One of the joys of home education is the ability to shape learning around books that speak to your child’s interests, your family’s values, and the topics you’re exploring together. Whether you’re building a unit study, diving into history, or looking for the perfect read-aloud, it helps to have a handful of go-to sites for trusted book recommendations.
Here are some of the websites I return to again and again when planning our learning. Plus, I’ve added a few more gems that my community on Instagram suggested.
Literature-Based Curriculum Booklists
Build Your Library
Build Your Library (BYL) is a secular, literature-rich homeschool curriculum inspired by the Charlotte Mason philosophy. Created by homeschool parent and book lover Emily Cook, it offers full-year lesson plans and individual unit studies for ages 4 through high school, with a strong focus on history, science, and global literature. What sets BYL apart is the depth and intentionality behind the book selections. The curricula often weave together historical fiction, diverse voices, nonfiction, and mythology, making it feel like you’re travelling the world through stories.
Don’t miss her companion site History Book by Book—an incredible research tool for finding historical literature by era or topic. Perfect when you want to tailor a unit study to a specific time or place.
Beautiful Feet Books
Beautiful Feet Books is inspired by the Charlotte Mason’s educational philosophy, emphasising living books and gentle, meaningful connections to learning. While it began with a focus on creating a literature-rich history curriculum, the site has grown to offer comprehensive teacher guides and resources in history, geography, and science, making it a go-to resource for thoughtful, book-centred learning across subjects. I particularly loved looking at their lists for the Around the World course to get some ideas on books to read before we went on our winter Motorhome trip to Europe.
BookShark
BookShark is a secular, literature-based homeschool curriculum developed by former members of the Sonlight (for Sonlight see below) team who wanted to create a similarly structured program without the religious content. The curriculum places a strong emphasis on learning through rich, engaging books rather than dry textbooks, aiming to make subjects like history, science, and language arts both meaningful and memorable. Its approach values critical thinking, global awareness, and deep connection through daily read-alouds and discussion. BookShark is well-suited to families who want a literature-rich curriculum with a global outlook and a secular foundation.
Lighting Literature
Lightning Literature, published by Hewitt Learning, is a versatile program designed to help students build strong reading and writing skills. With a focus on classic literature, this program offers both elementary and high school levels and uses real books to teach literary analysis, composition, and grammar. Each level is carefully structured with age-appropriate literature and writing exercises that encourage students to engage deeply with the text. It’s a great option for families looking to strengthen writing skills while enjoying high-quality, thought-provoking books. I liked their downloadable catalog listings.
General Book Recommendations
Books for Topics
Books for Topics is a UK-based resource-packed website designed to help educators, parents, and home educators discover high-quality books for children of all ages. The site aims to make book selection easier by categorising books based on age, subject, and theme, offering tailored recommendations for a variety of educational needs. Whether you’re looking for literature to support a specific topic, foster a love for reading, or integrate books into your curriculum, you’ll find curated lists and reviews. Books for Topics provides valuable support for home educators, teachers, and anyone passionate about encouraging young readers. I love looking at it when I am planning a unit study.
Read-Aloud Revival
The Read-Aloud Revival is a global movement that encourages families to prioritise reading aloud together—whether that’s snuggling on the sofa with a picture book or sharing a captivating novel around the dinner table. It was popularised by Sarah Mackenzie through her podcast and book, The Read-Aloud Family. Her message is simple but powerful: reading aloud builds strong family bonds, sparks meaningful conversations, and cultivates a lifelong love of learning. If you’re building a read-aloud culture at home, this site is a must. You’ll find booklists grouped by age and theme—perfect for family reading time or literature-based learning.
What Do We Do All Day?
What Do We Do All Day? is a family-friendly blog that offers a vast collection of children’s book lists, catering to readers from infancy through middle school. The site aims to make book selection enjoyable and accessible by organising recommendations by age, genre, theme, and interest. Whether you’re seeking picture books, early chapter books, or middle-grade novels, you’ll find curated lists that include diverse characters, seasonal themes, and educational topics. It’s an excellent resource for parents, educators, and carers looking to foster a love of reading in children.
Diverse & Inclusive Booklists
Stories of Color
Stories of Color is a thoughtfully curated platform dedicated to highlighting books by authors of colour, offering a rich selection of recommendations for children of all ages. Booklists are organised by theme, age group, and genre, covering both fiction and nonfiction. A standout feature for me is their “Read This, Not That” section, which suggests inclusive alternatives to traditional titles, aiding educators and parents in diversifying their reading materials with authentic voices. It’s an invaluable resource for home educators aiming to enrich their curriculum with culturally relevant stories.
Here Wee Read
An amazing resource for discovering books by authors of colour and inclusive titles that reflect the diversity of our world. Here Wee Read features carefully curated booklists that champion representation across race, culture, ability, and identity. Themed and seasonal collections are regularly updated, making it easy to find titles that celebrate difference and promote empathy. A must-visit for anyone building a diverse and inclusive bookshelf for children.
Faith-Based Literature-Rich Resources
As a secular home educator, I’ve found a variety of booklist sources helpful, especially when I was first starting out. While I don’t follow any faith-based curricula myself, I’ve come across some excellent resources recommended by my Instagram community that focus on quality literature. Whether you’re looking for rich, classic books or narrative-driven titles to bring subjects like history and science to life, these sites offer a treasure trove of ideas.
Sonlight
Sonlight is a Christian homeschool curriculum built around great books. With a strong emphasis on literature-based learning, it covers history, Bible, science, and language arts through carefully chosen living books. While it does include religious content, many home educators—religious or not—appreciate the extensive booklists and global perspective.
Ambleside Online
A rich source of time-tested literature. Even if you don’t follow the full curriculum, their booklists (organised by year) are full of classic and narrative-driven books that bring subjects like history and science to life. I used their site extensively when I first started home educating to give me some ideas on books for my girls.
Tools for Checking Book Content and Suitability
While many recommendation sites focus on themed or diverse reading lists, it can also be helpful to review a book’s content before sharing it with your child—especially for tweens and teens. These tools offer insights into age suitability, themes, and potential content concerns, giving you peace of mind when adding new books to your shelves.
Common Sense Media – Book Reviews
Not home-ed specific, but incredibly useful for checking age suitability, content warnings, and overarching themes. Reviews include breakdowns of language, violence, romance, positive messages, and more. A go-to resource for families wanting to make informed book choices.
Redeemed Reader
A Christian-based site offering thoughtful reviews of children’s books through a values-first lens. Even for secular families, the in-depth reviews and worldview notes can be a helpful part of book selection and discussion.
How I have used these Sites
These sites have been an essential part of our home education journey. Over the past six years, I’ve used them regularly to curate themed booklists that tie in beautifully with our unit studies and overall curriculum. They’ve helped me find books that not only support learning outcomes but also spark genuine curiosity and excitement in my children.
If you’d like to see how I use these recommendations in practice, have a look at my Stone Age and Hunter-Gatherers chapter book list—it’s a great example of how these tools can enhance topic-based learning.
Whether you’re planning a full unit study, sourcing a new family read-aloud, or just looking to refresh your book basket, these sites offer a wealth of inspiration. From history to science, diverse voices to classic tales, these lists help take the guesswork out of book selection.
Do you have a favourite site I’ve missed? I’d love to hear about it in the comments!
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