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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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!

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.

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!

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.

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.

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.

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.