Family Reading List 

Strengthening Family Bonds and Supporting Emotional Growth

Reading is a powerful way to nurture emotional well-being, strengthen family connections, and support your child’s cognitive and emotional development. As a family therapist, I often encourage parents to use reading as a tool for fostering communication, emotional intelligence, and resilience in children and adolescents.

Reading to kids—even after they can read independently—has countless benefits, including reducing stress, enhancing empathy, and creating opportunities for meaningful conversations. Below, you'll find a curated list of books I’ve shared with my children at different stages of their lives. This collection goes beyond traditional picture books and focuses on chapter books and classic literature that help children build vocabulary, develop critical thinking skills, and explore important social and emotional themes.

I choose books intentionally, selecting stories that provide historical and cultural context, introduce iconic literary characters, and expose children to a variety of perspectives. Reading together can be a valuable therapeutic tool, helping children process emotions, navigate life’s challenges, and foster a lifelong love of storytelling.

Ages 5-6

  • Winnie the Pooh

    - A.A. Milne

  • Pippi Longstocking

    - Astrid Lindgren

  • The Magician’s Nephew

    - CS Lewis

  • The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe

    - CS Lewis

  • The Horse and His Boy

    - CS Lewis

  • Charlotte’s Web

    - EB White

  • Stuart Little

    - EB White

  • Three Tales of My Father’s Dragon

    - Ruth Stiles Gannett

Ages 6-7

  • Kavik the Wolf Dog

    - Walt Morey

  • Misty of Chincoteague

    - Marguerite Henry

  • Stormy, Misty’s Foal

    - Marguerite Henry

  • Little House in the Big Woods

    - Laura Ingalls Wilder

  • Farmer Boy

    - Laura Ingalls Wilder

  • Little House on the Prairie

    - Laura Ingalls Wilder

  • On the Banks of Plum Creek

    - Laura Ingalls Wilder

  • By the Shores of Silver Lake

    Laura Ingalls Wilder

  • The Long Winter

    - Laura Ingalls Wilder

  • Little Town on the Prairie

    - Laura Ingalls Wilder

  • These Happy Golden Years

    - Laura Ingalls Wilder

  • The First Four Years

    - Laura Ingalls Wilder

  • Prince Caspian

    - CS Lewis

  • Island of the Blue Dolphins

    - Scott O’Dell

  • The Secret Garden

    - Frances Hodgson Burnett

  • Heidi

    - Johanna Spyri

Ages 7-8

  • Along Came a Dog

    - Meindert DeJong

  • The Yearling

    - Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings

  • Flora and Ulysses

    - Kate DiCamillo

  • The Voyage of the Dawn Treader

    - CS Lewis

  • Man O’ War

    - Walter Farley

  • King of the Wind

    - Marguerite Henry

  • Wind in the Willows

    - Kenneth Grahamme

  • A Christmas Carol

    - Charles Dickens

  • The Lemonade War

    - Jacqueline Davies

Ages 8-9

  • The Lemonade Crime

    - Jacqueline Davies

  • A Single Shard

    - Linda Sue Park

  • Nancy and Plum

    - Betty MacDonald

  • A Wrinkle in Time

    - Madeleine L’Engle

  • The Bell Bandit

    - Jacqueline Davies

  • Where the Red Fern Grows

    - Wilson Rawls

  • Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry

    - Mildred D. Taylor

  • Stuart Little

    - EB White

  • The Silver Chair

    - CS Lewis

  • Black Beauty

    - Anna Sewell

  • Winterdance

    - Gary Paulsen

  • Number the Stars

    - Lois Lowry

  • A Christmas Carol

    - Charles Dickens

Ages 9-10

  • Treasure Island

    - Robert Louis Stevenson

  • The Way of a Dog

    - Albert Payson Terhune

  • The Adventures of Tom Sawyer

    - Mark Twain

  • The Witch of Blackbird Pond

    - Elizabeth George Speare

  • The Three Musketeers

    - Alexandre Dumas

  • Bridge to Terabithia

    - Katherine Paterson

  • Wonder

    - R. J. Palacio

Ages 10-11

  • The Little Prince

    - Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

  • The Doldrums

    - Nicholas Gannon

  • Little Women

    - Louisa May Alcott

  • The Swiss Family Robinson

    - Johan Wyss (We didn’t finish this one—got several chapters in but decided it wasn’t a favorite.)

  • The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn

    - Mark Twain

  • The Hiding Place

    - Corrie ten Boom

Ages 11-12

  • Endurance: Shackleton’s Incredible Voyage

    - Alfred Lansing

  • Little Men

    - Louisa May Alcott

  • To Kill a Mockingbird

    - Harper Lee

Ages 12-13

  • For the Glory: Eric Liddell’s Journey from Olympic Champion to Modern Martyr

    - Duncan Hamilton

  • More Than a Carpenter

    - Josh McDowell

  • Unbroken

    - Laura Hillenbrand

  • The Screwtape Letters

    - C.S. Lewis

  • Seabiscuit

    - Laura Hillenbrand

  • The Hobbit

    - J.R.R. Tolkien

  • The Fellowship of the Ring

    - J.R.R. Tolkien

Ages 13-14

The Boys in the Boat

- Daniel James Brown

Ages 14-15

Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy

- Eric Metaxas