Curated Book List

Great books from infancy to adolescence

WHAT IS THIS LIST?

Purpose

This list is meant to give parents a starting point into the wonderful world of books. There are so many titles out that it can be difficult and daunting to pick the right ones for your child. Here are just a few titles that are great for you to pick from. You can also find more comprehensive lists in the "More Books" section at the bottom of the page.

Curated

Thanks to the amazing work of our experts, all the books listed here have been read and selected by librarians, researchers and parents for the quality of their stories, their appeal to children of specific ages, and their lexile levels. This means that they are both interesting and appropriate for children and youth at the different stages of reading development outlined in the Resource Library.

Accessible

We have selected books that not only are fun and engaging, but that are also widely accessible in public libraries. If you click on a book cover below, you will be redirected to the corresponding WorldCat page. WorldCat connects you to the collections and services of more than 10,000 libraries worldwide. Enter your postal or zip code and see where the book you want is available near you!

Structured

In the same manner as the Resource Library, the book list has been structured into four stages to fit best with the reader’s level: Early Childhood, Early Readers, Developing Readers, and More Advanced Readers. You can find the definitions of these terms at the bottom of the page.

Shared

Reading can be undertaken for yourself or for the enjoyment of others. Whenever possible, we have divided the list into two main sections: Books read aloud TO children and books read BY children and youth themselves. The first category includes books with more complex language or themes that may trigger comments and discussion.

Early Childhood

Prof. Maryanne Wolf's favorite!

There have been more books and essays written about Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown than almost any other modern English book for infants and toddlers.Yet none of the them quite capture the elusive, nigh-on-to magical appeal this story brings the young. Three decades after my own children begged for it to be read the fiftieth time, I can still recite it and still remember where the little mouse hides from page to page. May its magic continue for your children.

Maryanne Wolf

Early Readers

Prof. Maureen Lovett's favorite!

Developmental psychologist with 40 years of experience creating and evaluating reading interventions for children and teens Maureen Lovett is an Associate Director of the Haskins Global Literacy Hub, Senior Scientist Emerita at Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children, and Professor Emerita of Pediatrics at the University of Toronto.  

The late Phoebe Gilman wrote and illustrated several delightful children’s books. The Balloon Tree is an artfully written and richly illustrated tale of a balloon-loving princess, Leora, who must thwart a coup by her evil uncle during her father’s absence, by sending out balloon signals to the King from the castle’s tower. The story unfolds as the imaginative and resourceful Leora enlists the help of a Wizard friend, a small ginger-haired boy, and some magic words, to eventually nurture the birth of a special tree that, at sunrise, blossoms with hundreds, and then thousands and thousands, of balloons. An engaging fairy tale with abundant and beautifully detailed illustrations, this book remains a delight to share with children.

Maureen Lovett

Developing Readers

Dr. Benjamin Powers' favorite!

Dr. Ben Powers is Director of the HGLH, an affiliated research scientist at Haskins Laboratories, Head of The Southport School (CT), and Founder of The Southport CoLAB. Benjamin Powers is a practitioner, researcher, and advocate who develops opportunities to integrate research and practice for children and adults with reading difficulties and attention issues. 

Finding a book in a series can be a great hook for engaging developing readers in daily practice. The I Survived series is one of my favorites since there are a variety of topics that include a good dose of history, and children can relate to the characters since the stories are told from a child's perspective. Another great reason to suggest them is that the series does not need to be read in order, so it gives developing readers choice and flexibility for the next one they choose.

Benjamin Powers

More Advanced Readers

Andrea Johnson's favorite!

Andrea is the CEO of Rally Reader, the only Al-powered app that hears you read, tracks accuracy, identifies errors, and provides real-time feedback. Andrea was CEO of ThisLife, a complete cloud solution for photos, acquired by Shutterfly. Andrea is a Director of Indigo Books & Music, Inc., and an Advisory Board Member of Dartmouth’s Center for Entrepreneurship, and the Potentia Institute. BA, Dartmouth College. MBA, Harvard Business School.

With trademark humor and insight, Trevor Noah, shares his story of growing up as a bi-racial child in South Africa under apartheid. If you like Trevor now, you’ll love him by the end of the book. Enjoy!

Andrea Johnson

More Books!

From trusted literacy expert partners

For middle and high schoolers

Carol Jago's recommendations

Carol Jago has taught English in middle and high school for over 30 years. She has served as president of the National Council of Teachers of English and as chair of the College Board’s English Academic Advisory committee.

Jago has authored several books on teaching, including With Rigor for All: Meeting Standards for Reading Literature and Cohesive Writing: Why Concept Is Not Enough, as well as books on contemporary multicultural authors for NCTE. She has been an education columnist for the Los Angeles Times, and her essays continue to appear in educational journals and online forums.

In 2015 Jago was awarded the International Literacy Association’s Adolescent Literacy Thought Leader Award, and in 2016, the NCTE’s Conference on English Leadership’s Exemplary Leadership Award. She has been named by the US Department of Education to serve on the National Assessment Governing Board. She is associate director of the California Reading and Literature Project at UCLA.

Carol Jago’s Suggestions for Your Classroom Library

What do we mean by:

Early Childhood

Early Childhood is the time period between birth and five years when a child usually begins formalized education. Studies suggest that high-quality activities for skill development are particularly important when children are three and four years of age.

Early Readers

Early Readers have been introduced to reading, but they are just beginning and cannot read many words by themselves yet.

Developing Readers

Developing Readers are learning to put together their growing oral language skills (like vocabulary knowledge) with their growing ability decode printed words and read simple stories. They are beginning to apply what they know to read harder words, sentences, and longer stories.

More Advanced Readers

More Advanced Readers can read complex words and are comfortable with different types of text. These students are often in the middle or high school years.

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