Growing a Reader: Kids' Books, Tips and More

So often as paren'ts we read aloud with our children when they are very young but tend to stop once they start to read on their own. I can attest from experience that children of all ages even into the tween years enjoy hearing a story read aloud. Choosing to read longer and more complex stories and novels aloud gives you an opportunity to help your child read beyond his/her reading levels as well as opening up areas of discussion based on the book with them. Serializing a book over many evenings also builds anticipation and excitement for reading and books. As well, it is a wonderful opportunity for you to introduce your children to some favourites from your childhood. Classic stories such as The Hobbit, Charlotte's Web, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and The BFG are often overlooked by teachers and students when selecting books to read, and with reason as they are written in a style not familar to today's students. Reading aloud brings life to these books, however, and opens up great reading avenues going forward.

There are also many books published that are novels for students just starting into reading longer books. We have many talented Canadian authors that have published for this age group. I have hightlighted several below that fall into this category and are great read alouds as well.

One of my favourite Canadian authors to hit the scene in recent years is Dan Bar-el. He has written some of the most original takes on standard tales that will have you and your child laughing out loud. Things are Looking Grimm, Jill takes a jaunt through the land of Grimm with gender bending roles for both Jack and Jill. Jack likes to bake, Jill likes to joust, skate and fence. Interesting characters taken from fairy tales and nursery rhymes are found throughout this book, but with roles that are remarkably different from what you would expect. I first read this aloud to my nephew when he was 8. He is 13 now and it is still one of his favourite books. In fact, he counts himself as Dan Bar-el's number one fan. Read this book, you will not be disappointed.

Dear Sylvia by Alan Cumyn is another gem of a book. Written as a series of letters from Owen Skye to his true love, Sylvia, it explores the insecurities that everyone goes through at that time of life. The letters are written complete with spelling errors that you would expect in a young writer. This book is also laugh out loud funny, and if you think that perhaps the subject matter will not appeal to your son or daughter, you should know that it was selected as the Silver Birch Express winner in 2009. Silver Birch is a children's choice award, and there were hundreds of screaming readers cheering Alan on as he accepted his award.

Another author to check out is Ken Roberts. Ken has been a children's librarian and more recently the CEO of Hamilton Public Library. He also has an amazing insight into what will amuse children and has written several books about Thumb. Thumb on a Diamond is the second in the series. It chronicles the adventures of Thumb and his friends from New Auckland, a remote fishing village in British Columbia, as they form a baseball team and win the regional championship, taking them to Vancouver. Nevermind that they are the only baseball team in their region or that the village is not wide enough to have a baseball diamond, they are off on an adventure that will delight and entertain.

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The next two books are written by one of my favourite children's author, Hazel Hutchins. She has a large body of work, so if your child enjoys one title, they will have many others to choose from going forward. Hazel's style is very lyrical and her books are built on very imaginative themes.

 In Sarah and the Magic Science Project, science is pitted against magic, and surprisingly, both win. Sarah and Ben witness their neighbour turn a bully into a frog, and from that moment, Sarah is convinced that her neighbour would make the perfect science project. Whimsical and quirky, this book will appeal to a wide audience.

Prince of Tarn is a book of fantasy and one that will have you believing from the first page. On Fred's eleventh birthday he is woken by the sounds of His Royal and Eminent Highness the Prince of Tarn cursing and calling for the captain of the guard. Fred recognizes the prince from a fantasy book that his mother had written shortly before her death and attempts to help him. The book takes Fred and the prince on an adventure to save Tarn, the prince's kingdom, from destruction.

These are but a smattering of the titles out there to enjoy with your child. The librarians in your branch would be delighted to offer additional titles for your reading pleasure. Check them out, you will not be disappointed!

Updated April 14, 2020.