These days you can find a reading list in almost every bookstore waiting to be picked up or online ready to print out. They cover the hot books found in the hands of children around the country, but are they the right books for your youngsters?

It is a great opportunity to find out what everyone is reading to keep up with current books, but you can only read so much at any one time. Plus you must consider the intentions of the lists you pick up, they might be different than yours.

Retail Bookstores

Most bookstores provide lists of books to read based on sales. Rarely will you find a classical book on the lists unless they are selling well at the time. The same goes for the online bookstores. They reflect orders purchased over an accumulated time. So reading lists can be bad, but they are good too as not everyone has an agenda.

Schools and Local Libraries

School and libraries give out lists to adequately provide information in their own communities. Many times these titles are directly related to the surroundings, events happening and school participation. Interesting the child in the titles and having a direct response from peers and friends can be a huge bonus to continue their reading habits.

Personal Lists

Having your personal reading list is the most important. Books read today need to interest the reader and encourage them to the next step. Putting together a list of ten to twenty books to be read over a three-month period creates a simple goal. After each book is read and digested, one can scratch it off the list. This continues until the list is completed.

The personal reading list needs to cater to the attention and subjects of the reader. Sit down and figure out what length, the type of book (adult or juvenile) and price (if you decide to add them to the personal library) would be the best. Pick a few favorite books from the past and a few of the current hot reads found in the news, yet the list should focus on the personal side of the reader. A few favorite sports books, a couple of science books or traveling books in addition to a few genre books that seem interesting.

Instead of making it a chore to read the books, your reader could actively be involved in figuring out the titles before the reading begins. Of course you will always have room to add a few new titles to the list as you read along, but no harm there. In fact it is a chance to explore outside the reading list, which couldn’t be more appropriate and creative.

Share

Once you get your list complete, don’t hesitate to share it with others in your school or neighborhood. Obviously a few of the titles will be appropriate for your child’s friends and they might even read them together.