Long before we learned to read, we learned to listen.
Some of my favorite reading memories are not just about the books themselves, but about the voices that brought those stories to life: A grandparent sharing a favorite tale, a teacher making a character unforgettable, a librarian turning storytime into a magical experience. Reading aloud has always been more than the words on the page; it’s about connection.
We often think of reading aloud as something reserved for children, but that idea sells the practice short. Long before people could hold a book, stories lived in the human voice, passed around fires, across kitchen tables and on long journeys. Science supports what storytellers have always known: hearing a story engages us differently, creating moments of attention, emotion and connection. Listening to a story is not a step toward “real” reading. It is real reading, perhaps the oldest kind we have.
Reading doesn’t have to look just one way. A novel counts, but so does a poem shared over coffee, a cookbook read aloud while prepping a meal, or an audiobook on a drive. A story comes to life when a voice carries it forward, adds emotion, creates pauses and draws us in.
The best read-aloud books don’t just tell a story, they ask you to be part of it.
For the youngest listeners: If You Make a Call on a Banana Phone by Gideon Sterer is silly, musical and impossible to read without a smile. The Book That Can Read Your Mind by Marianna Coppo, meanwhile, is inspired by 17th-century magic. Lady Rabbit’s adventure is one you’ll want to read again and again.
For all ages: The Wild Robot by Peter Brown is a story of survival, heart and nature versus technology that earns every emotion it asks of you. The quiet wisdom and warmth of Charlie Mackesy’s The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse is best savored one page at a time.
For adult readers: A single poem read aloud can make you stop, look up and see the world differently — especially Mary Oliver’s poems. Devotions is an excellent collection of the poet’s work. The heartwarming novel Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt — now a Netflix film starring Sally Field — is best experienced as an audiobook, where each moment is revealed beautifully.
The next time you find a story you love, read it aloud to someone close to you, or even just to yourself.
Nichole Foxhoven is a Youth Librarian at the East Side Library, where stories come to life every week. This article was originally published in Little Village’s July 2026 issue.
