Author Topic: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?  (Read 4405 times)

trashtalk

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 198
What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« on: September 01, 2021, 08:14:55 PM »
Right now the 11yo and I are enjoying The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken, and the little kids are constantly asking for Dear Zoo by Rod Campbell.

Would love to hear what other read-alouds are working for Mustachian parents.

rivendale

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 102
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #1 on: September 02, 2021, 08:42:12 AM »
We just finished the Wingfeather Saga... amazing series!

YttriumNitrate

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1836
  • Location: Northwest Indiana
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #2 on: September 02, 2021, 08:47:19 AM »
3 and 6 year old - The current favorite is How to Eat Pizza (https://www.amazon.com/How-Eat-Pizza-Jon-Burgerman/dp/073522885X) but the favorite changes on a weekly basis.

I sneak in Oh the Places You'll Go and The Missing Piece from time to time since they are among my favorites.

midweststache

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 673
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #3 on: September 02, 2021, 08:51:42 AM »
Our 4 year old is really into graphic novels. We just did a historical one on the Chicago Fire of the 19th century and now we're in the middle of Cece Bell's "El Deafo" which is a complete joy. They are also a big fan of both the Bad Guys and Princess in Black series.

For the 1 year old, we're on the 1,149,102,214th reading of "Brown Bear".

GuitarStv

  • Senior Mustachian
  • ********
  • Posts: 23129
  • Age: 42
  • Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #4 on: September 02, 2021, 09:07:11 AM »
It's tricky finding stuff that is appropriate for my seven and a half year old.  He really liked the Hobbit but found Harry Potter too scary.  We chugged through all the Narnia books and he really liked Treasure Island.  We've tried the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - that was too boring, and although he liked some of The Life of Pi he ended up getting bored with that too.

Currently reading Peter Pan, and I've been debating if I can start him on Asimov's Foundation series.  I've been having trouble finding decent age appropriate science fiction.

DenverDad

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 25
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #5 on: September 02, 2021, 09:20:16 AM »
It's tricky finding stuff that is appropriate for my seven and a half year old.  He really liked the Hobbit but found Harry Potter too scary.  We chugged through all the Narnia books and he really liked Treasure Island.  We've tried the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - that was too boring, and although he liked some of The Life of Pi he ended up getting bored with that too.

Currently reading Peter Pan, and I've been debating if I can start him on Asimov's Foundation series.  I've been having trouble finding decent age appropriate science fiction.

Currently, I'm reading The Chronicle of the Dark Star series to my nine year old son. You might check that out for age appropriate science fiction. I'm reading Super Turbo books to my five year old daughter. She is also a big fan of the Princess in Black series.

nessness

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1026
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #6 on: September 02, 2021, 09:25:10 AM »
I'm currently reading Bunnicula to my 4.5- and 6.5-year-olds. I loved this series as a kid, but they're still on the fence about it.

Other chapter book series we've enjoyed over the last year are the Ramona books, the Boxcar Children books, the Misty of Chincoteague books, and the Lulu books (the first one is called Lulu and the Duck in the Park).

GuitarStv

  • Senior Mustachian
  • ********
  • Posts: 23129
  • Age: 42
  • Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #7 on: September 02, 2021, 09:36:38 AM »
It's tricky finding stuff that is appropriate for my seven and a half year old.  He really liked the Hobbit but found Harry Potter too scary.  We chugged through all the Narnia books and he really liked Treasure Island.  We've tried the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - that was too boring, and although he liked some of The Life of Pi he ended up getting bored with that too.

Currently reading Peter Pan, and I've been debating if I can start him on Asimov's Foundation series.  I've been having trouble finding decent age appropriate science fiction.

Currently, I'm reading The Chronicle of the Dark Star series to my nine year old son. You might check that out for age appropriate science fiction. I'm reading Super Turbo books to my five year old daughter. She is also a big fan of the Princess in Black series.

Thanks, I'll check those out!

midweststache

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 673
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #8 on: September 02, 2021, 09:48:55 AM »
It's tricky finding stuff that is appropriate for my seven and a half year old.  He really liked the Hobbit but found Harry Potter too scary.  We chugged through all the Narnia books and he really liked Treasure Island.  We've tried the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - that was too boring, and although he liked some of The Life of Pi he ended up getting bored with that too.

Currently reading Peter Pan, and I've been debating if I can start him on Asimov's Foundation series.  I've been having trouble finding decent age appropriate science fiction.

Currently, I'm reading The Chronicle of the Dark Star series to my nine year old son. You might check that out for age appropriate science fiction. I'm reading Super Turbo books to my five year old daughter. She is also a big fan of the Princess in Black series.

More fantasy the SF, but Nadia Shammas has a graphic novel coming out this fall called "SQUIRE" that might be up your kid's alley. I've been looking forward to it since I heard about it earlier this year. It's technically YA, but it sounds like you child's reading level skews a bit older anyway (Tolkein, Addams, etc.). https://www.nadiashammas.com/squire

For "age-appropriate" reading, you might check out the Association for Library Service to Children's booklists, which are published periodically and divided along age-ranges and put together by a cohort of children's librarians and literature experts. I haven't seen a genre-specific list, but there are definitely genre works on the lists for older children. https://www.ala.org/alsc/publications-resources/book-lists

Bruinguy

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 162
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #9 on: September 02, 2021, 09:08:41 PM »
I’ve been reading the first Land of Stories book to my 12 yo, but will probably read it to my 9 yo next.

At around 7-8 yo, we read Upside-down magic, which was enjoyed.

brellis1vt

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 76
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #10 on: September 03, 2021, 09:55:35 PM »
We have younger kids and currently like Brown Bear, Little critters books,  Bearensteen Bears, Pete the cat, Sandra Boynton's books, Pinkalicous, Little Rabbit Foo Foo, Escargot, and typical nursery rhyme books

luchorpan

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 35
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #11 on: September 03, 2021, 11:36:48 PM »
Mine are little so we are still receiving and enjoying the monthly Imagination Library books (aka in our house the Dolly Parton books.) We’ve been fortunate to live in participating counties the whole time since my first was born.

As a late elementary kid who tore through Narnia and such, I also liked The Dark is Rising series, though it may be a bit scary? Also loved the Time Turner Trio books, half sci-fi half historical fiction. And of course there’s A Wrinkle in Time!

dragoncar

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 9923
  • Registered member
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #12 on: September 04, 2021, 12:57:51 AM »
Early Retirement Extreme: A Philosophical and Practical Guide to Financial Independence

^and oh yeah dark is rising was my jam in middle school

gatortator

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 369
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #13 on: September 04, 2021, 10:02:49 AM »
It's tricky finding stuff that is appropriate for my seven and a half year old.  He really liked the Hobbit but found Harry Potter too scary.  We chugged through all the Narnia books and he really liked Treasure Island.  We've tried the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - that was too boring, and although he liked some of The Life of Pi he ended up getting bored with that too.

Currently reading Peter Pan, and I've been debating if I can start him on Asimov's Foundation series.  I've been having trouble finding decent age appropriate science fiction.

this guide has been really useful for us
https://imaginationsoup.net/book-recommendations-age/



heywheresgina

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 3
  • Location: Portland, Oregon
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #15 on: September 05, 2021, 08:31:03 AM »
My three-year-old's current favorites are: the Kate and Jim Mc Mullan vehicle series (I'm Stinky, I'm Dirty, I'm Fast, I'm Brave, etc.), Miss Nelson Is Missing, and Last Stop on Market Street.

AMandM

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1673
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #16 on: September 07, 2021, 09:27:28 AM »
It's tricky finding stuff that is appropriate for my seven and a half year old.  He really liked the Hobbit but found Harry Potter too scary.  We chugged through all the Narnia books and he really liked Treasure Island.  We've tried the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - that was too boring, and although he liked some of The Life of Pi he ended up getting bored with that too.
Try LOTR. I would have thought it's too hard for a 7yo to understand, but my 6yo grandson has enjoyed it three times already! (God bless his father for the patience to read the whole thing through over and over!)
Quote
Currently reading Peter Pan, and I've been debating if I can start him on Asimov's Foundation series.  I've been having trouble finding decent age appropriate science fiction.
Some Ursula K. LeGuin?
A Canticle for Leibowitz?


GuitarStv

  • Senior Mustachian
  • ********
  • Posts: 23129
  • Age: 42
  • Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #17 on: September 07, 2021, 09:33:39 AM »
It's tricky finding stuff that is appropriate for my seven and a half year old.  He really liked the Hobbit but found Harry Potter too scary.  We chugged through all the Narnia books and he really liked Treasure Island.  We've tried the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - that was too boring, and although he liked some of The Life of Pi he ended up getting bored with that too.

Currently reading Peter Pan, and I've been debating if I can start him on Asimov's Foundation series.  I've been having trouble finding decent age appropriate science fiction.

this guide has been really useful for us
https://imaginationsoup.net/book-recommendations-age/

Thanks!  We'll definitely give some of those a try.



It's tricky finding stuff that is appropriate for my seven and a half year old.  He really liked the Hobbit but found Harry Potter too scary.  We chugged through all the Narnia books and he really liked Treasure Island.  We've tried the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy - that was too boring, and although he liked some of The Life of Pi he ended up getting bored with that too.
Try LOTR. I would have thought it's too hard for a 7yo to understand, but my 6yo grandson has enjoyed it three times already! (God bless his father for the patience to read the whole thing through over and over!)
Quote
Currently reading Peter Pan, and I've been debating if I can start him on Asimov's Foundation series.  I've been having trouble finding decent age appropriate science fiction.
Some Ursula K. LeGuin?
A Canticle for Leibowitz?

Yeah, we might try LoTR soon.  I do remember reading it at around eight and enjoying it, but I was a weird kid.

Never read much of LeGuin's work myself.  Skimming her wiki article, it sounds like that's a mistake that I should rectify.

CNM

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 700
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #18 on: September 07, 2021, 09:34:36 AM »
Just started Where the Red Fern Grows.  a real tearjerker!

AMandM

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1673
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #19 on: September 11, 2021, 09:36:14 AM »
OP, Joan Aiken is one of my favourite authors! I presume you know she has a whole series of books connected to WWC. (The last few are much inferior to the rest IMO.) I also love her short stories for kids. Some collections are OOP but her stories about the Armitage family have been collected as The Serial Garden, and A Necklace of Raindrops is fun for younger kids.

Other favorites for that age range:
Ralph Moody--ranching in the early 20th century, sort of like the Little House books but centered on a (very enterprising) boy
Rumer Godden--on the surface these are stories about dolls, but really they're about family, identity, belonging, and finding your voice
Rosemary Sutcliff--historical fiction set in Britain at points involving cultural crashes: Britons/Romans, Roman Britons/Saxons, etc.

AccidentialMustache

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 927
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #20 on: September 11, 2021, 12:58:46 PM »
DS is 10, going on 11.

I'm re-reading "Does it Fart?" -- having previously re-read "How To" and "What If" (aka long-form xkcd). DW is reading various graphic novel series to him. The Hamster Princess series, Danny Dragonbreath, Loud Boy, Big Nate, etc. She's read him Girl Genius in the past (warning: cleavage galore!). I've read him Asterix (... and had discussions about the problems with sexism/racism in those books) in the past.

I did get him to let me read the Hobbit, but he was upset during scary parts, so I'm not sure we're ready for LoTR.

I've been thinking about digging up my old X-Wing: Rogue Squadron novels and seeing if he'd let me read those to him. He loves Star Wars so there's a chance.

That said he reads way more on his own than we read to him at this point, sometimes preferring to just sit and read on the couch with DW, before his bedtime, rather than have her read to him.

nessness

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1026
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #21 on: September 13, 2021, 05:13:46 PM »
@AMandM the Ralph Moody books sound intriguing! Would they be suitable for an almost 7-year-old who is really sensitive about animal (and human) death? Like, she's okay with knowing that someone killed and ate an animal, but would not to read any descriptions of the slaughter.

Blue Skies

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 172
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #22 on: September 26, 2021, 07:27:00 AM »
We read through the Percy Jackson series and the follow up Heroes of Olympus series.  Both were big hits with my daughters (10 and 13).   The Brixton Brothers series went over well too.  Now the younger one has me reading her the Keeper of the Lost Cities series.  They are huge, and not my favorite, but she loves them.

FLBiker

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1786
  • Age: 47
  • Location: Canada
    • Chop Wood Carry FIRE
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #23 on: September 27, 2021, 02:00:28 PM »
Wow, I'm surprised to find LoTR recommended so young.  The Hobbit just showed up in our little free library, so I may give that a try with our 6 year old.

As far as what we're currently reading, I have a bunch of Calvin and Hobbes anthologies that she absolutely loves.

Sanitary Stache

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1103
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #24 on: September 28, 2021, 12:32:43 PM »
We are reading James Herriot to the 3 and 5 year olds. The 2 year old falls asleep right away.

We started with the children's books and have moved on to the novels.  The kids like hearing about the farms and animals.  I am trying to introduce the BBC television series for watching at our "Family Movie Night".

We also read a bunch of PJ Library books.  If you want your kids to know about Jewish culture, PJ library has you covered. I don't know where you can get them if your not jewish.  Probably a free page or your local jewish community center.  I wonder if they would send them to non jewish families, I wouldn't be surprised if they did.

My favorites are "Something From Nothing" and "Joseph Who Loves the Sabbath".

GuitarStv

  • Senior Mustachian
  • ********
  • Posts: 23129
  • Age: 42
  • Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #25 on: September 28, 2021, 01:00:48 PM »
We are reading James Herriot to the 3 and 5 year olds. The 2 year old falls asleep right away.

I was doing that for a bit as well.  Great books, some of the stories made me cry.  There are also a few with racier situations and language that I didn't remember from when I last read them!

:P

PhilB

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 5707
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #26 on: September 28, 2021, 01:15:58 PM »
We read our boys LOTR, The Hobbit and Harry Potter at that age or earlier, but the other big hit was Terry Pratchett.  We started with the Bromeliad trilogy, then moved on to the Johnny Maxwell books and then the Tiffany Aching ones - reading one of these to them whilst sitting on the Uffington white horse is a particularly treasured memory.

lutorm

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 831
  • Location: About the middle of Sweden
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #27 on: October 15, 2021, 11:26:44 PM »
I'm responsible for the Swedish reading for our 4-yo: it's Bamse, Pelle Svanslös and some of the simpler Astrid Lindgren works like Barnen i Bullerbyn (mostly these are leftovers from my childhood that the grandparents dug out and shipped over...)

Freedomin5

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 6485
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #28 on: October 16, 2021, 03:25:37 AM »
We are working through Roald Dahl’s books with our 7 year old.

Chris Pascale

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1335
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #29 on: November 23, 2021, 05:32:44 PM »
No. 3 and I are currently reading a book about the US Presidents together. No. 4 and I just finished a book about diabetes.

GuitarStv

  • Senior Mustachian
  • ********
  • Posts: 23129
  • Age: 42
  • Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #30 on: November 23, 2021, 06:39:12 PM »
We finished reading Azimov's first foundation book.  My son liked it, consepts are fine but the language was too advanced for him so we had to stop and talk about what was going on too often for him to understand what was happening.  Fellowship of the Ring is going much better so far.

MrsP

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 13
Re: What are you reading aloud to your kids right now?
« Reply #31 on: November 29, 2021, 07:08:58 PM »