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Doorways to Great Reading

If there's a one-world government, it's television. King of the Technological Age, he sits enthroned in homes around the world, a little box of images and sound emitting edicts to his unified followers from his electrical shrine. That description may be a bit overwrought, but the fact remains: more people these days would prefer to watch TV than read a good book.

Many parents are desperate to expose their kids to quality literature, whether it's a classic like Anne of Green Gables, a more recent novel like Mimus, or simply something other than the TV Guide. In response, a number of literature-based curricula have been developed, and in turn have become increasingly popular among both homeschool families and school educators.

As great and noble as this effort has been, there are a couple problems we see with the literature-curriculum approach: 1) literature is treated as curriculum, and 2) children aren't exposed to the depth and variety available because reading is limited to the curriculum suggestions. Consequently, a lot of children grow to dislike reading, associating it as they do with schoolwork and not having a good time.

We've accumulated many of the titles used by the major literature-based curriculum lines, and those products are among our best sellers. We're also not entirely opposed to the literature approach, but we also want to offer a much broader selection of literature, titles that don't find their way into the program guides but are nevertheless worth reading.

Numerous book lists, catalogues, and publishers (including many dedicated to reprinting the more obscure classic titles) have guided us in the construction of our fiction and literature sections. (Employees have also been an important factor in this process, and you can read about their favorites here.) Doorways to Great Reading collects the best of these lists in one place.

Discovering classic literature is more than just checking off titles from a master list, however. Though books like Honey for a Child's Heart, The Well-Educated Mind, and The Book Tree are great places to start and offer excellent guidelines, they are still jumping-off places. Developing the skills to find good books on your own (and imparting those skills to your children) is the end these books are supposed to help you achieve.

When Lucy Pevensie opened the wardrobe and found Narnia, her first experience with a snowbound landscape gave her little indication of the adventure and wonder she'd find there. Great books are the same way: the more you read, the more you realize how many are really out there, and the better you get at finding them.

If your adventure in the realms of literature hasn't started, or is still in its beginning stages, use the booklists you'll find here as maps of sorts, there to help you navigate but not to make the journey on your behalf. The travel is up to you, and whether you decide to explore Ben-Hur or The Wind in the Willows, it's travel that will take you far from your front door and back many times over.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he is a husband and father, teaches adult Sunday school in his Presbyterian congregation, and likes weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.
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Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
by Lewis Carroll, Illustrated by John Tenniel
from SeaWolf Press
Fantasy for 2nd-7th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$6.76
Allan Quatermain
by H. Rider Haggard
from SeaWolf Press
Adventure for 7th-12th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$8.49
Ark, The
by Margot Benary-Isbert
2021 Revision from Purple House Press
for 3rd-10th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$13.59
Around the World in 80 Days
by Jules Verne, Translated by George M. Towle
Illustrated Fir from SeaWolf Press
Adventure for 6th-10th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$9.99
Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare
by Edith Nesbit
from Yesterday's Classics
Shakespeare/Drama for Children for 4th-8th grade
$11.86
Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare
by Edith Nesbit
from Living Book Press
Shakespeare/Drama for Children for 4th-8th grade
$14.44
Call of the Wild
by Jack London, illustrated by Philip R. Goodwin & Charles Livingston Bull
from SeaWolf Press
Action/Adventure for 7th-10th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$8.49
Canterbury Tales (retold)
Puffin Classics
by Geoffrey Chaucer, retold by Geraldine McCaughrean
from Puffin Books
Epic Poetry for 7th-9th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$5.94
Captains Courageous
by Rudyard Kipling
from Living Book Press
Nautical Fiction for 7th-10th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.64
Eight Cousins
by Louisa May Alcott
150th Anniversary from SeaWolf Press
Realistic Fiction for 4th-8th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$8.49
Emma
by Jane Austen, Illustrated by Hugh Thomson
200th Anniversary from SeaWolf Press
Romantic Realistic Fiction for 8th-12th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$11.01
Five Little Peppers and How They Grew
Five Little Peppers #1
by Margaret Sidney
from Living Book Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$10.19
Five Weeks in a Balloon
by Jules Verne, translated by William Lackland and illustrated by Edouard Riou
Illustrated Fir from SeaWolf Press
for 5th-10th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$10.95
Frontier Living
by Edwin Tunis
from Lyons Press
Historical Reference for 7th-10th grade
Newbery Honor Book 1962
in Pioneer & Frontier Life (Location: HISA-19PIO)
$16.96
Great Gatsby and Winter Dreams
by F. Scott Fitzgerald
from SeaWolf Press
Realistic Fiction for 9th-12th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$8.49
Hallelujah
by Cindy Rollins
2nd edition from Blue Sky Daisies
for 1st-Adult
in Christmas & Advent (Location: HOLIDAY)
$14.95
Hans Brinker
by Mary Mapes Dodge
from Living Book Press
Realistic Fiction for 4th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$10.19
Heroes
by Charles Kingsley
from Yesterday's Classics
for 4th-7th grade
$11.01 $6.00 (1 in stock)
Heroes
by Charles Kingsley
from Living Book Press
for 4th-7th grade
$8.49 $5.60 (2 in stock)
Hound of the Baskervilles
by Arthur Conan Doyle, Illustrated by Sidney Paget
100th Anniversary from SeaWolf Press
for 7th-Adult
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$8.49
In Freedom's Cause
by G. A. Henty
from Living Book Press
Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
in G. A. Henty Books (Location: FIC-HEN)
$11.89
Jane Eyre
by Charlotte Bronte, Illustrated by F. H. Townsend
from SeaWolf Press
Realistic Romantic Fiction for 8th-Adult
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$11.86
Jo's Boys
by Louisa May Alcott, Illustrated by Ellen Wetherald Ahrens
150th Anniversary from SeaWolf Press
for 4th-8th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$9.99
King of the Golden River
by John Ruskin, illustrated by Maria L. Kirk
from Yesterday's Classics
for 2nd-6th grade
$8.46
King of the Golden River
by John Ruskin, illustrated by various
from Living Book Press
for 2nd-6th grade
$5.09
King Solomon's Mines
by H. Rider Haggard
from SeaWolf Press
Adventure for 7th-12th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$8.49
Leave it to Psmith
by P. G. Wodehouse
from W. W. Norton and Co.
Humor for 7th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$25.99
Lioness and Her Knight
Squire's Tales Book 7
by Gerald Morris
from Clarion Books
for 5th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$16.99
Little Lord Fauntleroy
by Frances Hodgson Burnett, illustrated by Reginald Birch
from Living Book Press
Realistic Fiction for 4th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.49
Little Princess
by Frances Hodgson Burnett, Illustrated by Ethel Franklin Betts
Illustrated Fir from SeaWolf Press
for 3rd-8th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$8.49
Mansfield Park
by Jane Austen, Illustrated by Hugh Thomson
200th Anniversary from SeaWolf Press
Romantic Realistic Fiction for 8th-12th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$11.01
Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes
by Arthur Conan Doyle, Illustrated by Sidney Paget
100th Anniversary Edition from SeaWolf Press
for 7th-Adult
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$9.31
Men Against the Sea
by Charles Nordhoff & James Norman Hall
from Little, Brown & Company
Nautical Fiction for 9th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$21.99 $11.00 (1 in stock)
Men of Iron
by Howard Pyle
2nd edition from Living Book Press
Historical Fiction for 6th-9th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.49
Mysterious Island
by Jules Verne, illustrated by N. C. Wyeth
from SeaWolf Press
Science Fiction for 10th-Adult
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$13.56
Northanger Abbey
by Jane Austen, illustrated by Hugh Thomson
200th Anniversary from SeaWolf Press
Romantic Realistic Fiction for 8th-Adult
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$8.49
Old-Fashioned Girl
by Louisa May Alcott, Illustrated by Jessie Wilcox Smith
150th Anniversary from SeaWolf Press
Realistic Romantic Fiction for 4th-8th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$10.95
Otto of the Silver Hand
by Howard Pyle
from Living Book Press
Historical Fiction for 5th-9th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$6.79
Pair of Red Clogs
by Masako Matsuno, illustrated by Kazue Mizumura
from Purple House Press
for Preschool-2nd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$12.74
Penrod
by Booth Tarkington
from Living Book Press
Realistic Fiction for 7th-Adult
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$10.19
Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc
by Mark Twain
from Living Book Press
Biography for 9th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$15.29
Persuasion
by Jane Austen, Illustrated by Hugh Thomson
200th Anniversary from SeaWolf Press
Realistic Romantic Fiction for 8th-12th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$8.49
Peter Pan
by J. M. Barrie, illustrated by F.D. Bedford
from SeaWolf Press
Fantasy for 4th-8th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$8.49
Peterkin Papers
by Lucretia P. Hale
from Living Book Press
Humorous Fiction for 7th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.61
Pitcairn's Island
by Charles Nordhoff & James Normal Hall
from Little, Brown & Company
Nautical Fiction for 9th-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$21.99
Pollyanna
Puffin Classics
by Eleanor Porter
from Living Book Press
Realistic fiction for 4th-7th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$9.34
Pride and Prejudice
by Jane Austen, Illustrated by Hugh Thomson
200th Anniversary from SeaWolf Press
Realistic Romantic Fiction for 8th-12th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$10.16
Princess and Curdie
by George MacDonald
from Living Book Press
Fantasy for 6th-10th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.49
Princess and the Goblin
by George MacDonald
from Living Book Press
Fantasy for 5th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.49
Queen Zixi of Ix
by L. Frank Baum
from SeaWolf Press
for 4th-8th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$8.49
Railway Children
by E. Nesbit, illustrated by C. E. Brock
from Living Book Press
Family Stories for 4th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$9.34
Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm
by Kate Douglas Wiggin
from Living Book Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$10.99
Scarlet Pimpernel
by Baroness Orczy
from SeaWolf Press
Action/Adventure for 6th-10th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$10.45
Sense and Sensibility
by Jane Austen, illustrated by Hugh Thomson
200th Anniversary from SeaWolf Press
Romantic Realistic Fiction for 9th-Adult
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$9.73
Sign of Four
by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
1892 Illustrated from SeaWolf Press
Mystery for 8th-Adult
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$7.61
Sleeping Beauty & Cinderella
by C. S. Evans, illustrated by Arthur Rackham
100th Anniversary from SeaWolf Press
for 1st-4th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$8.49
Study in Scarlet
by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Illustrated by George Hutchinson
1891 Illustrated from SeaWolf Press
Mystery for 8th-Adult
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$8.49
Tanglewood Tales
by Nathaniel Hawthorne
Ill from Yesterday's Classics
for 3rd-6th grade
$11.86
Through the Looking-Glass
by Lewis Carroll, Illustrated by John Tenniel
from SeaWolf Press
for 10th-Adult
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$6.76
Treasure Seekers
by E. Nesbit, illustrated by Cecil Leslie
from Living Book Press
Family Stories for 4th-8th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.64
White Company
by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Illustrated by N. C. Wyeth
100th Anniversary from SeaWolf Press
Historical Fiction for 8th-Adult
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$11.01
White Fang
by Jack London, illustrated by Charles Livingston Bull
from SeaWolf Press
Action/Adventure for 10th-Adult
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$9.99
Young Man’s Guide to Awesomeness
by Barrett Johnson
from CreateSpace
for 6th-12th grade
in Raising Sons (Location: XFA-SON)
$14.99
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