Top 50 Novels for Homeschooling Families

As a homeschooling family, we are always looking for really great books to read. Not titles that are just so-so, but books that intrigue, interest, fascinate, teach or cause us to recognize the weaknesses and strengths we have as God's creation.

Through fifteen years of homeschooling my boys, I have perused list after list, catalog after catalog, and chosen much literature based on the recommendations of those "in the know." How I wish there had been a rating system in place for literature that would tell me how many cuss words the book would contain, how much disrespect the characters would have for parents, and what sort of adult themes my sons would encounter within the pages. One such list of "must-reads" is the Modern Library list of 100 Best Novels which includes such awful titles as Stephen King's The Stand and the "classic" Catcher in the Rye. There is also the adult-themed Orwellian 1984 or Aldous Huxley's Brave New World. If I wasn't a "parent-in-the-know" I could think, "Hey, here's a great list of top books....go read these, Son." I cannot just plug my nose and hand over "well-recommended" titles like that.

Assuming you found a list of sanctified literature and the titles passed the "rating system" for offensive content, how about the "boring" rating system? Has anyone struggled through some of those G.A. Henty titles? How about Hans Brinker's tour of Holland? Reading My Side of the Mountain can make anyone drowsy, although we endured by getting it in audio. Just because a book lacks offensive material doesn't mean it's really good. Some "highly recommended" books were simply boring and were a struggle to finish, even for those who love books.

So, many of those sanctified uber-recommended titles also failed to meet our high expectations. How can we, as cautious parents, just hand our children literature that others claim is timely, intriguing or worthwhile that bores our children to tears and keeps then from joining the Great Conversation? But more than that, how can we subject them to an author without reading the book ourselves?

If I ever had any advice to give a homeschooling parent in choosing books for your children to read, or before buying novels to accompany a curriculum, it would be to read the book. I know, I know....we don't have the time. I beg to differ. If you don't have the time to read the book first, then you ought not use the book. How can you ask your child to do what you are unwilling to do? As a suggestion, you can always read it aloud so you may use the opportunity to gather as a family and, using the book, clarify, console, enlighten and disciple your children. The very best benefit we have gained while sharing books is establishing a common frame of reference that we can continue to enjoy for years to come. And when you share books, you can build your own family's list of Really Great Books.

So, here's our list. The top 50 Fiction Novels we have enjoyed that we found interesting, with great moral lessons for all grades. These are not separated by age level nor did I point out the Superstars from the "barely-made-its". They all just wound up as family favorites and are listed alphabetically. Two titles were included hesitatingly--To Kill a Mockingbird and Lord of the Flies-- because of thematic elements but were overwhelmingly voted to be included on the must-read list by my teenage sons. They made for some tremendous discussion.

1. A Door in the Wall
2. A Lion to Guard Us
3. A Single Shard
4. A Tale of Two Cities
5. Adam of the Road
6. Animal Farm
7. Around the World in 80 Days
8. Billy Budd
9. Caddie Woodlawn
10. Call it Courage
11. Call of the Wild
12. Carry On, Mr. Bowditch
13. Crispin: A Cross of Lead
14. Eagle of the Ninth
15. Freckles
16. Hatchet
17. I, Juan de Pareja
18. Island of the Blue Dolphins
19. Jane Eyre
20. Johnny Tremain
21. King of the Wind
22. Little Lord Fauntleroy
23. Lord of the Flies
24. Matchlock Gun
25. Matilda Bone
26. Mr. Revere and I
27. Number the Stars
28. Pollyanna
29. Pride and Prejudice
30. Robinson Crusoe
    
31. Shipwrecked But Not Lost
32. Sign of the Beaver
33. Snow Treasure
34. Stepping Heavenward
35. Teddy’s Button
36. The Bronze Bow
37. The Cay
38. The Courage of Sarah Noble
39. The Hundred Dresses
40. The Midwife’s Apprentice
41. The Rats of Nimh
42. The Secret Garden
43. The Shining Company
44. The Whipping Boy
45. The Witch of Blackbird Pond
46. To Kill a Mockingbird
47. Tom Sawyer
48. Twenty-One Balloons
49. Where the Red Fern Grows
50. Wuthering Heights