5 Books You Should Read with Your Kids

Some of my most treasured times with my children is reading with them. We've done a lot more of that during the pandemic and I love it. Reading has always been a big part of my life and reading with my Mom is my favorite memory from my childhood. 

Here's 5 Books You Should Read with Your "tween-aged" Kids. We love finding books that they have made into movies. It keeps my kids wanting to read because they want to watch the movie version.

1. The Outsiders: Explores the great economic divide between two groups of rival boys. The movie has a killer cast that includes Matt Dillon, Tom Cruise, and Diane Lane.

2. Anne of Green Gables: The beautiful journey of a young orphaned girl who celebrates her awkwardness and learns to love her quirks and explosive imagination. (My 11-year-old daughter and I are reading this right now and although the language is pretty advanced, she can still follow the storyline.) We can't wait to watch the movie.

3. Number the Stars: This is such a great book to introduce the kids to WWII in a not so graphic way. The story actually has a happy ending, but a realistic somber tone throughout. It's one of my very favorite books ever!

4. Blood on the River: I have a really hard time getting my son to enjoy a book, but he loved this one. It's a pretty realistic tale of founding America and our battle with the Indians. If you have boys between 9-15, it's a must read.

5. Ruby on the Outside: My daughter and I stumbled upon this at the library and we absolutely fell in love with it. Eleven-year-old Ruby doesn’t tell anyone her deepest, darkest secret: her mother is in jail. When she makes a new friend, Ruby struggles with the decision of whether or not to tell her the truth—only to discover that her new friend might be entangled in Ruby’s family’s past in a deeper way than she ever expected.

Enter your number to get our free mobile app