Chapter Books

I am a book lover--always have been. Two of my most vivid childhood memories are carrying armloads of books out of the Palms Park Library in L.A. and standing on my head while reading a book. I had books stashed in every room of the house and never understood the idea of reading one book at once.

So, now that I'm a mama, one of my favorite things to do with my boys is to read. But, I'm a picky reader, too, so that means I seek out children's literature blogs and read lots of children's book reviews. I like lots of the children's books that were written in the '50's and '60's, as I appreciate the more formal language and the fact that nature features more prominently in these books than in many more modern books.

I will do a post on picture books soon, but for today, here are some of my boys' (ages 5 and 8) and my favorite chapter books:

• Enid Blyton's Enchanted Wood
• Kenneth Grahame's The Wind in the Willows
• Thornton Burgess' Old Mother West Wind (really, anything by Thornton Burgess)
• Sterling North's Rascal (I did a little editing about the sexual behavior of raccoons--I'm a big fan of age-appropriate editing)
• Joyce Lankester Brisley's Milly-Molly-Mandy Storybook

Many of these I have discovered in my son's school library, which has a really well-curated selection. Others I have discovered through research. They have all provided me and my boys with many hours of snuggly couch time as we were transported, through the magic of words, to forests, farms and meadows with characters who soon felt like friends.