How to Raise a Reader is an informative book with a lot of suggested titles. Geared towards parents who are interested in encouraging their children to read, it is categorized by age groups, with specific titles (with a synopsis of each) recommended. The latter quarter of the book is again organized by category. But, this time it’s by subject (family, bravery and fears, historical fiction, etc) and then by age group. In addition to providing a variety of lists, there are also pictures of many of the book covers, which enhances the enjoyment as well as the usefulness of this resource.

What I found to be most helpful (and interesting) was the authors’ descriptions of the various ages, what is appealing to those children, how to introduce books and reading, and even assurances that some children will ebb and flow regarding their interest in books.

The variety of titles that are suggested is impressive and I was glad to see some of my favorites on the lists. Their encouragement to visit the library was also very gratifying. I think this could be a good resource for parents who want to encourage and maintain their children’s interest in books and reading, starting at an early age and into adulthood.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing a copy of this book for review.

I came into this as a long time Children's Librarian, not a parent, so I'm not the ideal audience for this book, but I do think that it has some good information on reading throughout development. I can see it being popular with parents and I'm going to suggest it for the parenting collection we keep in our children's department. The booklists at the end are pretty useful. I was a little discouraged when the first page of the first list was all male authors, but it got better with representation.

I am a Children's Librarian and I found this to be full of practical tips on turning children into lifetime readers. Tips are organized by age and the book has an almost conversational style -- like chatting at a playgroup. Includes colorful illustrations and well-organized recommendations. They mentioned many of my favorites and gave me some ideas for my next school visit. The librarian in me was cheering as they mentioned the many benefits of having a library card and visiting your local library. The mom in me looked back on raising my own children and saw some strategies that had worked as the book promised. Finally, the reader in me has a whole list of books to add to my TBR list. Joy!

Thank you to Workman Publishing and NetGalley for a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Great book and resource. I'm an avid reader and have two young children and have struggled to share my passion for reading with them. The author provides great suggestions to indirectly encourage your child to read. In addition I love the suggestions per age of book recommendations. I have actually requested all of the books listed up to the "middle grade" books which is the age of my daughter. In addition, I personally love YA books and the author listed some books that I had not heard of that I look forward to reading. I told my friend who is a child psychologist about this book and she is excited to read it and share with her clients. Highly suggest this book!

I enjoyed reading this book about about how to get your child to be a reader. I am a librarian and wanted to read it to see if I could gain any insights for encouraging students to become readers. It had a lot of good tips and ideas and many book recommendations based on age level and current life interests or issues. I think the best feature is that it breaks down what it means to be a reader for each stage of life. I did have some philosophical differences with parts of the raising a reader as a parent, but overall I liked the book.

Love this book. My girls love reading, but we are still early in the journey. I appreciate the recommendations for how to continue to encourage their enjoyment, as well as specific book ideas based on reading level. I'm looking forward to returning to this book over the years.

I received an electronic ARC from Workman Publishing Company through NetGalley.
Helpful and easy to follow information for parents who need guidance and support to encourage their children to read. Paul presents guidelines starting with reading to babies and young children through the teen years.
The second half of the book consists of book lists. Again, Paul includes brief synopses of each book. Lists are broken down by topic and then by three categories - Picture books, Middle Grade Chapter books, Young Adult books. Worth purchasing this book for these lists alone.
Definitely worth owning to revisit as children move to new reading levels.

I love, love, loved this book. As a mother of young children who I want to grow to be as passionate about reading as I am as well as an Instagrammer whose mission is to share great books with others who cater to young kids, I was very impressed with this book and so thankful for all of the great information within. Not only does this book contain tons of amazing book recommendations for every age group, but it includes tips and information to start cultivating a love of reading and books from birth. Every chapter is well divided by age group / skill range, making it a great reference book for whatever age on which you are focused. There are so many takeaways that I have already instilled into the reading lives of my children, and I know I will be referencing this book repeatedly as they grow up. Great book, super helpful and informative!

Every parent wants their kids to be a strong reader, and—even more importantly—to love to read. But in a world where screens rule and digital distractions are everywhere, it can seem like we’re fighting an uphill battle. That’s why I loved this book so much. It gives parents a very specific road map (plus tons of amazing book recommendations) for getting their kids excited about reading from the time they are infants straight through to their teens. As the mother of both an early reader and a more seasoned middle-grade reader, I found myself highlighting key passages and tips constantly as I read through the book. I truly think this book is an absolute must for any parent, and I know I will be referring back to it again and again throughout the years. What’s more, it will now be my go-to baby gift for first-time moms and dads going forward. I know they’ll love it, too!

Down to earth but well thought out guide to encouraging reading. Some good tips on how NOT to be pushy and turn kids off and some wonderful suggestions and lists for different age and maturity levels. Thanks to the publisher and to Net Galley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Me, my hubby and kids are all total bookworms. My youngest has autism so it has to be something he has alot of interest in to get him to engage then he likes to read that book 3 million times roughly before we move on to the next. My oldest son is in reception at school and is a fantastic reader for his age. He's miles ahead in his class but I was too at his age and my love of books never changed. I'm not sure why I wanted to read this book but anyway I loved it and I like anything that promotes reading. It's such an important part of growing up. If you are looking for ideas on how to engage young readers and explore different genres of books with your children then I'd definitely recommend giving this a go

I was very excited when I started reading this book. The authors give a lot of great advice, they work on being diverse and inclusive, and it's a fun read. They go through all the stages of reading from birth through young adult, give important reasons for why and how your child needs to be reading, and offers a bunch of titles that they recommend based on the age group, category, and format of the book. There is a lot of great advice in here. I was very happy when they made the point about "leveled reading" because so many parents come into the library looking for those books, and we just don't put them in those categories, which makes it difficult and usually discourages the child anyways.

My biggest issues are: one, a lot of the titles they recommended are older titles. Don't get me wrong, they do add a lot of new materials in here, there are many popular current titles, but.... When you make a note to say in the book don't push the classics because while they're good they can be off putting to kids, and then have the titles you recommend are classics, I'm wondering if you followed your own advice. (Apologies for the run on sentence). Two, while I appreciate the listing of titles in the last section, that was 40-50 pages of recommended titles. This could be great for parents, but you also spent at least 4-5 pages after each age range recommending titles. That's at least half of this book being titles the authors recommend. That's also not including all the illustrations, which are beautiful and fun to look at and give a nice break, but again when it comes to actual content, there's maybe 75 pages for a 200 page book.

I am still going to rate this highly, I am still going to recommend this to be purchased at my library, I just wish there was a little more meat and not so much filler.

Here is a book you can give new parents-- any parents, really, that will actually help them stop worrying about test scores and learn to share the joy of reading. It is full of great suggestions and research-based advice wrapped up in fun and humor. The authors begin with a lovely discussion of why babies really do need books and what’s good about the best baby books (rhythm, simplicity, sturdiness, strong simple images). They take us through toddlerhood and emergent reading all the way up to teendom, with lots of wonderful, reassuring suggestions for how to be a reading family (audiobooks in the car! Special book gifts!). Pamela Paul and Maria Russo, as NY Times Book Review editors but also as readers and parents, really shine. Even though they make reading sound like all kinds of fun, which it is, their assertions align with those of reading experts. They steal librarians’ hearts when they steal librarians’ mantra for the final chapter: “Finding the Right Book at the Right Time.” That’s what it’s all about.

This book is for anyone who thinks reading is a chore, or everyone who is afraid of messing it up. In the beginning, the authors simply point out that there is no real way to fail, and you are doing fine if you allow your baby to associate reading sessions with “the comfort and connection of being held or sitting close. The pleasure of being paid attention to. Their sense of your own pleasure.”

As a school librarian, I have encountered many parents who know that reading is vital to academic success. They want their children to be high achievers. Their schools may participate in a leveled reading program that values vocabulary complexity above all. As a result, parents may think that reading is all about it getting harder, like a competitive sport. I have seen well-meaning, educated people sniff at The Very Hungry Caterpillar because their child is reading above this book’s reading level, completely missing its deeply metaphysical message to all humanity. They won’t listen to the librarian who tells them to let their child read what she enjoys, because how can it possibly be that simple? I appreciate the authors’ support on this point, since many data-obsessed school people do not subscribe to this method. Pleasurable associations with reading will lead to more reading which leads to higher achievement. There is also a short but helpful discussion for the anxious parent about when to worry if their child seems to be struggling to read.

I give the authors high marks for their efforts to offer inclusive, diverse titles that will not only mirror families’ own modern lives, but also help create empathy and a broader worldview. The chapters are charmingly illustrated by four different artists. There is a discussion on “the classics,” and how it may surprise families to find those old favorites contain what today is considered sexism, racism, stereotype, and bullying. Paul and Russo suggest making these into teachable moments. After all, another function of story is to pass along your values, beliefs, and experiences to the next generation. In addition, there is a nod to “books that never get old.”

If I have one criticism, it is that the introduction speaks to a middle-class audience. It assumes that the parent fondly recalls the childhood pleasures of curling up with a good book, that they had attentive, functional parents, and were regularly taken to the library. The issue for some people who don’t feel confident raising a reader is that they arose from poverty and may have had adverse childhood experiences themselves. Many young parents did not grow up with books in the home, or with attentive parents. Maybe they struggled in school and came to hate rigid reading instruction. The authors cite the classic study of how children from poverty hear fewer words spoken to them, and that same issue hampers them when they become parents themselves. Now upwardly mobile, they may need a little more encouragement to provide a happy reading climate for their own children, since they cannot draw upon role models from their own past. An initial word of reassurance to those parents would be nice. I think the authors just didn’t think about addressing that audience. However, the book itself will provide plenty of support for reading at every stage of life.

The reading selections chosen here are top notch, filled with timely and also timeless titles in annotated bibliographies organized by age groups at the end of each chapter, and then in an appendix, by type (family stories, tearjerkers, etc.). It’s an impressive assortment. Some of these books are old but too wonderful to forget (Mrs. Piggle Wiggle, Harold and the Purple Crayon). Some are brand new (Children of Blood and Bone, The War that Saved My Life and its sequel).

I have faves just like anybody, and since YA is my specialty I was thrilled to see their picks. I just want to hug the authors for including these truly outstanding recent YA titles: American Street, Darius the Great is Not Okay, Blood Water Paint, Far from the Tree, My Sister Rosa, The Faithful Spy (Not only does it tackle the most noble questions of good and evil, it’s IN 3D!!!!), New Kid, The 57 Bus, The Librarian of Auschwitz, and Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass (Bad title, heartwarming book with no bad language inside). Reading any one of these will make you a better person. If we read to gain empathy for others, well, you can start here. And if you don’t like these, there are plenty more suggestions.

I heartily recommend this book for all American parents, and I thank the authors for sharing their considerable experience as parents, as readers, and as book professionals in a lovely, friendly format. I hope this becomes the next blockbuster baby shower gift.

I adore Pamela Paul and am raising two little readers, so naturally this book was for me. I recommend it to other parents as well and plan to gift it to a couple mom friends this Christmas.

Reading is magic. Raising readers is DOUBLE MAGIC.

I loved this book. It’s so important to read to and with your children. I’m all for another wonderful resource to spread this notion.

This book is jam-packed with tips, reading resources, and empowering literacy based knowledge for the entire family.

There are even book suggestions for each age group.

If you are looking for a book to foster and cultivate your love of reading, this book is for you.

Thanks to NetGalley for an advance readers copy of this book. All opinions are my own.

This book is a great kick to get you reading to your child.
From before birth to any age.
Children need you to read to them to expand their vocabulary.
Every one always tells you when you are having a child to read to it.
This is advice from all people all ages, and will be good advice forever.

As a mother of two and as an elementary reading teacher, I love How to Raise a Reader. From the day they are born through the teenage years, How to Raise a Reader covers a full range of parental fears and misconceptions, while also providing spot-on book recommendations for all age levels and interests. I highly recommend How to Raise a Reader for parents who are looking to foster a love of reading in their child.

I really appreciated this book and its' tips. I agree with a lot of the books on the book lists and can't wait to read some of the ones I haven't read yet with my child!

I enjoyed this book. I think it is a great resource for parents who need guidance to help raise children that love reading. It is broken up into four sections that take the reader through the baby to teenage years. It is then broken up into sub-sections which are nice if you are looking for a quick read or something you can reference back to. It is a very basic guide. It is a great place for parents to start. It has some good book lists in it.

I received a digital ARC from Workman Publishing Company through NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book by Pamela Paul & Maria Russo! I am not a parent (this book takes more of a parental perspective) but as a librarian and someone who has the opportunity to present books to children in a positive light I feel this is a must-read. I enjoyed getting to read about the developmental stages in kids' reading lives in simple and approachable ways. This also has an absolute treasure trove of book suggestions throughout the book with even more at the end. I think this would make a great baby shower gift for my friends who are going to be mama's. So many of my friends are asking for children's books instead of cards and I think this book would make a great companion to help parents "raise a reader" from the start.