Get your little ones excited to read this summer. Parents magazine’s August “Raise a Reader” issue features its first-ever list of 100 Books to Inspire Your Kids covering a wide range of titles to help turn children of all ages into readers. To create the list, Parents asked celebrated authors to share the book that opened their children’s eyes to the joy of reading.
The issue’s cover story features NBC’s TODAY co-host Jenna Bush Hager. Hager shares with readers how literacy has shaped her life. Other features of the issue include tips on how to Raise a Child Who Loves to Read and the announcement of Raising the Future Book Club which launches on Aug. 7.
The book club’s first selection is Antiracist Baby by Ibram X. Kendi, Ph.D. Kendi will lead a discussion of the book on Parent’s Instagram on Aug 7 at 3 p.m. ET. Visit http://parents.com/bookclub for more information.
The new book club is part of Parents “Raising the Future” long-term initiative aimed as diversifying the voices and representation in its content and delivering more of the advice families need to nurture a generation of good people.
Parents Editor-in-Chief Julia Edelstein writes in her August issue Editor’s Letter, “If we want the world to change—and for our children to be the changemakers—we must embrace stories from more than one point of view.”.
Highlights from the list of 100 Books to Inspire Your Kids, along with the authors who selected them follow:
- Encyclopedia Brown series, by Donald J. Sobol (ages 8 to 12)—selected by Nic Stone, author of Clean Getaway
- In the Night Kitchen, by Maurice Sendak (ages 4 to 8)—selected by Jenna Bush Hager, coauthor of Sisters First
- The Little Grey Men, by B.B. (ages 8 to 12)—selected by actor Julie Andrews, author of Home Work: A Memoir of My Hollywood Years
- Magic Tree House series, by Mary Pope Osborne (ages 7 to 12)—selected by Tomi Adeyemi, author of Children of Blood and Bone
- Miracle’s Boys, by Jacqueline Woodson (ages 10+)—selected by Elizabeth Acevedo, author of The Poet X
- Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl, by Anne Frank (ages 10)—selected by Lesléa Newman, author of Heather Has Two Mommies
- Bridge to Terabithia, by Katherine Paterson (ages 9+)—selected by actor Neil Patrick Harris, author of The Magic Misfits: The Fourth Suit
- Chrysanthemum, by Kevin Henkes (ages 4 to 8)—selected by Meg Medina, author of Merci Suárez Changes Gears
- Frederick, by Leo Lionni (ages 3 to 7)—selected by Dan Santat, author of The Adventures of Beekle
- Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, by Mildred D. Taylor (ages 11+)—selected by Angie Thomas, author of The Hate U Give
- Baby Island, by Carol Ryrie Brink (ages 9 to 12)—selected by Ann M. Martin, author of the Baby-Sitters Club series
- Ramona series, by Beverly Cleary (ages 8-12)—selected by Rainbow Rowell, author of Eleanor & Park; Daniel Handler, author of A Series of Unfortunate Events; and Kevin Henkes, author of The Year of Billy Miller
- Before the Mayflower by Lerone Bennett Jr. (ages 10+)—selected by Derrick Barnes, author of I Am Every Good Thing
For the full list of 100 books selected by noteworthy authors and celebrities, visit https://www.parents.com/100books.
—Jennifer Swartvagher
Featured photo: Annie Spratt on Unsplash
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