12 Family Halloween Costumes for You and Your Little Bookworms

Peter Pan, by J.M. Barrie
Peter Pan is the ultimate family classic and is full of some great characters you can dress up as. You and your spouse can be Peter Pan and Tinkerbell with your children as Wendy, Peter, and Michael, or you can get a little more creative and dress as Wendy and Peter Pan with a baby as Tinkerbell and older children as the Lost Boys. Choose your favorites and you’ll have a great cohesive costume that everyone will love (even your pirate-obsessed children).

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, by J.K. Rowling
Basically any combination of characters in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone works great for a family costume, but I love the idea of you and your co-parent dressing as some of the older characters, whether that’s Dumbledore and Snape, Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick, or Mr. and Mrs. Weasley. Let your kiddos pick their favorite character to dress as and you’ll have a happy, magical group.

Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass, by Lewis Carroll
Some of the best costumes from Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass are the wackiest ones, but there’s a character for every member of your family. (I’m partial to the Red Queen myself.) A little one is always adorable as Alice, but have some fun switching up the roles. You and your partner could be Tweedledum and Tweedledee while your kids dress as the Mad Hatter, Alice, and the Cheshire Cat. There are plenty of combinations, so try anything you want from this classic book.

The Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum
You knew this was coming, right? There are so many things you can do with the characters from The Wizard of Oz. I’ve always thought a baby as one of the tiniest munchkins would be cute, but a little one as Glinda or even Dorothy is perfect, too. Don’t forget to coax the family dog into playing Toto.

Charlotte’s Web, by E.B. White
I love costumes that are not only adorable, but easy, too. You’ll just need farm clothes to dress as Mr. and Mrs. Arable if your kiddos are going to be the other characters and there are tons of them to choose from. Fern is always a great choice, but kids dressed as Wilbur and Charlotte is adorable, too. Definitely mix and match and find everybody’s favorite to trick or treat in.

The Day The Crayons Quit, by Drew Daywalt
What’s cuter than a box of crayons? Your sweet family dressed as a box of crayons. Don’t forget your protest signs and you’ll all look like some of the most beloved activists in children’s literature.

Where the Wild Things Are, by Maurice Sendak
Oh, little Max is one of the cutest characters ever and is always a popular Halloween costume choice, but what about the rest of the family? Dressing as a Wild Thing is just perfect and will put all of you in both the reading and Halloween spirit.

Dr. Seuss Favorites, by Dr. Seuss
There are just too many great Dr. Seuss characters to narrow a group Halloween costume down to one book. Somebody can dress as The Cat in the Hat, another can be The Grinch, and siblings can dress as Thing 1 and Thing 2. Let your kiddos pick their favorites and you’ll all look like a whimsical group of Dr. Seuss’s iconic characters.

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, by Bill Martin Jr., Lois Ehlert, and John Archambault
One of my favorite ideas for a family group costume is to dress as characters from Chicka Chicka Boom Boom. Someone can be the coconut tree while everyone else dresses as their favorite letter for a fun, unique, book-themed costume.

Madeline, by Ludwig Bemelmans
Okay, this one is a must if you have more than one child, right? It’s like a rule that everyone has to dress as little girls in two straight lines while you dress up as Miss Clavel in Madeline. Although, let’s be honest, I’m not so sure that you’ll be able to keep the kiddos in two straight lines, but it’s a nice thought, isn’t it? (How did Miss Clavel do it?)

The Princess Bride, by William Goldman
A cuter family literary costume than the characters in The Princess Bride? Inconceivable! Whether you and your co-parent are going as Princess Buttercup and Westley or if your children want those roles, everybody can find a larger-than-life character to portray on Halloween night. (I’m partial to Fezzik and Turk myself.) Have a blast with this one, because these costumes definitely require getting into your character.

The Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R. Tolkien
Gandalf, Smegel, Frodo, Bilbo—the list goes on. The characters in The Lord of the Rings are incredible enough alone, but as a group? They’re just preciousssss. Your family will look great in a family costume as the adventurers seeking the one ring to rule them all, so definitely pull out your robes and cloaks.