Born to Read

Asch, Frank. Just Like Daddy. A young bear cub describes his day—just like Daddy’s, until he catches a fish—just like Mommy.

Bang, Molly. Ten, Nine, Eight. A father and his little girl count down warm bedtime activities.

Christelow, Eileen. Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed. The well-known, happy counting rhyme provides a humorous twist to the ending.

Ginsburg, Mirra. Good Morning Chick. A just-hatched chick trying to imitate a rooster provides fun for the youngest child.

Kalan, Robert. Jump, Frog, Jump.  A cumulative story, full of action and suspense, with plenty of room for participation.

Keats, Ezra Jack. Whistle for Willie.  Peter wishes so much that he could surprise his dog by whistling for him.

Martin, Jr., Bill. Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?. A classic picture book with large, colorful illustrations by Eric Carle.

Martin, Jr., Bill. Chicka Chicka Boom Boom.  A lively alphabet rhyme with an enticing beat and cheerful pictures.

Pinkney, Andrea. Pretty Brown Face.  A baby boy lists the parts of his face, which come together to make him unique.

Rice, Eve. Sam Who Never Forgets.  The classic, simple tale of Sam, the zookeeper, who never, ever forgot to feed all of the animals.

Preschool

Balian, Lorna. The Aminal.  Wonderful interactive read aloud that demonstrates the concept of imagination.

Daly, Niki. Jamela’s Dress. Jamela promises to guard her mother’s precious dress fabric--but ends up parading joyously through town, wrapped in the cloth.

Feiffer, Jules. Bark, George. Hilarious story about a dog that purrs, quacks, moos, and grunts, but doesn't bark.

Gackenbach, Dick. Harry and the Terrible Whatzit.  Harry must confront the terrible two-headed monster in the cellar when his mother goes missing.

Henkes , Kevin. Wemberly Worried. Wemberly is going to school, and there is plenty to worry about!

Kasza, Keiko. Don’t Laugh, Joe!  Learning to play possum is serious business to his Mother--but Little Joe Possum can't stop giggling!

King, Bob. Sitting on the Farm. A young girl having a picnic can’t get rid of the increasingly larger animals she invites in this rhythmic cumulative tale.

Vaughan, Marcia K. Snap!  Joey the Kangaroo and his friends fall for the crocodile's play and land in his mouth--before they are saved by Joey's new game.

Wood, Audrey. Napping House. Appealing and humorous bedtime story about various critters who head off to sleep, except for one wakeful flea.

Early Elementary

Aardema, Verna. Anansi Does the Impossible. The clever spider Anansi outwits the Sky God, claiming his stories for the people.

Catling, Patrick Skene. The Chocolate Touch. John Midas loves candy and is thrilled--at first--to find that everything he touches turns to chocolate.

Dahl, Roald. James and the Giant Peach. James is the saddest and loneliest boy imaginable, but his life is transformed when he climbs aboard a magical house-sized peach.

Demi. One Grain of Rice. Rani is a clever girl who outwits the selfish Raja using the math principle of doubling.

Gannett, Ruth Stiles. My Father's Dragon. The fun begins when Elmer Elevator runs away to rescue a flying baby dragon.

Gantos, Jack. Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key. Joey can't get a grip and his ADHD "meds" are not helping, as he careens toward disaster.

Grahame, Kenneth. The Wind in the Willows. Ratty, Mole, Mr. Toad and friends embark on unforgettable adventures in this classic story.

Hong, Lily Toy. Two of Everything. Chinese tale about a magic pot that doubles whatever is put into it.

Lowry, Lois. Attaboy, Sam. Sam concocts perfume for mom's birthday, and the results are explosive!

Scieszka, Jon. Knights of the Kitchen Table. From the Time Warp Trio series, Joe is given a magic book that transports him and two friends back to King Arthur's Britain.

White, E. B. Charlotte's Web. Charlotte is a very literate spider whose innovative plan saves her friend, Wilbur the pig, from his unpleasant fate in this classic fantasy.

Older Elementary

Babbitt, Natalie. Tuck Everlasting. Ten year old Winnie discovers the Tuck family secret--water from the well of eternal life, in this powerful, yet poignant story.

Hahn, Mary Downing. The Dead Man in Indian Creek. Fast-paced murder mystery in which a dead body discovered by two friends may be linked to the mother of one of them.

Lewis, C. S. Chronicles of Narnia (Series). Follow four children through the wardrobe and into the magical land of Narnia, where a golden lion rules and evil threatens--a timeless masterpiece. Book 1: The Magician's Nephew

Naylor, Phyllis R. Shiloh. When Marty finds a lost beagle in the hills behind his West Virginia home, he tries to hide it from his family, and from the dog's mean-spirited owner.

Rodgers, Mary. Freaky Friday. Hilarious events unfold the day Annabel is turned into her mother.

Slote, Alfred. Finding Buck McHenry. Jason becomes convinced that the school custodian is a former star pitcher of the Negro leagues.

Curtis, Christopher Paul. The Watsons Go to Birmingham--1963: A Novel. Kenny Watson's family drives "home" to Birmingham, Alabama, from Detroit during the summer of church bombings.

Levine, Gail. Ella Enchanted. A blundering fairy enacts a terrible curse on Ella - to obey every command that she is given--by anyone, to do anything.

Lowry, Lois. Number the Stars. Annemarie and her friend Ellen Rosen must pose as sisters in order to smuggle Ellen and her family out of Nazi-occupied Denmark.

Rowling, J. K. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Series). Harry's stifling life with his horrid relatives is transformed when he learns that he is in fact a wizard, and the heir to a mantle of great magic.

Spinelli, Jerry. Maniac Magee. "One part fact, two parts legend, and three parts snowball," Maniac Magee brings a racially divided town together through his amazing exploits, and finds a home.

Tolkien, J. R. R. The Hobbit. Bilbo Baggins finds himself caught up in adventures with trolls, dragons, and a ring of invisibility--a stepping stone to Tolkien's Lord of the Rings trilogy.

Wrede, Patricia. Dealing With Dragons. Princess Cimorene would rather not learn dancing or marry a prince, so she runs away to the enchanted forest to become a cook for a dragon in this humorous and lively fantasy.  (Series title: The Enchanted Forest)

Middle and High School

Avi. The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle. Traveling alone by ship from England to America in 1832, Charlotte is drawn into danger with a  mutinous crew.

Card, Orson Scott. Ender's Game. Ender Wiggin is a genius, one of several who are selected to attend an elite battle school in outer space, in preparation for saving the universe from an alien attack.  (Book One of the Ender Quartet)

Farmer, Nancy. The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm. Three strangely gifted mutant detectives set out to save three kidnapped children in a futuristic Zimbabwe of blue monkeys and mile-high buildings - thrilling, comic, and bizarre.

Jacques, Brian. Redwall (Series). Longing for their mythic hero, the forest animals of Redwall Abbey must fight the evil rat Cluny and his hordes - until the bumbling mouse Mathias finds his destiny.

London, Jack. Call of the Wild. Buck, a domesticated dog from California, becomes a sled dog in the Klondike, before rejoining his ancestors wolf ancestors

McKinley, Robin. Beauty:  A Retelling of Beauty and the Beast. Fantasy and romance blended together in an evocative and much-expanded version of the classic tale.

Matas, Carol. The Burning Time. Rose and her mother are accused of witchcraft in sixteenth-century France.

Philbrick, Rodman. Freak the Mighty. A tiny genius and a hulking loner become the adventurous duo, "Freak the Mighty," in this blend of triumph and tragedy.

Pullman, Philip. The Golden Compass. In an altered Medieval England of spirit daemons and mystical spells, Lyra uncovers a chilling plan, which compels her to the far North to rescue legions of missing children.

Paulsen, Gary. Hatchet. Brian is the sole survivor of a plane crash in the Canadian wilderness, with only a hatchet to help him keep going as winter approaches.

Peck, Richard. Long Way From Chicago. Seven episodic and memorable tales of gruff Grandma Dowdel and her city-bred grandchildren.

Taylor, Mildred. Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry. Unforgettable story of a black family's struggle to retain their dignity and humanity in rural Mississippi during the depression.  Sequels: Let the Circle be Unbroken; The Road to Memphis.

Poetry and Classic Tales

Aesop. Aesop's Fables. Ancient tales that teach lessons about human nature and right behavior.

Glenn, Mel. My Friend’s Got This Problem, Mr. Chandler. Story poems in the first person, as told to the high school guidance counselor.

Hamilton, Virginia. The People Could Fly.  From Wiley and the Hairy Man, to less well-known black folk tales by an accomplished writer.

Kipling, Rudyard. Just-so Stories. Kipling's well-loved pourquoi tales from Asian and African traditions.

Mahy, Margaret. Bubble Trouble and Other Poems and Stories.  Poems for giggling!

Pass It On: African-American Poetry for Children. Poems on life, love, family, hope, and tradition, selected by Wade Hudson.

Opie, Iona Archibald, ed. My Very First Mother Goose. Rosemary Wells introduces the youngest child to favorite Mother Goose rhymes.

Prelutsky, Jack. The beauty of the Beast; Tasty Treats for Animal Appetites.  Poems of the animal kingdom that are fun to read and to look at, with beautiful watercolors by Meilo So.

.Russell, William F. Classic Myths to Read Aloud. Written especially for children ages 5 to 12, classic myths come alive.

Scieszka, Jon. Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales. Twisted folk tales for all ages.

Wyndham, Robert, ed. Chinese Mother Goose Rhymes. Poems, lullabys, counting rhymes and songs for the very young from the Chinese oral tradition.