101 Books to Read Before You Grow Up By Bianca Schulze – The Children’s Book Review

October 1, 2025 · by sybrinapublishing

ABOUT THE BOOK

101 Books to Read Before You Grow Up (Revised Edition)

Ages: 4-12+ | 144 Pages

Publisher: Walter Foster Jr. (2025) | ISBN: 978-0760397763

Publisher’s Book Summary: Discover new books, document your favorites, learn fun facts about books and authors, and develop a lifelong reading habit.

101 Books to Read Before You Grow Up (Revised Edition) is the ultimate reading guide for kids ages 4 to 12+, packed with 101 kid-friendly book recommendations and interactive features to inspire young readers. This revised edition includes diverse voices and graphic novels and reflects current educational trends, making it a modern and inclusive reading guide for young readers today. From classics like Where the Wild Things Are, Beezus and Ramona, and The Phantom Tollbooth to newer favorites such as Big, New Kid, and Brown Girl Dreaming, this inspiring guide covers every stage of a young reader’s journey.

Designed as an engaging journal, this book allows you to document your reading journey by noting which books you’ve read, why you love them, and how you rate each one.

Each book entry includes:

Brief description and quote: Provides insight into the book’s story, theme, and style.
Engaging illustrations: Feature characters or key elements from each book.
“Did you know?” facts: Fun tidbits about the book or author to spark curiosity.
“What to read next?”: Recommendations to help you find more books you’ll love.
Interactive rating and note space: A place for you to rate and write about your experience with each book.

Organized by book format (picture books, early readers, chapter books, and more) and cross-indexed by subjects like fairy tales, fantasy, sports, and nonfiction, 101 Books to Read Before You Grow Up promotes family reading time and encourages lifelong reading habits.

PURCHASE LINK

Amazon

Barnes and Noble

Bookshop.org

The Magic Behind Curating 101 Books: What I Learned from Reading Thousands of Children’s Stories

A guest post by Bianca Schulze

When Sybrina invited me to share my thoughts with her wonderful community of book lovers, I knew I wanted to pull back the curtain on something that’s consumed my life for many years: the incredible journey of curating children’s books, including the list in my book, “101 Books to Read Before You Grow Up (Revised Edition).”

As someone who’s reviewed thousands of children’s books through The Children’s Book Review, I thought I understood the landscape of children’s literature. But creating curated book lists has taught me things I never expected—about books, about children, and about the responsibility that comes with making recommendations that might shape a young reader’s entire relationship with literature.

The Weight of “The List”

There’s something almost sacred about creating a definitive reading list. Parents trust these recommendations. Teachers use them to build classroom libraries. Children themselves might judge their reading journey against these 101 titles. That responsibility kept me awake many nights, wondering: Am I choosing the right books? Am I missing something important?

The answer, I learned, isn’t about perfection—it’s about intention.

What Makes a Book “Essential”?

People often ask me how I narrowed down thousands of possibilities to just 101 books. The truth is that a book has to pass this three-question test:

Does this book open a door? Whether it’s a door to a new genre, a different perspective, or simply the realization that reading can be fun, every book on my list had to be a gateway to something larger.
Does this book create conversation? The best children’s books don’t end when you close the cover. They spark questions, discussions, and connections between young readers and the adults in their lives.
Does this book have staying power? Some books capture a moment; others capture something timeless. I looked for books that would feel relevant to a child reading them today and still meaningful to that same person rediscovering them as an adult.

The Evolution: Why a Revised Edition Mattered

The original list in the first “101 Books” was solid, well-received, and had helped countless families discover new books.

But then I started paying attention—really paying attention—to the conversations happening in children’s literature. Young readers were hungry for stories that reflected their own experiences and introduced them to perspectives beyond their immediate world. The push for diverse voices isn’t a trend; it’s a necessary evolution.

The revised edition became an opportunity to honor timeless classics while embracing the incredible new voices that have emerged in recent years. Books like “Brown Girl Dreaming” by Jacqueline Woodson and “Big” by Vashti Harrison earned their spots not because they checked diversity boxes, but because they’re exceptional stories that happened to expand the emotional and cultural landscape of children’s literature.

The Interactive Element: Making Reading Personal

One feature I’m particularly proud of is the interactive journaling component. Each book entry includes space for young readers to rate the book, write their thoughts, and track their reading journey.

This wasn’t just about making the book more engaging (though it certainly does that). It was about teaching children that their opinions about books matter—that reading is a dialogue between reader and story, not a passive consumption of someone else’s ideas.

I’ve heard from parents whose children have become more thoughtful readers simply because they know they’ll be writing down their reactions. There’s something powerful about that pause between finishing a book and moving on to the next one.

The Books That Didn’t Make It (And Why That’s Okay)

For every book that made the list, there were probably ten that I agonized over leaving out—classics that have shaped generations of readers but didn’t quite fit the specific vision I had for this collection.

Here’s what I learned: no single list can be everything to everyone. My job wasn’t to create the definitive canon of children’s literature (an impossible task anyway). It was to create a starting point—a launching pad for families to discover the joy of reading together and for children to begin developing their own literary tastes.

What I Hope This Book Becomes

My greatest hope is that families will use “101 Books to Read Before You Grow Up” as a conversation starter, not a checklist to complete (although, if that sounds fun—I’m all for that, too). I hope children will discover three or four books that become lifelong favorites, and that parents will find new ways to connect with their young readers.

Most importantly, I hope this book becomes obsolete in the best possible way—that it leads families to so many other wonderful books that they no longer need my recommendations because they’ve learned to trust their own reading instincts.

For Fellow Book Lovers

If you’re part of Sybrina’s community, you understand the magic of discovering the perfect book at the perfect moment. You know that feeling of wanting to press a beloved story into someone else’s hands and say, “You have to read this!”

That’s exactly what “101 Books to Read Before You Grow Up” is—my attempt to press 101 incredible stories into the hands of young readers and their families, with the hope that each one might spark something extraordinary.

Because in the end, that’s what we’re all doing as book lovers. We’re matchmakers, connecting readers with stories that might change their lives in small but meaningful ways.

And sometimes, if we’re very lucky, we get to watch that magic happen.

“101 Books to Read Before You Grow Up (Revised Edition)” is available now from Walter Foster Jr. For more reading recommendations and children’s literature insights, visit The Children’s Book Review or tune in to The Growing Readers Podcast.

This post is sponsored by The Children’s Book Review. The review and opinions expressed in this post are based on my personal views.

About the Author

Bianca Schulze is the founder and editor of The Children’s Book Review—a resource devoted to children’s literature and literacy—and hosts The Growing Readers Podcast.

Bianca is also the author of DON’T WAKE THE DRAGON (translated into 20 languages), now a six-book series, and 101 BOOKS TO READ BEFORE YOU GROW UP (an Amazon Editors’ pick for Best Nonfiction for Kids). A passionate advocate for children’s literature, Bianca serves as the Webinar Coordinator for the SCBWI Rocky Mountain Chapter and is an active member of The Authors Guild.

Born and raised in Sydney, Australia, Bianca now lives near Boulder, Colorado, with her husband and three children, where she continues to be a reader, reviewer, and devoted children’s book lover.

For more information, visit https://www.biancaschulze.com

You can also find her working hard at https://www.thechildrensbookreview.com/

https://www.instagram.com/biancaschulzewriter

https://bsky.app/profile/tcbrbookreview.bsky.social

GIVEAWAY

You could win a signed copy of 101 Books to Read Before You Grow Up (Revised Edition) by Bianca Schulze! But wait, it gets even better—one incredibly lucky grand prize winner will score the most wonderful cozy reading bundle ever: a signed copy of the book, a perfect reading light, the snuggliest blanket, and a $25 gift card to Bookshop.org to get this literary adventure started!

101 Books to Read Before You Grow Up (Revised Edition): Book Giveaway

Bianca Schulze is the Author of Many Books. Here are a few: