Top 10 Books (and Series) I Hope My Child Will Read Someday
Top Ten Tuesday is a fun weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. This week’s topic is Top Ten Books I Want My Future Children to Read (Or nieces and nephews, Godchildren, etc.). Since I already have a child and actively aspire to have him be as big of a bookworm as I am, I’ve had a wishlist of books and series for a while now that I’ve been hoping my son will eventually read. What’s cool is that we’ve already made a little bit of progress on this list and so far he has loved everything we’ve read. I’m hoping that as he grows older, he will continue to trust my taste in books and so will read the rest of these two.
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Top 10 Books (and Series) I Hope My Child Will Read Someday
- HARRY POTTER SERIES by J.K. Rowling I’m thrilled to say that my son and I have already read this entire series together. He loved every minute of it, especially the Weasley twins. I’m hoping this will be a favorite that he revisits from time to time.
- CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY by Roald Dahl Is there anything better to make a child fall in love with reading than the whimsical books of Roald Dahl? My son and I have read Charlie and the Chocolate Factory together and he loved it so much that we moved on to Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator, Matilda, and The B.F.G.
- THE GIVING TREE by Shel Silverstein I can’t take credit for getting my son to read this beautiful story since he read it at school, but I’ll give his teacher props for making one of my wishlist reads a reality. My son loved this one too and has since started reading Where the Sidewalk Ends.
- PERCY JACKSON & THE OLYMPIANS by Rick Riordan This is a series that we’ve started but haven’t gotten very far into yet. You’ll find that many of the books and series on my wishlist are fantasy. Since I was a child, fantasy books have always fascinated me so I’m hoping they’ll have the same effect on my child. I also think they’re great for really making a child use their imagination to envision the world building that takes place. And in the case of the Percy Jackson series, it also provides an entertaining introduction to Greek Mythology, which is a nice bonus.
- THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA by C.S. Lewis We have not tackled this series yet, but it’s high on my list of must-reads for my son because it’s one of my all-time favorites.
- THE LORD OF THE FLIES by William Golding He’s nowhere near old enough for this book yet, but I remember being equal parts fascinated and horrified by this book when I read it in high school and it has still stuck with me after all these years. It’s a book that makes you think and I definitely want my son reading books that will engage his mind and keep him thinking about life.
- TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD by Harper Lee This will be another book for when he is older, but I really hope I can get my son to read this one. One because it’s my all-time favorite book, and two because it tackles important social issues that are still relevant today. If I can only get him to read one classic, this is the one I’d choose.
- 1984 by George Orwell If I could get my son to read 2 classics, this is the second one I’d choose. It’s another one of those creepy reads that makes you think and it manages to still be relevant today. I’d also want him to read it, if for no other reason, than so he understands what someone means if they say Big Brother is watching.
- THE HOBBIT & THE LORD OF THE RINGS TRILOGY by J.R.R. Tolkien We’re still a few years away from this one too, I think, although my son has checked The Hobbit out of the library before. It ended up being a little over his head, but he is definitely interested in revisiting it someday and I will most certainly encourage him to do so since it’s one of the greatest fantasy series of all time.
- THE OUTSIDERS by S.E. Hinton Again, for when my son is older, but this is a book from my childhood that has continued to captivate young readers to this day. I’m hoping my child will not grow up to be a reluctant reader, but if he does, I still think this is a book that would appeal to him.
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My high school teachers would love this list, because it included three of my required reading books (and ones I actually enjoyed). Narnia was a world I loved to escape into as a kid, and I do hope my future generations give it a read (or at least watch the cartoon, which I loved). I have read your hold list, aside from HP, and have to agree, these are very special books. Great list.
Oh yes, I loved the cartoon too! I had actually forgotten about that. So magical!
I love your list!!
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Thanks! 🙂
Great list! It’s interesting that you picked 1984. It’s a book that will help children be more aware of things they read and hear. I find this list to be like a perfect balance between reading for pleasure and reading to learn.
Thanks! Yeah, I really hope that I can sneak a few thought-provoking books in there for my son. It seems like so much of school these days is memorization and teaching to a standardized test, so I really want to do my part to improve his critical thinking skills while entertaining him at the same time. 🙂
I’m so going to push Harry Potter on my nieces and nephew when they get older, and any future children I may have. Same with The Outsiders!!
-Lauren
Harry Potter was a pretty easy sell for me with my son. Hopefully I’ll have similar luck with The Outsiders. 🙂
Roald Dahl is awesome, and I LOVED Charlie and the Chocolate Factory when I was a kid. One of my teachers read it to us and I was enthralled. Yay for Narnia and Lord of the Rings, too.
Same here on Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. My librarian in Elementary School read it to us and sang all of the oompa loompa songs. It was pure magic and I’ll never forget it!
Great list! A lot of my favorites are on here. Here is my Top Ten Tuesday.
Thanks!
Harry Potter and Narnia are definitely two series I would read with any kids I might have. They are among my favorites, and what kid can resist magic and fantastical lands?
Exactly! I have a hard time pulling my son away from his video games to read, but I definitely have better luck when magic and fantasy are involved 🙂
Awesome list! I’ve read all of them except for The Outsiders – but I did see the movie. My eldest (10) has read the first four on that list. I really want him to read The Hobbit. He loves HP but his favorite book so far is called A Monster Calls. It’s a good book.
Rebecca @ The Portsmouth Review
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Thanks! Oh, A Monster Calls is a great book! I haven’t read that one with my son yet, but I hope he’ll love it when we get to it.
Oh this is such a great list. I loved so many here and hope my kids read them too!
I’m really hopeful I can get my son to read all of them. It is getting more and more challenging to pry him away from those video games though, haha.
My oldest has read the first five on your list. I loved this topic – really got me thinking about what I would enjoy reading with my kids. My TTT: http://www.book-chatter.com/?p=2588
I loved it for the same reason. I also love seeing what other bloggers chose. It has given me even more ideas for books to read with my son 🙂
Oh yes, I loved The Lightening Thief, the HP series, and Narnia, though I never finished the Percy Jackson series. I need to finish it soon! 🙂
We still need to finish Percy Jackson too. We took a break from it to read something else and have yet to make it back to finish it.
I love how your list is such a great mix of modern fantasy series and the classics! And it’s so great that you got to share the love of reading Harry Potter with your son! Hope you’ll both enjoy the Percy Jackson series as well 🙂
I hope so too, thanks!
You have got so many decent books on this list! 🙂 I would definitely recommend them!
Thanks!
Love Roald Dahl! His books are amazing and everyone should read them.
I hope in 2018 there is going to be a Roald Dahl challenge. I def. would participate.
Ooh, a Roald Dahl challenge sounds like fun!
You picked so many good ones! The Outsiders was one of my childhood favorites. My future children will definitely be reading Harry Potter. Everybody should read that series.
I completely agree about Harry Potter. I think even the most reluctant reader would fall in love with the series.
Completely forgot about Charlie and the Choc Fac >_<!! Omg Narnia yes!
Yes! I can’t wait to start the Chronicles of Narnia with him. I hope it’s as magical for him as it was for me.
Your list is perfect! I would honestly be so thrilled if my kids read any (or, you know, all) of these! Harry Potter is a must–I’m thinking the new illustrated editions might be great ways to get them started on them young, the illustrations are so gorgeous! The Giving Tree is also one of my all-time favorite books, hands down, and I really hope my own children will read and enjoy it as well. Really great list!
I agree about the illustrated editions of HP. Wish I had had those when we were reading.
Great list! I went back and forth quite a bit about Harry Potter, and I figure it’ll be something that I read with my future nerdling, whether they like it or not, so I decided not to include it. Percy Jackson holds a special place in my heart because my cousin, when he was in middle school (he’s a sophomore in college now) suggested that I read it. It was a way of bonding. Happy reading!
eli @ the (book) supplier
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I agree with you about Harry Potter. It’s going to be one of those series that every kid will read whether they originally want to or not. Thankfully it’s so amazing that I think even a child who doesn’t initially want to read it won’t be able to keep themselves from falling in love with it.
YES. I completely agree. I want my future kids to read Percy Jackson, Charlie & the Chocolate Factory, and Harry Potter too. 🙂 Thanks for sharing and, as always, fabulous post! ❤
~ Zoe @ Stories on Stage
Thanks!
Really great list, and I love that you’ve already been able to share some of these with your son already.
Dahl was such a large part of my childhood and I look forward to properly sharing those titles with him in the next couple of years, and of course Harry Potter too. A recent (in the last few years) MG read that I’m keen to share with him is Wonder by R.J. Palacio.
Great list – many bookish adventures ahead for you & your son.
Thanks! Dahl was a huge part of my childhood as well and I’ve loved sharing his magic with my son.
This is a fantastic list, Suzanne. I hope to share all of these with my daughter in the future–some in the near future. I can’t think of a choice here that I wouldn’t want her to read.
Thanks!