Dad here, trying to dredge up memories of his childhood to think of books to read his daughter. Any favorites, or recommendations out there? Could be anything. Chapter books, young adult, whatever.
I'd like to think I'll be filling her head with the right ideas, but it's probably more important to just keep filling it.
Best books for kids?
Start with the Greeks
Of course!
What's the most kid friendly homer?
Once and Future King
Unironically good answer. I used to read collections of Greek myths as a kid and no doubt there are various versions available depending on how bowdlerized OP wants. One that was originally in English is Illustrated Book of Myths by Neil Philip and Nilesh Mistry. I used to love it as a kid and even my not-so-Yea Forums nephews took to it because of the pretty pictures. Contains more than just the Greeks, which is nice.
While I didn't read Redwall, I guess Chronicles of Prydain by Lloyd Alexander is similar enough. I used to love that, because it is kinda dark at places, so if you're reading to your daughter she might be too young for it. It's more YA than kids based on my memories, even if I did read it at 10 or so. I also loved David Eddings, but again I'm not too sure if it wouldn't be better for older kids, and also inferior in hindsight.
how old is she?
the little prince
chronicles of narnia
the secret garden
magic treehouse
wishbone/white fang/the call of the wild/where the red fern grows
harry potter
One of my favorite children's novels growing up
Mostly good recs, except for Harry Potter, it’s better to keep children away from that until they’re a little older and won’t turn into typical potter fans
>mfw its true
Sabriel series, Nausicaa, Westmark series, Dianna Wynne Jones is solid. An age would help.
Moomins
Dr. Seuss
Oliver Twist and Great Expectations
Treasure Island and Robinson Crusoe
just gotta say, redwall was fucking awesome. those books made my childhood
A Spell For Chameleon by Piers Anthony
Don't bother with any of the other Xanth books they're trash
try this if shes not to old for it
This
and The Hobbit
The first four Artemis Fowl Books.
Airman by Eoin Colfer, too.
Read to her grimm’s fairy tales, and Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tales in their purest form (maybe without the gore) Aesop’s fables are good too
>grimm’s fairy tales
Which translation?
Good book, but personally I liked "Rumo and His Miraculous Adventures" and "The City of Dreaming Books" better.
De Sade
A Wrinkle in Time, A Wind in the Door, The Arm of the Starfish, anything else by L'engle or anything by C.S. Lewis or Tolkien.
Greek mythology, Norse mythology, the Bible, the Quran, Beowulf.
The Earthsea Trilogy.
Read her Sabatini, like Captain Blood and The Sea Hawk, and show her the Errol Flynn movie versions.
The novelizations of Star Wars.
Those EyeWitness History books by DK.
These are the books that got me the most excited and passionate about reading when I was younger.
I read the fairy tales when I was 10 years old so I don’t remember the translator
Astrid Lindgren
The Wind in the Willows
The Hobbit
The Chronicles of Narnia
Anne of Green Gables
Can't be beat, desu.
Pratchett is great, but you don't need to start chronologically with him, especially when reading to a child. Start her with 'Mort', depending on her mental level of maturity, or the series with the little tiffany witch girl, cba to Google the titles.
Seconding that one
Do not infect her mind with the whiny-sirupy sentimentalism of this old geezer's colonialist apologetic. Do you want a reactionary for a descendante, stuck in a past long forfeit? Even Harry potter would be a better choice.
>chronologically
If you mean reading all of Discworld in the order it was written, you're right. But you obviously should start with the first book of a given story, e.g. "Guards! Guards!", "Mort" or "Colour of Magic" and keep the order within that story. It's best to read the whole story before moving on to the next one. I picked Rincewind's because it was my favorite, at least until Last Continent, which for some reason wasn't very good.
yeah, i posted it because it was the first one written and the first one i read but my favs were the alchemists apprentice and the city of dreaming books. i hope to fuck they translate the rest because i wanna read them all to my kids some day
The Little Prince
Earthsea has to be the first book series as a kid that really made me love reading as more than a time filler. That and the Hobbit sent me on a long journey through fantasy and then into sci-fi as an angsty teen. Now I’ll read any kind of fiction. Thanks Le Guin!
I read this book a long time ago, and don't remember much about it. Yet, it has still left the impression on me that it was one of the best book I have ever read
Maybe some Lloyd Alexander books? Harry Potter, fairytales, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Redwall and so on.
Also, Artemis Fowl, Goosebumps, Discworld, The Hobbit, Mythologoy stuff like nordic mythology and such.
Oh and I almost forgot, The Saga of Darren Shan aka Cirque du Freak.
Fantastic choice
you creep. fantasizing about kids. your kind makes me sick to the bones. just fucking die.
Italian folk tales
Ito calvino
Obviously you should be reading her the classics (Dahl, C.S Lewis, Pullman, etc.), but here are some less obvious choices -
For young children -
• Greek Myths for Young Children - Marcia Wallace
• How The Whale Became - Ted Hughes
• The Iron Man - Ted Hughes
• Haroun and the Sea of Stories - Salman Rushdie
For older children -
• M is For Magic - Neil Gaiman
• Mortal Engines - Phillip Reeve
• Poison - Chris Wooding
For teenagers -
• Sophie's World - Jostein Gardner