Favorite CLASSIC children's books every family should own!!

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We own lots of books, but these are our favorite, classic children’s books!

Let’s be honest. Some books and stories are better than others. I recently cleared out tons of books from our bookshelves and only kept our favorites. These favorite, classic children’s books made the cut and are staying for years to come!

We’ve been trying to dive into some of the classics with the little ones, hoping to develop a taste for words and story and good writing. Some books we’ve enjoyed; others we haven’t.

These are some of our favorite collections of classic children’s books — books we return to again and again as a family.

These books make for great baby shower gifts, birthday presents, and just-because surprises.

**Our favorite classic, children’s books**

20th Century Children’s Book Treasury — We have checked this book out from the library repeatedly! The kids love the stories inside, and now that my daughter is reading on her own, I will often find her flipping through this book and picking out a new story to read. Being able to read the books in her own words is like discovering a new story!

James Herriot’s Treasury for Children — My kids love this book, especially my Wild-Kratt loving, animal-adoring son. Written by a veterinarian, the stories in this book are all about different animals he has cared for across the British countryside. The stories are endearing and the illustrations beautiful. I enjoy this one right along with the kids! [We don’t have the CD that accompanies the book, but after just reading about it, I think we’ll need to add it to our audible wish list!]

Mike Mulligan and More — I wasn’t familiar with this Mike Mulligan collection until about a year or so ago, but since discovering it at the library, we’ve read it more times than I can count! My boys especially love this collection because of the trucks, trains, and cable cars.

Eric Carle Storybook Collection — This definitely isn’t a comprehensive collection and some of our favorite Eric Carle books aren’t even in this one, but we do like having 7 different Eric Carle books all in one place!

Little Golden Books Collection — because Little Golden books!!! I grew up with and loved many of these stories, and now my kids are returning to many of these titles again and again.

Eloise Wilkin Stories — This collection has 9 stories, but I have to admit that when my daughter was a little younger, we may have read “We Help Mommy” every night for months!

Harper Collins Treasury of Picture Book Classics — This is a smaller collection of 12 stories but includes some great ones, like Goodnight Moon, If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, and Caps for Sale.

Lion Storyteller Bedtime Book — This edition is a newer edition than ours, but contains the same great stories. This is a collection of 40 folk tales from around the world, and has prompted some great discussions on life lessons and how to treat others. [I do read some of these stories ahead of time — they’re short.]

Which books are favorites in your home?

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