LOVE FOR BOOKS IS LEARNED AS A CHILD ... - PARENTHOOD

The first readings are never forgotten: 15 books for children aged 6 and up

curated by Manuela Cervetti

I will always remember the first pages my daughter read aloud and uncertain. I was excited, another first time among my daughter's first times. Today she is 8 years old, she will start third grade next month and her books take up most of the living room bookcase (much to my happiness).

So I thought I'd make a list of 15+ books that I recommend as first reading for children aged 6 and up, many of which are my daughter's favorites. And who knows, your children won't like them too!

To learn how to read for yourself

To start reading alone, there is a series of books that I really like: it's called 3 steps to learn to read by Emme Edizioni and is aimed precisely at 5 and 6-year-old children who are learning to read independently. The series consists of 3 types of books: A story in 5 minutes (short stories written in capital letters), A story in 10 minutes (written in italics), A story in 15 minutes (written in lowercase capital letters).

Here are a couple of titles we really liked: The Princess of the Moon and The Night in the Haunted Castle.
Also by Emme Edizioni, First Readings series, Margherita is also very beautiful, illustrated by the talented Nicoletta Costa and Bianchina and Nerina and the funfair.

The evergreen readings: those that were also from mom and dad ♥

And then there are the “evergreen” readings, those titles that we parents also read and loved as children.

Cipì by Mario Lodi (Italian educator and writer who died in 2014), a book published for the first time in 1961 and which I believe has accompanied many generations of children.
The children are the protagonists of this story, the pupils of Mario Lodi who, together with their teacher, looking out the classroom window, observed the life of sparrows in the courtyards and on the roofs for months.
Hence the idea of writing a book that tells the story of the bird Cipì of her friend Passerì.
Moving, sweet and profound, a beautiful first book to read.

Tales on the phone by Gianni Rodari, a great classic. Stories told on the phone by a distant father to his little girl, bedtime stories, short and imaginative stories to read perhaps before falling asleep.

La casa nella prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder translated into Italian by Claudia Porta and published by Gallucci Editore. This is a book that came out very recently and is already in our library. I loved the tv series de The house on the prairie and even if I don't think my daughter has ever seen it, I couldn't resist, at least she must read the book!

Little women in the I Classicini edition of Edizioni EL.
This is also a completely personal choice, the stories of Jo, Meg, Beth and Amy conquered me as a child and I carry in my heart a beautiful memory of the first time I read Little Women.
But in this I Classicini series you can really find all the classics adapted for an audience of children, such as Around the World in 80 Days or Treasure Island.

Do you know the series of books for children and teenagers Il battello a Vapore by Edizioni Piemme? I suggest you take a look at the many titles they offer, some very famous such as the stories of Geronimo Stilton for example or the School of Dance series of books.
We have read and found these titles particularly beautiful: The school of surprises, A puppy for Camilla and The ghost of the castle.

My daughter has loved horses since she was 2 and for the first time we let her ride a pony.
One of her first books, read all by herself, could only be A Horse as a Friend written by Pippa Funnel, a British rider who won 3 gold medals at the Olympic Games. Who better than her can tell the wonders of horse riding and thus enchant thousands of children?

Also for children with a passion for horses, I also recommend the Vic and Vento necklace by Emme Edizioni which has the little girl Vic and the Vento horse as protagonists. There are many fun and exciting adventures that will see them involved as in Vic and Vento. Puppies everywhere or in Vic and Vento. Storm fled.

Finally, for children who love Prehistory I recommend the DinoDino series published by Emme Edizioni which tells the adventures of a nice and daring dinosaur and his friends to discover a world made of dangers and wonders. Fun and friendship are the watchwords of Dinodino's adventures.

Now it's your turn, what was (or will be) the first book your child read?

See also:
Are you pregnant? Here are the 10 books you need to read during pregnancy to learn more
Children and books. 10 tricks to make the little ones read
10 books for teaching English to children
10 readings for 5-year-olds