Books. Sigh. What would my family and I do without them? For 13 years, they have helped us raise our kids without screens, travel around the world for free, and fill our lives with beautiful stories and visuals that have always kept us company and given us hope, inspiration, joy, and compassion. Books have been our souls’ best friends.

Over the past 13-14 years, we must have read over 10,000 books as a family, visited the library multiple times a week, and sought out quaint bookstores on all our travels. Our souvenirs from all of our recent trips abroad have been books—children’s books. It’s hard to beat the simplicity and visually stimulating beauty of storytelling through picture books. There have been picture books that made me ponder profound philosophical dilemmas and have inspired and propelled me more than any adult self-help books. Just reading with my kids over the past decade has taught me much, much more than my entire schooling. I can probably survive without food, but my soul won’t last long without books, truly.

So, it gives me immense joy to share some of our favorites with you. Only a reader knows the joy of a good book recommendation :) So, allow me the pleasure of sharing my lists with you, and I would love to receive any recommendations you may have! Let’s get munching, bookworm! ;)