Family Reading Options to Cure Cabin Fever

As I sat reading Christmas books with my kids over the last few nights, I realized that many families engage in this activity over the holiday season, but don't continue it year round.  One of the reasons is that it is hard to find books that are entertaining for both kids and their parents.  If the parents are drawn to the story themselves, they will make more time to read it with their kids.

During the holiday season we read A Christmas Carol and The Gift of the Magi, as well as some children's bible stories and classic picture books.  But what to read the rest of the year?

Here are some of my favorite family read-a-louds.  My kids are 5 and 8, but these are good choices for families with children from 3 and up.  The parents and children will both be engaged and you will all be making time to read together all year round.  Many of these have the added bonus of a movie version that the family can watch as a treat when they are finished reading.

• Harry Potter
• Anything by Roald Dahl
• Wizard of Oz (How many of you have actually read the books?)
• Coraline or The Graveyard Book
• Tale of Despereaux (but the movie stinks)
• The Chronicles of Narnia Series
• A Wrinkle in Time
• A Cricket in Times Square
• The Doll People
• The Phantom Tollbooth
• The Hobbit

Try one of these as a family. Or keep this list handy to suggest to your patrons when they come in looking for remedies for cabin fever, which tends to begin around here 2 days after Christmas and lasts until April.