Some of us come to reading late in life, only getting hooked on the story as adults.
But most of us fell in love with the world of literature when we were kids. Once we read Nancy Drew or Anne of Green Gables for the first time, that was all we needed. We were readers for life.
But childhood bookworms grow up, and as much fun as it is to revisit childhood favorites, we yearn for new titles to read. We have children, and we want to introduce them to the stories we fell in love with as kids. Or maybe we just want to branch out a little.
If you’re a reader who knows the joy of reading for a lifetime—or wants to—this list is for you.
Some links (including all Amazon links) are affiliate links. More details here.
If You Love Memorable Characters and a WWII Story
The Book Thief
Author: Markus Zusak
"You are going to die," begins this 2006 novel. A fitting beginning to a story about hard things: a little girl and her family struggling to endure in WWII Nazi Germany. The characters are interesting and unexpected, right down to the unusual narrator. You'll see why this was an instant staple on school reading lists when it was published ten years ago, and why it has captured the hearts of readers from age 10 to 110. Beautiful, haunting, fascinating, hopeful. More info →
All the Light We Cannot See
Author: Anthony Doerr
A captivating story, well-told. The characters in this war novel are fascinating and altogether unexpected, and the book’s setting couldn’t be lovelier: much of the action takes place in Saint-Malo, France, a unique walled port city on the English Channel. It doesn't feel overlong: its 500+ pages give Doerr plenty of room to build a believable world, and give his characters depth and feeling. An intelligent, detailed, literary novel that will stay with you long after you turn the last page. More info →
If You Love an Eccentric Mystery
From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
Author: E. L. Konigsburg
Claudia Kincaid is bored with her suburban life, so she convinces her little brother Jamie to run away with her to nearby New York City. She’s carefully chosen a hideaway that is comfortable, beautiful, and elegant: the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Once they’re set up in the museum, Claudia finds herself transfixed by a statue—and the mystery behind it—and her fascination leads the two children on an incredible adventure. Kongisburg took her inspiration from her own children; if they ever ran away she figured they would "never consider any place less elegant than the Metropolitan Museum of Art." A Newbery Medal winner in 1968. More info →
Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore
Author: Robin Sloan
This contemporary novel gives us another wild goose chase in a fascinating setting. Clay, an unemployed Silicon Valley tech worker who now works at a dusty bookstore, discovers its mysterious hold books hold more secrets than he'd ever imagined. Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore combines elements of mystery, friendship and adventure as well as the conflict between new technology and print books. This fast-paced book is mystery, quest, and love letter to the written word, all rolled into one: think Harry Potter meets National Treasure. More info →
If You Love a Plucky Heroine Solving Mysteries
The Secret of the Old Clock
Author: Carolyn Keene
This is one of the all-time bestselling children's books in English: it's sold nearly 3 million copies. The iconic Nancy Drew is cited as an influence by Supreme Court justices and CEOs, contemporary authors and first ladies, and devoted readers everywhere. Literary critics, attempting to analyze her enduring appeal, say she captures the complexity of femininity. As a kid I just knew she was smart, she's brave, and rescued her boyfriend from time to time, instead of the other way around. More info →
The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency
Author: Alexander McCall Smith
In Book 1 of this popular series, McCall Smith introduces us to Precious Ramotswe, founder of The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency, who makes a midlife switch to detective work so she can “help people with problems in their lives.” Fans adore this series, and in each book they accompany Mma Ramotswe as she meets her interesting clients, always with very interesting problems. Readers can't help rooting for Mma Ramtoswe as she solves her mysteries; she's funny, smart, and loves to buck convention—very, very tactfully. More info →
If You Want to Live in C.S. Lewis' Universes
The Chronicles of Narnia
Author: C. S. Lewis
In this classic series, four British children discover that a wardrobe in a British home opens into a magical world called Narnia, where animals talk, magic is real, and the evil White Witch duels the fierce lion Aslan. Lewis took his inspiration from British and Irish fairy tales, traditional Christian themes, and Greek and Roman mythology. This series has been captivating readers both old and young for over sixty years. More info →
Out of the Silent Planet
Author: C. S. Lewis
Readers who couldn't get enough C. S. Lewis as a kid are often urged to move on to his Space Trilogy as they get older. Once again, he sets his fantasies against the backdrop of classical mythology and biblical imagery; his characters encounter extraordinary creatures, fight epic battles, and come face to face with deep wisdom. This first book in the series tells the story of Dr. Ransom, a Cambridge professor who discovers after he's abducted that he's been taken from the "silent planet" of Earth. J. R. R. Tolkien inspired Lewis to write this story, and the character of Dr. Ransom is largely based on him. More info →
Till We Have Faces: A Myth Retold
Author: C. S. Lewis
In this novel, often cited as C. S. Lewis's greatest work, he retells the myth of Cupid and Psyche. Lewis said he was haunted by the story all his life, because he was struck by how illogical some of the main characters' actions were. By recasting the myth as the tale of two mortal princesses caught in a love triangle, he explores devotion and loss, dedication and betrayal, and the different ways we can love. This was Lewis's last novel, and he considered it his most mature work. More info →
If You Love a Survival Story in a Wild Environment
The Call of the Wild
Author: Jack London
This slim novel set during the Klondike Gold Rush is considered Jack London's masterpiece. This is the story of Buck, a household pet who's stolen from his home and forced into service as an Alaskan sled dog. To survive, Buck muck must learn to fight. A classic tale of struggle and survival. More info →
The Road
Author: Cormac McCarthy
It begins with a bang, when all the lights go out; soon thereafter, civilization falls apart. In McCarthy's postapocalyptic tale, a nameless father and son take to the road, wandering through the burned landscape as they make their way towards the coast, though they're unsure what, if anything, awaits them there. Critics are already calling this 2007 Pulitzer winner McCarthy's masterpiece for its moving portrayal of familial love and tenderness against a backdrop of total devastation. More info →
If You Love Learning About the Great Depression
Out of the Dust
Author: Karen Hesse
My 11-year-old told me she was glad this was required reading because she wouldn't have read it otherwise and it's one of the best books she's ever read. Told in free verse, this is the story of a young girl's life in the Dust Bowl of Oklahoma during the Great Depression. It's bleak and tragic and ends with only a glimmer of hope, but young (and old) readers will be moved as they root for fourteen-year-old Billie Jo to transcend her dire circumstances and find the beauty in her unlikely surroundings. A short, quick read, but one that will stay with you. Winner of the 1998 Newbery Medal. More info →
The Grapes of Wrath
Author: John Steinbeck
This is Steinbeck's epic tale of the Great Depression and the great Dust Bowl Migration of the 1930s, told through the eyes of one downtrodden Oklahoma farm family. The Joads set out for California, in search of jobs and some kind of future. This Pulitzer winner is sweeping and evocative, packed with unforgettable images, bursting with meaning. Powerful and tragic, with an absolutely haunting ending that holds forth the tiniest glimmer of hope. More info →
If You Consider Yourself an Anne Shirley... or a Modern Mrs. Darcy
Anne of Green Gables
Author: L.M. Montgomery
This series has been captivating readers for over a century. Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert of Prince Edward Island, Canada decide to adopt an orphaned boy to help them on their farm. Their messenger mistakenly delivers a girl to Green Gables instead—an 11-year-old feisty redhead named Anne Shirley. The series follows Anne from her childhood at Green Gables until she is a mother herself. Don't miss the final books of the series when Anne's own sons set sail to fight for Canada in WWI. More info →
Pride and Prejudice
Author: Jane Austen
For two hundred years this has remained one of the most popular novels in the English novel; Jane Austen herself called it her "own darling child." If you've never read Jane Austen, start here, with Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy, and you'll see why, like Anne, devoted readers keep picking this one up again ... and again and again. More info →
If You Love Ruminating About Living Forever
Tuck Everlasting
Author: Natalie Babbit
When an overprotected ten-year-old stumbles upon a boy her age drinking furtively from a spring near her home, she discovers what he's trying to keep secret: since his family began drinking the water, they haven't aged a day. There are so many middle grade stories that wrestle with death these days; in this novel, Babbit wrestles with the decidedly mixed blessing of living forever. The prose in this is really lovely (which is not a code word for boring). More info →
The Time Traveler’s Wife
Author: Audrey Niffenegger
In Audrey Niffenegger's cinematic debut, an art student falls in love with a librarian. So far, so good. But they met when Clare was six and Henry was 36, and they married when Clare was 23 and Henry 31. Henry travels through time, forward and back, unwillingly, unpredictably. In her love story Niffenegger explores what this jarring disruption does to a man, to a marriage, to a family. More info →
If You Love Horses or a Good Underdog Story
Black Beauty
Author: Anna Sewell
This beloved classic is the "autobiography" of a horse, from his youthful days on a country estate to his harder adult life as a London cab horse. This is one for the ages. More info →
Seabiscuit: An American Legend
Author: Laura Hillenbrand
Before Hillenbrand got a hold of Louie Zamperini's story for Unbroken, she was an editor at Equus magazine, having fallen in love with horses as a kid when she began reading Come On, Seabiscuit! over and over again beginning at age eight. In this true story that reads like a novel, Hillenbrand takes her reader on a remarkable ride, masterfully weaveing together the stories of a knock-kneed racehorse and the three men who made him a champion: a bookish half-blind jockey, an eccentric trainer, and a limelight-loving owner. An incredible tale, and not just for horse lovers. More info →
If You Love Reading About a Holocaust Hero
The Hiding Place
Author: Corrie Ten Boom
Corrie ten Boom was a heroine of the Resistance and a survivor of Hitler's concentration camps. In World War II she and her family risked their lives to help Jews and underground workers escape from the Nazis, and for their work they were tested in the infamous Nazi death camps.The title refers to both the hiding place where the ten Boom family hid Jews, and also to Psalm 119:114, "Thou art my hiding place and my shield: I hope in thy word... " More info →
Number the Stars
Author: Lois Lowry
Ten-year-old Annemarie Johansen, lives with her family in Copenhagen and becomes a part of the rescue of the Danish Jews, helped to reach neutral ground in Sweden in order to avoid the concentration camps.The title is taken from Psalm 147:4, in which God has numbered all the stars and has named each one of them. It ties to the Star of David, symbolic to Judaism. The novel was awarded the Newbery Medal in 1990. More info →
65 comments
Love these!
Such a neat idea!!
Well this was fun! A lot of (both sides) I’ve read, but now I’ve *got* to read Out of the Silent Planet!
Sarah M
Can. Not. Wait. to dig into these suggestions. I’m still plowing through the reading guide, and the local librarians are just pulling my books off the shelf when they see me walk in the door. So many books . . . so little time!
Great list. Months of great reading are ahead of me. My, oh my, where will I find the time!
I love the Book Thief. And Tuck Everlasting. And The Time Traveler’s Wife. With so many of my faves on here, I will have to check out the rest! The Historian has long been in my TBR stack, so perhaps that’s next…
Anne, these are great pairings, but I wanted to tell you I read The Paris Architect, and it was the best book I have read this summer – hands down! You definitely should read it.
Thanks for the recommendation! I’ve been reading a TON of WWII novels lately, and I love them! I read Lilac Girls and The Nightingale this summer, and The Hiding Place is on my Top Ten Books of All Time list. Just added The Paris Architect to my ever-growing TBR list! 🙂
I loved Nancy Drew and have some affection for Mma Ramotswe as well, although I was not as interested as I expected to be (long story) in that series. Another “plucky heroine” author I loved and have probably mentioned here before – was Mary Stewart, whose heroes were usually American/European women on adventures in Europe. The best for romance was Nine Coaches Waiting but The Ivy Tree and the Moonspinners (later a movie with Hayley Mills) were also great suspense novels. Very intelligently written and I remember figuring out, even as a teen-ager, that she wrote much better than another favorite author of mine at the time, Victoria Holt. I see in the Wikpedia article about Mary Stewart, they say the exact same thing.
Thanks for the heads-up about Mary Stewart! I read a TON of Victoria Holt books during my teen years! I’m 63 now, so that was a long time ago!
I’m 56. Similar generation 😉
Mary Stewart also wrote an excellent series about Arthur and Merlin that I loved. It begins with The Crystal Cave.
I loved that series. I read a lot of Mary Stewart when I was young.
I got really into the Mma Ramotswe series. That might partly be because I have an interest in Africa, and the cultural things fascinate me. I also read the same author’s series set in Scotland, I think its’ The Sunday Philosophy Club. THere’s always a mystery that is solved, and lots of thinking about why people do the things they do. I’ve enjoyed those, too. Thanks for the other suggestions. I’m always looking for more books to read.
Anna – I grew up in Africa (American missionary parents) and really wanted to love this series, but I think I kept drawing too many comparisons to my experience and so it didn’t work for me. I’ll try again sometime. I think there was a TV series too – maybe on HBO?
I did like his other books – I listened to them on “tape” while I walked (several years ago – how did I do that, can’t remember). They were read in a Scots accent (maybe the author) and I found them delightful although the plots were actually kind of ridiculous. I think it was the “44 Scotland Street” series. The characters were quirky and fun – and then there was that charming accent. I just found them delightful.
I have lived in Africa as an adult (since 2009). They were interesting in that they were in a very different setting than where I lived, but I could see some of the cultural similarities. I knew some other American expats who didn’t really get into them because they wanted to escape their surroundings more when they read.
I have read some of the 44 Scotland Street series, too. I bet I would like the audiobooks with the accents. I love British, Irish, and Scottish accents. 🙂
What a great idea! I loved Nancy Drew, but I haven’t read anything by Alexander McCall Smith. Also, I’m going to have to give Seabiscuit another try. Unbroken was one of my all-time favorites.
Great recommendations but I have read (and re-read) most of them. However, I was looking for Dust Bowl related book for my daughter’s history studies that wasn’t Grapes of Wrath (don’t think she would appreciate that), so thanks for an idea.
Another great Dust Bowl book is “A Cup of Dust” by Susie Finkbeiner. I read this just a few months ago. It’s not a kids’ book, but is written from a Christian perspective. You should probably read it first, but I thought it was really good.
THAT is a terrific idea. Love it. I know that Trixie Belden and Nancy Drew led me through Agatha Christie and on to Elizabeth George, Reginald Hill, and Sophie Hannah.
I think a good pairing with Tuck Everlasting to explore the idea of living forever is The Bone Clocks. It’s more true to that theme than Time Traveller’s Wife, although I really enjoyed that one too. If you don’t like reading sex scenes, choose Bone Clocks. If you don’t mind, read them both!
Thanks for the heads-up on Time Traveler’s Wife – I’ll put The Bone Clocks on my list instead! 🙂
I was disturbed by the Time Traveler’s Wife, too. Not just the sex scenes, but some of the ickiness factor of the same man interacting with her as a child and older. I’m going to look at The Bone Clocks.
It was refreshing to see that I have read some of your suggestions already. There were a few that made their way on to “Mount To-Be-Read.” Thanks for keeping things fresh and real.
You’re always adding to my reading list! I love mysteries and now have a few more to read, which is wonderful because I was just trying to figure out what to read next. I have that Nancy Drew book on my shelf 🙂
Love your podcast and this is a super article theme! Throwing in another opinion…I consider the Maisy Dobbs series to be my adult Nancy Drew series.
I love the Maisy Dobbs series. I actually purchased them all and even
went to see the author speak. I think they are excellent books and would recommend them.
My parents both loved books, and Daddy couldn’t wait to introduce me to “Call of the Wild”. I was a little too young to appreciate it, but we enjoyed it together a couple of years later.
I just got Pride and Prejudice for the Kindle for free! Thanks for the link, Anne, and I might finally read it, if I can ever get through my library books before they’re overdue, or disappear from my Kindle (I LOVE getting Kindle books from my library, but they disappear from my Kindle after 21 days, which is motivation to finish them)!
I just today learned how to increase my library/Download Destination borrowing time from 14 to 21 days!!! Game Changer!!!
I had to laugh that you put “Anne” and “Pride and Prejudice” together. Those are the only two books/series that I read every few years, religiously. I fall in love with them again every time!
I’m a little disappointed in the Anne and P&P pairing, only because I adore them both and hoped to find some new titles like them. I never read Anne as a child, but read almost all of them
In the past year. They’re so delightful! I can’t wait for my daughters to be a little older so they’ll appreciate & love them too. Any MMD have Anne and P&P type recommendations? 🙂
Great pairings! I have some new ideas about books to read.
Thanks
Another suggestion for Memorable Characters and a WWII story is Code Name Verity. It’s young adult but features female friendship instead of romance. I found it to be emotionally wrenching, and with more violence than I’m usually comfortable with (I have a low tolerance), but I thought worth it.
I listened to Code Name Verity on audiobook with my kids. It was difficult at times, but such a good book!
Love the list. Another good horse book is The Eighty Dollar Champion. For the Great Depression I really liked Julia’s Hope.
Too funny – just today I was thinking it would be fun to see a post like this. Or a podcast where the guest gives childhood books they loved and you recommend adult ones!
Brilliant!
Between the post and the comments, I’ve added more to my TBR list, which grows faster than I can read. 🙂 I’m never in danger of running out of books.
I had read “Until We Have Faces” years ago, but forgotten about it. My son is interested in mythology, and I’ve suggested it to him.
Love this list! So many favorites and so many I will put on my list to read. Thank you.
This is absolutely one of my favorite book posts I’ve ever seen – magically combining my nostalgia with excitement for new books as well! I loved almost all those books as a child, but I think I’m most excited to read Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore and the Historian. Thank you for posting!
Such a fun list! Thank you.
How convenient, Netflix literally just added Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell. Now I have to decide whether to read the book first, watch the show first, or balance the two.
What a fun list! I love this Anne!
Thanks for the list and suggestions.
Marilyn
You are so right about the Nancy Drew/No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency connection. I was a Nancy Drew nut as a kid, and I’m a Mma Ramotswe addict as a grandmother. Great connections!
Dear Lord…three hours ago I fell down a new rabbit hole called modernmrsdarcy! It is so wonderful, I may stay here forever. Just have someone drop me a book and a little physical nourishment every couple of days.
I was, and still am, a Nancy Drew junkie! I love reading Sue Grafton, Kate Morton, Jacqueline Winspear, and Janet Evanovich! About 30 years ago I found myself out of work when my children started school one fall. Feeling out-of-sorts, I picked up a Nancy Drew. I read one every day! In order! I read through the original 56! Sadly, I returned to the work-force. A retired grandmother now, I have thoroughly enjoyed Karen White and Patti Callahan Henry. Too many fantastic authors are out there. Read Michael Connelly!!
“Eccentric mysteries” is definitely my pairing. I re-read Mixed-Up Files for the reading challenge last year, and I just read and loved Mr. Penumbra earlier this year!
In the same vein as Nancy Drew, there is a series about a young girl named Flavia de Luce by Alan Bradley who solves murders in rural England. Definitely in the “plucky” line!
I love this list. I’ve read quite a few of the pairings, and it made me feel like there a kindred spirits out there. I’ve pinned and tweeted the article. Thanks!
Thank you for these fantastic recommendations.
I was so excited to see Tuck Everlasting included! It is my favorite childhood book of all time!
Absolutely spot on! When I saw the title of your post I quickly scanned through knowing you almost certainly had a pairing for The Mixed Up Files of Mrs Basil E Frankweiler. The suggestion of Mr Penumbra’s 24 hour Bookstore could not be more perfect! Penumbra is one of my adult favorites. For others looking for another suggestion in that area, although not as tech driven I really loved it as well, try The Storied Life of AJ Fikry. Great list, really wonderful!
Till We Have Faces is my all time favorite! It’s one of the few I’ve read over and over and always get something new out of it.
Another great match for Tuck Everlasting is Forever by Pete Hamill.
The pairing Tuck Everlasting & The Time Travellers Wife is so 100% on point for me it is not even funny.
The pairing Tuck Everlasting & The Time Travellers Wife is so 100% on point for me it is not even funny.