Video: 3 Good Books for Your Kid Who Hates to Read

Watch this and other book recommendation videos on BookTube / YouTube.

OK, time for a confession: my boys don’t like to read.

I know, I know, I know, I know. It’s as if they have their own individual identities or something.

Fact is, though, they *must* read. This isn’t one of those school subjects they won’t revisit as adults. Reading is a skill people need every day of their lives. So, even if they don’t grow up to be book aficionados, they’ll still need that practice at identifying and understanding words.

Here are three book (or non-book) recommendations for your kid who doesn’t like to read.

1. Diary of a Wimpy Kid series by Jeff Kinney:

   I’ve heard other parents and teachers sing the praises of this book series. It worked for them and it worked for my kid (at least somewhat). While it didn’t turn him into a literary scion, it did help him see the fun in books.

2. Magic Tree House series – Night of the Ninja:

   Maybe it’s the ninjas, but there’s something about this particular book that’s made it a favorite for a god two or three years now. Matter of fact, I’m almost positive it’s the ninjas.

3. Anything but books! Trivial Pursuit-Family Edition:

   Sometimes you have to just meet people where they are rather than where you’d rather they be. If books don’t do it, there are several other places to read. Cereal boxes, trivial pursuit cars, board game instructions, Final Fantasy dialogue, menus, closed captioning on TV shows, Lego magazines…words are everywhere. You can pick them up from different places than books alone.

Thanks for watching! Do you have any recommendations that worked for your book-hating kids? Let me know in the comments.