4 Book Series to Read Aloud as a Family:
So far in my parenting journey with kids 9 and under, these are my absolute favorite read aloud series. They’re the books my kids beg to read in spare moments and burst into whines when I say we must pause reading, they’re the ones I’ve teared up reading mid-chapter (like just last week, while reading the last book of the Wingfeather Saga at an outside table at Chick-fil-a with Whit and Ash!). Love, love, love all of these!
1. Little House series by Laura Ingalls Wilder
Kids as young as 4, and definitely between 5-7 are ready to dive in to the first of this series, Little House in the Big Woods. I loved these as a little girl, and my boys have loved hearing them as well.
2. All the classics by Roald Dahl
Depending on your kids ability to handle books with newly orphaned kids and awful parents/aunts; 4-6 year olds are ready for Fantastic Mr. Fox, James and the Giant Peach, and Charlie & the Chocolate Factory. No one’s too old for any of those stories though (And a tip – Costco online carries an affordable box set of all Roald Dahl’s childrens books.)
3. The Wingfeather Saga by Andrew Peterson
This is a fairly recently written and lesser known series, but it has staying power. It’s quirky/funny for kids, a page turner, and rich with themes and allegories of the four chapter Gospel narrative of creation, fall, redemption and restoration.
4. Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling
If you’ve never read these; do not write them off. The writing, themes and plotting gets richer as the series goes on. As a whole, the series gives incredible insights on the beauty of sacrifice and the destructive power of evil (horcruxes, right?!).