Summer Reading by Valerie Strauss
Summer is unofficially here and that means it’s time (at least for some of us) to consider what we want to read over the next few months.
To help with some suggestions, Scholastic, a global children’s publishing, education and media company, is conducting an ongoing on-line survey on its www.YouAreWhatYouRead.com Web site. With some 15,000 responses to date, it has assembled lists of the most influential books, as reported by adults and kids.
Participants were asked this question: Which five books shaped your life??
Below are the top 10 lists for kids and adults and the Web site has a lot of information about each book (including who picked what). There also are other lists of favorite books by people from various walks of life (some of which I’ll publish in the coming weeks) and opportunities for you to participate.
The Web site launched last October (2010). You may be surprised at some of the responses, which are not in the least bit scientific. Which list do you think Charlotte’s Web made?
The 10 most influential books picked by adults:
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
The Holy Bible
The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell
The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein
The Giver by Lois Lowry
Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White
The 10 most influential books picked by kids:
Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling
Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney
Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone by J.K. Rowling
Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Last Olympian by Rick Riordan
Heroes of Olympus: The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days by Jeff Kinney
The 39 Clues: The Maze of Bones by Rick Riordan
Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss
Happy reading!
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By Valerie Strauss; journalist at The Washington Post.
