What were your favorite books as a child? The ones you read over and over? The ones that you think back on with the fondest of memories? The very best books you can think of?

We recently posed these questions to a group of parents, and the response was huge and full of emotion. Clearly, the books we read as kids stick with us and help make us who we are as adults.

Since we feel so strongly about our favorites, doesn’t it make sense to share those same books with our own children?

110+ of the Best Books for Kids

March 2nd is Read Across America Day, as well as Dr. Seuss Day. In honor of that, we’ve compiled a list of the books and authors that parents loved as children. Perhaps you’ve already read some of them with your own children, but there’s a good chance there are some on the list that will be new to you.

We encourage you to jot down a few titles you haven’t read before, head to your local library or bookstore, and share some reading time with your kids. It’s truly one of the best investments you can make in your children’s lives!

For ease of use, we’ve separated the list into two main categories: Picture Books and Chapter Books. We’ve also highlighted some of our favorite authors by including more than one of their books. They are in no particular order.

Picture Books

Author: Dr. Seuss

Titles include:

Cat in the Hat

One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish

Green Eggs and Ham

The Lorax

Yertle the Turtle

And to Think That I Saw It On Mulberry Street

Author: Eric Carle

Titles include:

The Very Hungry Caterpillar

The Tiny Seed

Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? (Written by Bill Martin Jr., Illustrated by Eric Carle)

From Head to Toe

Author: Sandra Boynton

Titles include:

Barnyard Dance

Moo, Baa, La La La!

Belly Button Book

Oh My Oh My Oh Dinosaurs!

Author: Gyo Fujikawa

Titles include:

Babies

A Child’s Book of Poems

My Favorite Thing

Jenny Learns a Lesson

Author: Robert McCloskey

Titles include:

Make Way for Ducklings

Blueberries for Sal

One Morning in Maine

Burt Dow, Deep Water Man

Lentil

Author: Chris Van Allsburg

Titles include:

Jumanji

The Polar Express

Zathura

The Sweetest Fig

The Garden of Abdul Gasazi

Author: Tomie dePaola

Titles include:

Strega Nona

The Legend of the Blue Bonnet

The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush

Jamie O’Rourke and the Big Potato

Author: Shel Silverstein

Titles include:

The Giving Tree

Where the Sidewalk Ends

A Light in the Attic

Author: Maurice Sendak

Titles include:

Where the Wild Things Are

Chicken Soup With Rice: A Book of Months

Little Bear (Written by Else Holmelund Minarik, Illustrated by Maurice Sendak)

Author: Richard Scarry

Titles include:

Best Word Book Ever

Busy, Busy Town

What Do People Do All Day?

Author: Beatrix Potter

Titles include:

The Tale of Peter Rabbit

The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck

The Tale of Tom Kitten

There’s nothing better than reading with your kids, but when you need a few minutes to get things done, let us read to them for you! Miss Humblebee’s Academy

Miss Rumphius by Barbara Cooney

Corduroy by Don Freeman

The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats

Mr. Putter and Tabby by Cynthia Rylant & Arthur Howard

The Poky Little Puppy by Janette Sebring Lowrey

Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett and Ron Barrett

Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile by Bernard Waber

Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst and Ray Cruz

Mrs. Piggle Wiggle by Betty MacDonald and Alexandra Boiger

The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf

Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel by Virginia Lee Burton

The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams and William Nicholson

Are You My Mother? by P.D. Eastman

IS YOUR CHILD ENTERING KINDERGARTEN THIS FALL? FIND OUT IF HE HAS THE SKILLS HE NEEDS. SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER AND RECEIVE A FREE KINDERGARTEN READINESS CHECKLIST.

Chapter Books

Author: Beverly Cleary

Titles include:

Ramona the Pest

The Mouse and the Motorcycle

Henry Huggins

Author: Roald Dahl

Titles include:

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Matilda

The BFG

James and the Giant Peach

Fantastic Mr. Fox

Author: Judy Blume

Titles include:

Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing

Superfudge

Freckle Juice

Author: Louis Sachar

Titles include:

Sideways Stories From Wayside School

Wayside School is Falling Down

Holes

Author: E.B. White

Titles include:

Charlotte’s Web

The Trumpet of the Swan

Stuart Little

Author: Lois Lowry

Titles include:

Number the Stars

The Giver

Gathering Blue

The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis

Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren

Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder

Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery

The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett

Nancy Drew by Carolyn Keene

Magic Tree House Books by Mary Pope Osborne and Sal Murdocca

The Boxcar Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner

Trixie Belden by Julie Campbell

The Call of the Wild by Jack London

Encyclopedia Brown by Donald J. Sobol

Bunnicula by Deborah and James Howe

The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare

Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe

Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson

The Saddle Club by Bonnie Bryant

Sarah Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan

Black Beauty by Anna Sewell

Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

Discworld by Terry Pratchett

Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien

Choose Your Own Adventure by R.A. Mongomery

The Swiss Family Robinson by Johann David Wyss

The Hardy Boys by Franklin W. Dixon

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle

Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson

A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket

Red Badge of Courage by Stephen Crane

My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken

Hatchet by Gary Paulsen

Redwall by Brian Jacques

Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls

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