I realize this isn't the type of post you'd expect to see on my site, but I couldn't help myself. With reading being such a big part of my life and journey into freelancing, plus with all that's going on in the world, I figured we could all use a little escape now and then.
From reading Winnie the Pooh with my mom on the living room floor to taking turns with the newest Harry Potter, I was lucky enough to be raised in a home where reading was a part of daily life. I even have the book journal my mom kept where she would write what she liked and didn't like about the books she read. Talk about a great idea!
The love of reading that was instilled in me is something my wife and I are trying to do with our own daughters, so they too can experience all the amazing things books can offer. It's become a must-have and well loved tradition that every night at bedtime, we all choose a minimum of three books to read and talk about. And yes, I do the voices!
I would regret publishing this post without saying that if it were not for books and reading, I would never have discovered my love of writing. Reading and writing are such a big part of me that I could not imagine being anyone else. I am a firm believer in the power of the written word and am constantly in awe of how they influence and mold our environments.
Now, because there are so many books out there that I can't imagine you not having one in waiting, but if you or your kids ever find yourself wondering what to read next, here’s a list of my top book recommendations for kids and adults.
Adult Book Recommendations
And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie
Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee
The Giver by Lois Lowry
Beowulf by Anonymous Anglo-Saxon poet
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
Bless Me, Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya
Animal Farm by George Orwell
Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert
On Writing by Stephen King
The Crucible by Arthur Miller
Lord of The Flies by William Golding
A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
Kid's Book Recommendations
Grumpy Monkey by Suzanne Lang
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr & John Archambault
Georgia's Terrific, Colorific Experiment by Zoe Persico
The True Story of the Three Little Pigs by Jon Scieszka
If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Numeroff
Llama Llama series by Anna Dewdney
Day Dreamers & Dream Animals by Emily Winfield Martin
How Do Dinosaurs..... series by Jane Yolen & Mark Teague
Heckedy Peg by Audrey Wood
All books by Sandra Boynton
All books by Nancy Tillman
The Magic Tree House series by Mary Pope Osborne (beginner chapter books)