Recommended Reading List Lower Elementary

Bringing the Rain to Kapiti Plain, Aardema
Miss Nelson is Missing, Allard
The Sweetest Fig, Allsburg
Here Are My Hands, Archambault
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, Barrett
Madeline, Bemalmans
The Case of the Scaredy Cats, Bonsall
The Case of the Hungry Stranger, Bonsall
Arthur’s Eyes, Brown
Flat Stanley, Brown
Stellaluna, Cannon
Biscuit (Series), Capucilli
The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Carle
The Big Balloon Race, Coerr
The Josefina Story Quilt, Coerr
My Life With Waves, Cowan
The Hunterman & the Crocodile, Diakite
Are You My Mother?, Eastman
Go Dog Go, Eastman
Weslandia, Fleischman
My Father’s Dragon, Gannett
Flicker Flash, Graham
The Village of Round & Square Houses, Grifalconi
This Land Is Your Land, Guthrie
Chickens Aren’t the Only Ones, Heller
The Reason for a Flower, Heller
The Big Rock, Hiscock
Arthur’s Funny Money, Hoban
Silly Tilly & the Easter Bunny, Hoban
A House is a Hose for Me, Hoberman
Danny & the Dinosaur, Hoff
Danny & the Dinosaur Go to Camp, Hoff
The Horse in Harry’s Room, Hoff
Oliver, Hoff
Barney’s Horse, Hoff
Grizzwold, Hoff
Sammy the Seal, Hoff
Rosie’s Walk, Hutchins
The Trek, Jones
The Snowy Day, Keats
Little Blue & Little Yellow, Lionne
Frog & Toad (Series), Lobel
Mouse Tales, Lobel
Doctor Doolittle, Lofting
Mrs. Piggle Wiggle, MacDonald
Sarah, Plain & Tall, MacLachlin
Goldilocks & the Three Bears, Marshall
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, Martin
Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?, Martin
Ma Dear’s Aprons, McKissack
Little Bear (Series), Minarik
Tikkit Tikkit Tembo, Mosel
Black Cat, Myers
Magic Treehouse (Series), Osborne
Amelia Bedelia (Series), Parish
No More Monsters for Me!, Parish
Junie B. Jones (Series), Park
The Whingdingdilly, Peet
The Littles, Peterson
Guys from Space, Pinkwater
The Little Engine that Could, Piper
Big Max, Platt
Thank You Mr. Falker, Polacco
Mrs. Katz & Tush, Polacco
Ride a Purple Pelican, Prelutsky
Curious George, Rey
Henry & Mudge & the Forever Sea, Rylant
Rain Makes Applesauce, Scheer
The Gingerbread Man, Schmidt
Nate the Great (Series), Sharmat
It Looked Like Spilt Milk, Shaw
The True Story of the Three Little Pigs, Scieszka
The Time Warp Trio, Scieszka
Greg’s Microscope, Selsam
Where the Wild Things Are, Sendak
Chicken Soup with Rice, Sendak
Pierre, Sendak
The Cat in the Hat, Seuss
The Cat in the Hat Comes Back, Seuss
Green Eggs & Ham, Seuss
Nate The Great, Sharmat
Lafcadio, The Lion Who Shot Back, Silverstein
The Giving Tree, Silverstein
A Light in the Attic, Silverstein
Falling Up, Silverstein
Chocolate Fever, Smith
Sylvester & the Magic Pebble, Steig
Amos & Boris, Steig
A Tree is Nice, Udry
Alexander & the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, Viorst
Alexander, Whos Not (Do you hear me? I mean it!) Going to Move, Viorst
Ira Sleeps Over, Waber
The House on 88th Street or Lyle Lyle Crocodile, Waber
Charlotte’s Web, White
The Trumpet of the Swan, White
Sector 7, Wiesner
Tuesday, Wiesner
The Velveteen Rabbit, Williams
Morris & Borris at the Circus, Wiseman
King Bidgood in the Bathtub, Wood
Welcome to the Sea of Sand, Yolen
Harry the Dirty Dog, Zion
William’s Doll, Zolotow

Recommended Reading For Upper Elementary

My Name is Maria Isabel, Ada
The Wolves of Willoughby Chase, Aiken
Mr. Popper’s Penguins, Atwater
Something Upstairs, Avi
Tuck Everlasting, Babbitt
The Indian in the Cupboard (Series), Banks
The House with a Clock in It’s Walls, Bellairs
The Five Chinese Brothers, Bishop
Caddie Woodlawn, Brink
Through My Eyes, Bridges
Everywhere, Brooks
The Secret Garden, Burnett
The Summer of the Swans, Byars
The Midnight Fox, Byars
The Moon & I, Byars
Boss of the Plains: The Hat That Won the West, Carlson
Alice in Wonderland, Carroll
Ella Enchanted, Carson
Henry Huggins (Series), Cleary
Ramona (Series), Cleary
The Mouse & the Motorcycle (Series), Cleary
Frindle, Clements
Eleanor, Cooney
Charlie & the Chocolate Factory, Dahl
James & the Giant Peach, Dahl
The Twits, Dahl
The BFG, Dahl
Fantastic Mr. Fox, Dahl
Two Years before the Mast, Dana
Louise Braille, Davidson
Weasel, DeFelice
Guests, Dorris
21 Balloons, DuBois
The Hundred Dresses, Estes
Whispers from the First Californians, Faber
Stories California Indians Told, Fisher
The Great Brain, Fitzgerald
By the Great Horn Spoon, Fleischman
The Whipping Boy, Fleischman
Children of the Wild West, Freedman
And Then What Happened, Paul Revere, Fritz
You Want Woment to Vote, Lizzie Stanton?, Fritz
Homesick: My Own Story, Fritz
Joey Pigza Loses Control, Gantos
Julie of the Wolves, George
My Side of the Mountain, George
Old Yeller, Gipson
The Wind in the Willows, Grahame
Justin Morgan had a Horse, Henry
James Printer: A Novel of Rebellion, Jacobs
Top of the World: Climbing Mount Everest, Jenkins
The Phantom Tollbooth, Juste
Gold Fever, Kay
Iron Horses, Kay
Just So Stories, Kipling
From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, Konigsburg
Ellis Island: Doorway to Freedom, Kroll
And Now Miguel, Krumgold
Shiloh, Lasky
She’s Wearing a Dead Bird on her Head!, Lasky
The Wizard of Earthsea, LeGuin
The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe (Series), Lewis
Lost Flower Children, Lisle
Festivals, Livingston
In the Year of Board & Jackie Robinson, Lord
Yeh Shen: A Cinderella Story from China, Louie
The Root Cellar, Lunn
Snowflake Bentley, Martin
Run Away Home, McKissack
The California Gold Rush, McNeer
Gentle Ben, Morey
Ashanti to Zulu: African Traditions, Musgrove
Harlem, Myers
Shiloh, Naylor
Mrs. Friby & the Rats of Nimh, O’Brien
Island of the Bleu Dolphins, O’Dell
Sarah Bishop, O’Dell
Bridge to Terabithia, Paterson
Pinatas & Paper Flowers, Perl
Alvin Ailey, Pinkney
New Kid on the Block, Prelutsky
Firework-Maker’s Daughter, Pullman
The Fool of the World & the Flying Ship, Ransome
The Westing Game, Raskin
The Summer of the Monkeys, Rawls
Where the Red Fern Grows, Rawls
If You Lived with the Cherokee, Roop
Harry Potter & the Sorcerer’s Stone (Series), Rowling
The Van Gogh Café, Rylant
Missing May, Rylant
Sukey & the Mermaid, San Souci
A Lucky Thing, Schertle
Advice for a Frog, Schertle
Knights of the Kitchen Table, Scieszka
A Cricket in Times Square (Series), Selden
Stinker from Space, Service
Sierra, Siebert
Falling Up, Silverstein
A Light in the Attic, Silverstein
Encyclopedia Brown: Boy Detective, Sobol
The Sign of the Beaver, Speare
The Witch of Blackbird Pond, Speare
Wringer, Spinelli
Colt, Springer
The Red Pony, Steinbeck
Shaka, King of the Zulus, Stanley
The Cay, Taylor
Mississippi Bridge, Taylor
Casey at the Bat, Thayer
The Hobbit, Tolkien
Nettie’s Trip South,Turner
Journey Home, Uchida
Charlotte’s Web, White
The Trumpet of the Swan, White
Little House on the Prairie (Series), Wilder
Scooter, Williams
A Suitcase of Seaweed, Wong
George Washington’s Socks, Woodruff
Dragonwings, Yep

Recommended Reading For Middle School

Watership Down, Adams
Born Free, Adamson
The Cuckoo Sister, Alcock
The Sylvia Game, Alcock
Little Women, Alcott
The Inheritance, Alcott
The King’s Shadow, Alder
The Illyrian Adventure, Alexander
Jedera Adventure, Alexander
El Dorado Adventure, Alexander
Westmark Trilogy, Alexander
Skellig, Almon
Kit’s Wilderness, Almond
Heaven Eyes, Almond
Fever 1793, Anderson
Spell for Chameleon, Anthony
Sounder, Armstrong
I, Robot, Asimov
Nemesis, Asimov
Beyond the Western Sea, Avi
Crispin, Avi
The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle, Avi
Midnight Magic, Avi
Nothing But the Truth, Avi
Wolf Rider, Avi
Peter Pan, Barrie
Lost Years of Merlin, Barron
Peter & the Starcatchers, Barry
Thwonk! (YA), Bauer
Granny the Pag, Bawden
The Last Unicorn (A), Beagle
The Coach that Never Came, Beatty
A Matter of Profit (YA), Bell
The Curse of the Blue Figurine, Bellairs
The Dark Corridor (YA), Bennett
The Folk Keeper, Billingsley
Homebird, Blacker
The Shakespeare Stealer, Blackwood
Shakespeare’s Scribe, Blackwood
Tiger Eyes (YA), Blume
Jane Eyre (YA), Bronte
Moves Make the Man (YA), Brooks
Two Moons in August (YA), Brooks
Someone is Hiding on Alcatraz Island, Bunting
Queenie Peavy, Burch
The Little Princess, Burnett
The Incredible Journey, Burnford
Zero at the Bone (YA), Cadnum
When Morning Comes (YA), Calvert
Behind the Attic Wall, Cassedy
A Hero Ain’t Nothin’ but a Sandwich (YA), Childress
The White Mountain, Christopher
Where the Lilies Bloom, Cleaver
The Janitor’s Boy, Clements
The Goats (YA), Cole
Artemis Fowl, Colfer
Getting Near to Baby, Coloumbis
Trout Summer, Conly
Stonewords, Conrad
Family Reunion, Cooney
Over Sea Under Stone, Cooper
The Chocolate War (YA), Cormier
The Red Badge of Courage (YA), Crane
The Wanderer, Creech
Love That Dog, Creech
Ordinary Jack, Cresswell
Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes (YA), Crutcher
Stotan (YA), Crutcher
Ironman (YA), Crutcher
Dorp Dead, Cunningham
The Watsons Go to Birmingham, Curtis
Catherine Called Birdy, Cushman
Matilda Bone, Cushman
The Midwife’s Apprentice, Cushman
Little Sister, Dalkey
The Heavenward Path, Dalkey
P.S. Longer Letter Later, Danziger
Babysitting, Dayee
The Door in the Wall, DeAngeli
Lostman’s River, DeFelice
Weasel, DeFelice
All Shook Up, Denenberg
Nelson Mandela: No Easy Walk to Freedom, Denenberg
The Tale of Despereaux, Dicamillo
The Journal of Douglas Allen Deeds, Donner
Morning Girl, Dorris
The Hound of the Baskervilles, Doyle
The Mysterious Adventures of Sherlock Holmes, Doyle
Rebecca (A), DuMaurier
The City of Ember, DuPrau
The People of Sparks, DuPrau
So You Want to Be a Wizard, Duane
Radical Red, Duffy
Funny in Farsi, Dumas
I Know What You Did Last Summer (YA), Duncan
Killing Mr. Griffin (YA), Duncan
The Incident at Hawk’s Hill, Eckert
The Breadwinner, Ellis
Francie, English
The Number Devil, Enzensberger
A Girl Named Disaster, Farmer
And Sometimes Why, Farrell
Step by Wicked Step, Fine
The Declaration of Independence, The Words that Made America, Fink
The Skin I’m In, Flake
Bull Run, Fleischman
Shadow Spinner, Fletcher
Johnny Tremain, Forbes
The Diary of a Young Girl, Frank
Out of Darnkess: The Story of Louis Braille, Freedman
Pursuit, French
Coraline, Gaiman
What Would Joey Do?, Gantos
Smith, Garfield
The Strange Affair of Adelaide Harris, Garfield
December Rose, Garfield
Fire Raiser, Gee
Stone Water, Gilbert
Pure Dead Magic, Gliori
Peregrine (YA), Goodman
The Summer of My German Soldier, Greene
It All Began with Jane Eyre, Greenwald
Dive, Griffin
Amandine (YA), Griffin
Love Among the Walnuts, Ferris
The Minstrel’s Tale (YA), Haahr
Running out of Time, Haddix
Among the Hidden, Haddix
Just Ella, Haddix
Turnabout (YA), Haddix
Ride a Dark Horse (YA), Hall
The Samurai’s Tale, Haugaard
Mr. Was, Hautman
Quest for a Maid, Hendry
Double Vision, Henry
The Grave, Heneghan
Olive’s Ocean, Henkes
The Music of Dolphins, Hesse
Out of Dust, Hesse
Witness, Hesse
Murder for her Majesty, Hilgartner
The Outsiders, Hinton
Downriver (YA), Hobbs
Far North, Hobbs
Jason’s Gold, Hobbs
Green Angel, Hoffman
Slake’s Limbo, Holman
When Zachary Beaver Came to Town, Holt
The Ghost in the Tokaido Inn, Hoobler
The Demon in the Teahouse, Hoobler
The Devil & His Boy, Horowitz
Maphead, Howarth
Maphead: the Return, Howarth
The Misfits, Howe
Sweetgrass, Hudson
Across Five Aprils, Hunt
Ancient Rome, James
History of Art for Young People, Janson
The Deptford Mice Triliogy, Jarvis
The Ogre Downstairs (YA), Jones
Dark Lord of Derkholm, Jones
Adam & Eve 7 Pinch-Me, Johnston
Hoop Dreams, Joravsky
Rifles for Watie, Keith
The Amazon Papers (YA), Keller
Fell (YA) (series), Kerr
What I Really Think of You (YA), Kerr
The Woman in the Wall, Kindl
Owl in Love, Kindl
Spider Sparrow, King-Smith
Trouble’s Daughter, Kirkpatrick
Big Red, Kjelgaard
Tiger, Tiger Burning Bright, Koertge
Mariposa Blues, Koertge
Silent to the Bone, Konigsburg
The 6th Grade Nickname Game, Korman
The Twinkie Squad, Korman
Spite Fences, Krisher
Kinship (YA), Krisher
Kiss the Dust, Laird
The Smugglers, Lawrence
The Buccaneers, Lawrence
The Wreckers, Lawrence
A Wrinkle in Time (Series), L’Engle
A Ring of Endless Light, L’Engle
Tehanu, LeGuin
Saving Damaris, Leonard
Hana’s Suitcase, Levine
Escape From Egypt, Levitin
The Mark of Conte, Levitin
Postcards to Father Abraham, Lewis
The Contender (YA), Lipsyte
One Fat Summer, Lipsyte
The Call of the Wild, London
The Sea Wolf, London
White Fang, London
The Giver, Lowry
Gathering Blue, Lowry
The Messenger, Lowry
Hidden Talents, Lubar
Gold Dust, Lynch
Slot Machine, Lynch
Letters from a Slave Girl, Lyons
The Pirate’s Son (YA), McCaughrean
The Changeover (YA), Mahy
Of Two Minds, Matas
More Minds, Matas
Out of Their Minds, Matas
A Meeting of Minds, Matas
The Wild Kid, Mazer
Snow Bound, Mazer
Island Keeper, Mazer
Girlhearts, Mazer
Taking Terri Mueller (YA), Mazer
Dragonsong (series), McCaffrey
Black Horses for the King, McCaffrey
Where the Broken Heart Still Beats, Meyer
The Moorchild, McGraw
The Golden Goblet, McGraw
Mara Daughter of the Nile, McGraw
Striped Ships, McGraw
Where You Belong, McGuinan
The Blue Sword, McKinley
Rose Daughter, McKinley
Sojourner Truth: Ain’t I a Woman, McKissack
Robyn’s Book, Miller
Parsifal’s Page, Morris
Somewhere in the Darkness, Myers
Zel, Napoli
Extra Nutty! Even More Letters from a Nut, Nancy
Blizzard’s Wake, Naylor
The “Alice” Series, Naylor
The Case of the Baker Street Irregular, Newman
Sabriel, Nix
The Search for the Shadowman, Nixon
Deadly Promise, Nixon
Kidnapping of Christina Lattimore, Nixon
The Same Place, But Different, Nodelman
A Completely Different Place, Nodelman
If I Should Die, Nolan
Habibi, Nye
My Name is Not Angelica, O’Dell
Sing down the Moon, O’Dell
Found, Oldham
The Devil in Vienna, Orgel
Jacob Have I Loved, Paterson
The Master Puppeteer, Paterson
Lyddie, Paterson
Jip, His Story, Paterson
Grace, Paton Walsh
Hatchet, Paulsen
Guts, Paulsen
Dogsong, Paulsen
The River, Paulsen
Soldier’s Heart, Paulsen
Brian’s Winter, Paulsen
The Voyage of the Frog, Paulsen
The White Fox Chronicles, Paulsen
Unfinshed Portrait of Jessica, Peck
Fair Weather, Peck
The Year without Michael, Pfeffer
Party Expedition, Philbrick
The Last Book in the Universe, Philbrick
Darkangel (YA) (trilogy), Pierce
Buffalo Brenda, Pinkwater
Count Karlstein (YA), Pullman
The Golden Compass, Pullman
The Subtle Knife, Pullman
The Amber Spyglass, Pullman
Ruby in the Smoke (YA), Pullman
Shadow in the North (YA), Pullman
The Tiger in the Well (YA), Pullman
All Quiet on the Western Front (A), Remarque
The Light in the Forest, Richter
Numbering All the Bones, Rinaldi
The Last Silk Dress, Rinaldi
Girl in Blue, Rinaldi
What Could Go Wrong, Roberts
Twisted Summer, Roberts
The Night of the Twisters, Ruckman
Becoming Naomi Leon, Ryan
Esperanza Rising, Ryan
Holes, Sachar
The Little Prince, St. Exupery
Under the Blood-Red Sun, Salisbury
Out of Nowhere, Sebestyn
Revelation of Saint Bruce, Seymour
Straw into Gold, Schmidt
Black Beauty, Sewall
He Noticed I’m Alive – and Other Hopeful Signs, Sharmat
Don’t Call Me Toad, Shura
The Duplicate, Sleator
House of Stairs, Sleator
Interstellar Pig, Sleator
Marco’s Millions, Sleator
Jaguar, Smith
Song of the Gargoyle, Snyder
The Egypt Game, Snyder
Stop Pretending, Sones
What Happened When My Big Sister Went Crazy, Sones
The Bronze Bow, Speare
Calico Captive, Speare
Maniac Magee, Spinelli
Knots in my Yo-Yo String, Spinelli
Crash, Spinelli,
I Am Mordred, Springer
Shabanu, Staples
Treasure Island, Stevenson
Kidnapped, Stevenson
The Island & the Ring, Stevenson
River Rats, Stevermore
Blood Feud, Sutcliff
Song for a Dark Queen, Sutcliff
Sweet, Taylor
Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry, Taylor
The Ramsay Scallop, Temple
Linda Brown, You are Not Alone, Thomas
Secret Diary of Adrian Mole (YA), Townsend
The Thief, Turner
The Queen of Attolia, Turner
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Twain
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Twain
The Prince & the Pauper, Twain
Sammy Keyes Mysteries, Van Draanen
Never Trust a Dead Man (YA), Vande Velde
Journey to the Center of the Earth (A), Verne
Jackaroo (YA), Voigt
On Fortune’s Wheel, Voight
The Callendar Papers, Voigt
The Wings of a Falcon (YA), Voigt
Cousins in the Castle, Wallace
Surviving Hitler, Warren
The Man in the Woods, Wells
Urn Burial, Westall
Angel on the Square, Whelan
Deathwatch, White
Belle Prater’s Boy, White
Red Cap, Wisler
Hush, Woodson
Stephen Fair, Wynne-Jones
The Swiss Family Robinson, Wyss
Dragonwings, Yep
The Devil’s Arithmetic, Yolen
Dragon’s Blood, Yolen
A Plague of Sorcerers, Zambreno
The Undertaker’s Gone Bananas, Zindel

Recommended Reading For High School

The City of the Beasts, Allende
Daughter of Fortune, Allende
Catalyst, Andersen
Backwater, Bauer
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, Brashares
The Second Summer of the Sisterhood, Brashares
Girls in Pants, the Third Summer of the Sisterhood, Brashares
A Great and Terrible Beauty, Bray
The World at Her Fingertips: The Story of Helen Keller, Dash
Funny in Farsi, Dumas
The House of the Scorpion, Farmer
Things I Have to Tell You, Franco
Bronx Masquerade, Grimes
The Teammates, Halberstam
Seven Years in Tibet, Harrer
All Creatures Great & Small, Herriot
Aleutian Sparrow, Hesse
History of Art for Young People, Janson
A Walk Across America, Jenkins
The Circuit, Jimenez
Breaking Through, Jimenez
The First Part Last, Johnson
Pigs In Heaven, Kingsolver
Danger Zone, Klass
Silent to the Bone, Konigsburg
Girl Boss, Kravetz
Slave Narratives: The Journey to Freedom, Landau
No Pretty Pictures, Lobel
Chinese Cinderella, Mah
Here Today, Martin
Spellbound, McDonald
Robyn’s book, Miller
Malcom X: By Any Means Necessary, Myers
Big Mouth & Ugly Girl, Oates
Born to Fly: The Heroic Story of U.S. Navy Pilot Lt. Shane Osborn, Osborn
The Teacher’s Funeral: A Comedy in Three Parts, Peck
Icy Sparks, Rubio
What My Mother Doesn’t Know, Sones
Living Up the Street: Narrative Recollections, Soto
Fault Line, Tashjian
Beckham & Ferguson: Divided they Stand, Tomas
Stuck in Neutral, Trueman
Old School, Wolff
Probably Still Nick Swansen, Wolff
True Believer, Wolff
Hush, Woodson
Briar Rose, Yolen