I've been wanting to share with you all the books we will be reading in our read-a-loud times during our school days. I have selected several of my all time favorite children's/middle grade books. Also, I let my son pick a few of the books, that way it's a few that he really wants to read as well. Below is the the list of the top 10 books we will be reading this year.
The first book on this list we already finished and loved! It's one that my son picked out himself and we plan to read the rest of the books in the series as well.
Scholastic's next
multi-platform mega-event begins here! History is broken, and three kids
must travel back in time to set it right!
When best friends Dak
Smyth and Sera Froste stumble upon the secret of time travel -- a
hand-held device known as the Infinity Ring -- they're swept up in a
centuries-long secret war for the fate of mankind. Recruited by the
Hystorians, a secret society that dates back to Aristotle, the kids
learn that history has gone disastrously off course.Now it's up to Dak,
Sera, and teenage Hystorian-in-training Riq to travel back in time to
fix the Great Breaks . . . and to save Dak's missing parents while
they're at it. First stop: Spain, 1492, where a sailor named Christopher
Columbus is about to be thrown overboard in a deadly mutiny!
(This is a book that I picked, it's one of my all time favorites as a kid.)
Full of magic and appealing characters, this classic novel takes readers on a remarkable adventure.
It's
Omri's birthday, but all he gets from his best friend, Patrick, is a
little plastic Indian brave. Trying to hide his disappointment, Omri
puts the Indian in a metal cupboard and locks the door with a mysterious
skeleton key that once belonged to his great-grandmother. Little does
Omri know that by turning the key, he will transform his ordinary
plastic Indian into a real live man from an altogether different time
and place! Omri and the tiny warrior called Little Bear could hardly be
more different, yet soon the two forge a very special friendship. Will
Omri be able to keep Little Bear without anyone finding out and taking
his precious Indian from him?
(This book goes along with our history lessons. My son picked this one!)
Jack and Annie are off in search of another story in jeopardy, this time at
a monastery in ancient Ireland. Trouble arrives when Vikings land, and Jack and
Annie must find a way to escape!
(Another one of my favs!)
Some
extraordinary rats come to the aid of a mouse family in this Newbery
Medal Award-winning classic by notable children's author Robert C.
O'Brien.
Mrs. Frisby, a widowed mouse with four small children,
is faced with a terrible problem. She must move her family to their
summer quarters immediately, or face almost certain death. But her
youngest son, Timothy, lies ill with pneumonia and must not be moved.
Fortunately, she encounters the rats of NIMH, an extraordinary breed of
highly intelligent creatures, who come up with a brilliant solution to
her dilemma. And Mrs. Frisby in turn renders them a great service.
(Another one of my favs!)
Percy Jackson is a good
kid, but he can't seem to focus on his schoolwork or control his
temper. And lately, being away at boarding school is only getting worse -
Percy could have sworn his pre-algebra teacher turned into a monster
and tried to kill him. When Percy's mom finds out, she knows it's time
that he knew the truth about where he came from, and that he go to the
one place he'll be safe. She sends Percy to Camp Half Blood, a summer
camp for demigods (on Long Island), where he learns that the father he
never knew is Poseidon, God of the Sea. Soon a mystery unfolds and
together with his friends—one a satyr and the other the demigod daughter
of Athena - Percy sets out on a quest across the United States to reach
the gates of the Underworld (located in a recording studio in
Hollywood) and prevent a catastrophic war between the gods.
(We picked this one together!)
Where the Sidewalk Ends
turns forty! Celebrate with this anniversary edition that features an
eye-catching commemorative red sticker. This classic poetry collection,
which is both outrageously funny and profound, has been the most beloved
of Shel Silverstein's poetry books for generations.
Where the
sidewalk ends, Shel Silverstein's world begins. There you'll meet a boy
who turns into a TV set and a girl who eats a whale. The Unicorn and the
Bloath live there, and so does Sarah Cynthia Sylvia Stout who will not
take the garbage out. It is a place where you wash your shadow and plant
diamond gardens, a place where shoes fly, sisters are auctioned off,
and crocodiles go to the dentist.
Shel Silverstein's masterful
collection of poems and drawings is one of Parent & Child magazine's
100 Greatest Books for Kids. School Library Journal said, "Silverstein
has an excellent sense of rhythm and rhyme and a good ear for
alliteration and assonance that make these poems a pleasure to read
aloud."
Shel Silverstein's incomparable career as a children's
book author and illustrator began with Lafcadio, the Lion Who Shot Back.
In 1964, Shel's creativity continued to flourish as four more books
were published in the same year—Don't Bump the Glump!, A Giraffe and a
Half, Who Wants a Cheap Rhinoceros?, and the beloved classic The Giving
Tree. Later he continued to build his remarkable body of work with Where
the Sidewalk Ends, A Light in the Attic, Falling Up, Every Thing On It,
The Missing Piece, The Missing Piece Meets the Big O, and Runny Babbit.
(You had to know this would make the list!)
Harry Potter's life is
miserable. His parents are dead and he's stuck with his heartless
relatives, who force him to live in a tiny closet under the stairs. But
his fortune changes when he receives a letter that tells him the truth
about himself: he's a wizard. A mysterious visitor rescues him from his
relatives and takes him to his new home, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft
and Wizardry.
After a lifetime of bottling up his magical powers,
Harry finally feels like a normal kid. But even within the Wizarding
community, he is special. He is the boy who lived: the only person to
have ever survived a killing curse inflicted by the evil Lord Voldemort,
who launched a brutal takeover of the Wizarding world, only to vanish
after failing to kill Harry.
Though Harry's first year at
Hogwarts is the best of his life, not everything is perfect. There is a
dangerous secret object hidden within the castle walls, and Harry
believes it's his responsibility to prevent it from falling into evil
hands. But doing so will bring him into contact with forces more
terrifying than he ever could have imagined.
Full of sympathetic
characters, wildly imaginative situations, and countless exciting
details, the first installment in the series assembles an unforgettable
magical world and sets the stage for many high-stakes adventures to
come.
(Another one of my favorites! It's a classic that is perfect to add to any read-a-loud list.)
This beloved book by E.
B. White, author of Stuart Little and The Trumpet of the Swan, is a
classic of children's literature that is "just about perfect." This
high-quality paperback features vibrant illustrations colorized by
Rosemary Wells!
Some Pig. Humble. Radiant. These are the words in
Charlotte's Web, high up in Zuckerman's barn. Charlotte's spiderweb
tells of her feelings for a little pig named Wilbur, who simply wants a
friend. They also express the love of a girl named Fern, who saved
Wilbur's life when he was born the runt of his litter.
E. B.
White's Newbery Honor Book is a tender novel of friendship, love, life,
and death that will continue to be enjoyed by generations to come. This
edition contains newly color illustrations by Garth Williams, the
acclaimed illustrator of E. B. White's Stuart Little and Laura Ingalls
Wilder's Little House series, among many other books.
(Another one of the books I picked! Also another classic.)
A paperback edition of
E.B. White's classic novel about one small mouse on a very big
adventure! With black and white illustrations.
Stuart Little is
no ordinary mouse. Born to a family of humans, he lives in New York City
with his parents, his older brother George, and Snowbell the cat.
Though he's shy and thoughtful, he's also a true lover of adventure.
Stuart's
greatest adventure comes when his best friend, a beautiful little bird
named Margalo, disappears from her nest. Determined to track her down,
Stuart ventures away from home for the very first time in his life. He
finds adventure aplenty. But will he find his friend?
(These books are easy to read and fantastic stories filled with history and fun. We picked these together and plan to read several of them!)
So this is our list for now, would love to add a few more to our list and probably will. Do you have any favorite books that are great for middle grade boys? If so, I would love to hear others that you enjoy!
