One of the most challenging–but personally, most rewarding!—tasks at transitioning into the Charlotte Mason method of homeschooling is building our living books library.
Since the concept of “living books” is new to most of us when we’re starting off, I thought a book list or book recommendations page can be a big help. When I was starting off, I would bring booklists from sites like AmblesideOnline and SCM to the secondhand bookstore so I would know which books are a good deal.
This page contains a list of books that can start off your living books library. For the more complete list, please head over to our Shop page where we have a FREE download of the PDF file containing the books for all year levels.
Living Books for Preschool
Here are books you can start collecting if your child is in preschool:
Title | Author | Suggested Subject |
The Adventures of Buster Bear | Burgess, Thornton | Literature |
The Adventures of Chatterer the Red Squirrel | Burgess, Thornton | Literature |
The Adventures of Danny Meadow Mouse | Burgess, Thornton | Literature |
The Adventures of Reddy Fox | Burgess, Thornton | Literature |
Katy and the Big Snow | Burton, Virginia Lee | Literature |
Mike Mulligan and the Steam Shovel | Burton, Virginia Lee | Literature |
The Little House | Burton, Virginia Lee | Literature |
Stellaluna | Cannon, Jannell | Literature |
Verdi | Cannon, Jannell | Literature |
A Home for Hermit Crab | Carle, Eric | Literature |
Mister Seahorse | Carle, Eric | Literature |
The Very Hungry Caterpillar | Carle, Eric | Literature |
Miss Rumphius | Cooney, Barbara | Literature |
Harold and the Purple Crayon | Crockett Johnson | Literature |
Enormous Crocodile | Dahl, Roald | Literature |
Ox-Cart Man | Donald Hall | Literature |
Horton Hears a Who | Dr. Seuss | Literature |
Caps for Sale | Esphyr Slobodkina | Literature |
Corduroy | Freeman, Don | Literature |
The Reluctant Dragon | Grahame, Kenneth | Literature |
Bread and Jam for Frances | Hoban, Russell and Lilian | Literature |
Alfie | Hughes, Shirley | Literature |
Angel Mae | Hughes, Shirley | Literature |
Dogger | Hughes, Shirley | Literature |
Katie and the Mona Lisa | James Mayhew | Riches |
Katie and the Sunflowers | James Mayhew | Riches |
Katie Meets the Impressionists | James Mayhew | Riches |
The Snowy Day | Keats, Ezra Jack | Literature |
Whistle for Willie | Keats, Ezra Jack | Literature |
The Heroes | Kingsley, Charles | Literature |
The Story of Ferdinand | Leaf, Munro | Literature |
The Jesus Storybook Bible | Lloyd-Jones, Sally | Bible/Values/Spiritual Life |
The Crippled Lamb | Lucado, Max | Literature |
You Are Mine | Lucado, Max | Literature |
You Are Special | Lucado, Max | Literature |
Curious George | Margret and H.A. Rey | Literature |
The Book of Missionary Heroes | Mathews, Basil Joseph | Literature |
Blueberries for Sal | McCloskey, Robert | Literature |
Lentil | McCloskey, Robert | Literature |
Make Way for Ducklings | McCloskey, Robert | Literature |
Winnie the Pooh | Milne, A.A. | Literature |
The Tale of Peter Rabbit and Other Stories | Potter, Beatrix | Literature |
Into the Deep: The Life of Naturalist and Explorer William Beebe | Sheldon, David | Literature |
The Giving Tree | Silverstein, Shel | Literature |
A Child’s Story Bible | Vos, Catherine | Bible/Values/Spiritual Life |
Harry By the Sea | Zion, Gene | Literature |
Harry the Dirty Dog | Zion, Gene | Literature |
Book Recommendations for Form 1 (Grades 1 to 3)
Here are our recommended books for Form 1 students, or Grades 1 to 3:
Title | Author | Suggested Subject |
Girls Who Looked Under Rocks | Atkins, Jeannine | Biography |
Mr Popper’s Penguins | Atwater, Richard | Literature |
Fifty Famous Stories Retold | Baldwin, James | Literature |
Peter Pan | Barrie, J.M. | Literature |
Wizard of Oz | Baum, L. Frank | Literature |
David Livingstone | Benge, Janet and Geoff | Literature |
George Mueller | Benge, Janet and Geoff | Literature |
Eric Lidell (and other titles) | Benge, Janet and Geoff | Literature |
A Bear Called Paddington | Bond, Michael | Literature |
Caddie Woodlawn | Brink, Carol Ryrie | Literature |
Insect Life | Buckley, Arabella | Science |
A Lion to Guard Us | Bulla, Clyde Robert | Reading Practice |
Daniel’s Duck | Bulla, Clyde Robert | Reading Practice |
Shoeshine Girl | Bulla, Clyde Robert | Reading Practice |
Sword in the Tree | Bulla, Clyde Robert | Reading Practice |
The Chalk Box Kid | Bulla, Clyde Robert | Reading Practice |
White Bird | Bulla, Clyde Robert | Reading Practice |
Burgess Animal Book for Children | Burgess, Thornton | Science |
Burgess Bird Book for Children | Burgess, Thornton | Science |
Burgess Seashore Book for Children | Burgess, Thornton | Science |
The Enormous Egg | Butterworth, Oliver | Literature |
Alice in Wonderland | Carroll, Lewis | Literature |
Pinocchio | Collodi, Carlo | Literature |
The Twenty-One Balloons | Du Bois, Williame Pene | Literature |
Adventures of Marco Polo | Freedman, Russell | Biography |
Out of Darkness | Freedman, Russell | Biography |
The Wind in the Willows | Grahame, Kenneth | Literature |
King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table | Green, Roger Lancelyn | Literature |
Boy Craftsman: Robert Fulton | Henry, Marguerite | Biography |
White Stallion | Henry, Marguerite | Literature |
James Herriot’s Treasury for Children | Herriot, James | Literature |
Paddle to the Sea | Holling, Holling C. | Geography |
Pagoo | Holling, Holling C. | Science |
Our Wonderful World | Howe, Emery Lewis | Science |
The Water Babies | Kingsley, Charles | Literature |
Just So Stories | Kipling, Rudyard | Literature |
Tales From King Arthur | Lang, Andrew | Literature |
The Blue Fairy Book | Lang, Andrew | Literature |
The Red Fairy Book | Lang, Andrew | Literature |
Rabbit Hill | Lawson, Robert | Literature |
Frog and Toad books | Lobel, Arnold | Reading Practice |
Mouse Tales | Lobel, Arnold | Reading Practice |
Owl at Home | Lobel, Arnold | Reading Practice |
Doctor Dolittle | Lofting, Hugh | Literature |
The Princess and Curdie | MacDonald, George | Literature |
The Princess and the Goblin | MacDonald, George | Literature |
Elementary Geography | Mason, Charlotte | Geography |
Livingstone: The Pathfinder | Mathews, Basil Joseph | Literature |
Five Children and it | Nesbit, Edith | Literature |
Among the Farmyard People | Pierson, Clara Dillingham | Science |
Among the Forest People | Pierson, Clara Dillingham | Science |
Among the Meadow People | Pierson, Clara Dillingham | Science |
Among the Night People | Pierson, Clara Dillingham | Science |
Among the Pond People | Pierson, Clara Dillingham | Science |
Robin Hood | Pyle, Howard | Literature |
The Wonder Clock | Pyle, Howard | Literature |
Five Little Peppers and How They Grew | Sidney, Margaret | Literature |
First Around the Globe | Singer, Mark and Reni Roxas | Philippine Studies |
Heidi | Spyri, Johanna | Literature |
A Child’s Garden of Verses | Stevenson, Robert Louis | Literature |
On the Shores of the Great Sea | Synge, M.B. (Margaret Bertha) | History |
The Discovery of New Worlds | Synge, M.B. (Margaret Bertha) | History |
The Boxcar Children (series) | Warner, Gertrude Chandler | Literature |
Trumpet of the Swan | White, E.B. | Literature |
Charlotte’s Web | White, E.B. | Literature |
Stuart Little | White, E.B. | Literature |
Farmer Boy | Wilder, Laura Ingalls | Literature |
On the Banks of Plum Creek | Wilder, Laura Ingalls | Literature |
The Little House in the Big Woods | Wilder, Laura Ingalls | Literature |
The Little House on the Prairie | Wilder, Laura Ingalls | Literature |
Velveteen Rabbit | Williams, Margery | Literature |
Book Recommendations for Form 2 (Grades 4 to 6)
If your student is in Form 2, or Grades 4 to 6, check out these books:
Title | Author | Suggested Subject |
Little Women | Alcott, Louisa May | Literature |
The Remarkable Journey of Prince Jen | Alexander, Lloyd | Literature |
The Wizard in the Tree | Alexander, Lloyd | Literature |
Crispin | Avi | Literature |
The Indian in the Cupboard | Banks, Lynne Reid | Literature |
Twenty and Ten | Bishop, Claire Huchet | Literature |
The Incredible Journey | Bunford, Sheila | Literature |
A Little Princess | Burnett, Frances Hodgson | Literature |
Little Lord Fauntleroy | Burnett, Frances Hodgson | Literature |
The Secret Garden | Burnett, Frances Hodgson | Literature |
The Door in the Wall | De Angeli, Marguerite | Literature |
Robinson Crusoe | Defoe, Daniel | Literature |
Oliver Twist | Dickens, Charles | Literature |
Hans Brinker or The Silver Skates | Dodge, Mary Mapes | Literature |
Gone-Away Lake | Enright, Elizabeth | Literature |
The Storybook of Science | Fabre, Jean Henri | Science |
Understood Betsy | Fisher, Dorothy Canfield | Literature |
The Great Brain | Fitzgerald, J.D. | Literature |
Follow My Leader | Garfield, James | Literature |
My Side of the Mountain | George, Jean Craighead | Literature |
The Other Side of the Mountain | George, Jean Craighead | Literature |
Carry a Big Stick: The Uncommon Heroism of Theodore Roosevelt | Grant, George | Literature |
The Luck of Troy | Green, Roger Lancelyn | Literature |
Book of Marvels | Halliburton, Richard | Literature |
Trial and Triumph | Hannula, Richard | Bible/Values/Spiritual Life |
A Wonder Book | Hawthorne, Nathaniel | Literature |
Brighty of the Grand Canyon | Henry, Marguerite | Literature |
Justin Morgan Had a Horse | Henry, Marguerite | Literature |
King of the Wind | Henry, Marguerite | Literature |
Misty of Chincoteague | Henry, Marguerite | Literature |
Stormy, Misty’s Foal | Henry, Marguerite | Literature |
Letters from Rifka | Hesse, Karen | Literature |
Across Five Aprils | Hunt, Irene | Literature |
Rifles for Watie | Keith, Harold | Literature |
The Story of My Life | Keller, Helen | Literature |
Captains Courageous | Kipling, Rudyard | Literature |
The Jungle Book | Kipling, Rudyard | Literature |
Lassie Come Home | Knight, Eric | Literature |
Tales From Shakespeare | Lamb, Charles and Mary | Literature |
The Laws Guide to Nature Journaling | Laws John Muir | Science |
Magician’s Nephew | Lewis, C.S. | Literature |
Prince Caspian | Lewis, C.S. | Literature |
The Horse and His Boy | Lewis, C.S. | Literature |
The Last Battle | Lewis, C.S. | Literature |
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe | Lewis, C.S. | Literature |
The Silver Chair | Lewis, C.S. | Literature |
Voyage of the Dawn Treader | Lewis, C.S. | Literature |
The Call of the Wild | London, Jack | Literature |
Home Geography for Primary Grades | Long, C.C. | Geography |
Secrets of the Woods | Long, William J. | Science |
Betsy and Tacy | Lovelace, Maud Hart | Literature |
Number the Stars | Lowry, Lois | Literature |
The Children of the New Forest | Maryatt, Captain Frederick | Literature |
Anne of Green Gables | Montgomery, Lucy Maud | Literature |
Emily of New Moon | Montgomery, Lucy Maud | Literature |
Little Britches | Moody, Ralph | Literature |
The Railway Children | Nesbit, Edith | Literature |
The Treasure Seekers | Nesbit, Edith | Literature |
The Wouldbegoods | Nesbit, Edith | Literature |
The Phoenix and the Carpet | Nesbit, Edith | Literature |
Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH | O’Brien, Robert | Literature |
Island of the Blue Dolphins | O’Dell, Scott | Literature |
A Single Shard | Park, Linda Sue | Literature |
Just David | Porter, Eleanor | Literature |
Pollyanna | Porter, Eleanor | Literature |
Men of Iron | Pyle, Howard | Literature |
Swallows and Amazons | Ransome, Arthur | Literature |
Summer of the Monkeys | Rawls, Wilson | Literature |
Esperanza Rising | Ryan, Pam Muñoz | Literature |
Bambi | Salten, Felix | Literature |
The Cricket in Times Square | Selden, George | Literature |
Wild Animals I Have Known | Seton, Ernest Thompson Seton | Literature |
Black Beauty | Sewell, Anna | Literature |
Miracles on Maple Hill | Sorensen, Virginia | Literature |
The Sign of the Beaver | Speare, Elizabeth George | Literature |
Kidnapped | Stevenson, Robert Louis | Literature |
Treasure Island | Stevenson, Robert Louis | Literature |
Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry | Taylor, Mildred | Literature |
Lad, a Dog | Terhune, Albert Payson | Literature |
Marco Polo: His Travels and Adventures | Towle, George Makepiece | Geography |
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn | Twain, Mark | Literature |
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer | Twain, Mark | Literature |
The Bisayan | Ursal, Sofronio | Philippine Studies |
Adam of the Road | Vining, Elizabeth Gray | Literature |
Explore the Holy Land | Voskamp, Ann | Geography |
Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm | Wiggins, Kate Douglas | Literature |
By the Shores of Silver Lake | Wilder, Laura Ingalls | Literature |
Little Town on the Prairie | Wilder, Laura Ingalls | Literature |
The Long Winter | Wilder, Laura Ingalls | Literature |
These Happy Golden Years | Wilder, Laura Ingalls | Literature |
Hittite Warrior | Williamson, Joanne | History |
The God King | Williamson, Joanne | History |
The Little Duke | Yonge, Charlotte | Literature |
High School Book Recommendations
For Grades 7 to 10, here are our suggested books:
Title | Author | Suggested Subject |
Watership Down | Adams, Richard | Literature |
Good Wives | Alcott, Louisa May | Literature |
Jack and Jill | Alcott, Louisa May | Literature |
Little Men | Alcott, Louisa May | Literature |
Chronicles of Prydain | Alexander, Lloyd | Literature |
Square Foot Gardening | Bartholomew, Mel | Science |
The Story of the World | Bauer, Susan Wise | Literature |
Passion for Jesus | Bickle, Mike | Bible/Values/Spiritual Life |
The Age of Fable | Bulfinch, Thomas | Literature |
D’Aulaire’s Book of Greek Myths | D’Aulaire, Ingri | Literature |
A Christmas Carol | Dickens, Charles | Literature |
The Hound of the Baskervilles | Doyle, Arthur Conan | Literature |
Divine Romance | Edwards, Gene | Bible/Values/Spiritual Life |
Abraham Lincoln’s World | Foster, Genevieve | History |
Augustus Caesar’s World | Foster, Genevieve | History |
George Washington’s World | Foster, Genevieve | History |
The World of Columbus and His Sons | Foster, Genevieve | History |
The Cat of Bubastes | Henty, G.A. | History |
Wild Philippines | Hicks, Nigel | Philippine Studies |
Rip Van Winkle | Irving, Washington | Literature |
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow | Irving, Washington | Literature |
Manila My Manila | Joaquin, Nick | Philippine Studies |
Puck of Pook’s Hill | Kipling, Rudyard | Literature |
White Fang | London, Jack | Literature |
More Than a Carpenter | McDowell, Josh | Bible/Values/Spiritual Life |
Anne of Avonlea | Montgomery, Lucy Maud | Literature |
Anne of Ingleside | Montgomery, Lucy Maud | Literature |
Anne of the Island | Montgomery, Lucy Maud | Literature |
Anne of Windy Poplars | Montgomery, Lucy Maud | Literature |
Anne’s House of Dreams | Montgomery, Lucy Maud | Literature |
Rainbow Valley | Montgomery, Lucy Maud | Literature |
Rilla of Ingleside | Montgomery, Lucy Maud | Literature |
The Chronicles of Avonlea | Montgomery, Lucy Maud | Literature |
Gentle Ben | Morey, Walt | Literature |
Harding’s Luck | Nesbit, Edith | Literature |
The House of Arden | Nesbit, Edith | Literature |
Animal Farm | Orwell, George | Literature |
Miss Billy | Porter, Eleanor | Literature |
Freckles | Porter, Gene Stratton | Literature |
Where the Red Fern Grows | Rawls, Wilson | Literature |
God’s Smuggler | Sherrill, John, and Brother Andrew | Biography |
The Bronze Bow | Speare, Elizabeth George | Literature |
The Black Arrow | Stevenson, Robert Louis | Literature |
Isaac Newton | Tiner, John Hudson | Literature |
Johannes Kepler | Tiner, John Hudson | Biography |
Louis Pasteur | Tiner, John Hudson | Literature |
Robert Boyle | Tiner, John Hudson | Literature |
The Fellowship of the Ring | Tolkien, J.R.R. | Literature |
The Hobbit | Tolkien, J.R.R. | Literature |
The Return of the King | Tolkien, J.R.R. | Literature |
The Two Towers | Tolkien, J.R.R. | Literature |
Ferdinand Magellan | Towle, George Makepiece | Geography |
The Prince and the Pauper | Twain, Mark | Literature |
The Winged Watchman | Van Stockum, Hilda | Literature |
The First Four Years | Wilder, Laura Ingalls | Literature |
Swiss Family Robinson | Wyss, Johann David | Literature |
The Pursuit of God | A.W. Tozer | Bible/Values/Spiritual Life |
Jo’s Boys | Alcott, Louisa May | Literature |
Emma | Austen, Jane | Literature |
Mansfield Park | Austen, Jane | Literature |
Pride and Prejudice | Austen, Jane | Literature |
Jane Eyre | Bronte, Charlotte | Literature |
The Good Earth | Buck, Pearl | Literature |
Pilgrim’s Progress | Bunyan, John | Bible/Values/Spiritual Life |
The Lost Prince | Burnett, Frances Hodgson | Literature |
The Innocence of Father Brown | Chesterton, G.K. | Literature |
The Last of the Mohicans | Cooper, James Fenimore | Literature |
The Book That Transforms Nations | Cunningham, Loren | Literature |
David Copperfield | Dickens, Charles | Literature |
Great Expectations | Dickens, Charles | Literature |
Through Gates of Splendor | Elliott, Elisabeth | Bible/Values/Spiritual Life |
Solitaire Mystery | Gaarder, Jostein | Literature |
Sophie’s World | Gaarder, Jostein | Literature |
The Christmas Mystery | Gaarder, Jostein | Literature |
The Scarlet Letter | Hawthorne, Nathaniel | Literature |
The Screwtape Letters | Lewis, C.S. | Literature |
The Space Trilogy | Lewis, C.S. | Literature |
Paradise Lost | Milton, John | Poetry |
Desiring God | Piper, John | Bible/Values/Spiritual Life |
Money Oh Money | Porter, Eleanor | Literature |
Busman’s Honeymoon | Sayers, Dorothy | Literature |
Ivanhoe | Scott, Sir Walter | Literature |
A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court | Twain, Mark | Literature |
Ben Hur | Wallace, Lew | Literature |
The Once and Future King | White, T.H. | Literature |
Free CM Booklist PDF
For the more complete list, please head over to our Shop page, or click on the link below, where we have a FREE download of the PDF file containing the books for all year levels.
We hope this PDF file will be a big help for you especially when scouring secondhand book stores!