Hellobee

Lion’s love for chapter books has definitely taken off, and we read one with him almost every night. We thought this meant that we could check out fewer books from the library, but when I checked our account recently, we had 96 books checked out, 5 of which were ones that Mr. Dolphin and I were reading, the remaining 91 were ones the kids picked out. The majority of them are still picture books — probably 70 or so — and the rest are chapter books or graphic novels.

We started our chapter book adventure with the Commander Toad series when Lion was 2.5 years old, accidentally ordering one from the library not realizing it was a chapter book. We then quickly followed up with the Magic Tree House series, which I picked in part because of its long popularity. Lion loves these books and any time he hears the word “Pennsylvania,” he gets excited and exclaims, “That’s where Jack and Annie are from!” (Jack and Annie are the two main characters from the book).

Since then, we’ve been exploring quite a few other chapter book series and have a few new favorites. I tend to gravitate toward series, just because it’s easy to continue reading the next in the series, but there are tons of great standalone chapter books, too.  Here are some great chapter books that hold a preschooler’s interest. Our favorite, though, is still the Magic Tree House and we own the first 25, purchased as a lot off eBay — I definitely recommend these if you haven’t started them yet.  I should note that for some kids, Magic Tree House might not be the best to start with because, while they are shorter than some on the list below, many pages do not have pictures. Panda is nearing 2.5 years now and he definitely would not sit through any books that don’t have pictures on every page.

1/ Geronimo Stilton – There are 3 separate series within this collection, the original Geronimo Stilton, Micekings, and Spacemice. All three involve a mouse named Geronimo Stilton, with Micekings set in the context of Vikings and Spacemice taking place in outer space.  These books are a huge hit for Lion and one of Mr. Dolphin’s favorite chapter book series. Lion’s favorite is the Micekings series.

2/ Backstories – These books feature the backstories of various superheroes, villains and Star Wars characters. Wonder Woman, Harley Quinn, Batman, and Princess Leia are just a few of the characters in this series which are perfect for my superhero-loving preschooler. Unlike the Magic Treehouse series, there’s a picture on every page, which is helpful in transitioning to chapter books.

3/ DC Super Hero Stories – This series are the best crossover between picture books and chapter books, with pictures dominating the pages and the total length is only about 60 pages long. We’ve only read The Flash Races the Rogues, so far, but there are also ones with other Justice League characters like Wonder Woman and Batman.

4/ Captain Awesome – While I haven’t gotten roped into reading these personally, Lion loves these books and Mr. Dolphin enjoys them, as well. Lion always asks for more Captain Awesome books when we go to the library, which doesn’t surprise me given the superhero-type theme.

5/ Super Turbo – Another superhero-ish series and a spinoff from Captain Awesome.

6/ The Bad Guys – This series involve a team of animals that are typically seen as “bad guys,” such as a wolf, shark, piranha, and snake, that want to be the “good guys.” It’s a funny series with pictures on every page, so enjoyable for those transitioning from picture books to chapter books. However, it’s not my favorite series because I have to censor/edit some of the words.

7/ Princess in Black – I haven’t seen this series in the early reader chapter book section of our local library, but it’s one that I’m really interested in checking out because Lion loves princess stories and superhero stories, which the Princess in Black blends.

8/ Magic School Bus – We have a couple of the Magic School Bus picture books and have also read some of the beginning reader ones, but I recently discovered that there are also Magic School Bus chapter books! We haven’t read them yet, but they are on my list to look for the next time we’re at the library!

What are your favorite chapter books for preschoolers? Have you tried any of these series with your kids?