The
Cricket in Times Square by George Selden
A country cricket with unique musical talents lands in the
middle of
Dealing
With Dragons by Patricia Wrede
Princess Cimorene is a tomboy bored by royal court life. She flees her kingdom
and becomes an assistant to the dragon Kazul. (MPL Favoreads)
Running
Out of Time by Margaret Haddix
When a diphtheria epidemic hits her 1840 village, thirteen-year-old Jessie
discovers it is actually a 1995 tourist site under unseen observation by
heartless scientists. It's up to Jessie to escape the village and save the
lives of the dying children. (MPL Favoreads)
Skellig by David Almond
Unhappy about his baby sister's illness and the chaos of moving into a
dilapidated old house, Michael retreats to the garage and finds a mysterious
stranger who is something like a bird and something like an angel (MPL
Favoreads).
Trumpet
of the Swan by E.B. White
Louis, a voiceless trumpeter swan, becomes a famous jazz trumpet player (MPL
Favoreads).
Maniac
MaGee by Jerry Spinelli
Maniac Magee is a folk story about a boy, a very
excitable boy. One that can outrun dogs, hit a home run off the best pitcher in
the neighborhood, tie a knot no one can undo. "Kid's gotta be a
maniac," is what the folks in Two Mills say. It's also the story of how
this boy, Jeffrey Lionel "Maniac" Magee, confronts racism in a small
town, tries to find a home where there is none and attempts to soothe tensions
between rival factions on the tough side of town (Amazon.com).
Spurred on by his youngest sister,
Rose, twelve-year-old Indigo sticks up for himself and an American boy who has
replaced him as the primary target of the school bullies (
.
Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech
In this classical tale of
spiritual quest, Salmanca Tree Hidle is thirteen years old, proud of the
“Indianness in her blood” and heading west with her grandparents on a
2,000-mile journey from
Misty
of Chincoteague by Marguerite Henry
The story of two
children and their love and admiration for the wild ponies of
Other titles in the series include
Stormy: Misty’s Foal and Sea Star: Orphan of Chincoteague
The
Black Stallion by Walter Farley
The Classic tale of a wild horse and a shipwrecked boy
who must be rescued from a deserted island. (MPL Favoreads)
King of the Wind by Marguerite Henry
Traces the heartaches and triumphs of the Arabian stallion that became a founding sire of a thoroughbred breed, and of the mute Arabian boy who tended him as long as he lived. (MPL Favoreads)
i
Pac2.0
Where
the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls
Billy and his 2 coonhound pups, Old Dan and Little Ann, ranged the dark hills and river bottoms of Cherokee country. Old Dan had the brawn, Little Ann had the brains -- and Billy had the will to train them to be the finest hunting team in the valley. Glory and victory were coming to them, but sadness waited too. An exciting tale of love and adventure you'll never forget (Amazon.com).
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Because
of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo
"My name is India Opal Buloni, and last summer my daddy, the preacher, sent me to the store for a box of macaroni-and-cheese, some white rice, and two tomatoes and I came back with a dog." With these words, ten-year-old Opal Buloni begins her account of the summer her life changed because of Winn-Dixie, a goofy stray dog she adopted (About.com).
Number the Stars by Lois Lowry
Ten-year-old
Annemarie Johansen and her best friend Ellen Rosen often think about life
before the war. But it's now 1943 and their life in Copenhagen
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Big Red by Kim Kjelgaard
From the moment Danny sees the beautiful Irish setter, he knows Red is the dog for him. Together Danny and Red face many dangers in the harsh Wintapi wilderness that they call home (MPL library catalog).
Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White
Wilbur, the pig, is desolate when he discovers that he is destined to be the farmer's Christmas dinner until his spider friend, Charlotte, decides to help him (MPL library catalog).
Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine
Ella’s fairy godmother gave her the gift of obedience, making her powerless against a direct command. The setting is a modestly magical long-ago kingdom, where Ella, a spunky heroine, is determined to break the spell and thus
free herself from the possibility of doing something really stupid just because she has been told to (Lipson).
The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket (series: A Series of Unfortunate Events)
After the sudden death of their parents, the three Baudelaire children must depend on each other and their wits when it turns out that the distant relative who is appointed their guardian is determined to use any means necessary to get their fortune (MPL Catalog).
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The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis (series: The Chronicles of Narnia)
Siblings Edmund, Lucy, Susan and
Peter find passage through a magical wardrobe and meet the amazing characters
of the enchanted
Click here for a list of Chronicles of Narnia Read-a-Likes
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Can of Worms by Mackel, Kathy
Mike Pillsbury’s strange memories of aliens convince him that he is from another planet. Only his younger neighbors believe his stories until, humiliated in school one day, he summons help from outer space- and it arrives! (Odean)
Stanley Yelnats (which is Stanley Yelnats spelled
backwards) is sent to a cruel correctional camp in the
The Hobbit, or There and Back Again by J.R.R. Tolkien
The background
volume to the Lord of the Rings trilogy, this book tells the story of Bilbo
Baggins’s adventures as he sets out to recover a treasure stolen by a dragon
long ago. On the journey, Bilbo encounters trolls, goblins, and elves and
engages in a dreadful battle (Odean).
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
This is the first in a quartet of
fantasy novels about the
The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman (series: His Dark Materials)
Lyra climbs on a great bear’s back and sets off into the arctic to save the world. Also in this series: The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass (Lipson).
Knight’s
Castle by Edward Eager
Four cousins have an extraordinary summer when, after an old toy soldier comes to life, they find themselves transported back to the days of Robin Hood and Ivanhoe. (MPL Favoreads).
The
Black Cauldron by Lloyd Alexander (series: The Chronicles of Prydain)
This is the best-known volume of a
favorite fantasy quintet about the imaginary
Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson
Jim Hawkins obtains a treasure map from a
mysterious stranger and shows it to the local doctor and squire. The men plan
an expedition to
Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt
The Tuck family drinks from a magical spring and is blessed (or is it cursed?) with eternal life. The try to live inconspicuously, but one day 10 year old Winnie Foster discovers their secret. (Lipson)
The Egypt Game by Zilpha Keatley Synder
April and Melanie are eleven years
old and best friends in a small town in
Sources:
About.com <www.about.com>
Amazon.com <www.amazon.com>
Lipson, Eden Ross. The New York Times Parent’s Guide to
the Best Books for Children.
MPL Favoreads <http://www.madisonpubliclibrary.org/youth/booklists/favoreadawards.html>
MPL Catalog (Syndetic Solutions) <http://www.linkcat.info/ipac20/ipac.jsp?profile=dial#focus>
Multnomah County Library website Talk it Up! Book Discussion Groups for Kids <http://www.multcolib.org/talk/guides-number.html>
Odean, Kathleen. Great Books About Things Kids Love.
L.E.
Phillips Memorial Library < http://www.eauclaire.lib.wi.us/>