Reach Out and Read's providers have been distributing books and dispensing literacy guidance for more than 20 years. In that time, they've developed a list of some of the best books for parents and educators about the importance and science of reading aloud.

Below are lists of doctor-recommended books for parents and educators on reading aloud and early literacy research.

• Fox, Mem. Reading Magic: Why Reading Aloud to Our Children Will Change Their Lives Forever. New York: Harcourt, Inc., 2001.
• Haas, Monty and Laurie Joy Haas. Read it Aloud! A parent's guide to sharing books with young children. Natick, MA: The Reading Railroad, 2000.

• Hearne, Betsy, with Deborah Stevenson. Choosing Books for Children: A Commonsense Guide. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1999.
• Lewis, Valerie V. and Walter M. Mayes. Valerie & Walter's Best Books for Children: A Lively, Opinionated Guide. New York: Avon, 1999.
• Lipson, Eden Ross. New York Times Parent's Guide. 3rd ed. New York: Times Books, 2000.
• Trelease, Jim. The Read-Aloud Handbook. New York: Penguin Books, 2001.

• Adams, M. J. Beginning to read: Thinking and learning about print. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1990.
• Bridges to Literacy: Children, Families and Schools, ed. by David K. Dickenson. Cambridge, MA: Blackwell Publishers, 1994.
• Emerging literacy: Young children learn to read and write, ed. by Strickland, D. S. and L. Mandel Morrow. Newark, DE: International Reading Association, 1989.
• Handbook of Early Literacy Research, Vol. 2, ed. By David K. Dickenson and Susan B. Neuman. New York, NY: The Guilford Press, 2006
• Marcus, L. Dear genius: The letters of Ursula Nordstrom. New York: Harper Collins, 1998.

• National Research Council. Starting out right: A guide to promoting children's reading success. Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 1999.
• Preventing Reading Difficulties in Young Children, ed. by Catherine E. Snow, M. Susan Burns, and Peg Griffin. Washington, DC: National Academy Press, 1998.
• Perspectives on Language and Literacy: Beyond the Here and Now, ed. by Sarah W. Beck and Leslie Nabors Olah. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Educational Review, 2001.

• Schickedanz, J. A. Much more than the ABCs: The early stages of reading and writing. Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC), 1999.
• Spitz, E. H. Inside picture books. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1999.