How To Enjoy Reading While Traveling

Pre-kids I could easily finish 3-5 books on a trip (maybe more if it was a really long one or involved a lot of time riding in the car). The first vacation we took after becoming parents, I didn’t finish a single book (honestly, I don’t remember even reading a page of one). But when we visited our family back in Missouri last year (and were gone for approximately 2 ½ weeks), I finished four books. In addition, we enjoyed great books together as a family, and I can honestly say I find reading on trips to be MORE enjoyable now than it was before kids. Yes, it’s harder to find pockets of time to read as a mom; yes, it’s going to take you longer to get through even a page of your book because the preschooler is going to need to tell you all about the picture they’re coloring, the six-year-old is going to take that moment to argue with her sister, and the toddler is going to decide he’s dying of thirst. But something funny happens when you have to work extra hard to make something happen: it becomes much more meaningful, and even fun, when you figure out how to make it work. If you struggle with reading on trips with your family, or want to see your kids enjoy books on your vacation but don’t know where to start, here are some ideas that work for my family and that we will be using on our next back-to-Missouri trip (which is in just a couple weeks!).

First up, let’s talk about YOUR reading, mama. Here’s a few things I want you to consider if you’re wanting to read on a trip anytime soon:

• Know how much room you have for books. Listen, I would ALWAYS rather read a physical book than the kindle version. But when I’m packing for six people on a 2 ½ week trip I simply don’t have the space to bring a lot of physical books. I’ll still pack a couple, but I’ll also make sure my Kindle and Scribd accounts are loaded up with other reading for when I finish the ones I brought.

• Read for fun. Don’t bring the 500-page theology text or the next Dickens classic you wanted to read (unless you’re just literally dying to read them!). Pick a lighthearted fiction book or the next in a series you have been enjoying. I can’t tell you what book you’re going to be excited to read, only you can know that; but if you pick a book that you have very little or no excitement about, you’re NOT going to read it after a busy day of sightseeing and wrangling kids who are out of sorts because they’re out of routine.

• Use the pockets of time you would normally scroll social media to read. If you really want to get some reading done on this trip, can I offer a suggestion? Go off social media until you get home, or at least set strict limits around it. If you decide now that you’re going to pick up a book or open your kindle app instead of scrolling Instagram or watching a TikTok video when you have a free moment, I guarantee you’re going to read way more AND you’re going to come home much more refreshed from your trip.

Next, let’s consider your kids. Whether or not your kids already love to read, they can still enjoy some great books on your trip. A word of advice, though: you’ve got to give your kids some time without screens if you want them to actually read. Decide now when your kids will be allowed screens on your trip (we keep screens put up until halfway through the day’s driving time, this way they have them during the part of the trip when they’re getting antsy and bored; on non-driving days, they get them during our two-year-old’s nap).

• Have them choose a couple books (2-3) they want to bring with them. If you don’t have any books at home they’re excited about, then take them on a special pre-trip library outing and HELP them find books they’ll enjoy. My girls each have their own backpack they keep with them at their seat in the car; in addition to snacks, drinks, and activities, they keep their books in these.

• Surprise them with a couple new books for the trip. I stock up on activities to keep them busy in the car and give them a new one every couple hours (usually when we make a stop). These are often activity books (stickers, coloring, wipe cleans, etc.), but I will also throw in some new reading books I think they’ll enjoy.

• Listen to audiobooks together. My best tip on audiobooks is to test them out ahead of time and make sure YOU enjoy them. I guarantee if you’re bored by it, your kids will be, too. The narrator can make or break the audiobook experience. We’ve listened to audiobook versions of stories I had never enjoyed before and loved them because of the narrator, and we have listened to terrible narrators who made us turn off books that EVERYONE swears are their favorites. If you get a couple chapters in and everybody is bored, just turn it off. We want reading to be a pleasurable experience for our kids, not torture!

Ideas for books if you don’t know where to start:

For mamas:

• The Last Bookshop In London by Madeline Martin: If you love historical fiction, this is a winner. Set in World War II London and filled with literary references, this is both deep and relaxing.

• A Lady’s Guide to Fortune Hunting by Sophie Irwin: If you’re in the mood to laugh a lot on your trip, go for this one. Perfect for Jane Austen lovers.

• The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan: Okay, this is not your short read. But if you’re already a well-established reader and want something more challenging, this is perfect. The first book in a 15 book fantasy series, this series will forever be one of my favorites. Note: pay attention to ALL the characters you meet in this book; Jordan weaves characters throughout his stories in the coolest ways, and there are characters from book one that you literally won’t meet again until the last book!

• The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins: I don’t read a lot of Dystopian novels, but these will always be my favorites. If you’ve already read the trilogy, check out the Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (and watch it before the movie releases this Fall!).

For elementary-age kids who can already read (note that I’m not including a list for middle and high schoolers because my kids aren’t that age, and I only recommend what I know):

• Fairy Unicorns and Fairy Ponies by Zanna Davidson: These were some of the first chapter books I read aloud to my oldest two, and I was surprised by how much we all loved them. Even now, a couple years later, my girls still reread these on a regular basis.

• Shine a Light books from Paper Pie: these are super fun to pair with a new flashlight, especially if you’re going to be driving at night.

• The Lift-the-flap Questions and Answers series: Paper Pie has one of these for just about every topic you can think of, so pick what your kids are most interested in. It can be hard to find engaging nonfiction books, but these are always great.

Toddlers and preschoolers:

• Listen and read books: These books from Paper Pie are usually classic fairy tales with small buttons on each page you push and it “reads” you the story. My almost four-year-old is obsessed with these and reads them multiple times a day. Paper Pie also has lots of “sound” books (obviously you can find sound books at any bookstore or on Amazon, but I like the circle buttons from Paper Pie best for toddlers and babies as they’re easier to use).

• Any book your kid loves and wants you to read all the time. Think about the books you read at bedtime EVERY night (and maybe hide after the 100th time??), the ones your kids can pretty much quote. For my kids this is usually any of the Poppy and Sam series or anything by Anna Dewdney (author of Llama Llama).

• Flap/interactive books: This is pretty self explanatory; anything with more to do than just look at the pictures is going to keep your littles busy for longer in the car. Just be prepared that certain children may find more amusement in tearing out said flaps than looking under them!

Babies: As soon as my babies were able to hold something in their hands, I would pack a book or two for them anytime we were going somewhere and they would need to be kept busy. This helps encourage a love of reading from day one and lets them explore and get familiar with books early on (just remember that like the toddlers, they may tear the books; this really is okay and is just a developmental stage they’ll get out of! In the meantime, don’t withhold books in fear of them destroying them, just keep the special ones put away).

• The That’s Not My Series from Paper Pie: We have collected the majority of these over the years; all my babies loved feeling the textures in them, and these make the perfect bedtime reading when you first start reading to your babies as they’re super short but still have lyrical, rich vocabulary.

• Baby’s Very First ___ series: These cute little books are all about different vehicles and have wheels so they can actually be driven!

Audiobooks:

• The Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling: I personally read the physical copy of these books, but I know so many people who listened to the entire series and loved it!

• The Magic Tree House series by Mary Pope Osborne: My oldest is obsessed with this series, and we listened to these books all of the last school year on trips and even when driving to stuff here in town.

• The Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien: Get the version read by Andy Serkis (who played Gollum in the movies); it’s so good!

• The Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis: We listened to the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe the first year we homeschooled and really enjoyed it.

• Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren: This was the audiobook we listened to on our MO trip last year, and my girls begged to listen to it EVERY TIME we got in the car. I guarantee your kids are going to love Pippi’s adventures and bravery.

Wherever your family is traveling this Summer (or later this year), I hope you have a wonderful trip, making sweet memories with your kids around great books!

Note: You will notice that pretty much all the books on my kids lists are from Paper Pie (formally Usborne Books and More); this is hands down my favorite place to get children’s books; I think we probably currently, or have at some point, owned three-quarters of their books and my kids pretty much love all of them. I’ll put a link to my amazing consultant (who also happens to be my big sister!) at the end of this post if you want to check it out!

https://g4984.paperpie.com/