Winter is the perfect time to take advantage of extra time indoors and cozy up with a good book. 

Whether you love to read-aloud or your children can read independently, these are some of our favorite winter-themed chapter books for children that will bring life and intrigue to the coldest time of the year. These stories feature winter animals, historical events that unfolded during wintertime, snow and ice, and fantasy winter tales. 

Be sure to list your favorite titles on a reading log to keep track of all of your favorites.

We encourage parents to review all literature selections in advance to ensure they align with your family’s values and age levels. For a detailed content overview, we recommend using the Parent Guide Reviews from Common Sense Media. 

See our all of our favorite winter-themed chapter books for kids below.

In this blog post:

• Twelve winter-themed chapter books for kids
• Winter book studies from Treehouse Schoolhouse

Twelve winter-themed chapter books for kids

Blizzard! The Storm that Changed America

Blizzard! The Storm that Changed America by Jim Murphy tells the story of the Blizzard of 1888 in New York City when 21 inches of snow brought the city to a standstill.

Age Recommendation: 8-12

Journey of the Pale Bear

Journey of the Pale Bear by Susan Fletcher, follows the story of a polar bear that is given as a gift from the King of Norway to the King of England. As the polar bear is being sent to England by sea, the bear falls under the care of a boy named Arthur, who is the only person who the bear will tolerate without harming. Based on the real story of a polar bear that lived in the Tower of London, this is a timeless adventure story that thoughtfully looks at the themes of freedom, captivity, and the bond between a boy and a bear.

Age Recommendation: 8-12

Little House in the Big Woods

Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder takes place in 1871 and introduces readers to 4-year-old Laura, who lives in a log cabin on the edge of the Big Woods of Wisconsin. Pioneer life isn’t easy for the Ingalls family, since they must grow or catch all of their own food as they get ready for the cold winter. In the heartwarming story based on the author’s own childhood, the family makes the best of every tough situation and works together to survive and grow as a family.

Age recommendation: 5+

Miracles on Maple Hill

The 1957 Newbery Medal Winner, Miracles on Maple Hill by Virginia Sorensen is the story of a family who moves to the countryside of Pennsylvania in the 1950s so the family’s father can rehabilitate after surviving as a prisoner of war. With the help of neighbors they befriend, the family is able to work together to adapt to living in the country while the father’s condition improves.

Age Recommendation: 8-12

Mr. Popper’s Penguins

Mr. Popper’s Penguins by Florence and Richard Atwater is a heartfelt story about an eccentric house painter who resides in the small town of Stillwater with his family. As he goes through his daily life, he dreams of venturing out of the small town to visit the North and South Poles. 

When Mr. Popper sends a letter to an Antarctic explorer, he is surprised with an unexpected gift, a penguin named Captain Cook. To repair the penguin’s loneliness, Mr. Popper acquires Greta, another penguin, and together they generate a family of penguins. The story follows Mr. Popper and his brood of penguins as they adapt their home to accommodate the needs of the animals, train them to perform and more.

Age Recommendation: 7-10

Snow Treasure

Snow Treasure by Marie McSwigan tells the story of the bleak winter of 1940 when Nazi troops invade a Norwegian town and hold it captive. Together, the children outwitted the Nazi troops when no one thought they could and sent nine million dollars in gold to America to keep the country’s riches out of the hands of enemy troops.

Age Recommendation: 9-12

The Bears on Hemlock Mountain

The Bears on Hemlock Mountain by Alice Dalgliesh is an adventure story in which a boy sets out on a cold winter night and discovers bears on the mountainside, contrary to what he had always been told.

Age Recommendation: 5-9

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis is a children’s fantasy novel full of adventure and exploration, betrayal and forgiveness, and the battle between good and evil. During the air raids on London during World War II, four young children are sent to live with a kind, old professor in his large house in the country. During their stay, the children accidentally discover the magical world of Narnia after hiding in an old wardrobe.

As they explore the world of Narnia, they find a land that is locked in an eternal winter. The children quickly become swept up in a battle between the White Witch and the great lion, Aslan.

Age Recommendation: 6+

The Long Winter

The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder is a historical fiction novel that tells about the unusually harsh winter of 1880-81 that brought months of blizzards and other difficulties to the Dakota Territory and the homesteaders living there. The autobiographical fiction paints a picture of frontier life and displays values that drove her family and others to move west.

Age Recommendation: 7-12

The Poet’s Dog

The Poet’s Dog by Newbery Medal winner Patricia MacLachlan is a heartwarming story of survival about a dog who rescues two children during a winter snowstorm, only to return home to find his own owner missing. The dog comforts the children in the middle of the winter storm as he questions his future if his owner does not return.

Age Recommendation: 8-13

The Winter of Red Snow (Dear America)

The Winter of Red Snow by Kristiana Gregory is a fictionalized diary about the life of an 11-year-old girl in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania during the Revolutionary War in 1777. When George Washington’s army sets up camp in Valley Forge during the winter, her family’s life is immediately changed.

Age Recommendation: 8-14

Twelve Kinds of Ice

Twelve Kinds of Ice by Ellen Bryan Obed is an elegant book of prose for children that describes the winter season in vivid detail, from the first ice of winter to every version of ice that appears during this season.

Age Recommendation: 6-9

See all of our favorite winter chapter books for kids on Amazon.

Winter book studies from Treehouse Schoolhouse

Treehouse Book Studies – Winter Collection

Create lasting connections through rich stories with Treehouse Book Studies, which incorporate read-alouds with themes such as science, nature, geography, history, and language arts. Each four-week book study is a digital download you can use in your homeschool or as book study with a group.

The curated Winter Collection features three winter-themed children’s books. The Winter Collection features:

• Mr. Popper’s Penguins by Florence & Richard Atwater
• The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder
• The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis

Each book study includes: Book Study with four weeks of weekly lesson plans, Book Report Template, Extension Book List, and more.