Booklist

Picture Books

Child, L. (2000). I will never not ever eat a tomato. Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press.

Picky eaters unite! Read this hilarious book about Charlie and his attempt to get his very picky little sister Lola to eat! Charlie uses his imagination to get Lola to eat “ocean nibbles from the supermarket under the sea” (fish sticks), “cloud fluff from the pointiest peak of Mount Fuji” (mashed potatoes), and “orange twiglets from Jupiter” (carrots). Whether you’re the picky eater or the big sibling, you will be able to relate to this book!

Danneberg, J. (2000). First day jitters. Watertown, MA: Charlesbridge Publishing, Inc..

Have you ever been frightened to go to school on the first day? This story tells about Sarah, who is very, very nervous to go to her new school. Read this book to find out the twist at the end of the book! This is a perfect book to read the first day of school for any grade!

Ehlert, L. (1989). Eating the alphabet. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc..

This book shows a fun and healthy way for kids to learn the alphabet, fruits, and vegetables! Each letter of the alphabet has multiple fruits and veggies to represent each letter. It even includes lesser known foods such as endives, gooseberrys, and kohlrabi. The book ends with an index explaining each of the foods shown in the book.

Ets, M.H. (1944). In the forest. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc..

This is the classic story about a boy who had a new horn and a paper hat. The story follows him as he walks through the forest picking up various animals and their keepsakes. Some of the animals are a lion with his comb, bears with their peanuts and jam, and of course the monkeys with their best suits!

Gunn, R. J. (1971). Mrs. rosey-posey and the chocolate cherry treat. Elgin, IL: David C. Cook Publishing.

This book tells the story of a girl who is not allowed to go with her friends to a movie that has things in it that make it inappropriate for her to see. She is upset and goes to Mrs. Rosey-Posey’s house to complain about her situation. Mrs. Rosey-Posey explains how she is precious like a china plate and how she should not see movies or do things that would make her less clean. The book used Biblical principles to teach kids that they should do things that enhance their beauty as people, not muddle it in things that could make them “dirty”.

Hazen, B. S. (1987). Fang. New York, NY: Macmillan Publishing Company.

This is a wonderful story about a young boy who is very scared of everything. He has a great big dog named Fang that he believes will protect him from everything. The only problem with this is…Fang is just as scared of everything, if not even more scared! This story shares how they conquer all of their fears together!

Henkes, K. (1987). Sheila rae the brave. New York, NY: Greenwillow Books.

This book is about a little mouse, Sheila, who is the bravest girl she knows. She even makes fun of her little sister for being cautious. One day, Sheila ventures out on a new route home and ends up getting lost…and very scared. Who pops up in Sheila’s time of need? None other than her little sister, who was paying attention to the path they had taken. She leads Sheila home and they consider each other the brave one!

Hoban, T. (1984). Is it rough? is it smooth? is it shiny?. New York, NY: Greenwillow Books.

This book has no words. It has different pictures that allow the kids to sort through and decide what objects feel like. Some of the pictures include cotton candy, shells, and even a man’s beard!

McGuire, L. (1989). Baby night owl. New York, NY: Random House, Inc..

This book is geared towards young readers. It is the story of a baby owl who is learning for the first time what goes on during the day when owls are generally sleeping. He meets a squirrel and they talk about daytime and nighttime happenings. Owl ends the day with his mother telling her that he likes the daytime, but nighttime is his favorite since he gets to spend time with her.

Parish, P. (1977). Teach us, amelia bedelia. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc..

This book follows a well beloved character, Amelia Bedelia on yet another one of her crazy, mixed up days. The school, mistaking Amelia for the substitute teacher gets launched into a very backwards day. Amelia leads the children to literally “paint pictures” by putting paint on existing pictures. Instead of planting plant bulbs, they plant light bulbs! Kids will love this book because of the silly yet recognizable mistakes that people not familiar with the English language can make!

Sendak, M. (1963). Where the wild things are. New York, NY: Harper and Row.

This was one of my favorite books as a child about a boy who had to go to bed without supper. He imagined himself sailing away to a wild island with monsters where he was the king. He had his fun and went back home, glad to be back in his own room. This book, in my opinion must be read by all children!

Silverstein, S (1992). The giving tree. New York, NY: Harper Collins Publishers.

The giving tree is the story of a boy who grows up loving his constant companion: A tree. He uses the tree for many different uses throughout his life. When he is younger, he uses the tree to play with and relax by. When he gets older he uses it to build a house and a boat. He ends with it as being his companion. This is a touching story that children and adults alike will be able to relate to on multiple levels.

Viorst, J. (1972). Alexander and the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. Aladdin.

Alexander woke up and knew without a doubt that it was going to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. Everything that happened that day just confirmed the fact…until the very end. This is a wonderful book to read to kids when they are having a day just like Alexander. It helps them to make light of very hard situations for them.

Wise-Brown, M. (1947). Goodnight moon. New York, NY: Harper Collins Publishers.

This is a classic children’s book that children can read a long with from about the second read through. It is simple and sweet and basically covers all things that can be said “goodnight” to before going to bed.

Poetry and Verse

Hefferan, R. (2003). My sparkling nursery rhymes. Los Angeles, CA: Intervisual Books, Inc..

This book is a perfect introduction into the most well known nursery rhymes for kids. It is a cardboard book and so it is basically indestructible. The illustrations are bright and shiny and attractive for children. Some of the included rhymes are Hickory Dickory Dock, Jack and Jill, and Humpty Dumpty.

Prelutsky, J. (1984). The new kid on the block. New York, NY: Greenwillow Books.

Some liken Jack Prelutsky to Shel Silverstein, but I’m not sure that I can agree. Jack has his own definite style of writing children’s poetry that many people love. Some of the fun poems in this book include The New Kid on the Block and Jellyfish Stew.

Silverstein, S. (1981). A light in the attic. New York, NY: Harper Collins Publishers.

Yet another of Shel Silverstein’s popular poetry books. This particular book includes poems like How Not to Have to Dry the Dishes, which actually helped earn this book a spot in some libraries banned books lists! Don’t let that fool you though. Shel Silverstein is one of the classic children’s poets of our time and his poems with keep you rhyming in your mind for hours after you’re finished reading his poetry.

Silverstein, S. (2004). Where the sidewalk ends. New York, NY: Harper Collins Publishers.

Nearly every kid who knows about books can tell you about Shel Silverstein and Where the Sidewalk Ends.

This is a classic book of silly children’s poetry. Shel was also the illustrator of this book. Kids are drawn to the rhyming words and fun pictures. Some of the more well known poems included in this book are Boa Constrictor, For Sale, and Smart.

Wessels, K.T. (1993). The golden nursery song book: Favorite songs and singing games for children. Racine, WI: Western Publishing Company Inc..

This is a song book filled with the most popular classic songs for children. It is actually written using sheet music. Kids will love trying to figure out how the notes are supposed to sound in comparison with the notes on the page. Some of the songs included are The Farmer in the Dell, A Tisket A Tasket, and Oh, Dear! What Can the Matter Be?.

Folktales

Andersen, H.C. (1990). Hans Christian Andersen. Morris Planes, NJ: Unicorn Publishing House.

This is a collection of some of the most well known folk tales by Hans Christian Andersen – including Thumbelina, The Ugly Duckling, and The Little Mermaid. The illustrations are absolutely breathtaking, and definitely give Hans the deserved credit for his beautifully crafted stories. Children will be amazed at the difference between the original story and the story told by Disney.

Brett, J. (2007). The three snow bears. New York, NY: Penguin Group (USA) Inc..

The Three Bears is one of Jan Brett’s newest books. It is the story of Goldie Locks written from an Alaskan point of view. Instead of Goldie Locks, we have Aloo-ki. The pictures are absolutely magnificent and detailed, and in true Jan Brett style, the pictures on the sides of the pages match the other character’s story that is currently not being told.

Mosel, A. (1968). Tikki Tikki Tembo. Ontario, Canada: Fitzhenry and Whiteside Ltd..

Tikki Tikki Tembo is an Asian folktale about a boy who’s name means “the most wonderful thing in the world” and he believes it until he falls into a well and has a hard time getting help because his brother has a hard time saying his name quickly enough for people to hear it and get to Tikki! This book will definitely have children chanting his name along with the reader in no time!

Walburg, L. (1997). The legend of the candy cane. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Corporation.

This book is about how the candy cane came to be. It follow a young girl who is curious how the candy cane got its shape and color. The story of the candy is based on the story of Christ and his birth and death.

Young, E. (1989). Lon Po Po. Philomel.

This is the Asian version of Little Red Riding Hood. Children will be able to compare and contrast the versions of these stories. This is beautifully illustrated and an interesting twist on a story we only thought we knew

Realistic Fiction

Chbosky, S. (1999). The perks of being a wallflower. New York, NY: MTV Books/Pocket Books.

This is a coming of age story told from the perspective of letters written to an unknown receiver known only as “Friend”. The book follows a boy who is learning how to grow up in a world that doesn’t quite make sense. Some situations in the book are a little more adult oriented, so this book would best suite those in 8^th grade and above.

DeClements, B. (1981). Nothing's fair in fifth grade. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc..

This book is about a group of young girls in fifth grade who are trying very hard to fit in. Elsie, the new girl begins to change things in the class. She is very overweight and nobody likes her since they believe that she is stealing everybody’s money to buy candy. One girl in the class, Jenny, is required to take Elsie for a partner in math. Jenny and Elsie begin to bond in more ways than just having to do schoolwork together. This book teacher the importance of tolerance and patience. Not everything is as it appears!

Hinton, S.E. (1971). That was then, this is now. New York, NY: Dell Publishing Co., Inc..

From the author of The Outsiders comes another book about a group of teenagers who are growing up too fast. Bryon and Mark have always been best friends, but things begin to change when Bryon falls in love and Mark begins selling drugs to kids. This book is geared towards late junior high aged kids.

Hinton, S.E. (1995). The outsiders. New York, NY: Puffin Books.

Ponyboy Curtis is a sensitive boy smack dab in the middle of “greasers”, a group of boys who tend to get in trouble. Since these boys are poor, they think it is the only way to live. The greasers are constantly at war with the “soc’s”, a group of rich kids who hate anybody who isn’t like them. Ponyboy finds himself in deep trouble when he and his friend Johnny get in a fight with the soc’s and Johnny ends up killing one of them. This story outlines friendship in it’s truest and most necessary form.

Hope, L.L. (1967). The bobbsey twins and the cedar camp mystery. New York, NY: Grosset and Dunlap

“You guys are like the bobbsey twins.” When people say this they generally mean that the two people are incredibly close. That saying comes from The Bobbsey Twins books! The Bobbsey Twins always seem to find themselves in the middle of a major adventure or mystery. Find out what happens when they end up at the Cedar Camp in this book.

Martin, A.M. (1995). Karen's school mystery. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc..

This book is a follow up to the Babysitter’s Club books, only it is following Kristy’s little sister Karen on her mysteries. This book is geared to third through fifth graders. This particular story is about Karen and her friend Addy. They are supposed to be in charge of safety in the school and find out that somebody has been stealing! Follow Karen and Addy as they try to solve this mystery!

Martin, A.M. (1996). Karen's softball mystery. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc..

Karen and her friends love to help out on her older sister’s softball team. One day their equipment begins to disappear! Follow Karen and her friends as they try to figure out who would do such a thing and why.

McDaniel, L. (1995). One last wish: A season for goodbye. New York, NY: Bantam Doubleday Dell Books for Young Readers.

This is a very touching book that follows teenagers who all have terminal illness. They all attend and are councilors at a camp for others who are in the same position as they are. Follow these brave teenagers who learn how to live even though they aren’t sure how much longer they have in this world.

Montgomery, L.M. (1992). Anne’s house of dreams. New York, NY: Bantam Books.

Anne is about to marry Gilbert, her long time love/enemy. Gil is now a doctor and the couple finds a house to settle down in and make their life together. This is the story of their marriage and the friends that they encounter on the way to their new found life together.

Montgomery, L.M. (1992). Anne of avonlea. New York, NY: Bantam Books.

Anne has taken a teaching position in Avonlea. She is finally growing up and taking life seriously, well as seriously as a girl insistent on making a splash in every place she lives can be! Will she begin to see Gilbert as more than just a school chum that she has held a grudge against since meeting him for calling her “carrots”?

Montgomery, L.M. (1992). Anne of green gables. New York, NY: Bantam Books.

Anne has been an orphan for most of her life. By mistake, she is sent to live with Matthew and Marilla, an older couple in Green Gables who had originally wanted a boy to tend to the farm. Anne wins them, and nearly everybody else over with her love of life and her way of finding drama in everything….or drama finding her! Anne has finally found a place to call her own.

Montgomery, L.M. (1992). Anne of ingleside. New York, NY: Bantam Books.

Anne has definitely carved out quite the life being married to Gilbert and having five children. Anne suspects that Gil may not be in love with her anymore, so in typical Anne style, she must find a way to win her marriage back.

Montgomery, L.M. (1992). Anne of the island. New York, NY: Bantam Books.

Anne is now leaving Avonlea to attend Redmond college. Things begin to change when she learns that her best friend Diana is engaged to be married. Anne encounters a proposal of her own from Gilbert Blythe, but Anne isn’t quite sure what she is ready for.

Montgomery, L.M. (1992). Anne of windy poplars. New York, NY: Bantam Books.

Anne has finished Redmond college and has now moved to take a teaching position at Summerside High School. The Pringles, the most distinguished family in the town, are less than thrilled with Anne being there, and they let her know it! Anne must find her own crazy way to show them that she is there to stay, and they had better learn to deal with it!

Montgomery, L.M. (1992). Rainbow valley. New York, NY: Bantam Books.

This story is different from the other Anne series in that it is about Anne and Gil’s six children! The kids meet up with another family, and in Anne style, are convinced they need to find the widower a wife and also help his kids save a runaway girl from being taken to an orphanage.

Patterson, K. (1977). Bridge to terabithia. New York, NY: Harper Collins Publishers.

This is a unique story about true friendship, love, and imagination. Jess and Leslie are two people that nobody thought would be friends. Jess is a down to earth, straight forward boy, and Leslie is a girl that prefers to do everything just a little bit crazy and in tune with her imagination. Their friendship blooms and they find a secret place to go to called Terabithia. When tragedy strikes, Jess is forced to learn the lessons that make life as beautiful as it is in spite of his circumstances.

Patterson, K. (1978). Jacob have i loved. New York, NY: Harper Collins Publishers.

This story puts the subject of sibling rivalry to the forefront of the reader’s mind. Sara Louise is always getting picked second when it comes to her beautiful sister Caroline. Read Jacob Have I Loved in order to find out the obstacles that Sara Louise pushes through in order to find acceptance for herself in a world that she believes is not focused on playing fair.

Patterson, K. (1978). The great gilly hopkins. New York, NY: Harper Collins Publishers.

After being shuffled through numerous foster homes, Gilly has decided that it is a waste of her time. She decided that she needs to go and find her real mom. Gilly doesn’t understand that she really is wanted by anybody. As she grows older, she begins to find out that maybe that isn’t the truth! This is a touching story, but as a notice, it tends to use more adult like language in parts.

Spinelli, J. (2002). Loser. New York, NY: Harper Collins Publishers.

Zinkoff is a bit of an odd ball in his school. Nobody really understands him, and nobody really tries to either. Taken from real life experiences and his son’s retelling of school life, Jerry Spinelli writes this story about a boy finding his way in school. This is a book that kids will love simply because they can relate to it!

Warner, G.C. (1977). The boxcar children: Blue bay mystery. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc..

The four siblings lived in an old abandoned boxcar until they found their grandfather, which gave them the name The Boxcar Children. Since moving in with him, they’ve found a knack for finding crazy mysteries! In this particular book, the children are vacationing on an abandoned island…is it really abandoned?

Warner, G.C. (1989). The boxcar children: Castle mystery. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc..

The boxcar children are at it again in this mystery book. The kids go to a castle that is to be turned into a museum. What happens in the museum surprises even them when they see weird things like lights and strange music that they cannot describe.

Warner, G.C. (1989). The boxcar children: Surprise mystery. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc..

The boxcar children always seem to find mysteries wherever they go. Traveling to a private island that they thought was abandoned is no exception. They find a man who insists on keeping his identity a secret. The boxcar children set out to find out who he really is in this mystery.

Graphic Novels

Butcher, J. (2008). The dresden files: Welcome to the jungle. United States: Del Ray.

This is a pretty intense and dark graphic novel about a young wizard who is hired to help solve a mystery at a zoo. The pictures are really detailed, but as mentioned before, it is very dark

Watterson, B. (1985). Calvin and Hobbes. New York, NY: Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC.

Calvin and Hobbes is one of the classic children’s graphic novels. Reading it as an adult though, gives more appreciation to the subjects, as adults are able to relive their childhood through Calvin and his toy tiger Hobbes, who is just as alive as Calvin in his imagination.

Whedon, J. Brett Matthews, Will Conrad, and Adam Hughes (2008). Milwaukie, OR: Dark Horse Books.

The serenity team is a crazy group of space warriors. One person in their crew ends up getting captured, and so the group as a whole needs to learn to work with each other in order to help keep each other alive. This graphic novel isn’t quite as dark as some that I’ve read, but it was pretty enjoyable.

Historical Fiction

Drucker, M., M. Halperin (1994). Jacob's rescue. New York, NY: Dell Publishing Co., Inc..

Jacob's Rescue is about a Jewish family during WWII who is forced to split their family up for safety. Jacob stays with a Christian family who he grew up knowing well. He is forced to stay in hiding. This is a very intense book about how the love of people and friends stretches far beyond what governments may do to tear that apart.

Hanes, Mari (1995). Pocahontas: True princess. Sisters, OR: Questar Publishers, Inc..

When the Disney version of Pocahontas came out, many people believed that that is exactly what happened. This book sets out to tell the truth about Pocahontas. She was just a young teenager when the settlers first came to her land. This is just one of the myths that is set aside in this enchanting true version of the life of Pocahontas.

Lowry, L. (1989). Number the stars. New York, NY: Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, Inc..

This is the story of a young girl caught in the middle of WWII. Annemarie desperately wants to save her best friend Ellen Rosen who is in danger of being taken away by the Nazi’s. This is a truly touching story of the youth’s position and passion during one of the worst times in our world’s history.

Munoz-Ryan, P. (2000). Esperanza rising. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc..

This is the story of a very wealthy girl who immigrated from Mexico to California after her father was killed. Esperanza is forced to live in a farm community and for the first time in her life has to work all day every day. Esperanza passes many trials as she grows to love who she is despite no longer having the wealth that she has. This story is based on what really happens to the immigrants who move to America.

Autobiography/Biography

Paulson, G. (2001). Guts. New York, NY: Delacorte Press: Random House Children's Books: Random House, Inc..

Every book has to be inspired by some type of event or the author’s imagination. Gary Paulson took this very literally. His book Hatchet was inspired by his being an emergency volunteer and also by his time spent hunting. Here is the book that explains how Gary got his inspiration through his real life stories. It includes pictures of his experiences.

Ingalls-Wilder, L. (1981). By the shores of silver lake. New York, NY: Harper and Row Junior Books.

The Ingalls family had encountered many hardships while living in Minnesota, so their dad decides to move them to De Smet where he has a chance to make a better living for the family. Many other people have the same idea to move to the area as well. In spite of the changes, in Ingalls family stays together and strong. This is one of the classic stories about the life of Laura Ingalls-Wilder.

Ingalls-Wilder, L. (1932). Little house in the big woods. New York, NY: Harper Collins.

Laura and her family have settled into a cabin in the woods. Life isn’t easy for the Ingalls family, but her dad is still a constant who tells the girls stories and of course plays music for them. Not everything is a hardship though. The Ingalls family has holiday time with the family when they attend a party because of the harvesting of maple syrup. This is a classic story about life in the early 1900s.

Ingalls-Wilder, L. (1953). The long winter. New York, NY: Harper and Row Junior Books.

Laura and the rest of the Ingalls family must live through yet another long winter on the prairie. This story is an incredible account of what it was like to live in a time in which there were no heaters, transportation, and even the fear of being snowed into their house. This story introduces Almanzo Wilder, who eventually became her husband!

Fantasy

Catling, P. S. (1988). The chocolate touch. New York, NY: Bantam Books.

This book is a retelling of the story King Midas. In King Midas, he was a greedy man and so one day he realized that everything he touched turned to gold. This is the same idea applied in this book, only the main character, John, realized that everything he touched turned to chocolate! This book gives a good lesson on the importance of nutrition and not being greedy.

Dahl, R. (1961). James and the giant peach. New York, NY: Puffin Books.

This is the classic story about an orphaned boy who is forced to live with his two less than pleasurable aunts. While staying there a man offers him magic objects that end up turning his world upside down. Follow James as he travels across lands on a giant peach with oversized, very smart insects as his companions! This story is written using English/British grammar, which takes a few pages to get used to for American readers, but it makes the story that much more pleasurable!

L'Engle, M. (2007). An acceptable time. New York, NY: Square Fish.

This book is the fifth and final installment in the Time Quintet Series. This particular book is based around Polly O’Keefe, whose mother and father are Calvin and Meg from A Wrinkle in Time. Polly and her friend Zachary find themselves being transported back thousands of years when druids still roamed the land. Polly and Zachary must find the reason why they are going back and forth between the past and present, and also find a way to save Zachary, who has an illness that no one knew about until recently.

L'Engle, M. (1962). A wrinkle in time. New York, NY: Dell Publishing Co., Inc..

Science fiction (or fact), storms, friendship, and family. This story combines all of the things that children can relate to and love into a fictional story that will captivate them from page one until the end. The book is based on Meg, her exceptionally bright brother Charles Wallace, and their friend Calvin as they meet some very interesting strangers and are taken to another planet by way of a tesseract to try and find Meg and Charles Wallaces father who had disappeared that year. This is the first of the Time Quintet series.

Lowry, L. (2005). Gathering blue. New York, NY: Houghton Mifflin Company.

In a time in which people have hardly any color or identity and are only of worth if they can work, Kira proves that just because a person is crippled, they can still be valuable. The leaders of the village she lives in notice that Kira is gifted with her hands. They hire her to work on the Storyteller’s cloak, which is the most distinguished clothing item in their village. Kira begins to see many things that are unsettling while working on the cloak that she must uncover, all while in search for the color blue.

Lowry, L. (1993). The giver. New York, NY: Bantam Doubleday Dell Books for Young Readers.

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to live in a world with no color? Where every decision you made was based around a very strict law that regulated your every move? This book by Lois Lowry shows precisely what that world would look like. She outlines this world through the eyes of a young boy named Jonas. This is an important book that teaches the value of personal identity and democracy that every child and adult alike should read on a regular basis!

Meyer, S. (2008). Breaking Dawn. New York, NY: Hachette Book Group.

The last book in the Twilight Saga. Bella and Edward are finally married when an unexpected thing happens. Bella becomes pregnant. It becomes increasingly harder for Bella’s life to be spared when the fetus turns out to be half vampire. After the baby is born, Edward must do something drastic to keep Bella alive. This is the story of that and also how Bella lives as a new vampire.

Meyer, S. (2007). Eclipse. New York, NY: Hachette Book Group.

During Edward’s absence during New Moon, Bella reunited her friendship with her childhood friend Jacob. Now that Edward is back, the friendship with Jacob must take a backseat, but it is harder for both Bella and Jacob than she thought it would be. Because of who Jacob now is, it is imperative that Bella find a way to cut her friendship with Jacob if she truly wants to be a part of the Cullen family in the future.

Meyer, S. (2006). New moon. New York, NY: Hachette Book Group.

Bella and Edward are as close as ever, but Edward begins to see the harm that he could potentially cause Bella due to their unique relationship. Edward decides to leave to make sure that Bella stays out of trouble. More trouble happens because of Edwards absence though, including Victoria’s reappearance and vengeance to get Edward back for taking the life of her lover.

Meyer, S. (2005). Twilight. New York, NY: Hachette Book Group.

Bella moves to a new town and is caught off guard when she notices the Cullen family sitting at one of the lunch tables at school. Why does Edward look at her with disgust? What is it about the Cullens that really makes them so different from everybody else? Could fiction really be fact?

Paolini, C. (2008). Brisinger. New York, NY: Alfred A Knopf.

In the latest of the Inheritance series, Eragon and Saphira find out information that could be crucial to their defeating Galbatorix. Galbatorix has been stealing the heart of hearts of dragons that have died in order to take their power and put it in himself. Eragon and Saphira must compensate for this in their training and wit. Roran also has quite the journey while battling and working his way up the ranks in the Varden.

Paolini, C. (2005). Eldest. New York, NY: Alfred A Knopf.

Eragon and Saphira are continuing their training to become the best Dragon Riders. The Elves, Varden, and Dwarves are all highly invested in his success and are continually pushing him to be the best. Roran, Eragon’s cousin is encountering his own trials as well. The Empire has sacked his village and he must take the remaining villagers to join the Varden in hopes of defeating Galbatorix so that they may one day return to Palancar Valley and live in peace again.

Paolini, C. (2003). Eragon. New York, NY: Alfred A Knopf.

Eragon is a simple hunter living with his uncle and cousin in Palancar Valley. He is hunting one day when he finds a large blue rock. This rock ends up hatching a dragon, whom Eragon names Saphira. This hatching forces Eragon to become the new Dragon Rider in a time when their entire country is being led by a ruthless leader, Galbatorix. Eragon and Saphira must train in the ways of the Dragon Riders in order to defeat Galbatorix. They meet interesting people along the way who help them in this quest, knowing that they are the last hope for Alagaesia.

Rowling, J.K. (1999). Harry potter and the chamber of secrets. New York, NY: Arthur A. Levine Books: Scholastic Inc..

Year two at Hogwarts. After a horrible summer with his blood relatives, Harry Potter goes back to the only place he’s ever been able to call home: Hogwarts. In this book, students are mysteriously getting turned into stone! Follow Harry and his faithful friends as they try and find out whom or what could be doing such a thing!

Rowling, J.K. (2007). Harry potter and the deathly hallows. New York, NY: Arthur A. Levine Books: Scholastic Inc..

This book is the last in the series of Harry Potter. It goes into explicit detail about how Harry and his friends destroy the final remnants of Voldemort’s soul that have been scattered across England. It also keeps pace with life back at Hogwarts until the final battle. Keep a box of tissues nearby while reading this book! It is the darkest of the seven Harry Potter books and so is geared towards people in upper elementary and older.

Rowling, J.K. (2000). Harry potter and the goblet of fire. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc..

Year four at Hogwarts. Read along as Harry Potter is mysteriously entered in the dangerous and exciting Triwizard tournament. Will he be able to pass all of the tests required in order to win what some consider the most important wizard trophy? Or will Voldemort and his followers get to Harry and try to silence him forever?

Rowling, J.K. (2005). Harry potter and the half-blood prince. New York, NY: Arthur A. Levine Books: Scholastic Inc..

While using a used book at Hogwarts, Harry Potter learns that the previous owner of the book, who claims that his name is the Half-blood Prince, is somewhat of a genius when it comes to unusual and dark spells. To add to this weird realization, Dumbledore is absent from Hogwarts for long periods of time. Find out the answer to these mysteries in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

Rowling, J.K. (2003). Harry potter and the order of the phoenix. New York, NY: Arthur A. Levine Books: Scholastic Inc..

After Voldemort’s reappearance at the Triwizard Tournament, things are going crazy in the wizarding community. Some people don’t believe Voldemort ever reappeared, and others are banding together to fight against Voldemort when he comes back and reveals his terrifying self once again to the world. Harry Potter must use his strange and close connection with Veldemort’s mind to stop his plans of taking out different members who make up the force against him: The Order of the Phoenix!

Rowling, J.K. (1999). Harry potter and the prisoner of azkaban. New York, NY: Arthur A. Levine Books: Scholastic Inc..

Year three at Hogwarts and things are as crazy as ever. There is a killer on the loose who is intent on coming after Harry Potter. Is he really as dangerous as everyone thinks he is? Or does he have a story that could change the course of Harry’s entire life?

Rowling, J.K. (1997). Harry potter and the sorcerer's stone. New York, NY: Arthur A. Levine Books: Scholastic Inc..

Meet Harry Potter. After going to stay with his aunt, uncle, and cousin after his parent’s death, he is severely mistreated: that is until his eleventh birthday. Harry finds out that he is a wizard and is sent to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. While there, Harry finds out that he is a very, very famous wizard, and so were his parents. He also finds out why he has a strange lightning bolt shaped scar on his forehead. This is the first in the seven book series about Harry Potter and his new wizarding family.

Sachar, L. (1978). Sideways stories from wayside school. New York, NY: Avon Books.

Kids will love this fun book filled with stories based around a school that seems to have everything backwards and upside down! The school was supposed to be built with thirty rooms stretched out across the ground, but by mistake ends up being thirty rooms stacked right on top of each other! That’s only the beginning of the interesting things that the kids get tangled up in.

Sachar, L. (1989). Wayside school is falling down. New York, NY: Avon Books.

After receiving letter after letter from kids asking for a sequel to Sideways Stories from Wayside School, Louis Sachar decided to appease his audience by writing a follow up to the wacky backwards story. This book is a continuation of the crazy things that happen in a school where everything is just the opposite of what it should be!

Science Fiction

Card, O.S. (2002). Ender’s game. Starscape.

Set in the future, Ender is constantly getting beat up by his brother and bullies at school…that is until he fights back. The government, who tracks boys until a certain age to see if they are “military worthy” takes notice and ships Ender off to a military school where they believe he can be of better use. Ender becomes much, much more than even the government gave him credit for.

Paton-Walsh, J. (1982). The green book. USA: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux.

The people of Earth are forced to find a new planet when their own has been destroyed due to pollution and war. Pattie and her family have to learn how to survive on a planet where it seems that no plants will grow and large insects are hovering overhead for periods of time.

NonFiction/Informational

Baker, D. (1988). Danger on apollo 13. Vero Beach, FL: Rourke Enterprises, Inc..

This book takes its readers through the story of what happened on the space exploration aboard Apollo 13. It outlines the takeoff, what they recorded in space, and their tragic yet heroic homecoming. This story includes actual pictures taken aboard the space ship, and also pictures of outer space taken from the craft. It ends with a vocabulary list of words that may not be familiar to the reader.

Campbell-Bartoletti, S. (2005). Hitler Youth. New York, NY: Scholastic Inc..

This is a documentary style book about the children that Hitler recruited and sent to camps in order to indoctrinate them into anti-semitism views. The book includes many pictures of the kids and what it was like to grow up while being turned into killers for Hitler’s cause.

Henderson, K. (1988). Dairy cows. Chicago, IL: Childrens Press.

What makes up a dairy cow? What makes a dairy cow different and special compared to other cows? This book takes the reader through everything from where the cow lives to how their digestion system is set up. It even tells about how the cow’s milk is processed in order to sanitize it and get it ready for the store. “From the cow to you” would be a good subtitle for this book!

Malam, J. (2003). See through mummies. China: Alastair Campbell.

This book is about all things mummies! It has clear pages that have prints on them and when the reader places them over the pages, it shows what each picture would have looked like during the Egyptian period, including what is inside of the gold mummy casing and what the land looked like! There is also information about Egyptian beliefs and how the bodies were preserved.

Osinksi, A. (1988). The nez perce. Chicago, IL: Regensteiner Publishing Enterprises, Inc..

This is a book that tells all about the Nez Perce people. It explains interesting facts such as where they traditionally live, the ways they gather food, their spiritual beliefs, and even how their land and population is disappearing with the arrival of “modern society”.

Seckel, A. (2003). Incredible visual illustrations. London, UK: Arcturus Publishing Limited.

This book is an enormous collection of all things illusions. It includes everything from color illusions that seem to move before your eyes to real life Willy Wonka style streets where individuals think they are going up the street when they are really going down. The book also explains the science behind why our eyes see optical illusions.

Twist, C. (2006). The book of planets. London, UK: Andromeda Children’s Books.

This is a children’s science trade book that is all about planets! It illustrates and tells about each of the planets in our solar system. It also describes what a Dwarf Planet is, what defines the Solar System, and also about Satellites.

Wilkes, A. (1994). The big book of dinosaurs. New York, NY: DK Publishing, Inc..

How many dinosaurs can you name? This book is sure to stretch your knowledge of all things dinosaurs. With pictures of dinosaur skeletons as well as drawings of what scientists think they looked like before their extinction, this book is sure to entertain boys and girls alike with facts and pictures of most every dinosaur known to man at this point in history.

	Children's Literature