WHAT SHOULD I READ NEXT?

I loved  A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L'Engle.

I remember reading it when I was about 9.
The first time I read it, the only thing that stuck in my mind was a scene where all the houses looked exactly alike and  how this was extremely creepy and terrifying.

Later, rereading this childhood treasure, I found that scene, of course. to be only a small part in the story.

Later, the notion of other worlds, other life forms, and tesseracts fascinated me.
Children as agents of change intrigued me
Although I had enjoyed the book before, I most certainly had also missed the more captivating points/

I believe this happens often, and I am so thankful that as an adult and as a teacher,  I have had the opportunity to reread many of my childhood favorites.
I have been able to enjoy them anew with deeper levels of understanding


Despite  my misconceptions about A Wrinkle in Time, I had discovered a reading niche-- an area of interest that I began to pursue in my reading.

What other books did I enjoy as a child, based on this new interest.

 I went on to read similar books-- fantasy, utopian, and distopian.

And... what books will I enjoy as an adult based on my childhood tastes?
Recently I found the answer the latter question.

A friend shared on Facebook a website  that suggested books to read based on your childhood favorites.

I loved this list.  The matches were right on.
Children's books I loved were matched with adult books I love.

On the other hand, childhood books that were not my personal cup of tea were linked to adult books that I disliked or couldn't get through for similar reasons.
The Hobbit; or, There and Back Again  was matched with Gentlemen of the Road: A Tale of Adventure
 
These are both books I feel like I " am supposed to like", but could not get through either--after multiple tries.

Books that are on my to-be-read list were also linked to children's books that I liked.
The Magicians: A Novel by Lev Grossman, which a friend recommended better than a year ago, is sitting on my iPad waiting its turn.  It was matched with Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Book 1), one of my all time favorites.


This list also makes me want to go back and read the children's books that I missed that were matched with favorite adult selections. In this category, I loved  Kindred by Octavia Butler, but although I have read many Jane Yolen books, I have not  read its match, The Devil's Arithmetic.
   

So what book is recommended if you like A Wrinkle in Time? Swamplandia! by Karen Russell..  I have not heard of this one, but you know I am checking it out as soon as I am done writing.


Click here to see what book you should read based on your childhood favorites.


 So what should you read next?

There are several sites that point us,  adults or children, to suggested next books, to reads that might follow what we have read in the past or are currently reading.

Books can be suggested that match your interests, theme, genre and more.

The Book Seer is the simplest to use. You just enter your book and its author and it gives you  a suggestion.

Scholastic Book Wizard offers a feature on its home page called Similar Books which can match a book's theme, genre, interest, and can also match its level.   The cool thing about this site is that it can also find similar books at higher or lower levels if you select the  Reading Level Feature.

And finally, this blog post lists seven book recommendation sites to help you find your next good read.

What should I read next?
A whole world awaits ...

Today's Deeper Writing Possibilities

What did you read as a child?  Which adult books have you read that are similar in theme, genre, and so forth?

Write an essay about why you like the books you  like, why you would recommend a particular book based on a preference for a specific children's book, or what you  will next based on recommendations from the sites above. 

Play with the sites above, plugging in books you have read.  Analyze the results based on what you know about the books entered and the resulting books suggested. Are the suggestions and matches accurate and helpful or do they seem rather random or less than useful to you?

Write a recommendation for your favorite of the sites or another similar site.