off the top of my head: Pyradin Chronicles by Lloyd Alexander (actually anything by him), Nancy Drew/Hardy Boys/Trixie Belden, Black Stallion books, Marguerite Henry books, Harry Potter, The Ordinary Princess, The Rainbow Fairy books, Stellaluna, Crickwing.
Can anyone tell yet that my house is filled with books? I’ll just stop here before I take up oodles of space
So enjoyed all these posts about books I loved too. Just one more that I don’t think has had a mention yet: Susan Cooper’s sequence The Dark is Rising.
English, Arthurian legend – for older readers, but a wonderful story (another one I am rereading with the excuse of being ready for my 16month old one day!)
My 12 year old and I are trying to read all the Newbery Medal winners. He’s way ahead of me – he’s read 22 and I’ve read 10.
See The Newbery Project at http://newberryproject.blogspot.com/
and join us!
I know that this is am older post but I just discovered Parent Hacks, there are bound to be others like me that are late to the party, so in addition to many of my favorites already listed above:
Julie of the Wolves, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, Tevyes Daughters, The Black Pearl, Around the World in Eighty Days, Rifles for Watie, The Whipping Boy, The House of the Seven Gables, Puddin Head Wilson, The Bowwers, Jacob have I loved, The Little Hungry Mouse the Red Ripe Strawberry and the Big Hungry Bear, Stinky Cheese Man, and the beat goes on.
The places you will go.