100 Books - a 7 year family adventure
“When you read a book as a child,
it becomes a part of your identity in a way that no other reading in your whole life does.”
― Nora Ephron, You've Got Mail
Today my kids and I finished our 100th read-a-loud! We started keeping track of our chapter books 7 years ago when my oldest was in preschool and today we reached a pretty cool milestone.
As I look back on the past few years there are certainly things I regret or that I would do differently, but one thing I feel really good about is the amount of time we have spent curled up in the same story all together. We have laughed and cried and walked beside the same characters - many of whom have surprised us or taught us something new or contributed to our inside jokes and "family language." We have journeyed to the North Pole and the Great Plains and the coast of Africa. We have travelled through time and through various realms and met a wide-range of personalities and talking animals. We have watched redemption unfold and good triumph over evil time and time again, and we have no plans to stop. In fact, while I realize read-a-loud time may be harder to find as the kids age, I hope to add another 25-50 books to our list before my oldest graduates!
But for now, we are going to pause and celebrate this accomplishment and share our list with you in case you'd like to enjoy a book or two or 100 with your family! (I will put a star next to the titles that were the most loved by my crew.)
I am very thankful for Honey for a Child's Heart and Readaloudrevival.com for their helpful booklists and ideas!
The first 100 novels we read aloud:
Eight Class Pets by Vivian Vande Velde
*Stuart Little by E. B. White
Mouse Soup by Arnold Lobel
New Toes for Tia by Larry Dinkins
The House at Pooh Corner by A.A. Milne
The Treasure Tree by John Trent
Michael Hague's Treasured Classics
Usborn Stories from Around the World
Dark Day in the Deep Sea by Mary Pope Osborne
The Magic Treehouse books 1-8 by Mary Pope Osborne
*Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder
The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
*Charlotte's Web by E. B. White
The Magic Treehouse books 9-17 by Mary Pope Osborne
Mozart the Wonder Boy by Opal Wheeler
The Courage of Sarah Noble by Alice Dalgliesh
McBroom's Wonderful One-Acre Farm
Thanksgiving on Thursday by Mary Pope Osborne
Christmas at Camelot by Mary Pope Osborne
*The Best Christmas Pageant Ever
Brambly Hedge by Jill Barklem
Songs of Victory by Betsy James
Papa's House by Betsy James
Abe Lincoln at Last by Mary Pope Osborne
Usborne Big Book of Little Stories
*The Boxcar Children
Mr. Popper's Penguins
My Father's Dragon
Mary Poppins
Mrs. Noodlekugen
The Squirrel's Birthday and Other Parties
*Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
Ramona the Brave
Surprise Island (boxcar children)
The Yellow House Mystery (boxcar children)
Animal Inn by Paul DuBois Jacobs
Fortunately the Milk
Mystery Ranch (boxcar children)
Captain and Matey Set Sail
Mercy Watson to the Rescue
The Evergreen Woods
*The Mouse and the Motorcycle
Pippi Longstocking
Sable
Robin Hood by Paul Creswick
Happy Little Family
*Because of Winn-Dixie
*Gone Fishing by Tamera Will Wissinger
What Would Jesus Do by Helen Haidle
Little House in the Big Woods
Schoolhouse in the Woods
Twelve Kinds of Ice
Stallion by Starlight by Mary Pope Osborne
A Boy Called Christmas
Hurry up Houdini by Mary Pope Osborne
Around the World Stories - Germany
*The Adventures of a South Pole Pig
Lions at Lunchtime by Mary Pope Osborne
*The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street
The Littles
God's Smuggler
*Runaway Ralph
Voyage of the Vikings (Imagination Station)
*The Trumpet of the Swan
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
*How to Train Your Dragon
Mercy Watson: Princess in Disguise
Squanto
The Matchlock Gun
*The Indian in the Cupboard
The Family Under the Bridge
*The Sign of the Beaver
Benjamin West and His Cat Grimalkin
Love Does (for kids) by Bob Goff
The Woodshed Mystery (boxcar)
Ribsy by Beverly Cleary
Meet Abraham Lincoln (landmark books)
Amon's Adventure by Arnold Ytreeide
Gone Camping - a novel in verse
*The Secret Garden
*The Vanderbeekers and the Hidden Garden
Pinnochio
The Vanderbeekers to the Rescue
Tumtum and Nutmeg - the rose cottage tales
*Anne of Green Gables
The Wonderful Adventures of Nils
*The Very, Very, Very Far North by Dan Bar-El
*Adventures with Waffles by Maria Parr
Greenglass House by Kate Milford
*Just Beyond the Very, Very, Very Far North by Dan Bar-El
Tuck Everlasting
The Adventures of Miss Petitfour
*Summer of the Monkeys by Wilson Rawls
*The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind
*The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles by Julie Andrews
Wonderland by Barbara O'Connor
Little Pilgrim's Big Journey
Old Yeller
Doctor Doolittle
. Rabbit Hill by Robert Lawson
You may also enjoy my articles:
Raising Readers - which includes some practical tips on how to incorporate more reading into your daily rhythms and
5 Ways to Enjoy Books with Your Kids - picture book picnics, tea and poetry, cozy couch pile-ups...all the magical moments you long to create
