Reading

I am so delighted with my childrens' love of reading. Although I no longer read (for pleasure) nearly as much as I used to, simply due to lack of time, reading is one of my greatest pleasures in life. I remember, as a child, curling up on the couch with a good book, and getting lost in it's pages; completely losing track of time as I devoured every word, interrupted only by chores and mealtimes. Ah, the joys and freedoms of youth. These days, my reading has taken on a completely different nature. That is, I read the same books over and over and over again. To and with my children. Fortunately there are a great many books we read and love, so that at least we have some variety. And I SO enjoy reading with my children that I don't mind the repetition. But we have finally entered a new phase of reading....that of chapter books.

The Mr. was so excited when, a few months ago, I suggested he begin reading a few chapters to Angel and Grins each night. This brings back fond memories of his youth as well. So we took a trip to one of our happiest places on earth - the library - to see what we could come up with. It was somewhat difficult, though, to figure out what books were interesting/age-appropriate/etc. for our children. I know you can (almost) never go wrong with a "classic" so we started there....

We started with "Heidi" but for some reason the children quickly lost interest, so that one only lasted a few nights. So we moved onto some of our own childhood favorites. We read BFG but it required quite a bit of editing. James and the Giant Peach and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, though not "classics", were both big hits. Now we're nearly through "The Boxcar Children" which the children are devouring ("Just ONE more chapter, PLEASE!!!!?") So, my fellow book-lovers, I need your recommendations. What books have your 3-5 year olds loved? We're heading to the library in a few days and I would love any input!!