Taking a page out of a millennial's book

A few weeks ago, my son and I went through his bookshelf. We pulled out all the books that he identified as "baby books," and ones that he didn't want to read. My little guy can read lots of words by himself now, and although he hasn't moved on to reading himself full books yet, I want his shelves to be ready for him. So, we said good-bye to the "I Love Daddy Because" or "Count to 10" books and took them to our second-hand bookshop.

I love bookshops...not bookstores, but small bookshops. They smell like paper and the shelves are a mess and if you have the time, you could easily lose a day there. As a parent I don't have that kind of time, but I did zip through the children's section and pick up a few new stories for my son.

Every night before bed, he and I read together. It's one of my favorite parts of the day. He goes to the library with me on weekends and we pick out new books to try. He complains that my books don't have any pictures. We are a book family.

And we're not alone. The lovely folks at Pew Research completed a study concerning library use which found that millennials are a book-loving bunch. It turns out that 88% of Americans under the age of 30 have read a book in the past year, compared with 79% of people older than 30. (This data kinds of puts my 100 book challenge in a completely different perspective for me.) But that news is encouraging as well. I want my son to grow up within a world of books.

So, we'll keep visiting our library and our second-hand book store. I admit that occasionally, I think about getting a Kindle or other device to have access to more books. But then I can't get over blue light or the loss of paper and the feel of a book in my hands.

What can I say? I'm old school. What's the last great book that you would recommend to a friend? Share with me in the comments.