Speaking of To Say Nothing of the Dog, you guys might also enjoy Three Men in a Boat by Jerome K. Jerome. (It would be a good one to read first, as TSNotD refers to it.) I find that humorous books tend to make some of the best read-alouds, except in some cases where the humor is very dependent on the way words are written (e.g., some Terry Pratchett, The Phantom Tollbooth).