Podcasts · Read-Aloud Revival ®

RAR #283: Our Favorite Reads for Forming Virtue in Our Kids

9 Jul 2026 · 1 h 01 min · Episode 283

Here at the Read-Aloud Revival, we’ve been asked more times than I can count to create virtue-based book lists. And I always say no.

Today, our Creative Director (and my eldest daughter) Audrey is back with me to talk about why we don’t make lists of books that specifically set out to teach kids about kindness, honesty, or other virtues.

The reality is, all good books have a powerful capacity to inspire us towards virtue, and the ones that are the most effective are the ones that don’t set out to teach. They just set out to tell a good story. Good stories, by their nature, form us in virtue.

We’re going to talk about what makes a story formational, and of course, share some of our favorite books that have been formative in our family.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• Why learning virtue doesn’t need a lesson plan or bullet points, and can even be delightful • How stories invite us into the experiences of others, with all their human strengths and weaknesses • The guiding question behind every book recommendation we make at RAR

Learn more about Sarah Mackenzie:

• Read-Aloud Revival • Waxwing Books • Subscribe to the Newsletter

Find the rest of the show notes at: readaloudrevival.com/books-forming-virtue

Links in the notes 3

• https://readaloudrevival.com/
• https://readaloudrevival.com/waxwing
• https://read-aloud-revival.ck.page/d22f467fe7

The episode on the publisher’s site ↗ (opens in a new tab)