Your suggested chapter books are great. I read to my daughter through her teen years. It was wonderful for both of us because I was an elementary librarian; we both love fairy tales and folk tales; and she was taking Forensics with a love for oral interpretation of literature. Our favorite was Rafe Martin's THE ROUGH-FACE GIRL, along with every Cinderella version from around the world!
One of the things I love best about your approach to raising readers is that it’s never either-or! You always bring such clarity and supportive decisiveness and I for one really appreciate that!
My kids will turn 7 in a few weeks and we did Jenny and the Cat Club (on your recommendation!) last year--they loved it, and also Charlotte's Web. Right now I'm reading the Ramona & Beezus books aloud to them and I think they also fall into this category you're describing. We also still read picture books every day, especially ones with longer text.
I have been trying so hard to find appropriate chapter books to read aloud for my 5 yo. It’s tricky. We already did all of Roald Dahl (except for The Witches), Charlotte’s Web, Alice in Wonderland, The One and Only Ivan, many of the Magic Tree House Series. We started the Spiderwick Chronicles.
It feels like it’s a kind of forgotten category of literature. And it’s such a fine line. He’ll listen to The Chronicles of Narnia and Impossible Creatures but wasn’t interested in The Girl Who Drank the Moon. I like finding these titles because it keeps me engaged too.
I’m curious as to what exactly works for him and why it does and how we can get more of these books out into the world.
The Grant Snider poetry comic books were an unexpected delight to enjoy together.
Kate, most (though not all) of the books you've mentioned aren't considered first chapter books but rather, middle-grade novels. And you're right that it's super tricky to find appropriate read-alouds for younger readers who are able to listen to more complex language and stories, but need less mature content. You might check with your local library to see if you have access to a resource called Novelist K-8 -- it's a database of books where you can search by title, author, subject, and beyond based on books your child has enjoyed. (If you don't know, ask a librarian to help you. And if the answer is no, it's not available, the librarian is a great resource too 😉)
what a great substack!!! I so happy I just stumbled upon this. :)) I've started writing a book-related newsletter and mostly focus on adult reads, as my children are teens now, but I just put together a little post about my favorite Thanksgiving picture books. I would have linked to your substack for further reading if I'd known about it. But now that I know you're here, I'm subscribing xx
Your suggested chapter books are great. I read to my daughter through her teen years. It was wonderful for both of us because I was an elementary librarian; we both love fairy tales and folk tales; and she was taking Forensics with a love for oral interpretation of literature. Our favorite was Rafe Martin's THE ROUGH-FACE GIRL, along with every Cinderella version from around the world!
One of the things I love best about your approach to raising readers is that it’s never either-or! You always bring such clarity and supportive decisiveness and I for one really appreciate that!
Thank you, Sri!
My kids will turn 7 in a few weeks and we did Jenny and the Cat Club (on your recommendation!) last year--they loved it, and also Charlotte's Web. Right now I'm reading the Ramona & Beezus books aloud to them and I think they also fall into this category you're describing. We also still read picture books every day, especially ones with longer text.
Great recommendations! We've started with The Babysitters Club, Ivy & Bean, Magic Tree House, and Diary of a Wimpy Kid so far.
Oooh, we have Stella & Marigold on Claire's nightstand!
It’s very sweet.
I have been trying so hard to find appropriate chapter books to read aloud for my 5 yo. It’s tricky. We already did all of Roald Dahl (except for The Witches), Charlotte’s Web, Alice in Wonderland, The One and Only Ivan, many of the Magic Tree House Series. We started the Spiderwick Chronicles.
It feels like it’s a kind of forgotten category of literature. And it’s such a fine line. He’ll listen to The Chronicles of Narnia and Impossible Creatures but wasn’t interested in The Girl Who Drank the Moon. I like finding these titles because it keeps me engaged too.
I’m curious as to what exactly works for him and why it does and how we can get more of these books out into the world.
The Grant Snider poetry comic books were an unexpected delight to enjoy together.
Kate, most (though not all) of the books you've mentioned aren't considered first chapter books but rather, middle-grade novels. And you're right that it's super tricky to find appropriate read-alouds for younger readers who are able to listen to more complex language and stories, but need less mature content. You might check with your local library to see if you have access to a resource called Novelist K-8 -- it's a database of books where you can search by title, author, subject, and beyond based on books your child has enjoyed. (If you don't know, ask a librarian to help you. And if the answer is no, it's not available, the librarian is a great resource too 😉)
what a great substack!!! I so happy I just stumbled upon this. :)) I've started writing a book-related newsletter and mostly focus on adult reads, as my children are teens now, but I just put together a little post about my favorite Thanksgiving picture books. I would have linked to your substack for further reading if I'd known about it. But now that I know you're here, I'm subscribing xx
Hi Nicolle 👋 Welcome!