12 Books Every Kid Should Read At School
I remember reading several books at school, a few of which I thoroughly enjoyed and others, not so much. But growing up and finding my own path has made me realise that there are some that I wish I had read earlier in life, and books every kid should read at school.
I wouldn’t say that any of them changed my life. In fact, the ones I didn’t enjoy, I didn’t feel there was any need for it to be part of my education. They did very little to enrich my life.
Out of the ones I did enjoy were An Inspector Calls, Mindbenders by Nicolas Fisk and I also didn’t mind a bit of Shakespeare. I wasn’t a fan of Maya Angelou and there were others in similar genre’s that I had to read which truly bored the pants off me.
Do we really need to introduce children to the worst aspects of life in order to protect them from it? I’m not so sure I agree with that viewpoint.
Books Every Kid Should Read
With that in mind, here are 12 books EVERY kid should read that I believe would be extremely beneficial to humanity should they be added to the curriculum.
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Conversations With God – Neale Donald Walsch
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Unlimited Power/Awaken The Giant Within – Tony Robbins
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A Brief History Of Time – Stephen Hawking
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Flow – Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi
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The Prophet – Kahlil Gibran
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An Introduction To NLP – Richard Bandler
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The Breakthrough Experience – Dr John DeMartini
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The Power Of Intention – Dr Wayne Dyer
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Ask And It Is Given – Abraham Hicks (Jerry and Esther Hicks)
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The Alchemist – Paulo Coelho
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Drive – Daniel Pink
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Dying To Be Me – Anita Moorjani
I was at a very low point when this book came into my life and it answered some of the fundamental questions that no one else had been able to answer. I have since ready many in the CWG series, and each is better than the last. We introduce children to the concepts of religion from a very early age; so why not also show them an alternative path? For younger children, perhaps they could begin with the parable ‘Little Soul and the Sun‘.
I’m sure most people, at some point, have come across the work of Tony or have been to one of his seminars. I personally think it would be a great introduction to many kids in understanding that they have the power to shape their lives. Who better than Tony to introduce them to their personal power?
I feel that children all too often get sucked into thinking only about the mundane aspects of life. What about all the wonders out there? The real questions that need to be answered? I first read this about 15 years ago and it really opened up my mind to a universe of possibilities. I feel that children are not being shown the mysteries of life and so this book would be a wonderful way of taking them to infinity, and beyond!
Flow, to this day, remains one of my favorite personal development books of all time. There is something truly special about the way in which Mihaly shares his message, in a vernacular that is suitable for people of all ages, and from all walks of life. I also have lots of fun trying to pronounce the authors surname! 😆
It only takes about an hour to read this book but every page is like poem of life. This is a must read for every child, of every background, of every faith, and of every culture across the globe.
I recently said in a tweet that I truly believe that all doctors should be expertly trained in NLP and I extend that by saying that every man, woman and child should have some working knowledge of NLP imparted to them. Since Richard is the co-founder, this book gets my vote as a wonderful introduction to that world.
Dr John DeMartini is my personal all time favorite teacher and I’ve been blessed because I’ve been on many of his courses, met him several times and even interviewed him for my radio show. His level of knowledge is unmatched and unsurpassed. If you go on one of his weekend seminars then prepare to have your mind blown as he is literally a walking encyclopedia! All volumes! 😀
I love the sweetness of Dr Wayne Dyers messages and the way he shares them. This one still is one of my favorites and I can’t stress enough how much benefit it would bring to have something like this on the curriculum for children to learn from.
If you want to learn and understand about the Law of Attraction this should be the only book you should ever need to read on the subject. The clarity and simplicity of this book is just an incredible and will open up the gateway for being able to allow and attract easily.
The list would not be complete without some kind of fiction, and the one I personally would recommend to everyone is The Alchemist. I could read that book a dozen times and never get bored of the way it is written, or the message it has to share.
Although I’ve not read this, I have watched Dan’s Ted Talk on the subject and it is truly a remarkable discovery which is digestible to people from all walks of life about what really drives us He discusses the concepts of autonomy, purpose and mastery.
I first found about this some years ago when a relative of mine send me a link to a YouTube video with an Interview of Anita Moorjani. I bought her book on Kindle and started reading it a few weeks ago. It is a detailed account of her battle with cancer which ultimately led to an incredibly vivid NDE. Anita goes onto share her incredible learnings of the NDE and how after the being in a coma and having the NDE, made a miraculous recovery and no longer has any trace of cancer. Her case baffled her doctors and is one of the most incredible cases of cancer remission.
The other amazing thing about that book for me, is that her words are an echo of everything I’ve been blogging about for the past 6 months, about being centered, that positive and negative are two sides of the same coin, that we don’t need to live a life of rules, that selfishness (in context) is good, that we don’t need to do things out of fear and even the things we think are good, done out of fear, can even be bad for you.
What do you think? Are there any others that should be on the list? Or do you believe that they would not benefit our children?
Wonderful article! I can personally relate to this piece because I am a certified bookworm! 😀
I also love The Alchemist – that book really opened up a new perspective for me, it is incredibly inspirational and a MUST-READ for everyone, regardless of age! And there’s no excuse for not reading this book because it has been translated into more than 40 languages so c’mon people, get a move on and get this book ASAP!!
Another title I’d like to recommend is Dan Brown’s Da Vinci Code. This book is so cryptic yet so wonderfully mysterious, it really sharpens your thinking cap! Even though there is a prequel to this book (Angels and Demons), it is not necessary to read it because I read the Da Vinci Code without any prior knowledge and I thoroughly enjoyed it 🙂
The film’s not upto much though….
There are lots of other books that I’ve read throughout my life, but these are the ones that really hit a chord with me 🙂
Happy reading, folks!
I absolutely loved the Da Vinci Code, I loved it so much I read it twice and even bought the illustrated edition. 😀
Thank you so much skittles! X
This list is dating me, but it may be timeless:
Autobiography of a Yogi
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
A History of the Occult
Journeys Out of the Body (Robert Monroe)
Jonathan Livingstone Seagull
Illusions
Of course, Dying to Be Me
Hey Rockcat,
Excellent selection, of those, I’ve read the first two and loved them both.
Someone also mentioned on my facebook,
The way of the peaceful warrior
Chicken soup for the soul.
All time classics.
I was disappointed in your choices for the most part, because they are not actually intended for a young adult or child audience. Many of the titles you mention appear to be meaningful to you because you were ready to receive the information at a specific time in your life. Children are not, which is why quality literature exists for them to experiment with imaginary or distant situations in which they can exercise their cognitive and emotive skills.
While I’m glad that these books were of benefit to you, with a little research you could find age-appropriate equivalents that would touch on the same themes. Conversely, you could re-title your article to reflect the 12 books that have inspired you, rather than what “kids” should read at school. At the very least, you should specify that these books might be helpful to late-teens or college-age students to adjust for the adult readers these authors were intending to reach.
Hi Karen, thank you so much for your comment, I want to share something with you…
Even though I was born into Hinduism, I was brought up in a predominantly Christian neighbourhood.
I remember when I was much younger, in the 10-14 age bracket I used to go to bible studies.
In those bible studies classes I was given a copy of the bible to read. It was a full copy and not a children ‘s bible.
I don’t remember much of what I read, but I vividly remember clearly understanding what I was reading.
I also remember doing R.E. at school (Religious Education as it was called at the time) and there I was taught about all the major faiths.
Why should children only be introduced to that material an not this kind of material?
I agree that these things often find their way to a person when they’re ready to receive it, but I don’t see why we can give children a little bit of a head start.
I truly believe we don’t credit the intelligence of children enough. They’re smarter than we think and understand more than we give them credit for.
I know I used the ‘should’ in the title, but I don’t literally mean that they need to be forced to read these books, but I genuinely believe it would be beneficial to add some material of this kind so that children are introduced to an alternate kind of thinking.
I’d add “Peace is Every Breath” by Thich Nhat Hahn. Even though he is a Buddhist, his words are simple yet profound and he offers excellent advise for making the most of even the most mundane moments in life.
Hi Kim, thank you so much for that suggestion, I’ve not heard of that one so I shall add that to my reading list. 🙂
Love all your choices(a few are on my favs list) and I also loved “The Da Vinci Code.” I am particularly enamored by Wayne Dyer. What a gentle and great spirit. Turning the tables, his book, “What Do You Really Want For Your Children” is one that I think all parents should read.
Hi Victoria, I’ve not come across that Wayne Dyer book before so I’ll be sure to check it out before my ‘parenting’ days arrive 🙂
I like your choice of books, I read some of them, I heard of some of them and I agree we should include such titles in our libraries for young people to read. As far as your title goes, it is a little misleading, I was expecting to see a selection for younger kids, like 10 to 12 years old. Perhaps you are right, the age shouldn’t matter because some are ready earlier than others. My point, however, is that it is up to parents and young people themselves to choose their books and school shouldn’t be held responsible for teaching spirituality. In fact, if school was, it would become a dreaded subject, I bet. As a parent, I talk on daily basis with my daughters about aspects of life that are reflected in some of your book choices here.
Hi Monika, thank you so much for you input.
As I mentioned to Karen above, schools often do teach Religious Education, so they do provide an introduction, of sorts, to spirituality for children.
I agree, parents need to do their part to offer wisdom, and then let their children make an informed choice, but I do feel that schools paint a limited picture.
I don’t think they need to have sole responsibility for spiritual education, I firmly believe it’s a joint responsibility for all of us to educate children, and the best kind of education being to remind children to listen to their voice, to empower them.
Hi Amit,
I’ve just visited your blog and i must compliment you for making it lively and worth visiting.
About the books mentioned.Its really a good batch of selections.
I have not read some of them like tony Robbins,Flow,Daniel Pink,Anita Moorjani.
Personally i would recommend timeless masters like
Richard Bach
W Clement Stone
Paul Brunton
James Allen
Florence Scovel Shinn
Wallace D wattles
Charles Haanel
Today’s cult includes:-
Robin Sharma
Brian Tracy
Robert Kiyoaki
Well there’s a host of them and we can go on…
Thanks for the interesting post
Mona
Hi Mona,
Some awesome recommendations there, I’ve read some James Allen, Wallace Wattles, W Clement Stone, Robin Sharma and I would wholeheartedly agree that they would make wonderful additions in school bookshelves! 🙂
Thank you so much for your comment.
Amit
THE Little Prince should also be on the list:)
Hi Susan, thank you so much for that, I’ve not heard of that one, does it come recommended for adults too? 😀
Hi Amit, just a few minutes ago, I woke up from sleep at night, with a heavy heart, thinking of my best friend Emreen who died of unknown causes a few days ago, at the age of 32. I was thinking of her and asking questions in my mind and just thought of checking my reader because I couldn’t sleep. I saw your post and almost skipped it cos I thought it was a self help book and i am not in the mood for it now, but I felt strongly guided to read your post. From there I went to Anita’s site and read her NDE. I feel a peace now, that Emreen is fine. Thank you so so so much for giving me this at the right time. I am getting the book too!
Hi Karishma,
Oh wow! I’m so so glad you shared and equally glad you found her work when you needed it most. It’s never easy when a love one passes but such a beautiful reminder that there are amazing things awaiting us when we take our next steps.
God bless and wishing you all the best. Thank again so much for sharing, it serves me as a reminder of why I do this every day 🙂