Favorite Medieval Tales
A fine book from a prolific writer of children's books, Mary Pope Osborne. Great medieval stories like "Beowulf" and "The Sword in the Stone" that brings this period more alive for a young child and opens discussions.

The Boy Who Held Back the Sea
We bought this book to prepare for the Netherlands and it is a beautiful retelling of the famous story of the little boy who held back the sea by putting his finger in the dike. The illustrations are visually stunning and done in the style of the 17th century Dutch landscape painters like Rembrandt and Vermeer. It also opens the way for discussions on the low land geography of Holland. It is skinny and portable too.

The Child's Gift of Art
This was a very smart set to bring with us as Mozart loves them and rereads them over and over. There are actually four books in this set, one each about DaVinci, Picasso, Degas and Van Gogh. In a fun, child centric way they teach a lot about the artist and their art. They are also tiny books, so great for travel. I just happened to buy these at a museum a few years before leaving, so glad I did now.

Around the World with Phineas Frog
Another fun geography puzzle book cleverly done in an entertaining fashion so kids do not even know that they are learning. Mozart loves this one and it adds to the places we have been as well as prepares her for places that we will go to. It is a skinny paperback, so great for our tight spaces too. Good for a round the world kid or any interested in geography or traveling the world.

Tatterhood and other Tales
A dazzling collection of traditional folk tales from around the world where the female central characters are strong, clever, resourceful, brave and successful. Mozart enjoys these and I enjoy knowing that she is being filled with positive images when she is reading it.

I Believe in Me
This is a beautiful and empowering book full of wonderful affirmations like "I love and care for myself", "I am one with all life" and "I turn within, and I am in peace". We have positive quality angel cards that we like to start the day with (picking one each) and Mozart likes to use this book in the same way. We often randomly pick a page without looking and use it as our affirmation for the day.

Saint George and the Dragon
This has always been my favorite read aloud book with it's beautiful words and gorgeous illustrations. Mozart has always loved it too and it is skinny and fits in with the medieval theme, so we had to bring it with us. Not surprisingly, it is a Caldecott Medal winner.

The Random House Book of Poetry for Children
Mozart has had a lot of fun with this book this past winter in Spain doing reading out loud sessions with our 11 year old neighbor who is here often on play dates. It is a large book so is only available to her in the winter. We had lots of poetry books at home, but had to trim them down and I picked this one mainly because it was edited by Jack Prelutsky who was her favorite poet when she was little.

Tales from the Odyssey
No child should take an ancient tour of the world without a copy of the Odyssey and this one by Mary Pope Osborne was just perfect for Mozart and she loved it! There are five or six small chapter books in this series and they are very portable for reading on buses or trains. We combined this with reading some of the actual poem online.

Sir Cumference and the First Round Table
Another adorable math adventure story that uses the popular King Arthur premise to easily and entertainingly explain math concepts. It is a high quality skinny paperback which means it goes with us in the RV and hangs out in the homeschool cubby whole for free reading.

Amanda Bean's Amazing Dream
Mozart has long loved this book and it is a fun way to help kids to understand multiplication and the and joy of math. A good mathematical story! Paperback and skinny, so easy to take along and allows effortless math education that a child can self select.Unschooling is served well by books like this that teach without a child even knowing that the fun thing she is doing is learning.

Linnea in Monet's Garden
Simply a wonderful book to help a young child prepare for Paris, Monet, Giverny, museums, history and gardens and encourages her to appreciate the beauty of all. It will also keep the memories alive years after the event. We even got the doll of Linnea while at one of the Paris museums and Mozart carried it with her all over France and still plays with her from time to time. We wrote about how we used it to plan part of our Itinerary here & I don't think Mozart will ever forget Angelinas.

Creative Home Schooling For Gifted Children
This is a good resource book for homeschoolers. I think they have changed the name now, which is good as I do not care for the "G" word, but is the same book. Somehow a reassuring book to have around, so it travels with us even though it is big.

Zoe Sophia's Scrapbook
This is  wonderful book to prepare for Venice and Mozart has always enjoyed the story of this 9 year old girl's trip to Venice. We used it to make up a kid's itinerary during our time in Venice which Mozart got a real kick out of, as you might recall from this post.

Michelangelo's Surprise
This is a lovely picture book that Mozart has had for a long time which I picked up by chance one day long ago. She has always liked it and it was particularly nice to have it with us in Florence. Her connection to the story and beautiful pictures helped her feel more familiar with Florence, the Medici's and Michelangelo.

Babar's World Tour
This is a sweet book that is a must for a young child going on a world tour and a nice educational tool for any child, especially one that is following us. Lovely pictures and story like all the Barbar books.This was a great book to use to help prepare Mozart for our trip. They have simple words in different languages (and how to pronounce them) which adds to the value.

Oh, Yikes!
This is a fun way to get more history into kids. We have it just as a fun book to have hanging around when we are in Spain.

It's so Amazing!
This a fabulous book on sex education. It is a beautiful, comprehensive, child-friendly book that answers all the questions a child might have in an up-beat and caring way. We thought it important enough to bring with us, although we use it in Spain and not in the RV.

The Story of the World
We love this book and this series! We mostly use it as one of our before bed stories. Mozart also loves the workbooks and we have brought two along with us, but we just use them in Spain because they are too big for our camper space. It is a great way to teach history to kids! By having a better understanding about history, our travels are enriched.This particular one was great for our ancient history tour.

Alan Rogers Europe
This is my second favorite camping guide for Europe. I wonder if Church based his book on this one in some ways. What I like about both is there is more information and it is laid out very clearly. Many times in an RV, you do not know where you are going to spend the night and it really helps to have all the information at your fingertips. Many camp directories have so many abbreviations that they are hard to decipher. This is a good one and clear. I do wish they had more choices for every area.

Adventuring with Children
I love this classic book and think every family should own it! The subtitle says it all" An Inspirational Guide to World Travel & the Outdoors". This book is just chock full of gems and great information. She really covers everything from how to do hand laundry to keeping up violin practice while adventuring as a family. She has twin boys and a girl, so lots of practical experience over the years in many different modes from yachting and camping to hiking and biking on short and long trips.

Exotic Travel Destinations for Families
This is a great how-to book for exotic family travel. When I first looked at it I was inspired and some of the trips looked quite exotic to my eyes, but now that we have been to Morocco and Turkey as a family, most of it looks rather tame and we know we enjoy travel on the exotic side. If you have not done any exotic travel as a family, this book is an informative place to start your research.

Special Places to Stay Spain
I really like these books and the special places that they list. We have not used the one for Spain yet, but I like to pour over it and dream. Perhaps we will at least stop at some of these places for a meal soon or maybe do a week end. We did use the Morocco edition to find places there and were pleased with our choices.

Bringing Out the Best, A Guide for
Parents of Young Gifted Children
There are not that many books out there for
young gifted kids. This is a good basic guide
with useful information

What Your Doctor May NOT Tell You
About Children's Vaccinations
Written by an MD who is an expert on pediatric
vaccinations, this is an excellent book to help one
make this very important and difficult decision.
It is essential to get informed, even more so for
families that travel. Travel clinics have a vested
interest, so unlikely to give you the whole picture.
This book is a good starting point. Sometimes the
vaccine can be more harmful than the  disease and
there are many precautions a parent can take to
make this a safer choice.

The Collected Traveler Northern Spain
I really love this book and wish they had one for every area.They are just so juicy and delightful to savor. We had planned to go to Northern Spain on our first explorations of this journey in 2006, but life happens, so I have had a long time to really take in all the glories of this book. I fell deeply in love with Northern Spain just by reading this book, so glad we are finally going  the summer of 2008. If you like to get a deep sense of an area before going, these books are for you.

Homeschooling for Excellence
This is an older classic about one of the pioneering homeschool families who sent 3 boys to Harvard who graduated at the top of their classes and how they raised and taught them on a homestead ranch. I like their attitude of following the lead of the child and like their subtitle "How to Take Charge of Your Child's Education and Why You Must".

Traveler's Guide to European Camping
We find this the best book for camping in Europe.
We use many of this type, but this one is the most
clear and easiest to read. They have good campsites
and give a lot more information than most books.
They also have GPS coordinates for all camping sites.
Don't leave home without it!

You Wouldn't Want to be a Roman Gladiator!
This is another book that Mozart has had for a long
time and reads over and over. She loves it and she
loves Roman Gladiators for some reason. I would
have guessed that this book would appeal more
to boys, but not in our case. This is a funny and
entertaining picture book, but filled with lots of
interesting facts because the author is an archaeologist.
We found it great to have with us any time we were
touring ancient Roman ruins and it takes up little space.

Meet Samantha
Mozart started reading these when she was four and
still really enjoys them!  It is a great way to introduce
historical fiction to a young reader (most read this in
the 9-12 year old range). We brought the mini dolls
with us and a pile of books, but Mozart would love to
have them all. This is a lovely series and yet another
way to educate in a fun way. Samantha is  her  favorite
American girl at the moment and she loves introducing
her European friends to these books and dolls.

And the Skylark sings with me Adventures in
Homeschooling and Community-based Education
I really like this book about a family that homeschools and how much they all learn through the adventure and community-based education. His children had great interest in Opera and music very young like Mozart, so that is what led me to this book. I even got to "know" them online as they were originally from our same town and he is very active in homeschooling circles. Lots of good information here and an attitude that I admire.

The Middle Moffat
A classic wholesome, touching and funny story by
Newberry Medal-winning author, Eleanor Estes.
Mozart rereads this and the other Moffat family
books, so I take that as a thumbs up.

Katie and the Mona Lisa
Mozart loves this whole series. We got them when she
was quite young,but she still loves them at seven and
rereads them all over and over. Charming stories,
exuberant illustrations and a fun approach to art
education for a young child. When she sees these
paintings in real life in museums as we travel,
she feels like they belong to her.

Storybook Travels
Great ideas for family travel by making itineraries
based on great children's Literature! Over 30
itineraries in North America and Europe for amazing
adventures for parents and children to share. We have
done many out of the book and have taken the idea
and made some of our own. Love it....wonderful
way to help a child identify with a place and learn
while having fun.

How Children Learn
Classic read by an extraordinary teacher
and one of the fathers of the homeschooling
movement.

How to Raise a Healthy Child in Spite of Your Doctor
A classic....oldie, but goody! This is a must read for
all parents & we have it  with us at all times as  a
handy reference manual. As a former nurse, I love
this smart MD Pediatrician who has a ton of
good practical advice.

D'Aulaires' Book of Greek Myths
This is one of Mozart's absolute favorite books!
It is big, so I debated whether we should bring it or
not. I am thrilled that we decided to bring it along,
especially for Greece and Turkey! This is a children's
classic with great drawings and tales and I know at
least one gifted school that uses it in their curriculum.
This makes homeschool very easy for a child with
passion for this subject. We met a teacher on our
gulet boat trip in Turkey who said Mozart knew
more about Greek myths than he did and she
had learned it all on her own.

Take Your Kids to Europe
This book is a good practical guide for taking a family
trip to Europe. They have a lot of good ideas about
kid friendly things to do and we especially liked the
information about the benefits of family travel by
motorhome/RV in Europe, rentals and longer stays.

One Year Off
This is one of the first books we read about a traveling
family going around the world and it got us excited
about the possibilities for our own family trip.
They even took a nanny! Later we read a college paper
by one of the children who is now grown,  stating how
much this experience had a profound impact on her life
in many positive ways. If you are considering a family
trip around the world or exotic family travel,
this is a good read!

Art Fraud Detective
This is one of Mozart's favorite art books and
her parents love it too! It comes with its own
magnifying glass and is a fun way for kids to
solve a mystery while learning lots about
great art.

Math Coach A Parent's Guide to
Helping Children Succeed in Math
This is a great book to help your kid with math whether you homeschool or have a child in school. When we are on the move, math, reading, music, games, journals & discussions are the keys for us. This is a good reference book & we carry it with us in our traveling library.

Material World
I think this is a very important book that every child, every person should see and certainly a traveling family. It visually shows you what a typical family owns around the world. This is particularly important for a first world family and children who have come to think endless materialism is a necessary part of life. Excellent food for thought and motivation to live a less encumbered, freer life.

In English of Course
This is a lovely picture book and funny tale based on a true story about a girl from Naples, Italy who moves to New York City and her fist day in class with other immigrant children & a child's perspective on being bilingual and learning a new language this way. I bought this for Mozart before leaving as a kind of bibliotherapy to prepare her for her life in her new school in her second language. It was valuable on several levels and she still enjoys this book.

The Great World Tour
Mozart loves this fun, educational book! This is another one of our favorites with the theme of learning while having fun because I think that is the best way to learn and it makes it effortless. It has a bit of "where is waldo" feeling too it with lots of good information while hunting. Anyone can take a world tour this way and it is packed with lots of fascinating geography facts and puzzles that make you think.

Family Travel: The Farther You Go the Closer You Get
I love this title because it is so true  and this series, although I was a little disappointed in this book because it was more about stories when I was looking for specific, practical information. Still, the stories are great as usual and can be inspiring as you plan your own travel.

A Family Year Abroad
There are not that many books about family extended travel ( and there were even less when we prepared in 2005 and took off in 2006), so I used every resource that I could find for been there, done that information. This book was not my favorite as it applied primarily to a family spending a year in the Czech Republic  and attending American school and we were more interested in Spain and local schools to immerse in the culture. Still, I did gather some good information from it and I bought it. Every source has a little different take on things so many sources help in forming a plan.

WorldTrek: A Family Odyssey
This is the story of a family from Texas with two teens  that took a year off for a trip around the world. We think that is much too fast to see the world, but if that is all you have then it is better than most get. I would probably do less in this time as traveling fast can cost a lot more and take away from the experience, but there is benefit in reading many books on this topic. It is exciting as you prepare and helps one form ideas for your own trip.

Discovering Spain An Uncommon Guide
This is one of my favorite books about Spain that has lots of great details about food, maps, history and more. We love it and definitely have it with us for our travels around Spain.

Earthsearch A Kid's Geography Museum in a Book
his is a really fun book with lots of good educational information and activities that make you think, done in a clever and entertaining way. Just the way we like to learn!

Six Months Off
Yet another book to help you plan your escape and despite the title, it is applicable for longer periods as well. I think it is worth reading lots of books in this area to start shift your thinking and open to possibilities by learning from others experiences. Or
at least that is how I tend to do it. Then I make it my own. This has lots of practical information to get you and your family on the road to extended travel which is really easier and less expensive than most people imagine.

The Serpent Slayer and Other Stories
of Strong Women
I think all girls should read stories about strong women heroes, so this book is in our traveling library. There is so much one can learn through classic fairy tales and Mozart loves reading these. Great illustrations too by Trina Schart Hyman.

Educational Travel on a Shoestring
We think that one of the primary reasons to travel with children is for educational reasons, so of course we liked this book's premise. It is not about extended travel
but combines too of our favorite topics frugal family travel and using travel as an educational opportunity before, during and after a family journey. Lots of practical tips here on how to get the most out of it for little cost.

Bring Your Own Children
This book was written by a renown psychologist who took a sabbatical with her family in South America. She gives lots of emphasis of the importance of traveling with children and lots of practical details about how to do that, especially extensive travel  in South America. Their 8 year old son writes in every chapter about his experience and what he liked and did not like.

The Family Sabbatical Handbook
This book like Escape 101, is about a family that spent an extended vacation in Mexico with a small child  and gained a lot of first hand information about how to do that. I think it is valuable to read many books on this topic to gain something unique from each as one plans their own escape. Lots of good information here that can help you with planning.

Escape 101
This was written by a cyber-friend that I know from Bootsnall travel forum. He does a good job of pointing out how a family can take a year off as he recently did with his family with a young child. He gives good and specific information on how families can take more long sabbaticals even if the company does not pay a cent. We prefer early retirement, but long sabbaticals are the next best things for families that can not do that.

The 4-Hour Workweek
If you want to find some great ways to work less and enjoy life more, then this is the book for you! We prefer early retirement to his mini-retirements, but find lots of his advice very helpful for extended travel and finding a greater balance between work life and family life. His philosophy and helpful outside-of-the-box ideas will resonate with most and spark a new way of thinking about work and play. His subtitle says it all: "Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and join the New Rich"!

Vagabonding
This is an inspiring book about extended travel with lots of good information. Not specifically for families, but they are mentioned and the information applies to all. This is a must-read if you are planning extended travel and I remember how it got me psyched during our planning stages. He shows how little money it takes to travel really.

What Your Fourth Grader Needs to Know
We love these books as a good homeschool guide and Mozart loves to read them just for fun. The entertaining fundamentals in this Core Knowledge series makes my job as a homeschool mom, much easier! They also have lesson plans and tests on their website.

The Only Guide to a Winning Investment
Strategy You'll Ever Need
Another classic older investment strategy book that
we have with us in our mini travel library. Good basics.

How to Profit From the Coming Real Estate Bust
This book was one of the key books that opened our eyes to the coming real estate bust and how to profit from it. I had never heard of Rubino at that point, long before we decided to put our home on the market and take our extended trip around the world. I just picked it at random off the shelf, years ago when I was doing research in this area out of curiosity. Still, it made lots of sense to us, even though we read it first several years ago when real estate was booming to record levels in our area. It is amazing to see how accurate this book was and still provides good information. We continue to reread it and are glad we brought it with us in our limited travel library.

Irrational Exuberance
A thorough and provocative financial book that we
enjoyed and felt it was important enough to bring
with us in our small mobile library.

Stories and Poems for Extremely
Intelligent Children of All Ages
A great collection of poems and stories in one book, separated into seasons. Some of the best in children's literature!  A very handy book for a traveling family for bedtime stories and reading together or alone at any time.

The Medieval Feast
Another great book that we have had for a while and so glad that we brought it. Aliki is a fantastic author of unique, sophisticated nonfiction books for kids that have minutely detailed illustrations, and this is one of our favorites. It is a Reading Rainbow book recommended for 7 to 11 year olds and the entertaining story and sumptuous colors makes history come alive. Again, very portable skinny paperback for travel.