I homeschool, so we go through a lot of books.  We own a lot of books.  My husband finally had to build me a very large bookshelf/desk/storage unit in our entryway, and that still isn’t enough.  (I’d take a picture but it’s really dirty!)  All that to say, I love books, and kids books.  These are a few of my favorite ones.

1. Girl of the Limberlost

I first read this book when I was little, and my grandma had it sitting on top of her piano.  The book is set in Indiana, near where my grandma grew up, so I wonder if that’s why she had it.  It is a beautiful story of nature and struggle and nature and a mother/daughter relationship.  The language might be a bit old-fashioned, but that just adds to the charm.  This is probably tied with Diddakoi for my favorite children’s book.

2. Diddakoi

This book is by Rumer Godden, and it is beautiful.  I read it for the first time a few months ago and I cried.  I first heard of Godden when both Lauren Winner and Phyllis Tickle mentioned her as having written their favorite book, In This House of Brede (which I found a copy of at Goodwill but still haven’t read!), on a Convergence DVD.  (excellent resource!)  So, when I found a copy of one of her books at a library sale, I realized she wrote a lot of children’s books, and this is one of them.  It’s set in England, and it’s the story of a gypsy girl, and how society tries to make her conform.  It’s a beautiful story about recognizing our individuality and the ways that we can affirm or destroy each other.

3. Dragon of Og

This book is also by Godden, and is the one I found at our library sale.  It has gorgeous drawings, and is a fun little fairytale set in the Middle Ages and is about a dragon and the town where he lives.  It’s a nice tale about what it’s like to not understand someone and the harm that comes from living in our fears.

4. The Phantom Tollbooth

I never read this as a kid, but I picked it up at a used book sale (because it looked like a classic) and I started reading it, and fell in love.  The book is full of puns! And the story is an excellent one for kids, who always seem to be bored…..

“Expectations is the place you must always go to before you get to where you’re going.”

 

“Pardon me,” said Milo to the first man who happened by; “can you tell me where I am?”

“To be sure,” said Canby; “you’re on the Island of Conclusions. Make yourself at home. You’re apt to be here for some time.”

“But how did we get here?” asked Milo, who was still a bit puzzled by being there at all.

“You jumped, of course,” explained Canby. “That’s the way most everyone gets here. It’s really quite simple: every time you decide something without having a good reason, you jump to Conclusions whether you like it or not. It’s such an easy trip to make that I’ve been here hundreds of times.”

“But this is such an unpleasant-looking place,” Milo remarked.

“Yes, that’s true,” admitted Canby; “it does look much better from a distance.”

“And remember, also…that many places you would like to see are just off the map and many things you want to know are just out of sight or a little beyond your reach. But someday you’ll reach them all, for what you learn today, for no reason at all, will help you discover all the wonderful secrets of tomorrow.”

 See?   Isn’t that just brilliant writing?  I love this book.

5. Trumpet of the Swan

This is a classic book by E.B. White, and I picked it because we listened to the audio version of it, which is read by E.B. White.  The book comes alive when you listen the gravelly, old, grandpa-like voice, give life to the characters he created.

6. Redwall

I have had a lot of people ask me about good books for boys to read, and I always recommend this series. (Not that girls wouldn’t like them!)  There are 19 or 20 books in the series, and they are all very thick books, which is great!  It’s set in the Middle Ages, and it’s all about animals.  There are good animals and bad animals that they fight against, as they defend Redwall Abbey.  My son is addicted to them.  He has probably read the whole series 10 times.  Aside from the compelling storyline, the writing is beautiful and good.  No twaddle or fluff here.  (I personally haven’t read any of the books, but my son reads me excerpts that he likes.)  The cool thing, too, as my son has read them over the past 3 or 4 years, he’s matured, and now he gets the puns and plays on words that are in the books, so he’s already gaining a new level of appreciation for the books.

7. Holling C. Holling

All of these books are great.  Beautifully drawn, and very informative in a fun way.  Our favorite, seeing as how we live on the Great Lakes, is Paddle To the Sea.

8. The Coloured Lands

This is an, apparantly rare, book by G.K. Chesterton, that I, once again, found at a book sale.  Even the illustrations are his.  It’s a collection of short stories, quirky poems and drawings.  I haven’t read much of Chesterton (although I love his quotes), and this book is just genius.

9. Monsters of Mythology series

This might sound odd to recommend, but I love mythology books.  I bought this whole series for a buck when our library was culling it’s shelves, getting rid of old books.  The illustrations in these are magnificent.

10. The Riverside Anthology of Children’s Literature

This was the textbook for my college Children’s Lit class, and I bought a new copy, because I knew it was a book I would save.  The book is gorgeous, and it’s an excellent anthology of poems, stories, rhymes, literature, fairy tales.  It’s a very handy resource and is beautiful to hold and read.

(11.) Story of the world

This is a hands-down fantastic resource for learning world history.  It’s 4 books, and you start at the beginning of time, and move to the present, in story form, and it covers western and eastern history.  We love it.

(12.) History Lives – Church History series

This series we started this year, and it’s similar to Story of the World, only that it focuses on church history, which is something I never knew much about.

 

What are some of your favorite children’s books?

 

Once again, linking up with Sarah Bessey’s excellent idea!