Picture Books
Moose Tracks
by Karma Wilson
When moose tracks suddenly show up all over his house one morning, the terribly confused narrator attempts to remember how they got there. He recalls inviting all kinds of animals over for a day of friendly play, but he doesn't remember inviting a moose. And yet, there are moose tracks EVERYWHERE! This is a hilarious rhyming book about hospitality sure to bring a smile to every reader's face.
The Three Little Javelinas
by Susan Lowell
In this southwestern version of the European-American classic The Three Little Pigs, readers are introduced to the wildlife, language, and native peoples of the Sonoran desert of southern Arizona and northern Mexico.
Finding Winnie
by Lindsay Matlick
This is the true story behind the world's most famous bear, Winnie the Pooh. The author is the great-granddaughter of Captain Harry Colebourn, a Canadian soldier sent off to fight in WWI. While en route to his station, Colebourn rescues a bear cub from a trapper and names her Winnie. As the war rages on, Colebourn can no longer care for the growing bear and must relocate her to the London Zoo. While she's there a young boy named Christopher Robin, the son of a budding English writer A.A. Milne comes to know and love her.
The Secret Garden of George Washington Carver
by Gene Barretta
Before he became a celebrated botanist and inventor, George Washington Carver was a young boy who nurtured a secret garden on the plantation of his former owners turned adoptive parents. He took what he learned in those early days and went on to promote healthy crop rotation, develop methods for preventing soil erosion, and find 300 uses for the peanut. This is a true story of humility, ingenuity, and grit.
Leveled Readers
Big Egg
by Molly Coxe
With an emphasis on the short vowel sounds, this Level 1 reader follows the misadventures of a hen who finds a gigantic egg in her nest one morning. After searching all over the farm for its real owner, the hen meets a fox. Can she protect the egg? Can she protect herself? This story contains action-packed illustrations to help young readers decode context clues in order to build confidence and fluency. Each sentence is 3-4 words or less, some containing special phonograms.
Eat My Dust: Henry Ford's Big Race
by Monica Kulling
Henry Ford is passionate about mechanics and dreams of building a "horseless carriage" that everyday people can afford, rather than just the wealthy. Henry lacks the money needed to mass-produce his prototype. To secure funding and prove his car's capability, he decides to enter a high-stakes car race against experienced drivers. But will he win the $1000 grand prize, or will he go home empty-handed?
This true story is a Level 3 reader with illustrations that will captivate any emergent reader.
Illustrated Chapter Books
Our Friend Hedgehog: The Story of Us
by Lauren Castillo
When a storm separates Hedgehog from her lifelong friend, she sets off to find him and in the process makes many new friends along the way. This is a classic tale of love for kids who grew up on Frog and Toad adventures and who are ready for a lengthier, meatier story. It contains full-color illustrations on all 111 pages.
My Father's Dragon
by Ruth Stiles Gannett
A young Elmer heads to Wild Island to rescue a dragon that is being held captive by the jungle animals who are forcing him to shuttle them across a raging river each day. Elmer must use his brain and only what is in his backpack to outwit tigers, gorillas, crocodiles, and more. This is the first in a three-part series about Elmer and his beloved dragon.
Middle-Grade Novels
A Place to Hang the Moon
by Kate Albus
When their grandmother passes away, orphaned siblings William, Edmund, and Anna are shipped off to the English countryside along with hundreds of other children who are escaping the air raids that threaten all of London. They have high hopes that their temporary guardians will want to keep them not just until the war ends, but permanently.
The Wild Robot
by Peter Brown
Roz is a robot that has been shipwrecked on a deserted island. Or so she thinks. Actually, the island is inhabited by all kinds of animals, most of which don't trust her high-tech ways. This is a story of sacrificial love, unlikely friendships, and an admirable work ethic. Readers of all ages, will no doubt learn quite a bit about the habits and instincts of wild animals while also developing a sense of compassion and understanding.
This is the first in a series of three books. The first two are great. Unfortunately, the third book takes a "save the world at all costs" turn. Additionally in book three, there is a conversation about how a Goby fish changes its gender. (Scientifically, this is true. Goby fish do change gender in their lifetimes.) The comment is used in context to help Roz feel OK that she's neither male nor female.
The Bark of the Bog Owl
by Jonathan Rogers
Aidan Errolson is just your average 12-year-old living with his family in the woods and swamps of Corenwald. But then one day, Bayard arrives and turns his life upside down. Skipping over all the older brothers of the family, the eccentric Truthspeaker declares Aidan the future king who will lead the country to its former glory. Trouble is, no one really believes the prophecy, not even Aidan himself. This is the first in the Wilderking trilogy, an allegorical fantasy series based on the life of King David. Book 1 sticks to the events of 1 Samuel almost beat for beat.
Please note: Most adults find the series to be unnecessarily silly. Kids, on the other hand, absolutely love its whimsical tone.
The Ostrich and Other Lost Things
by Beth Hautala
11-year-old Olivia Grant has reached an age when her older brother's autism diagnosis begins to mean new things for her and her family. She struggles to find her place in this delicate sibling relationship. In her misguided effort to help him find NORMAL, she learns a powerful lesson about unconditional love.
Parents, Be Aware
Franklin Endicott and the Third Key
by Kate DiCamillo
Franklin is afraid. He's afraid of everything. It's not until his elderly neighbor, Eugenia Lincoln, takes him to a curiously strange Used Goods store and he discovers an unusual key that he learns to be brave.
Fans who grew up reading the Mercy Watson series will appreciate Mercy's cameo appearance in this book.
Things to know: This illustrated chapter book has recently been included in several homeschool curriculum reading packages for early readers below 3rd grade. While the story is quite humorous and has the potential to captivate even reluctant readers, parents should be aware that the illustrations can be somewhat scary for the intended reader's age range. One picture shows a jar of fake animal eyeballs. Another depicts a headless man running. (Turns out, the man is actually a mannequin, but the image may be frightening to little ones.) In addition, one line reads that Franklin finds entries about "night witches and demons and goblins and trolls" in a set of encyclopedias.
The One and Only Bob
by Katherine Applegate
In this middle-grade sequel to The One and Only Ivan, Bob must rescue Ivan and Ruby when their animal shelter is tragically struck by a tornado. Along the way, he searches for his long-lost littermate only to discover that she was killed by a poacher.
Things to know: This follow-up tale is quite a bit more violent in nature than the first and includes descriptions of animals in grave danger. While these scenes are handled with care, they may still be troubling for sensitive readers. In addition, page 90 includes the following paragraph, "Families, I've noticed, take a lot of different shapes. Jim and Joe, the penguins, adopted an abandoned egg, and they are the sweetest doting parents you ever saw. I see it with humans at the park, too. Families of all shapes and sizes and colors and genders and yep, they all seem to do just fine."
The Saturdays
by Elizabeth Enright
In this first book of a 4-part domestic fiction series, the four Melendy siblings decide to pool their allowance in order to send one of them out on a Saturday adventure each week. Although their plan, affectionately known as I.S.A.A.C. was intended to give them all their own independent fun, it actually finds all four kids having a month of Saturday misadventures together.
Things to know: While this book was written in the 1940s and is very clean, there is one chapter that includes a fortune teller and a discussion between the children and an elderly woman who tells them tales of her growing up. The text reads: “Then he tastes some of the dragon’s blood he has on his finger, and all of a sudden he can understand everything. The animals and birds in the forest are saying.” Later in that same chapter, it says, “When I began asking frightened questions, the gypsy came close to me and grabbed my arm. She told me that I was not going home, but far away, to my father, is ready to pay a price to get me back. When I cried and struggled, she called Bastion, and they bound my wrists and ankles, and tied a rag over my mouth. All night I lay on the floor in the dark room, feeling the wagon, lurch, and sway…”