Here are all the Read Aloud Books we read together as a family last year. There are some great read aloud chapter books here!
Reading aloud to my four kids is my favorite part of every day.
It's also probably the most consistent thing I've ever done! I've started and stopped a hundred different exercise programs and meditation goals, but I've read aloud to my children before bedtime every night for years. That being said, it's been a successful venture entirely because it is so enjoyable for all five of us.
What Reading Aloud Looks Like at Our House
Although we do read picture books, and occasionally chapter books, at other times during the day, bedtime is the best read aloud time for our family. Here's what it looks like:
Around 7PM I help Rory, my 6 year old, get his pajamas on and brush his teeth. Then, while I read aloud to him (either a few picture books, or a chapter from an easier chapter book), the girls (ages 10, 12, and 14) get ready for bed.
When everyone is ready for bed, all the kids pile onto my bed, or the floor near my bed, and we start with scriptures and prayers before I begin reading aloud from our family read aloud book. Rory normally falls asleep while we read, which is why I read something separate with him first.
While I read, the girls draw, color, or embroider something to keep their hands busy. We always read at least one chapter, but often more when the book is really good.
This whole process takes about 1.5 hours, give or take.
It's not a perfect system because some nights the girls have activities (although, not in 2020) so we have to start later and we don't read as long. Sometimes the kids argue about who gets to sit next to me, or bicker about who stole their pencil or whose feet are touching them. Still, more often than not, our bedtime reading routine is the very best part of the day.
In 2020 we read 28 books aloud together as a family (and listened to three great audiobooks). Here's what we read:
(Note: the Amazon links in this post are Affiliate Links)
All the Read Aloud Books We Read in 2020
Maximillian Fly
This was a page-turner of a book to start off the year with (and maybe even a little bit of foreshadowing)! It's a middle grade story about a giant gentle cockroach and some brave, wonderful children trying to save the world from a dystopian dictatorship. It's both dark and hopeful, and very entertaining.
Here in the Real World
We adored this book about a lonely introverted boy trying to follow a medieval code of honor, and a tough but likeable girl trying to grow a garden in an abandoned church parking lot. It's an unlikely friendship, but it gave me a lot of Bridge to Terabithia vibes (without the devastating ending). Full review here.
Echo Mountain
Wow! We really loved this one! It's historical fiction set during the depression. Ellie's family is forced to leave their home in town and start over in the wilderness of Echo Mountain. It sounds sad, but the novel is so hopeful and so beautiful. The kids were in enthralled with every single chapter.
Glitch
Definitely one of our favorite reads of the whole year! It's a sci-fi time travel adventure through history that is every bit as exciting as it sounds. This was one of those books that the kids kept begging me to read just one more chapter pleeaassee.
Wildfire: A Novel
I keep recommending this one to people who tell me their kids don't like to listen to read aloud books. It's so gripping that I think you'd be hard pressed to find a kid that it didn't suck in. The story follows two kids trapped in the woods in the middle of a raging forest fire. We sped right through it!
Fablehaven Complete Set
We've read them before, but the kids really wanted to re-read the entire Fablehaven series again before we started the new companion series. The 5 book series follows two adolescents who discover that their grandparents are actually the caretakers of a secret hidden magical preserve. These are huge favorites at our house!
Dragonwatch Daring Collection
After re-reading Fablehaven, we jumped into the companion series and read the first 3 books. If you love Fablehaven, you'll really love these. I think I might even like them more than the original series! We're currently in the middle of the 4th book right now and they just keep getting better.
The 101 Dalmatians
You've probably seen the Disney movies, but did you know they were based on an absolutely charming classic book? We listened to this on audio in the car and it charmed my socks off. Absolutely perfect!
The Willoughbys
What a funny, clever little book! All four of the kids loved this one and did a lot of laughing out loud as we read. But we really, really did NOT enjoy the new Netflix movie of this one. A solid case of "the book was better."
The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg (Scholastic Gold)
This humorous historical fiction set during the Civil War was fine. Nothing too memorable, but we liked it.
Kiki's Delivery Service
This was a sweet, gentle read (and we really did love the movie version), but it was probably the book I liked least. I think something was probably lost in translation from Japanese to English because the writing just felt so awkward to me. Still, it was a great story.
The Amulet of Samarkand (A Bartimaeus Novel Book 1)
This is another audiobook we listened to in the car and it was phenomenal! It's set in an alternate world where magicians rule modern day England. The story follows Nathaniel, a young magician in training, who gets a little carried away after being humiliated by a older magician and seeks the aid of a powerful dijinni to help him get revenge.
It's laugh out loud funny and so well written. Looking forward to more in this series!
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang: The Magical Car
There's hardly a more perfect family audiobook for a car trip than this one. Read by David Tenant (who reads it perfectly), this is a timeless classic.
The Ghouls of Howlfair
We like to pick something a bit spooky to read in October and were very pleased by this haunted tale. It's definitely more fun than spooky, but it was a perfect addition to the Halloween season.
A Whale of the Wild
This was a runaway hit! Even Rory was enthralled by this story told from the perspective of two young orca whales. Highly recommend this one (and her first book, which I reviewed here).
Cleo Porter and the Body Electric
This was an awesome and unique book. It's set in the future after a virus (ahem) has wiped out most of humanity. The survivors built self sustaining buildings and sealed themselves inside. No one has been outside in decades, so when a package containing someone else's life-saving medicine is accidentally delivered to Cleo Porter's apartment, she has to figure out what to do about it.
I've never read anything quite like this one before. It was super fun to read aloud!
Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow (Nevermoor, 1)
This is our new FAVORITE series. We read the first two books in 2020 and, dare I say, it's nearly as good as Harry Potter (and I've never said that before!). I'll have a lot more to say about this series.
Cinders and Sparrows
This was fun. A twelve year old orphan receives an unexpected letter telling her she has inherited a castle. When she arrives, she finds out that she's actually from a family of powerful good witches that were destroyed by an evil witch and it's up to her to figure out what it all means. It was pretty twisty and had a very satisfying ending.
Hilda and the Hidden People: Hilda Netflix Tie-In 1 (Hilda Tie-In)
I read four books in this series aloud with Rory and we both loved them (as well as the Netflix show and the original graphic novels that it's all based on). If you haven't had the pleasure of reading or watching Hilda yet, don't delay!
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