Snapshot Saturday
Reading Harry Potter to my boys + an eclectic dress up bin = some crazy variations on the Harry Potter theme. Here’s to creative little boys with wild imaginations!
By the way, I’d love to hear any book recommendations you have for reading aloud to kids and/or chapter books my older boys (ages 6 and 8) would love. With weekly trips to the library, we are always looking for new, well-recommended books (some of their favorite past reads are A to Z Mysteries, Encyclopedia Brown, Magic Treehouse, Flat Stanley and The Mouse & the Motorcycle novels)
*UPDATE! Thanks for all of your recommendations! My boys read through the comments with me and we can’t wait to hit the library with our new list in hand. I compiled all the recommendations (so far) in a little document since I want to have all these ideas in one great place. If you want the list, click HERE for a Word doc or HERE for a .pdf. You guys are the best!
If you’d like to check out past Snapshot Saturdays, click HERE.
97 Comments on “Snapshot Saturday”
Hi Mel,
Thank you for your awesome website. I’ve cooked a lot of your recipes and we all enjoy them a lot. Unfortunately the link to the compiled book list does not work. Would you be able to fix it? Thanks. Ruth
Ruth – Just fixed it.
BOXCAR CHILDREN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
While I’m clearly a bit late to the game, I love suggesting the books I loved to read as a child, and I love suggesting the books that I’ve read (that I may or may not be too old for) that have come out since then.
The Castle in the Attic, by Elizabeth Winthrop
Troubletwisters, by Garth Nix
Wizard’s Hall, by Jane Yolen (really, really good for HP fans)
Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher, by Bruce Coville (anything by him tends to be amazing, but watch out for a few potentially scary short stories. There’s one about a monster under the bed that gave me nightmares for months.)
Any of the Bailey School Kids books. They’re written by a few different people.
From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, by E. L. Konisburg
Island of the Blue Dolphins, by Scott O’Dell
Pippi Longstocking, by Astrid Lindgren
Ella Enchanted, by Gail Carson Levine
The Last Piper, by Helen Cavanagh
The Farthest Away Mountain, by Lynne Reid Banks
The Mouse and the Motorcycle, by Beverly Cleary
The Chocolate Touch, by Patrick Skene Catling
The Egypt Game, by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
The Great Gilly Hopkins, by Katherine Paterson
The Animorphs, by K. A. Applegate
So You Want to Be a Wizard, by Diane Duane
Mel, I love your blog. I don’t follow many, but we’ve enjoyed several of your recipes so far. How delightful to be able to share something in return. I have two boys, a 7 and 10 year old, who are voracious readers. We read every night and listen to books on CD in the car from the library as well. Here are a few I didn’t see on your list :
Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh, The Hobbit, Crunch, George’s Secret Key to the Universe by Stephen Hawking, The Shark in Charlie’s Window, and The Year Down Yonder by Richard Peck. We also have enjoyed Sarah Plain and Tall and some of the Little House series.
With a new little sister the book – All About Sam is pretty funny.
Joining you late…For good read alouds, my kids loved all The Great Brain books. Also, Sideways School stories by Louis Sachar are very silly. One more with lots of titles are the Mrs. Piggle Wiggle books. Eventhough my kids are teenagers now, they still reference sideways school at times. Good memories!
Too cute! I wish as an adult I was ‘allowed’ to dress up as Harry Potter as I read the book! : ) There are some great books on the list, I didn’t see Shiloh, by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, or Holes, by Louis Sachar. More great reads for kids!
Sorry for being so late to the party! The Redwall Series by Brian Jaques is a lot of fun..for all!
The Great Brain books by John Dennis Fitzgerald
I have three boys, the youngest is now at college, and we read out loud together every night, listened to books on CD in the car, and generally spent LOTS of time together reading. When the youngest left home, I decided I needed to share some of our favorite books to read aloud. I started a blog Shannon’s Book Nook, that shares not only some of our favorite books, but also I have found or designed easy-to-do at home activities to make the time together even more fun. I usually try out my activity ideas on my granddaughter. I had to pick a place to start, so I started with picture books–there are over 100–and just recently moved onto chapter books. I only have about 20 of those, but I’m working on it! So if you get a chance, check out my blog at shannonsbooknook.com for ideas for some chapter books and LOTS of ideas and activities for your younger crowd with picture books.
Oh yeah- how could I forget Mrs. Piggle Wiggle- hilarious!
Cutest picture ever! We had a dress up bin growing up, too. I need to do one at my house. Your such an on-the-ball and FUN mom!
Mel, I love your site! I have recommended it to so many people and they love it too! You have an amazing understanding of food and life, and I always enjoy your posts! So I’ve never commented before, but having boys of my own, being an AVID reader, and having taught 3rd grade for 5 years reading aloud to both boys and girls, I felt that I had to comment 🙂 I think that most of my book pics have been mentioned, but I still really wanted to comment. Here are some of my favorites:
Any book by Andrew Clements–his books are always funny and inspiring to children
Brandon Mull books–all amazing
Roald Dahl books–super funny and entertaining
Ellan Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine–(There are tons of Ogres and magical elements that the boys love)
The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle–by Avi (Fun mystery and adventure book)
Rick Riordan books–loved them all
Evertaster by Adam Glendon Sidwell–(This is a brand new book that I just read this weekend. It was clean, fun, full of adventure and surprises, and…all about food. Loved it!)
THANKS!!
How to Eat Fried Worms — Thomas Rockwell
The Last Unicorn — Peter Beagle
Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher — Bruce Coville
Keys to the Kingdom (series) — Garth Nix
From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E Frankweiler — E.L. Konigsburg
My son and I really enjoyed reading Kenny & the Dragon by Tony DiTerlizzi when he was 4 but I’d recommend it for any age. My son is 6 and currently can’t get enough of the comics Tiny Titans by Art Baltazar. Both my daughter (age 9) and son like the graphic novels Owly by Andy Runton.
I have 3 boys and it’s ALL about Harry Potter right now at my house. Other series they have loved though (besides those already listed) are Dragon Slayers Academy and The Secrets of Droon.
I have to say I was surprised not to see Freak the Mighty on this list. Fabulous read aloud book that my kids laughed and cried listening too. Also loved The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane and Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nymph. Also have read Castle in the Attic aloud. Good luck!
Frindle by Andrew Clements
Great Brain books by John D. Fitzgerald
Bruno & Boots books by Gordon Korman
The Indian in the Cupboard series by Lyn Reid Banks
The Magic Tree House series by Mary Pope Osborne – tons of different stories, great introduction to the chapter book for 1st/2nd graders. My son loves them.
My daughter is eight. She loved the Gregor the Overlander series by Suzanne Collins, the Hunger Games author. She also loved The Secret Garden, Treasure Island, black Beauty.
On her own, she loves Diary of a Wimpy Kid, magic Tree House (especially the fact books), and the DK books (informational). Also, she LOVES the magazines Ranger Rick and National Geographic Kids.
Yes, my child is a walking encyclopedia.
THE GREAT BRAIN books. MY husband LOVED them growing up.
Thanks again for everyone’s recommendations! My boys read through the comments with me and we can’t wait to hit the library with our new list in hand. I compiled all the recommendations (so far) in a little document since I want to have all these ideas in one great place. If you want the list, click HERE for a Word doc or HERE for a .pdf. You guys are the best!
Fablehaven by Brandon Mull. I love that series!
Ok, you guys are awesome! I can’t wait to check out all of these ideas. In fact, I’m going to compile this list into a quick little document for easy reference and I’ll post it here in case anyone else wants to download it.
Some great read-alouds for us this summer were: Last of the Really Great Wangdoodles by Julie Andrews. And also Holes. We watched the movie of Holes when we finished too. My kids LOVED it. So much fun.
My book club just finished reading “The Adventures of Dod”. It’s an interesting tale. Nothing bad, just interesting. Anyways, I’m reading to my 9 year old son right now for a ed time book. He’s really loving it!!!!
The Fablehaven series is a must. I really like that at the back of some of the books he gives discussion points to have with your kids. Kinda like your own family book club.
Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli (won the Newberry)
The Indian in the Cupboard by Lynne Reid Banks
Stone Fox by John Reynolds Gardiner
Sideways Stories from Wayside School by Louis Sachar
Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls
The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien
The Cay by Theodore Taylor
The Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare
I see others have recommended “Hank the Cowdog” and I’d like to add my vote to those books. Absolutely delightful! Also, what a wonderful list of books to read to kids … I’m taking notes from this stream of comments. Thank you for your wonderful blog.
Mel,
I have 3 boys and we read a lot around here. Many of our favorites have already been mentioned (Percy Jackson, Harry Pottery, Ranger’s Apprentice, Gregor the Overlander, Magik Series, Alchemist series, Hobbit/Lord of the Rings Trilogy, Fablehaven, etc…). Oh, there are so many good books out there! But for the younger reader (your six year old), I would mention, The Dragon Slayer’s Academy. My son read these when he was 6 and it really jump started his “self reading”. There is also the, How to Train your Dragon series and Charlie Bone Series (similar to Harry Potty, just not the depth). Also, if you happen to be LDS, the Tennis Shoes Among the Nephites series. Oh, we love the Hardy Boys and the Nancy Drew books as well. Surprisingly, my boys like the Nancy ones better than the Hardy boys. Enjoy!
And, thank you, Thank you for sharing your culinary talents so freely with all of us!
PS. There is also a list on Wired “67 Books Every Geek Should Read to Their Kids Before Age 10” that has some great suggestions as well. http://www.wired.com/geekdad/2012/03/67-books-for-kids/?pid=1185&viewall=true
Judy Blume’s… Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing, SuperFudge, DoubleFudge and Fudgemania. My kids laughed through the antics of Peter and his younger brother Fudge.
So many wonderful recommendations! I just wanted to add the Susan Cooper ‘Dark is Rising’ series and the Artemis Fowle series by Eoin Colfer. Both have heroes who are very capable, smart little boys who accomplish big things. Reading is so much fun!
Reading is so great for kids. My favorite series of kids books are Chronicles of Narnia and Deltora Quest. Deltora Quest is by Emily Rodda and isn’t very well known in America (she’s an Australian author) but her books are fabulous. I’ve never recommended them to someone who hasn’t liked them–adults and children alike. My mom read them out loud to us, and I’ve read them out loud to my husband. We just love them!
I have girls (4 and 6), but we have really enjoyed A Cricket in Times Square, which I think your boys would like. Stuart Little- also a great one to read out loud! Pippi Lockstocking, Black Beauty if they like horses at all, and Charlotte’s Web were all wonderful.
Thank you for all you do! I am so thankful for all the recipes you share!
What a fun list! I’m loving reading through this. Most of my favorites (Narnia, Prydain, Diana Wynne Jones, Fablehaven) have already been mentioned, but I just wanted to say that we do a couple of ways of reading aloud in our house: I read to the kids during the day, and we read at their level (i.e. Little House on the Prairie for the 5-year-old, the seven-year-old snuggles up next to us and listens while she’s flipping through Harry Potter for the millionth time, and then I read picture books to the 3-year-old and the baby), but one of my favorite favorite things is reading “harder” books as a family when their dad gets home. We’re just finishing up The Hobbit, and honestly, it’s a little old for our kids, but they are totally willing to listen when we have the whole family sprawled on the living room floor listening together.
I’ve read quite a bit about how children (especially boys) are more motivated to keep reading throughout their lives if a) their father reads aloud to them and b) the entire family reads together, so we instituted this about a year ago. I have fond memories of my dad lying by the fire and reciting Milton and I’m hoping to do the same thing for our kids. 🙂 We’ve found that most weeks are crazy when Daddy is home, so we declared Wednesday night our “Fireplace Night” and we all grab our blankies and head to the living room after dinner (we light a fire in winter, hence the name). Anyway, this is insanely long, so I’ll end now. 🙂
How could I forget captain underpants?! Not my favorite to read, but it makes my kids belly laugh, and THAT I love! Happy reading 🙂
I teach 4th graders and this past year my boy students were very into the Chet Gecko series by ? Hale, Sammy Keyes series by wendolyn van drannen, and my most favorite read aloud for boys this age is By The Great Horn Spoon by Sid fleichman.
The Boxcar Children series!! I absolutely loved them when I was a kid, and though my kid are still a bit young for them, I do plan on reading them to them as soon as they are old enough. All my “of age” nieces and nephews have read and loved them.
The Spiderwick Chronicles are great. And Henry Huggins is right along the same lines as the Mouse and the Motorcycle. Hardy Boys is fun if they are into mysteries and detectives.
My kids have loved “The Ranger’s Apprentice” series by John Flanagan. A little older (10+) is Michael Scott’s Alchemist series. Fablehaven by Brandon Mull is a fun fantasy one. We love Richard Peck’s books–“A long way from Chicago” and “A Year Down Yonder” are hilarious read-alouds. “Dragon Rider” by Cornelia Funke, and most of her other books are great too. Harry Potter is just the best, though!!! Great fun! Happy Reading!
Hi Mel,
I have six kids 3 months to 11 years. Their bedrooms are all next to each other, so at night when everyone is tucked in bed my husband or I will sit in the hall and read a book out loud to all of them. We love that tradition and have made it through a lot of books! One of my favorites we just finished are “The Great Brain” books. It’s a series written in the 70’s. So great for little boys. The kids have also really enjoyed the original Hardy Boys books as well. Happy Reading 🙂
P.S. I like the older books because your kids will actually learn vocabulary. Seems like kids books these days are so dumbed down.
Oh my goodness, there are so many fabulous books! I see someone above me recommended “The Hobbit”. A great read. I can’t wait to read chapter books as my kids get older. “Where the Red Fern Grows” is an absolute must. It teaches hard work, faith in God, and the love of animals. I absolutely adore that book. Another book that is just incredible piece of art is “The Secret Garden”. I LOVE that book, and your boys don’t have to know it’s not really a boys book because I’m sure they would enjoy it. Teaches wonderful lessons too, and so well written. My pediatrician said her boys loved “The Phantom in the Toll Booth”. I loved “The Box Car Children” growing up. Another great dog book that is so sad but such a great story is “Stone Fox”. It’s short and could be read quickly. But be prepared to have crying boys because it really is a tear jerk-er. I LOVED “The Education of Little Tree”. Hmmm, what else. This gets me so excited to read to my kids!
I love all the ideas posted so far, I’ll have to check some out roo;) — One that I don’t think was mentioned though was “The Hobbit.” by J.R.R. Tolkien. My boys loved (loved) this book!
My son absolutely loves the “My Weird School” books by Dan Gutman!
They’re very easy chapter books, and he and his little sister laugh out loud when they read them. Dan Gutman wrote them to be the “Junie B. Jones” series for boys. We also love Junie B. Jones. The grammar is deliberately off (like another poster said), but even my 6 year old gets the joke. And we all roar together. She’s hysterical.
A lot of my favorites have already been mentioned, but I have to echo them! Percy Jackson, the Prydain series, The Inheritance Cycle (the Eragon books- they are very, very good!), The Wrinkle in Time books, Chronicles of Narnia, Fablehaven. I just read The Hobbit to my 11 year old brother- it was a little tough at first, but he ended up loving it! Also, the Septemus Heap series is about the perfect age level for all of your boys! Happy reading 🙂