Librarianjk recommends Parts

Parts

by Tedd Arnold

Summary: A five-year-old boy thinks his body is falling apart until he learns new teeth grow and hair and skin replace themselves.

This book is not for the easily grossed out! I recommend this book to the reluctant readers or listeners with a certain sense of humor who think that books are not cool. This book has sequels.

Inerest Level: ages 2-4, grades K-3
Reading  Level: grade 3

Librarianjk recommends In the Garden

In the Garden

Summary: Young readers can lift flaps to find out where such animals as butterflies, ladybugs, snails, and frogs are hiding in a garden.

This book is very cute. It is appropriate for pre-school age students and younger. There are very few words in this book. You can play a guessing or peek-a-boo type of game with a young child. It is fun for the child to lift the flaps, but be prepared that it may rip after long-term use. This is a series of board books where the pages are very thick like cardboard.

Interest Level: infants, ages 2-4, grades k-3
Reading Level: grade 2

Historical Fiction for Teens

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Librarianjk recommends I'm a Truck Driver

I'm a Truck Driver

by Jonathan London

Summary: Simple rhyming text introduces sounds and activities of a wide variety of trucks.

This book is excellent for younger readers and listeners interested in motor vehicles!

Interest Level: Ages 2-4, Grades K-3
Reading Level: Grade 2

Librarian recommends Sea Tale

Sea Tale

 by Gail E. Haley

Summary: A young sailor's love for a mermaid is preserved in the ring she fashions for him from a strand of her hair, but he finds himself in a dire dilemma when he remembers he has promised a lock of his sweetheart's hair to a mysterious old woman

This is a terrific story! I predicted that the ending would be tragic, but it was not. It is happy and dramatic but not extremely cheesy.

Interest level: grades k-3
Reading level: grade 4

Librarianjk recommends The Bravest Dog Ever: The True Story of Balto

The Bravest Dog Ever: The True Story of Balto

by Natalie Standiford

Summary: Recounts the life of Balto, the sled dog who saved Nome, Alaska in 1925 from a diphtheria epidemic by delivering medicine through a raging snowstorm

This is an excellent non-fiction read for beginning readers! This is an inspiring survival tale about the abilities of dogs. This might be a good book to discuss with children that a dog can make it on their own when they are on vacation (especially when someone is looking after them) or to inspire hope if a dog is lost.

Interest Level: Grades K-3
Reading Level: Grade 2

Librarianjk recommends Pondlarker

Pondlarker

by Fred Gwynne

Summary: Not satisfied being a frog, Pondlarker seeks a princess' kiss to fulfill his princely ambitions

This is a very cute story. As a fractured fairy tale, it is a twist on The Frog Prince. The ending is very different from the tale that I have heard before! The story ends with an important moral.

Interest Level: grades K-3
Reading Level: grade 4

Librarianjk recommends Rata-pata-scata-fata

Rata-pata-scata-fata : A Caribbean story

by Phillis Gershator

Summary: Preferring to dream away the days on his Caribbean island, little Junjun tries saying magic words to get the chores done

This book has beautiful, unique illustrations. When read to a class, it is fun to say the repetitive lines, especially “Rata-pata-scata-fata!” This book shows that sometimes wish come true, though it might not be magic!

Interest Level: Ages 2-4 and Grades K-3
Reading Level: Grade 2

Mirror/Mirah

Mirror/Mirah

by Jeannie Baker

Summary: In Sydney, Australia, and in Morocco, two boys and their families have a day of shopping. Readers are invited to compare illustrations in two wordless stories that are intended to be read one from left to right and the other from right to left.

This is a beautifully illustrated wordless book. There is text at the beginning and the end of the book, but the story itself contains photographed collages and no words. This book is stupendous for celebrating differences, but more importantly similarities. This is a bilingual book containing both English and Arabic text.

Interest Level: grades k-3

Historical Fiction for High School Students BC-1700s

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Librarianjk recommends The Alphabet from A to Y with Bonus Letter, Z!

The Alphabet from A to Y with Bonus Letter, Z!

by Steve Martin

Summary: Presents a rhyming couplet featuring each letter of the alphabet, with such characters as David the dog-faced boy, who dons a derby despite being dirty, and Victor, whose frequent victories have made him vainglorious.

This is a different approach to alphabet books. This book is by the actor Steve Martin and his comedy shines through!

Interest Level: grades K-3
Reading Level: grade 2

Soccer Hour

Soccer Hour

by Carol Nevius

Summary: Pictures and rhyming text describe the drills and scrimmages of a team at soccer practice.

This is a spectacular read for soccer lovers! I feel it is most appropriate to read to a child one-on-one or as a quick fun read for older children.

Interest Level: grades k-3, grades 4-6
Reading Level: grade 2

Librarianjk recommends Angela and Diabola

Angela and Diabola

by Lynne Reid Banks

Summary: Mr. and Mrs. Cuthbertson-Jones are surprised when their expected baby turns out to be twin girls and distressed when they find that one of them is perfectly good and the other perfectly evil.

This book may seem like a simplistic concept, but the ending is very unique. I enjoyed most of this book. It is a little dark, but I would recommend it to an older child who is interested in fantasy and the concept of good and evil.

Interest Level: grades 4-8
Reading Level: grade 6

Librarianjk recommends ABC3D

ABC3D

by Marion Bataille

Summary: Each letter of the alphabet is introduced in the style of three-dimensional pop-up designs.

This book is really cool if kept in excellent condition. Every page turned shows a letter. There are no words.
Warning: This book may be confusing to young children or frustrating for a child with dyslexia.

Librarianjk recommends My Mom Can't Read

My Mom Can’t Read

by Muriel Stanek

Summary: A young girl is having difficulties reading and asks her mother for help. Her mother keeps putting off helping her.

This book may be an effective way to teach students the importance of reading. The mother experiences many inconveniences, such as not being able to read a bus sign or restaurant menu. This is a great book to read during literature celebrations.

Interest Level: Grades K-3
Reading Level: Grade 2

Librarianjk recommends Rooster's Off to See the World

Rooster’s Off to See the World

by Eric Carle

Summary: A rooster begins a journey. He comes across different creatures in sets of 2, 3, 4, etc. There is an addition and subtraction column changed every time animals come and go.

This book is adorable. I can imagine that this book is effective in teaching children addition and subtraction.

Interest Level: grades K-3
Reading Level: grade 3

Creativity Reads for Grades 3-5

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Librarianjk recommend Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible,
No Good, Very Bad Day
by Judith Viorst

Summary: One day when everything goes wrong for him, Alexander is consoled by the thought that other people have bad days too.

I loved this book as a child. There’s something about this repetitive long expression that makes children want to shout it out while it’s being read. Children find this book comical and often can relate to Alexander. This book can put a child’s bad day into perspective!

Interest Level: ages 2-grade 3
Reading Level: grade 4 

Librarianjk recommends Where the Wild Things Are

Where the Wild Things Are

by Maurice Sendak

Summary: A boy creates trouble and is set to bed without dinner. His room grows ito a forest where he meets wild things.

This book is one of my favorite picture books. Everyone knows or is a wild thing like Max. I was very unhappy with the direction the movie took. The book is much more light-hearted and I never had the impression that Max was an emotionally troubled boy. I feel the book would be great to discuss that there is a time and a place for wild play and that you can always be wild in your imagination. I think the most important part is after traveling for what we are told is a long time, Max comes home and his dinner is still waiting for him and it is hot. His mother still cares about him.

Interest Level: grades K-3
Reading Level: grade 3

Librarianjk recommends Amelia's Notebook

Amelia's Notebook 

by Marissa Moss

The hand-lettered contents of a nine-year-old girl's notebook, in which she records her thoughts and feelings about moving, starting school, and dealing with her older sister, as well as keeping her old best friend and making a new one.


I was a big fan of realistic fiction as an elementary school student, and this is a great one! The idea of a young girl keeping a diary with a hand-writing font was very appealing to me as a child. At the time, I thought this book was very cool, largely because of her side notes and drawings.


Interest Level:grades k-3,  4-6
Reading Level: grade 3

Librarianjk recommends Joseph Had a Little Overcoat

Joseph Had a Little Overcoat

by Simms Taback

Summary: This is the story of a man who has a tattered overcoat. Instead of putting it in the garbage, he makes it into a jacket, then a vest, then a scarf, etc.

The last line of the story is “you can always make something out of nothing.” This would also be an excellent story to discuss recycling and reuse. In a class, a great follow-up activity is to bring in something that would normally go into the trash can or recycling can and then ask children to create something they can use the material for. For example, a coffee can be decorated and used as an alternative to a piggy bank.

Interest Level: grades K-3
Reading Level: grade 2

Librarianjk recommends Scranimals

Scranimals

by Jack Prelutsky

Summary: Each page has a poem about mixed animal names (example: potatoad)

This is a very creative book. Some of the names are hard to pronounce, but I think young children would find this very amusing. A child can point out what two words are being combined.

Interest Level: grades K-3
Reading Level: grade 5

Librarianjk Recommends Ox-Cart Man

Ox-Cart Man

by Donald Hall

Summary: This book is about a man who sells all of his possessions.

I am fond of this book. As a class, a teacher can discuss different types of hometowns in the past and today.

Inerest Level: grades K-3
Reading Level: grade 4

Creativity Reads for Grades 1-2

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Librariankjk recommends Duffy and the Devil

Duffy and the Devil by Harve Zemach

Summary: This is a Conrnish tale with elements of Rumplestilskins. A girl is asked to knit for a squire and cannot. A devil comes and says he can help her; if in 3 years she cannot gues his name, he will take her away. Someone tells her his name and disappears taking back everything he ever knitted.

The illustrations of the devil are fantastic. This may not be appropriate for a young child.

Interest Level: grade K-3
Reading Level: Grade 5

Librarianjk recommends Tuesday

 

Tuesday

by David Wiesner  

Summary: On a Tuesday night, frogs float through the air on their lily pads and explore people’s houses.

This book is interesting to say the least. As with all wordless picture books, an adult may ask a child to create a story from the pictures.

The Mozart Season

The Mozart Season 

by Virginia Euwer Wolff

Summary: This is the story of a page turner who is a talented violinist herself

This is a wonderful book for violinists as well as other musicians. As a beginning violinist in sixth grade I enjoyed this book greatly. This book is often categorized as realistic fiction, and as such is appropriate for youth seeking a character with real feelings. The character comes across struggles in her life, but always pushes along, and continues her music.

Interest Level: grades 4-6, grades 7-8
Reading Level: grade 7

Librarianjk recommends Green Eyes

Green Eyes 

by Abe Birnbaum

Summary: A cat recalls each season of its first year of life including new things he sees and then what he does when he is older.

This book is very cute. The box is his home and he always comes back to this lovable place. Reading with a child one-on-one, you could ask if he or she can find the cat, what other animals they see, what the child likes to do in each season, if they have a cat and if they have ever seen a cat act the way the main character acts.

Librarianjk recommends My Garden

My Garden
by Kevin Henkes

After helping her mother weed, water, and chase the rabbits from their garden, a young girl imagines her dream garden complete with jellybean bushes, chocolate rabbits, and tomatoes the size of beach balls.

This book is so cute! A follow-up could be putting these items in a garden on paper and adding their own things, writing a story about their own garden or another place, learning about planting, or planting.

Interest Level: grades K-3
Reading Level: grade 4

Librarianjk recommends Jumanji

Jumanji by Chris Van Allsburg

Summary: Two children become bored when their parents go out. They go to the park and find a board game. They begin to play, and soon they are in over their heads as jungle creatures enter their house!

This book has a wordless middle. A great way to stimulate creativity in children of all ages is to ask them to create a story about what is happening at these points. In fact, that is pretty much what the movie is! The sequel Zathura is also enjoyable and an activity in comparison would be appropriate after reading the two books.