Socks by Beverly Cleary. Harper, 1973, 139 pages.

 

Shiloh by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor. Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2000, 137 pages.

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. Penguin, 1993, 112 pages

Slaughterhouse Five by Kurt Vonnegut. Dial Press reissue, 1999. 288 pages

Half Magic by Edward Eager. Harcourt Brace, 1954, 182 pages.

On my "classics I have to read" list. Fun and clever for 3rd and 4th graders and families.

Number the Stars by Lois Lowry. Houghton Mifflin, 1989, 1397 pages.

Holocaust tale for younger children. Told from the point of view of a Danish girl who learns her Jewish Friend must go into hiding and then escape to neutral Sweden. They are aided by members of her own family, in the Resistance to Nazi occupied Denmark. Annmarie learns alot in a few days. coming of age-ish. A modern Classic.

Freckle Juice by Judy Blume. Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 1971. 57 Pages.

Nothing But The Truth: a documentary novel by AVI. Avon Books, 1991. 212 pages

School Room classic recommended by an 8th grade class. Realistic Fiction is still my favorite. I loved it. For thoughtful and sophisticated readers.

The Magic Finger by Roald Dahl. Puffin Books, 2009. 63 pages

Recommended to me years ago by an excited 3rd grader who loved funny books, I have been recommending it myself, but only read it now. Great book for many kids-- especially as a first chapter book-- slim and sprinkled with illustrations, it is funny and full of themes kids can identify with- family, emotions, underdogs, justice, animals, magic, etc. And it is VERY British-- think EB White, Dick King-Smith, LeGuin's CatWings. An oldie but goodie, i will be recommending with renewed vigor.

Dragonwings by Lawrence Yep. HarperTrophy, 1975, 248 pages.

Recommended to me by both an 8th grader (who reads for assignments but not for pleasure) and another librarian, I loved it. My first Laurence Yep since Spring Pearl of the American Girls -girls of many lands-series. Wonderful historic fiction, San Francisco, 1904, Chinese immigrants. Little known on this coast, great storytelling and a real sense of what was true for many many families. I love historic fiction.

The House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros. Vintage Contemporaries, 1991. 110 pages.

Originally published in 1984, The House on Mango Street, a YA coming of age classic, reads and feels as fresh as if it were written today. Cisneros reveals Esperanza's world through a series of short, vingettes that read like poetry-- sparse and powerful  with well chosen words. We experience life on Mango Street-- we see  and smell  and feel ---as if we lived there with Esperanza, and Marin and Nenny.  This book lives up to its well deserved reputation.

Friedrich by Hans Peter Richter. Puffin Books, 1987. 149 pages.

School room classic tale of the holocaust translated from the German and told from the point of view of Friedrich's best friend and neighbor, an Aryan youth, whose first name we never learn. A chronological listing of memories, vingnettes, of the life of Friedrich and his family from 1930 through 1942, told in a factual, reporter style. We see as things turn to bad and worse for the jewish family, but the narrator only reports what happens- leaving it to us to guess the meaning or to feel the emotion. A quick read, a classic and very well done. great for discussion and to recommend. A chronological listing of historical events at back. 12+