june 2016 - pingry school · a picture postcard can be sent from anywhere – even from your own...

June 2016

A Message to Pingry Families,

Fostering a love of reading is one of the greatest gifts we can give our children.

The Lower School Library Summer Reading Lists have been developed to encourage reading and to guide our

students with their book choices during the summer. Reading

for pleasure during this time will continue the development of reading skills and instill

a love of reading that will last a lifetime.

We recommend that students read a variety of books from their reading list. Many different books, from chal-

lenging to easier titles, are listed. While specific book titles are suggested, students may read any title by the

authors listed.

The books are divided into fiction, nonfiction, poetry, folktales, and biographies and the titles are annotated to

help in the selection process. We hope every child will find something on the list which will spark their inter-

est in reading.

The following information and resources can be found in this booklet:

Postcards to the Library Program – Students send picture postcards to the Library letting us know

the books they are reading and how they are enjoying their summer vacation. See directions for partici-

pation on the next page.

Reading Log – Set a reading goal, and record the books read during the summer.

Lower School Library Website – Check out the website for Summer Reading Lists and subscription

databases for research and fun activities.

Tumblebooks – An online collection of e-books, offering streaming read-aloud picture books, chapter

books, and nonfiction, with related games and activities.

eBooks – Check out and read eBooks from the collection, on your computer or mobile device.

Have a Wonderful Summer and Happy Reading!

Sincerely,

Mrs. D’Innocenzo

Lower School Librarian

Send Postcards to the Library

Dear Mrs. D’Innocenzo,

I am having a wonderful time at

camp in Vermont.

I play sports, go swimming,

and have time to read every night

before dinner.

I have just finished reading

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

by Roald Dahl. It was a great book

and I loved it!

The Pingry School

50 Country Day Drive

Short Hills, NJ 07078

How to Participate in Postcards to the Library:

During the summer send picture postcards to the Library at the above address.

A picture postcard can be sent from anywhere – even from your own

hometown or from Grandma’s house.

Send one postcard for each book read. The more books read, the more

postcards can be sent.

Include the book title, author’s name, and your first and last name.

Write a short description of what you liked about the book and how you are

enjoying the summer vacation.

Each postcard becomes an entry for a drawing to be held the first week of

school in September.

Prizes of gift cards for Barnes & Noble bookstore will be awarded at that time.

All postcards will be displayed in the hallway at Back-to-School Night and later

placed in an album available in the library.

Have a wonderful summer!

Happy Reading!

The Pingry Lower School Library 2016 Summer Reading List

The Pingry Lower School Library

2016 Summer Reading List

Students Entering Grades 4 and 5

Fiction

The titles are presented by GENRE in alphabetical order.

Fiction – Adventure/Action

Appelt, Kathi. The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp. Atheneum Books, 2013.

Raccoon brothers Bingo and J’miah are the newest recruits of the Official Sugar Man Swamp

Scouts. The opportunity to serve the Sugar Man is an honor, and also a big responsibility.

Best Book of 2013 and Notable Children’s Books 2013.

Barry, Dave and Ridley Pearson. Peter and the Starcatchers. Hyperion, 2004.

Peter, an orphan boy, and his friend Molly fight off thieves and pirates in order to keep the

secret safe from the Black Stache and his evil associate Mister Grin. Also read the sequels,

Peter and the Shadow Thieves, Peter and the Secrets of Rundoon, and Peter and the

Sword of Mercy.

Birdsall, Jeanne. The Penderwicks. Random House, 2005. While vacationing with their father in the

Berkshire Mountains, four lovable sisters share adventures with a local boy, much to the dis-

may of his snobbish mother. Also read the sequels:

The Penderwicks on Gardam Street, The Penderwicks at Point Mouette, and The

Penderwicks in Spring.

Burg, Ann. Serafina’s Promise. Scholastic, 2013. In a poor village outside of Port-au-Prince, Haiti,

Serafina works hard to help her family, but dreams of becoming a doctor – then the earth-

quake hits and Serafina must summon all her courage to find her father and still get medicine

for her sick baby brother as she promised.

Carman, Patrick. Floors. Scholastic, 2011. Leo, the son of the maintenance man of the Whippet

Hotel, opens a series of cryptic boxes which reveals hidden floors, strange puzzles, and un-

expected alliances that lead him on an adventure to save the building. Read the sequel, 3

Below (2013)

DiCamillo, Kate. Flora and Ulysses. Candlewick, 2013. After Flora saves a squirrel named Ulysses

from a run-in with a vacuum cleaner, they team up to use Ulysses’ superpowers to conquer

villains and protect the weak. Newbery Winner 2014.

1

The Pingry Lower School Library 2016 Summer Reading List 2

DuBois, William Pene. The Twenty-One Balloons. Viking, 1975.

After setting out from San Francisco in a hot-air balloon bound across the Pacific, Professor

Sherman is picked up in the Atlantic clinging to wreckage.

Grabenstein, Chris. Escape From Mr. Lemoncello’s Library. Random House, 2013.

Twelve-year-old Kyle and his friends get to stay overnight in the new town library, designed

by his hero the famous gamemaker Luigi Lemoncello, but they find that come morning they

must work together to solve puzzles in order to escape.

Gutman, Dan. Mission Unstoppable (Genius Files Series). Harper, 2011.

On a cross-country vacation with their parents, twins Coke and Pepsi, try to come to terms

with being part of a top-secret government organization known as The Genius Files. Includes

Google Maps coordinates to follow along. Read sequels: Never Say Genius (2012), You On-

ly Die Twice (2013), From Texas With Love (2014) and License to Thrill (2015).

Hanel, Rachael. Can You Survive an Earthquake: An Interactive Survival Adventure. Capstone

2014. Readers can choose how the story ends in different adventures about survival during

an earthquake. Read any book in the Can You Survive? Series, a collection of interactive

adventures in which the reader chooses from alternate action plans.

Jenson, Marion. Almost Super. Harper Collins, 2014.

Two brothers in a family of superheroes are forced to reexamine everything they knew about

being super when the powers they receive are total duds and their enemy is revealed to be

just like they are.

Johnson-Shelton, Nils. The Invisible Tower. Harper, 2012.

A twelve-year-old boy learns that he is actually King Arthur brought back to life in the twenty-

first century – and that the fate of the universe rests in his hands.

Korman, Gordon. Everest Trilogy: The Climb; The Contest; The Summit. Scholastic, 2012. The

climbing contest to see who will be the youngest person to climb Mount Everest turns into a

life-or-death rescue mission.

Lowry, Lois. The Willoughbys. Houghton Mifflin, 2008.

A tongue-in-cheek take on classic themes, in which the four Willoughby children set out to be-

come “deserving orphans” after their neglectful parents embark on an around-the-world ad-

venture, leaving them in the care of an odious nanny.

Messner, Kate. Rescue on the Oregon Trail. Scholastic, 2015.

Ranger, a golden retriever, could have been a great search-and-rescue dog. One day he un-

covers a mysterious box and finds himself transported back to the year 1850, where his ser-

vice is needed by a family traveling west along the Oregon Trail.


Peck, Richard. The Mouse With the Question Mark Tail. Dial, 2013.

Mouse Minor, an undersized orphan with a question mark-shaped tail, is uncertain of his

heritage. He attends a prestigious school but is bullied by his classmates. He flees beyond

familiar territory and ends up in the palace. All the while, he is unaware that spies are tracking

his every move.

Paulsen, Gary. Hatchet. Atheneum Books, 1987.

After a plane crash, thirteen-year-old Brian spends 54 days in the wilderness, learning to

survive with only a hatchet.

Selznick, Brian. Wonderstruck. Scholastic, 2011.

Stories of twelve-year-old Ben, who loses his mother and his hearing and decides to leave his

home in 1977 to seek the father he has never known in New York City; and Rose, who lives

with her father but searches for what is missing in her life. Ben’s story is told in words; Rose’s

in pictures.

Stead, Rebecca. When You Reach Me. Wendy Lamb Books. 2009.

As her mother prepares to compete on the 1980s television game show, "$20,000 Pyramid,"

a twelve-year-old New York City girl tries to make sense of a series of mysterious notes

received from an anonymous source. Newbery Award 2010.

Stewart, Trenton Lee. The Mysterious Benedict Society. Little, Brown, 2007.

After passing a series of mind-bending tests, four children are selected for a secret mission

that requires them to go undercover at the Learning Institute for the Very Enlightened, where

the only rule is that there are no rules. Read the sequels. S

Tarshis, Lauren. I Survived True Stories: Five Epic Disasters. Scholastic, 2014.

Children's blizzard, 1888 -- Titanic disaster, 1912 -- Great Boston Molasses Flood, 1919 --

Japanese Tsunami, 2011 -- Henryville Tornado, 2012. Presents five true stories of survival,

featuring real kids in the midst of disasters.

Vanderpool, Clare. Navigating Early. Delacorte Press, 2013.

Odyssey-like adventure of two boys’ incredible quest on the Appalachian Trail, where they

deal with pirates, buried secrets, and extraordinary encounters. Best Books of 2013.


Fiction – Fantasy & Science Fiction

Applegate, Katherine. The One and Only Ivan. Harper, 2012. When Ivan, a gorilla who has lived for

years in a down-and-out circus-themed mall, meets Ruby, a baby elephant that has been

added to the mall, he decides that he must find her a better life. A novel of friendship, inspired

by a true story.

Crenshaw. Feiwel & Friends, 2015.

A story about a homeless boy and his imaginary friend that proves in unexpected ways that

friends matter, whether real or imaginary.

Baker, E. D. Wide-Awake Princess. Bloomsbury, 2010. Annie, the younger sister of the princess

known as Sleeping Beauty, is immune to magic. Annie stays awake when everyone in the

castle falls asleep, then sets out to break the spell. Sequel:

Unlocking the Spell: A Tale of the Wide-Awake Princess (2012).

Banks, Lynn Reid. The Indian in the Cupboard. Doubleday, 1980.

A nine-year-old boy receives a plastic Indian, a cupboard, and a little key for his birthday and

finds himself involved in adventure when the Indian comes to life in the cupboard and be-

friends him.

Burrows, Annie. The Magic Half. Bloomsbury, 2008. Eleven-year-old Miri feels left out in her family,

which includes two sets of twins and her, until she travels back in time to 1935 and discovers

Molly, her own lost twin, and brings her back to the present.

Colfer, Chris. The Land of Stories: The Wishing Spell. Little, Brown, 2012.

Through the mysterious powers of a cherished book of stories, twins Alex and Conner leave

their world behind and find themselves in a foreign land full of wonder and magic, where they

come face-to-face with the fairy tale characters they grew up reading about. Read the series:

Enchantress Returns (2013), A Grimm Warning (2014), Beyond the Kingdom (2015), and

# 5, coming in July.

Colfer, Eoin. Artemis Fowl. Hyperion Books, 2001. When a twelve-year-old evil genius tries to re-

store his family fortune by capturing a fairy and demanding a ransom in gold, the fairies fight

back with magic, technology, and a nasty troll.

Collins, Suzanne. Gregor the Overlander. The Underworld Chronicles. Scholastic, 2003. When

eleven-year-old Gregor and his two-year-old sister are pulled into a strange underground

world, they trigger an epic battle involving humans and animals while on a quest foretold by

ancient prophecy. (Series)


Dahl, Roald. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Knopf, 2001, c1964. Each of five children lucky

enough to discover an entry ticket into Mr. Willy Wonka’s mysterious chocolate factory takes

advantage of the situation in their own way. A rags-to-riches story, in which poor little Charlie

Bucket strives to outlast his four selfish rivals in the quest to win the grand prize.

Matilda. Viking, 1988. Matilda applies her mental powers to rid the school of the evil headmis-

tress, Miss Trunchbull, and restore her nice teacher, Miss Honey.

BFG. Farrar, Straus, Giroux, 1982. Kid-snatched from her orphanage by a BFG (Big Friendly

Giant), who spends his life blowing happy dreams to children, Sophie concocts a plan to save

the world from nine other cannybull giants.

James and the Giant Peach. Knopf, 1961. Wonderful adventures abound after James es-

capes from his fearsome aunts by rolling away inside a giant peach.

DiCamillo, Kate. The Tale of Despereaux. Candlewick Press, 2003.

The adventures of Despereaux Tilling, a small mouse of unusual talents, the princess he

loves, the servant girl longing to be a princess, and a rat determined to bring them all to ruin.

Newbery Medal 2004.

The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane. Candlewick Press, 2006.

Edward Tulane, a cold-hearted and proud toy rabbit, loves only himself, until he is separated

from the little girl who adores him. He travels across the country, acquiring new owners and

listening to their hopes, dreams, and histories.

DuPrau, Jeanne. City of Ember. Random House, 2003. In the city of Ember, twelve-year-old Lina

trades jobs on Assignment Day to be a Messenger and finds a message that she and her

friend Doon must decipher to save the city before the lights go out on Ember forever! Read

the sequels.

Funaro, Gregory. Alistair Grim’s Odditorium. Hyperion/Disney, 2015.

In Victorian England, Grubb, a twelve years old orphan, escapes his life as a chimney

sweep's apprentice and finds himself in a very strange house filled with magical objects and

creatures, but soon he learns that there are dark forces seeking his new master. Read this if

you like Percy Jackson!

Funke, Cornelia. Inkheart. Scholastic, 2003. Meggie learns that her father (Moe) can “read” fictional

characters to life, when an evil ruler is freed from the novel “Inkheart” and tries to force Moe to

release an immortal monster from the story. Read the trilogy, Inkspell and Inkdeath. S

George, Jessica. Tuesdays at the Castle. Bloomsbury, 2011. Princess Celie loves Tuesdays at

Castle Glower, because every Tuesday the castle adds a new room or sometimes a whole

new wing, and Celie likes to map the changes. When her parents, King and Queen Glower

are taken captive, Celie uses her knowledge of the castle to save the kingdom. Read sequels:

Wednesday in the Tower (2013), Thursdays with the Crown (2014), and Fridays with the

Wizards (2016).


Gutman, Dan. Return of the Homework Machine. Simon & Schuster, 2009.

After discarding their homework machine, four friends find themselves in trouble in an incident

involving a powerful computer chip and a Grand Canyon treasure.

Hale, Shannon. The Forgotten Sister. Bloomsbury Children’s Books, 2015.

Miri wants to return to Mount Eskel, but the king and queen ask her to first journey to a

distant swamp and start her own miniature princess academy for three royal cousins, but

once there she must solve a mystery before she can return home. Companion book to

Princess Academy.

Horovath, Polly. Mr. and Mrs. Bunny ― Detectives Extraordinaire! Schwartz Wade, 2012.

Middle-schooler Madeline’s hippy parents have been kidnapped from Hornby Island,

Canada, by foxes. When Madeline discovers that she can understand animal languages,

she hires two rabbit detectives to find them.

Juster, Norton. The Phantom Tollbooth. Random House, 1961. Milo travels through a magical

tollbooth and journeys to the Kingdom of Wisdom, where he and a “watch” dog named Tock

try to end the feud between numbers and words.

Kessler, Liz. Emily Windsnap and the Ship of Lost Souls. Candlewick Press, 2016.

A field trip to a mysterious island quickly turns into an adventure when Emily Windsnap and

Aaron discover a secret lookout point from which they spot a ghostly ship that no one else

seems to be able to see. S

Korman, Gordon. The Hypnotist. Scholastic, 2013.

Twelve-year-old Jackson Opus is descended from two powerful hypnotist bloodlines, but

he has just begun to realize that he can control other peoples' actions with sometimes

frightening results. Read the sequel: Memory Maze.

LaFevers, R. L. Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos. Houghton Mifflin, 2007. Theodosia can

detect ancient curses cast on objects in the Museum of Legends and Antiquities, where her

father is curator. She discovers that an Egyptian artifact is cursed and must be returned to its

original tomb before disaster strikes. Sequels.

Law, Ingrid. Savvy. Dial Books, 2008.

The adventures of Mibs Beaumont, whose thirteenth birthday has revealed her “savvy” —

a magical power unique to each member of her family—just as her father is injured in a

terrible accident. Read the sequel, Scumble. Newbery Honor 2009. Coretta Scott King

Award 2009

L’Engle, Madeleine. A Wrinkle in Time. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 1962.

Three extraterrestrial beings take Meg, her brother, and her friend to another world in search

of her missing father. Newbery Medal 1963.

Levine, Gail Carson. Ella Enchanted. Harper Collins, 1997.

Based on the story of Cinderella, Ella struggles against the childhood curse given to her at

birth, the "gift' of obedience, that forces her to obey any order given to her. How can a fairy's

blessing be such a curse? Newbery Honor Award.


Lewis, C. S. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (The Chronicles of Narnia). Harper Collins,

1950. Four English schoolchildren find their way through a wardrobe into the magic land of

Narnia and help Aslan, the golden lion, to triumph over the White Witch who has cursed the

land with eternal winter. S

Lin, Grace. Where the Mountain Meets the Moon. Little, Brown, 2009.

Minli, an adventurous girl from a poor village, buys a magical goldfish and joins a dragon

who cannot fly in a quest to find the Old Man of the Moon. Read companion book Starry

River of the Sky (2012).

Lloyd, Natalie. A Snicker of Magic. Scholastic, 2014.

The Pickles are new to Midnight Gulch, Tennessee, a town which legend says was once

magic. Felicity is convinced the magic is still there, and with the help of her new friend Jonah

the Beedle she hopes to bring the magic back.

Martin, Ann. The Doll People. Hyperion Books for Children, 2000. A family of porcelain dolls that

has lived in the same house for a hundred years is taken aback when a new family of plastic

dolls arrives and doesn’t follow The Doll Code of Honor. S

Mass, Wendy. Graceful. Scholastic, 2013. Last book in the 11 Birthday Series.

It's supposed to take a few years for Grace's powers to return full force ― but something's

affecting the magic in the town of Willow Falls, and Grace needs to do something now! Also

read 11 Birthday, Finally 12, 13 Gift, and Last Present.

McMann, Lisa. The Unwanteds. Aladdin, 2011. In a society that purges thirteen-year-olds who are

creative, identical twins Aaron and Alex are separated, one to attend University while the

other, supposedly Eliminated, finds himself in a wondrous place where youths hone their

abilities and learn magic. S

Mlynowski, Sarah. Fairest of All. Scholastic, 2013. After moving to a new house, ten-year-old

Abby and her younger brother Jonah discover an antique mirror that transports them into the

Snow White fairy tale. Read the sequels If the Shoe Fits (2013), Sink or Swim (2013),

Dream On (2014), Bad Hair Day, (2014) Cold as Ice (2014), Beauty Queen (2015) and

Genie in a Bottle (2016)

Paolini, Christopher. Eragon. Knopf, 2003. The harrowing adventure of Eragon, a peasant boy who

discovers a strange rock that happens to be a lost, coveted dragon’s egg. Read sequels

Eldest, Brisingr, and Inheritance. S

Peck, Richard. Secrets at Sea. Dial Books, 2011.

In 1887, The Cranstons voyage from New York to London, where they hope to find a

husband for their older daughter, who is secretly accompanied by Helena and her mouse

siblings, for whom the journey is terrifying as they try to remain hidden.

Mouse With the Question Mark Tail. Dial Books, 2013. Companion to Secrets at Sea.

A very small mouse runs away from school in the Royal Mews of Buckingham Palace.

Soon he's running for his life, looking high and low through the history of Buckingham

Palace to find out who he is and who he will become.


Riordan, Rick. The Lightning Thief (Percy Jackson and the Olympians). Hyperion, 2005.

Percy, expelled from six schools for his uncontrollable temper, learns that his father is

the Greek god Poseidon. Percy is sent to Camp Half Blood, where he is befriended by the

demigod daughter of Athena, who joins him in a journey to the Underworld to retrieve Zeus’s

lightning bolt and prevent a catastrophic war. S

Lost Hero (Heroes of Olympus series). Hyperion, 2010. Three students from a school for

“bad kids,” find themselves at Camp Half-Blood, where they learn that they are demigods

and begin a quest to free Hera, who has been imprisoned by Mother Earth herself. Sequels:

Son of Neptune, Mark of Athena, House of Hades, and Blood of Olympus. S

Magnus Chase: The Sword of Summer. Disney/Hyperion, 2015.

Magnus Chase has been a troubled kid. Since his mother's mysterious death, he's lived

alone on the streets of Boston, surviving by his wits. One day, he's tracked down by an uncle

he barely knows who tells him a secret: Magnus is the son of a Norse god, Viking myths are

true and the gods are preparing for war.

The Red Pyramid; Kane Chronicles. Hyperion, 2010. The brilliant Egyptologist Dr. Julius

Kane accidentally unleashes the Egyptian god Set, who banishes him to oblivion. Carter and

Sadie Kane must embark on a dangerous quest to save their father. Sequels: The Throne

of Fire, and The Serpent’s Shadow. S

Trials of Apollo: The Hidden Oracle (Book 1). Disney/Hyperion, 2016.

After angering his father Zeus, the god Apollo is cast down from Olympus. Weak and

disoriented, he lands in New York City as a regular boy. Now, without his godly powers,

the four-thousand-year-old deity must learn to survive in the modern world until he can

somehow find a way to regain Zeus's favor.

Rowling, J. K. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. Scholastic, 1999, 1997. Rescued from the

neglect of his aunt and uncle, Harry, age 11, attends Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and

Wizardry where he fights evil forces. S

Seldon, George. A Cricket in Times Square. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, c1960. The adventures of

a country cricket who unintentionally arrives in New York and is befriended by Tucker Mouse

and Harry Cat. Newbery Honor Book 1961.

Sutherland, Tui. The Dragonet Prophecy: Wings of Fire Series, Bk #1. Scholastic, 2012. Clay

and the other four dragonets were stolen from their homes while they were still in their eggs

and hidden for years in order to fulfill a prophecy claiming that the dragonets would end the

war between the dragon tribes. Series: The Lost Heir #2, Hidden Kingdom #3, Dark Se-

cret #4, Brightest Night #5, Moon Rising #6, Winter Turning #7, Escaping Peril #8, and

Talons of Power #9.


Fiction – Historical Fiction

Anderson, Laurie Halse. Fever, 1793. Simon & Schuster, 2000. Sixteen-year-old Matilda, separated

from her sick mother, learns perseverance and self-reliance when she must cope with the

yellow fever epidemic in Philadelphia in 1793.

Apelfeld, Aharon, Adam & Thomas. Seven Stories Press, 2015. Two young Jewish boys join

together to survive the last winter of World War II, living alone in a forest, where they are

visited by a young girl who brings them food.

Blakemore, Mega. Spy Catchers of Maple Hill. Bloomesbury, 2014. Hazel Kaplansky and new

student Samuel Butler investigate rumors that a Russian spy has infiltrated their small

Vermont town, amidst the fervor of Cold War-era McCarthyism, but more is revealed than

they could ever have imagined.

Bradley, Kimberley Brubaker. The War That Saved My Life. Dial Books, 2015.

A young disabled girl and her brother are evacuated from London to the English countryside

during World War II, where they find life to be much sweeter away from their abusive mother.

Newbery Honor Book 2016, Best Books of 2015.

Choldenko, Gennifer. Al Capone Does My Shirts. G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 2004.

A twelve-year-old boy named Moose moves to Alcatraz Island in 1935, when guards’ families

were housed there, and has to adapt to his new environment in addition to life with his autistic

sister. Read the sequel, Al Capone Shines My Shoes (2009) and Al Capone Does My

Homework (2013).

Culkhoven, Laurie. Daniel at the Siege of Boston, 1776. (Boys of Wartime Series). Dutton,

2010. Twelve-year-old Daniel, hiding his parents' allegiance to the Sons of Liberty from the

British officers, tries to gather all the information he can and risks his life to reveal a traitor to

George Washington. Also read: Michael at the Invasion of France, 1943 and Will at the

Battle of Gettysburg, 1863.

Curtis, Christopher Paul. Bud, Not Buddy. Delacorte, 1999.

Ten-year-old Bud, a motherless boy living in Flint, Michigan, during the Great Depression,

escapes a bad foster home and sets out in search of the man he believes to be his father ―

the renowned bandleader, H.E. Calloway of Grand Rapids.

Elijah of Buxton. Scholastic, 2007. Newbery and Coretta Scott King Award.

Eleven-year-old Elijah Freeman, the first free-born child in Buxton, Canada, a haven for

slaves fleeing the South in 1859, uses his wits and skills to bring to justice to the preacher

who has stolen money that was to be used to buy a family's freedom.


Mighty Miss Malone. Wendy Lamb Books, 2012. Deza Malone, the smartest girl in her class

in Gary, Indiana, accompanies her mother and older brother on a trip to find her father, who

left to find work after the Great Depression hit. They end up in a Hooverville outside of Flint

Michigan in search of a new home.

The Watsons Go to Birmingham, 1963. Delacorte Press, 1995. The usual routines of

the Watsons, an African-American family living in the North, change after they go to visit

Grandma in Alabama in 1963 and experience life in the South. Newbery Honor Book.

Cushman, Karen. Alchemy and Meggy Swann. Clarion Books, 2010. Meggy Swann, a girl who

walks with the aid of two sticks, arrives in Elizabethan London to stay with her father who

really does not want her. While he pursues his dream of transforming base metal into gold,

Meggy undergoes a transformation herself.

Draper, Sharon. Stella by Starlight. Atheneum Books, 2015.

When a burning cross set by the Klan causes panic and fear in 1932 Bumblebee, North

Carolina, fifth-grader Stella must face prejudice and find the strength to demand change in

her segregated town. Notable Children’s Books 2015.

Giff, Patricia Reilly. Gingersnap. Wendy Lamb Books, 2013. In 1944, W.W. II is raging. Jayna’s

big brother Rob is her only family and he is called to duty. Jayna is left in their small town in

upstate New York with their cranky landlady. But before he leaves, Rob tells Jayna a secret:

they may have a grandmother in Brooklyn.

Lilly’s Crossing. Delacorte, 1997. During a summer spent at Rockaway Beach in 1944,

Lily's friendship with a young Hungarian refugee causes her to see the war and her own

world differently.

Gutman, Dan. The Lincoln Project. Harper, 2016.

Miss Z, a mysterious billionaire and a collector of rare photographs, is sending her four very

different kids back in time on a mission to capture one of the most important moments in

American history--Abraham Lincoln giving his famous Gettysburg address.

Jinks, Catherine. How to Catch a Bogle. Houghton Mifflin, 2013.

In 1870s London, a young orphan girl becomes the apprentice to a man who traps monsters

for a living.

Lai, Thanhha. Inside Out and Back Again. Harper, 2011.

Through a series of poems, a young girl chronicles the life-changing year of 1975, when she,

her mother, and her brothers leave Vietnam and resettle in Alabama.

Levine, Kristen. The Lions of Little Rock. G.P. Putnam, 2012. Twelve-year-old Marlee develops a

strong friendship with Liz, the new girl in school, but when Liz suddenly stops attending

school, Marlee hears a rumor that her friend is an African American girl passing herself off as

white. The two girls must decide whether their friendship is worth taking on integration and

the dangers it could bring to their families.


Park, Linda Sue. A Single Shard. Clarion Books, 2001. Tree-ear, a thirteen-year-old orphan in

medieval Korea, lives under a bridge in a potters’ village and longs to learn how to create

delicate celadon ceramics. Newbery Medal 2002.

Paterson, Katherine. Lyddie. Dutton, 1991. When ten-year-old Lyddie and her younger brother are

hired as servants to help pay off their family farm's debts, Lyddie is determined to reunite her

family by earning money as a factory worker in Lowell, Massachusetts. In the1840s, she

makes her way there, only to find that her dreams of returning home may never come true.

A story of determination.

Tarshis, Lauren. I Survived the Great Chicago Fire 1871 (I Survived Series). Scholastic, 2015.

In 1871, Oscar Starling tries to survive during the Great Chicago Fire. Read any book in the

“I survived …” series. S

Wilder, Laura Ingalls. Little House in the Big Woods. Harper Collins, 1953.

A year in the life of two young girls growing up on the Wisconsin frontier, as they help their

mother, enjoy their father's stories, and share special occasions when they get together with

relatives or neighbors. Little House on the Prairie Series.

Williams-Garcia, Rita, One Crazy Summer. Amistad, 2010.

In the summer of 1968, three sisters travel from Brooklyn to Oakland, California, to spend a

month with the mother they barely know. Coretta Scott King Award.

P.S. Be Eleven. (Sequel) Amistad, 2013.. After spending the summer of 1968 with their

mother and the Black Panthers, Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern return home to Brooklyn with a

new feeling of independence, but they discover that many changes have come to their home.

Coretta Scott King Award.


Fiction - Mystery

Balliett, Blue. Chasing Vermeer. Scholastic, 2004.

When strange events occur and a precious Vermeer painting disappears, eleven-year-olds

Petra and Calder use their talents to solve an international art scandal.

Wright 3. Scholastic, 2006.

Petra, Tommy and Calder are drawn into a mystery when unexplained accidents and ghostly

happenings occur in Frank Lloyd Wright's famous Robie House.

The Calder Game. Scholastic, 2008.

When seventh-grader Calder Pillay disappears from a remote English village along with

an Alexander Calder sculpture to which he has felt strangely drawn, his friends Petra and

Tommy fly from Chicago to help his father find him.

Pieces and Players. Scholastic, 2015.

Thirteen extremely valuable pieces of art have been stolen from one of the most secretive

museums in the world. ... Calder, Petra, and Tommy are no strangers to heists and puzzles.

Now they've been matched with two new sleuths.

Holdfast. Scholastic, 2013.

The story of a girl, Early, whose father has disappeared and now she, her mother and her

brother have been forced to flee their apartment and move into homeless shelter—and it is

up to her to hold her family together and solve the mystery surrounding her father.

Blackwood, Gary. The Shakespeare Stealer. Dutton Children’s Books, c.1998.

Widge, a likeable orphan, finds himself in a quest to steal and copy the play Hamlet from

Shakespeare. He soon discovers that life in the Globe Theatre is much better than the other

places he has apprenticed.

Burnett, Francis Hodges. The Secret Garden. c. 1910 (various editions). Ten-year-old Mary, a

spunky orphan, comes to live in a lonely servant-run house on the English moors. There

she discovers her invalid cousin and the mysteries of a locked garden. Can she find her own

happiness and a key to the garden?

Clements, Andrew. We the Children (Benjamin Pratt & the Keepers of the School). Atheneum,

2010. Sixth-grader Benjamin Pratt’s waterfront school is about to be torn down to make way

for an amusement park, but something seems fishy. When the school janitor gives him a

mysterious old coin, then dies suddenly, Benjamin is drawn into solving a mystery. S

Fitzhugh, Louise. Harriet the Spy. First published Harper & Row, 1964. Eleven-year-old Harriet

keeps notes on her classmates and neighbors in a secret notebook, but when some of the

students read the notebook, they seek revenge.


Gibbs, Stuart. Spy School (Series). Simon & Schuster, 2012.

Twelve-year-old Ben Ripley leaves his middle school to attend the CIA's highly secretive

Espionage Academy, which everyone is told is an elite science school.

Spy Camp. Simon & Schuster, 2013.

Sequel to: Spy School. As almost thirteen-year-old Ben, a student at the CIA's academy for

future intelligence agents, prepares to go to spy summer camp, he receives a death threat

from the evil organization SPYDER.

Evil Spy School. Simon & Schuster, 2015.

As a new student in SPYDER's evil spy school, Ben does some secret spying of his own.

He's acting as unofficial undercover agent, and it becomes quickly apparent that SPYDER is

planning something very big—and very evil.

Korman, Gordan. Jackpot. Scholastic, 2014. Griffin Bing and his friends are trying to locate Mr.

Fielder's missing thirty million dollar lottery ticket, and thwart the local bully, Darren Vader,

who wants to find it for himself.

Unleashed. Scholastic, 2015. (Swindle series)

Luthor the Doberman, a former attack dog, has a good home with Savannah, but every time a

certain truck passes he goes into a frenzy, while Griffin Bing is caught up in trying to beat his

rival at an invention contest. Also read Swindle (2008), Zoobreak (2009), Framed (2010),

Showoff (2012) and Hideout (2013).

Pflugfelder, Bob. Nick and Tesla's Secret Agent Gadget Battle: A Mystery with Spy Cameras,

Code Wheels, and Other Gadgets You Can Build Yourself. Quirk, 2014. Sibling sleuths

Nick and Tesla work to expose a spy in their midst and must engineer spy gadgets in

order to catch the culprit.

Quinn, Spencer. Woof: A Bowser and Birdie Novel. Scholastic, 2015.

Bowser is a mutt, adopted by eleven-year-old Birdie and her grandmother. They discover that

their prize stuffed marlin has been stolen from Grammy’s bait and tackle shop. So

Bowser decides to investigate. Read the sequel: Arf (2016).

Sachar, Louis. Holes. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, c1998.

Stanley Yelnats begins a journey of self-discovery when he is sent to a juvenile detention

center in Texas and suspects the motives of a warden who forces him and the other boys to

dig five-foot-deep holes as punishment. Newbery Medal.

Schlitz, Amy. Splendors and Glooms. Candlewick, 2013. When Clara vanishes after the puppeteer

Grisini and two orphaned assistants were at her twelfth birthday party, suspicion of kidnapping

chases the trio away from London and soon the two orphans are caught in a trap set by

Grisini’s ancient rival. Newbery Honor Book.

Selznick, Brian. The Invention of Hugo Cabret. Scholastic, 2007. When twelve-year-old Hugo, an

orphan living hidden in the Paris train station in 1931, meets a mysterious toyseller and his

goddaughter, his undercover life and his biggest secret are jeopardized. Caldecott Medal

2008.


Turnage, Sheila. Three Times Lucky. Dial, 2012. Eleven-year-old Mo LoBeau, who was washed

ashore as a baby, and her best friend Dale turn detective when the amnesiac Colonel, seems

implicated in a murder. Newbery Honor Book 2013.

Ghost of Tupelo Landing (Sequel). Penguin, 2014. When Miss Lana accidentally buys a

haunted inn at the Tupelo Landing town auction, Desperado Detectives open up a paranormal

division to uncover the ghost’s identity before the town’s big 250th anniversary celebration.

Voigt, Cynthia. Mister Max: The Book of Lost Things. Alfred Knopf, 2013.

Max's parents are missing. They are actors, and unpredictable, but sailing away, leaving Max

with only a cryptic note, is unusual even for them. Did they intend to leave him behind? Have

they been kidnapped? Read the Trilogy: Book of Secrets and The Book of Kings.

Watson, Jude. Loot: How to Steal a Fortune. Scholastic 2015. When Alfie, the notorious jewel thief,

falls on the job, his last two words to his son are "Find jewels" and this leads the boy to Jules,

the twin sister he never knew he had.

Read Classic Mystery Series:

Nancy Drew

Hardy Boys

Encyclopedia Brown

Boxcar Children


Fiction – Realistic

Bell, Cece. El Deafo. Amulet Books, 2014. Going to school and making new friends can be tough.

But going to school and making new friends while wearing a bulky hearing aid strapped to

your chest requires superpowers! In this funny graphic novel memoir, the author tells of her

hearing loss at a young age. 2015 Newbery Honor Book.

Birdsall, Jeanne. The Penderwicks. Random House, 2005. While vacationing with their widowed

father in the Berkshire Mountains, four lovable sisters, ages four through twelve, share

adventures with a local boy, much to the dismay of his snobbish mother. Read the sequels:

The Penderwicks on Gardam Street (2008),

The Penderwicks at Point Mouette (2012), The Penderwicks in Spring (2016).

Blume, Judy. Otherwise Known as Sheila the Great. Dutton, 1972. A summer in Tarrytown, N.Y.,

is a lot of fun for ten-year-old Sheila, even though her friends make her face up to some

self-truths she doesn’t want to admit.

Cervantes, Angela. Allie, First At Last. Scholastic, 2016. Born into a family of over-achievers, fifth-grader Allie Velasco has never finished first in anything, but she is determined to win the Trailblazer contest with a project about her great grandfather, the first Congressional Medal of Honor winner from their town.

Clements, Andrew. About Average. Atheneum, 2012. As the end of sixth grade nears, Jordan Johnson, unhappy that she is only average in appearance, intelligence, and athletic ability, reveals her special skills when disaster strikes her elementary school.

Extra Credit. Atheneum, 2009. Three middle-school children in Illinois exchange letters with children living in the mountains of Afghanistan, and begin to bridge a gap across cultural and religious divides. Read any titles by this author.

Davies, Jacqueline. The Lemonade War. Houghton Mifflin, 2007. Evan and his younger sister,

Jesse, battle it out through their lemonade stands, each trying to be the first to earn $100.

Includes tips for a successful lemonade stand.

The Lemonade Crime. Houghton Mifflin, 2011. (The Lemonade War Series #2)

When money disappears from fourth-grader Evan’s pocket and everyone thinks that his

annoying classmate Scott stole it, Evan’s younger sister stages a trial involving the entire

class, trying to prove what happened.

Bell Bandit. Houghton Mifflin 2011. (Lemonade War Series#3). Jessie gets ready to cele-

brate the New Year at his grandmother’s house, but when the New Year’s bell is stolen from

atop Lovell Hill, Jessie wonders how they will manage to ring in the New Year without it.


Candy Smash. (Lemonade War Series #4). Houghton Mifflin, 2013.

Jessie and Evan Treski are at opposite ends over the right to keep secrets.

Magic Trap. (Lemonade War Series #5). Houghton Mifflin, 2014. Jessie and Evan Treski

are now creating a magic show.

Draper, Sharon. Out of My Mind. Atheneum, 2010.

The story of a brilliant girl who cannot speak or write. Considered by many to be mentally

retarded, this outstanding fifth-grader with cerebral palsy discovers a technological device

that will allow her to speak for the first time.

Frederick, Heather Vogel. The Mother-Daughter Book Camp. Simon & Schuster, 2016. Emma,

Jess, Megan, Becca, and Cassidy go to Camp Lovejoy in New Hampshire to serve as

counselors and when some of the young campers are stricken with homesickness, the

friends decide to start a summer camp book club. Final book in the series. S

Giff, Patricia Reilly. Eleven. Wendy Lamb, 2008. Sam, who can barely read, discovers an old

newspaper clipping just before his eleventh birthday, prompting memories from his past.

With the help of a new friend and the castle they are building for a school project, his

questions are answered.

Graff, Lisa. Lost in the Sun. Philomel Books, 2015. As Trent Zimmerman struggles to move past

a traumatic event that took place months earlier, he befriends class outcast Fallon Little,

who helps him understand that he can move on.

Grimes, Nikki. Words With Wings. Wordsong, 2013.

Gabby's world is filled with daydreams. But what began as an escape from her parents'

arguments has now taken over her life. With the help of a new teacher, Gabby the dreamer

might just become Gabby the writer, and words that carried her away might allow her to

soar.

Gutman, Dan. Nightmare at the Book Fair. Simon & Schuster, 2008. While Trip is on his way to

lacrosse tryouts, the PTA president asks him to help with the book fair. His resulting head

injury causes amnesia and leads to a strange journey home.

Henry, Marguerite. Misty of Chincoteague. Aladdin c1947, 2015.

Paul and his sister Maureen's determination to own a pony from the herd on Chincoteague

Island, Virginia, is greatly increased when the Phantom and her colt are among the ponies

rounded up for the yearly auction.

Holt, Kimberly Willis. When Zachary Beaver Came to Town. Holt, 1999. During the summer

of 1971 in a small Texas town, thirteen-year-old Toby and his best friend Cal meet a

sideshow star, 600-pound Zachary, the fattest boy in the world.

Jamieson, Victoria. Roller Girl. Dial Books, 2015. Graphic Novel. For most of her twelve years,

Astrid has done everything with her best friend Nicole. But after she decides to go to roller

derby camp, Nicole decides to go to dance camp, Astrid struggles to keep up and be

strong on her own. Newbery Honor 2016.


Kodahata, Cynthia. The Thing About Luck. Atheneum, 2013. Just when twelve-year-old Summer

thinks nothing else can possibly go wrong in a year of bad luck, an emergency takes her

parents to Japan, leaving Summer to care for her little brother while helping her grand-

mother cook and do laundry for harvest workers.

LaFleur, Suzanne. Eight Keys. Wendy Lamb, 2011. When twelve-year-old Elise, orphaned since

age three, becomes disheartened by middle school, with its bullies, changing relationships,

and high expectations, keys to long-locked rooms and messages from her late father help

her cope.

Lee, Jenny. Elvis and the Underdogs. Balzer+Bray. All his life Benji, now ten, has been sickly

and he has long been targeted by the school bully, but after a seizure Benji gets a therapy

dog that is not only big enough to protect him, it can also talk.

Lin, Grace. Dumpling Days. Little, Brown, 2012. Pacy and her family go to Taiwan to celebrate

Grandma's sixtieth birthday, and Pacy is excited when her parents sign her up for a

Chinese painting class, but she cannot speak the language and struggles to make friends

and understand the teacher's instructions.

Look, Lenore. Alvin Ho: Allergic to Camping, Hiking and Other Natural Disasters. Schwartz &

Wade, 2009. Alvin makes a new friend and learns that he can be brave despite his fear of

everything when his father takes him camping, hoping to install a love of nature like that of

their hometown hero, Henry David Thoreau.

Lord, Cynthia. Half a Chance. Scholastic, 2014. Lucy, with her mother and her photographer

father, has just moved to a small community in New Hampshire. With her new friend Nate

she plans to spend the summer taking photos for a contest, but pictures sometimes reveal

more than people are willing to see.

Lord, Cynthia. A Handful of Stars. Scholastic, 2015. When her blind dog slips his collar, twelve-

year old Lily meets Salma Santiago, a young Hispanic girl whose migrant family are in

Maine for the blueberry-picking season, and, based partly on their mutual love of dogs,

the two forge a friendship.

Lord, Cynthia. Rules. Scholastic, 2006. Though Catherine loves her brother who is autistic, she is

embarrassed by his behavior and feels neglected by her parents. She wants him to be

“normal” so badly that she makes up rules for him to follow.

Martin, Ann. Candymakers. Little, Brown 2010. Four gifted twelve-year-olds, including Logan,

the candymaker’s son, are set to be contestants in the Confectionary Association’s national

competition to determine the nation’s tastiest sweet, but nobody anticipates that a friend-

ship will form between them.

Martin, Ann. Rain Reign. Feiwel and Friends, 2014. Struggling with Asperger's syndrome, Rose

shares a bond with her dog, but when the dog goes missing during a storm, Rose is forced

to confront the limits of her comfort levels, even if it means leaving her routines in order to

search for her pet. Best Book of 2014.


Ten Rules for Living with My Sister. Feiwel & Friends, 2011. Lexie is Pearl’s older sister

and she is popular. Pearl is not, mostly because of the embarrassing Three Bad Things that

happened in school and which no one has forgotten. Everything Pearl does seems to drive

Lexie crazy.

Naylor, Phyllis Reynolds. Shiloh. Atheneum, 1991. When he finds a lost beagle in the hills behind

his West Virginia home, Marty tries to hide it from his family and the dog's real owner, a

mean-spirited man known to shoot deer out of season and to mistreat his dogs. Read the

Trilogy. 1992 Newbery Medal Winner.

Palacio, R.J. Wonder. Knopf, 2012. Ten-year-old Auggie, who was born with extreme facial ab-

normalities, was not expected to survive, then goes from being home-schooled to entering

fifth grade at a private middle school in Manhattan, where he endure taunts and the fear of

his classmates as he struggles to be seen as just another student.

Auggie and Me: Three Wonder Stories. Knopf, 2015. (Companion to Wonder)

Three stories give a peek at Auggie before he started at Beecher Prep and during his first

year there. Readers get to see him through the eyes of Julian, the bully; Christopher,

Auggie's oldest friend; and Charlotte, Auggie's new friend.

Patron, Susan. The Higher Power of Lucky. Atheneum Books, 2006. Fearing that her legal

guardian plans to abandon her to return to France, ten-year-old aspiring scientist Lucky

Trimble determines to run away while also continuing to seek the Higher Power that will

bring stability to her life.

Paterson, Katherine. Bridge to Terabithia. Harper Collins, 1977.

The life of a ten-year-old boy in rural Virginia expands when he becomes friends with the

new girl, Leslie, who has a tragic accident trying to reach their hideaway, Terabithia, during

a storm. Newbury Award Winner.

The Great Gilly Hopkins. Harper Collins c1978, 2016.

An eleven-year-old foster child tries to cope with her longings and fears as she schemes

against everyone who tries to be friendly. Newbery Honor Book.

Pennypacker, Sara. Summer of the Gypsy Moths. Balzer & Bray, 2012. Angel, a foster child,

and twelve-year-old Stella are living with Stella’s great-aunt Louise at her Inn on Cape Cod.

They secretly assume responsibility for the vacation rentals when Louise dies and the girls

are afraid of being returned to the foster care system.

Pyron, Bobbie. Lucky Strike. Arthur Levine, Scholastic, 2015.

Nathaniel Harlow lives with his grandfather in a trailer park in Franklin County, Florida, and

he has always been unlucky--but when he is struck by lightning on his eleventh birthday

and survives, it seems like his luck starts to change.

Shang, Wendy Wan Long. The Great Wall of Lucy Wu. Scholastic Press, 2010. Eleven-year-old

aspiring basketball star and interior designer Lucy Wu is excited about finally having her

own bedroom, until she learns that her great-aunt is coming to visit and Lucy has to share

her room, shattering her plans for a perfect sixth-grade year.


Spinelli, Jerry. Jake and Lily. Balzer+Bray, 2012. Twins Jake and Lily have a close relationship,

but when they turn eleven, Jake begins to spend time with a group of neighborhood boys.

Lily struggles to make friends, and Jake is faced with a bully.

Stead, Rebecca. When You Reach Me. Wendy Lamb Books, 2009. As her mother prepares to

compete on the 1980s TV show “The $20,000 Pyramid,” a twelve-year-old New York City

girl tries to make sense of a series of anonymous notes that seem to defy the laws of time

and space. Newbery Medal 2010.

Stead, Rebecca. Liar and Spy. Wendy Lamb Books, 2012. Seventh-grader George adjusts to

moving from a house to an apartment, his father starting a new business, his mother

working as a nurse, being picked on at school, and a boy who wants his help spying on

another resident. Book of the Year 2013.

Telgemeir, Raina. Sisters. Scholastic, 2013. Companion book to Smile (2010)

Raina can't wait to be a big sister. But once Amara is born, things aren't quite how she

expected them to be.Their relationship doesn't improve much over the years, but when a

baby brother enters the picture, they realize they must figure out how to get along. They

are sisters, after all. GRAPHIC NOVEL.

Weston, Carol. Ava and Pip. Jabbberwocky, 2014.

When ten-year-old Ava uses her writing talents to help her older sister overcome her

shyness, both girls learn the impact their words and stories can have .

Fourth Grade Teachers’ Picks

Mr. Buckley recommends:

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, by Ian Fleming

Extra Credit, by Andrew Clements

Ms. Casey recommends:

Socks, by Beverly Cleary

The B.F.G., by Roald Dahl

Bunnicula, by James Howe

Wonder, by R. J. Palacio

Summer of the Swans, by E. B. White

Mr. Haber recommends:

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, by J. K. Rowling

The Search for Delicious, by Natalie Babbitt


School Stories

Birney, Betty. Birney, Betty G. Summer According to Humphrey. Putnam, 2010. When summer

arrives, Humphrey, the pet hamster of Longfellow School’s Room 26, is surprised to learn

that he will be going to Camp Happy Hollow. S

School Days According to Humphrey. Putnam, 2011. Humphrey the hamster is excited

to return to room 26 on the first day of school, but he is shocked to see a new group of

students. Soon he comes to know and love them, and gets upset when he hears talk of

moving him from Mrs. Brisbane’s room. S

Imagination According to Humphrey. Putnam, 2016. Imaginations are running wild in

Mrs. Brisbane's class, but Humphrey is stumped. His friends are writing about where they

would go if they could fly, but Humphrey is HAPPY-HAPPY-HAPPY right where he is in

Room 26. S

Buyea, Rob. Because of Mr. Terupt. Delacorte Press, 2010.

It's the start of fifth grade for seven kids at Snow Hill School. Mr. Terupt, their energetic

new teacher, makes the classroom a fun place, even if he doesn't let them get away with

much . . . until the snowy winter day when an accident changes everything and everyone.

Clements, Andrew. About Average, Athenium 2012. As the end of sixth grade nears, Jordan

Johnson, unhappy that she is only average in appearance, intelligence, and athletic ability,

reveals her special skills when disaster strikes her central Illinois elementary school. Also

read any other title by this author: Room One, Lost and Found, Landry News, Lunch

Money, The Report Card, No Talking, School Story, and Week in the Woods.

Gutman, Dan. Miss Kraft is Daft! Harper 2013. A.J. and his friends find their school days

getting even odder when Mr. Granite gets sick and their substitute teacher, Miss Kraft, uses

unconventional methods like doing magic tricks to teach them.

Kinney, Jeff. Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Old School. Amulet Books, 2015. Life was better in the old

days. Or was it? That's the question Greg Heffley is asking as his town voluntarily unplugs

and goes electronics-free. But Greg isn't cut out for an old-fashioned world. With tension

building inside and outside the Heffley home, will Greg find a way to survive? Read any title

in the series. S

Konigsburg, E.L. A View from Saturday. Atheneum, c. 1996. Four students develop a special

bond and attract the attention of their teacher, who chooses them to represent their sixth-

grade class in the Academic Bowl competition. Newbery Medal.


Korman, Gordon Schooled. Hyperion, 2007. Cap has been raised in isolation and home-schooled

by his hippie grandmother. When she falls and breaks her hip, Cap is sent to a foster home

and experiences his first year in public school.

Korman, Gordon. Ungifted. Balzer + Bray, 2013. Due to an administrative mix-up, troublemaker

Donovan Curtis is sent to the Academy of Scholastic Distinction, a special program for gift-

ed and talented students.

Patterson, James. Middle School, the Worst Years of my Life. Little, Brown, 2011. When Rafe

Kane enters middle school, he teams up with his best friend, “Leo the Silent,” to create a

game to make school more fun by trying to break every rule in the school’s code of conduct.

Peirce, Lincoln. Big Nate Blasts Off. Harper, 2016. After his fight with Randy Betancourt makes

headlines in the school paper, Big Nate has a problem worse than detention on his hands.

Graphic novel. S

Sachar, Louis. Sideways Stories from the Wayside School. Morrow Junior Books, c1978. Hu-

morous episodes from the classroom on the thirtieth floor of Wayside School, which was

accidentally built sideways, with one classroom on each story.

Spinelli, Jerry. Loser. Joanna Cotler Books, 2002. Even though his classmates from first grade on

have considered him strange and a loser, Daniel Zinkoff’s optimism and the support of his

loving family do not allow him to feel that way about himself.

Books about Fourth Grade

Blume, Judy. Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing. Dutton, 2002, c. 1972.

Peter finds his demanding two-year-old brother an ever-increasing problem.

Dowell, Frances. Phineas L. Macguire Erupts! The First Experiment. Atheneum, 2006.

Fourth-grade science whiz Phineas MacGuire is forced to team up with the new boy on

a science fair project, but the boy’s quirky personality causes Phineas to wonder if they

have any chance of winning.

Fleming, Candace. The Fabled Fourth Graders of Aesop Elementary School. Schwartz &

Wade, 2007.

An unlikely teacher takes over the disorderly fourth-grade class of Aesop Elementary

School with surprising results.

Salisbury, Graham. Calvin Coconut, Dog Heaven. Wendy Lamb Books, 2010.

Fourth-grader Calvin creates a unique way to express his desire for a dog after his teacher

asks him to write a persuasive argument about something he really wants.


Books about Fifth Grade

Clements, Andrew. Homework Machine.Simon & Schuster, 2006.

Four fifth-grade students − a geek, a class clown, a teacher’s pet, and a slacker − as

well as their teacher and mothers, each relate events surrounding a computer pro-

grammed to complete homework assignments.

Clements, Andrew. Landry News. Simon & Schuster, 1999.

Mr. Larson challenges his fifth-grader students to create a real newspaper. Soon The

Landry News gets more attention than either Cara or her teacher bargained for, as the

principal uses the paper to try to get Mr. Larson fired.

Clements, Andrew. A Week in the Woods. Simon & Schuster, 2002.

The fifth grade’s annual camping trip in the woods tests Mark’s survival skills and his

ability to relate to Mr. Maxwell, a teacher who he thinks doesn’t like rich kids, or slackers,

or know-it-alls.

DeClements, Barthe. Nothing’s Fair in Fifth Grade. Viking, 1981.

The new girl is not treated well by her classmates and nothing seems fair.

Frasier, Sundee Tucker. Cleo Edison Oliver: Playground Millionaire. Scholastic, 2016.

Fifth-grader Cleo Edison Oliver is full of money-making ideas, and her fifth-grade

Passion Project is no different ― but things get more complicated when she has to

keep her business running, be a good listener when her best friend needs her, and deal

with the bully teasing her about being adopted.

Shreve, Susan Richards. Joshua T. Bates Takes Charge. Dell, 2000.

Eleven-year-old Joshua, worried about fitting in at school, feels awkward when the new

student he is supposed to be helping becomes the target of the fifth grade’s biggest

bully.

Woodrow, Allan. Class Dismissed. Scholastic, 2015. Class 507 is terrible, and one day, after

a disastrous science experiment, Ms. Bryce walks out in the middle of class. Should the

students keep this a secret?


Fiction – Sports

Alexander, Kwame. Crossover. Houghton Mifflin, 2014. Fourteen-year-old twin basketball stars

Josh and Jordan wrestle with highs and lows on and off the court as their father ignores his

declining health. 2015 Newbery Medal and 2015 Coretta Scott King Honor.

Aronson, Sarah. Beyond Lucky. Dial Books, 2011. Twelve-year-old Ari Fish is sure that the rare

trading card he found has changed his luck and that of his soccer team, but after the card is

stolen he comes to know that we make our own luck, and that heroes can be fallible.

Avi. S.O.R. Losers. Avon, 1984. Each member of the seventh-grade soccer team at South

Orange River (S.O.R.) School has special talents, but not on the soccer field. Can they

make their season a success after losing their first game 32-0?

Freitas, Donna. Gold Medal Summer. Arthur Levine Books, 2012. After fourteen-year-old Joey

learns that her best friend wants to quit competitive gymnastics, she considers giving up

her dream of winning gold medals in order to have a normal life, even as her sister and

assistant coach urge her to reach a new level. Also read Gold Medal Winter.

Lupica, Mike. Game Changers. Scholastic, 2012. When the coach’s son, Shawn,

is chosen to play quarterback, eleven-year-old Ben McBain is not surprised.

But when he tries to be a good teammate and help Shawn, he learns that his new friend

does not really want the position.

Play Makers. Scholastic, 2013. (#2 Game Changers Series). Ben McBain is considered the

best point guard in the league, but his teammate Chase Braggs is the complete opposite of

Ben who likes to talk on the court and show off.

Heavy Hitters. (#3 Game Changers Series). Scholastic, 2014. Ben and Justin are thrilled

to be playing in the All-Star Baseball league. After Ben is hit with a ball, Justin reveals his

problems and their friendship becomes just as important.

Lupica, Mike. The Only Game. Simon & Schuster, 2015.Jack Callahan is the star of his baseball

team and sixth grade is supposed to be his year with an undefeated season, records

shattered, Little League World Series, until he up and quits.

The Extra Yard. Simon & Schuster 2016. Teddy has been training all summer with his new

friends Jack and Gus to make the new travel football team, but when his dad comes back

into his life he is faced with a much bigger challenge.

Shoot-Out. Walden Media, 2010. When his family moves, twelve-year-old Jake must leave

his championship soccer team to play on a team with a losing record.

Summer Ball. Philomel, 2007.Thirteen-year-old Danny must prove himself again for a

disapproving coach and against new rivals at a summer basketball camp.


The Underdogs. Puffin Books, 2011. Small but fast twelve-year-old Will Tyler, an avid football

player in a down-and-out town in Pennsylvania, takes matters into his own hands to try and

finance the city’s football team, giving the whole community hope in the process.

Park, Linda Sue. Keeping Score. Clarion 2008. During the 1950s, young Maggie struggles to will

her beloved Brooklyn Dodgers to a victory in the World Series and wishes that her friend

Jim, a soldier in Korea, would answer her letters.

Ripken, Cal. The Closer. Hyperion, 2016. Danny Connelly, the Dulaney Orioles' back-up pitcher,

must step up to the plate and out of his brother's shadow to become the dependable closer

his team needs.

Nonfiction

This is only a sampling of all the wonderful nonfiction books available.

Choose any nonfiction books to read!

Barton, Chris. The Day-Glo Brothers: the True Story of Bob and Joe Switzer's Bright Ideas and Brand-New Colors. Charlesbridge, 2009. A discovery that made the world a brighter place! Describes how brothers Bob and Joe Switzer invented fluorescent paint and colors; and explains how fluorescence works.

Burgan, Michael. Ellis Island an Interactive History Adventure. Capstone Press, 2014. The reader chooses the course of the action in a story about immigrants moving to the United States in the early 1900s.Read any title in this series.

Chaiken, Andrew. Mission Control, This is Apollo: The Story of the First Mission to the

Moon. Viking, 2009. Recounts important events from the history of space exploration,

covering the Mercury missions, the voyage of Apollo 17, and more, with illustrations by

astronaut Alan Bean, who walked on the moon.

Cook, Sally. Hey Batta Batta Swing! The Wild Old Days of Baseball. M. K. McElderry Books,

2007. Describes baseball’s history before there were pitching mounds and contains trivia

about player nicknames, team names, and the uniforms.

Evans, Lady Hestia. Mythology: The Gods, Heroes, and Monsters of Ancient Greece.

Candlewick Press, 2007. Introduces Greek mythology, exploring gods and goddesses,

origins of mankind, monsters, beasts, and battles, featuring fold-outs, pop-ups, maps,

“secret” messages, and other interactive features. Read other “-ology” books, such as

Egyptology, Pirateology, Wizardology.


Grimes, Nikki. Chasing Freedom: The Life Journeys of Harriet Tubman and Susan B. Antho-ny. Scholastic, 2015. In this imaginative biographical story, Harriet Tubman and Susan B. Anthony sit down over a cup of tea in 1904 to reminisce about their struggles and triumphs in the service of freedom and women's right

Read any title in the “What is … “, “What Was… “, and “What Were…” series.

What is the Declaration of Independence. Grosset & Dunlop, 2016. On a hot summer day near Philadelphia in 1776, Thomas Jefferson sat at his desk and wrote furiously until early the next morning. He was drafting the Declaration of Independ-ence, a document that would sever this country's ties with Britain and announce a new na-tion--The United States of America.

What Were the Twin Towers. Grosset & Dunlop, 2016.

Discover the true story of the Twin Towers--how they came to be the tallest buildings in the

world and why they were destroyed.

What Was the March on Washington. Grosset & Dunlop, 2013. On August 28, 1963,

more than 200,000 people gathered in Washington, DC, to demand equal rights for all rac-

es. It was there that Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his "I Have a Dream" speech, and it

was this peaceful protest that spurred the momentous civil rights laws of the mid-1960s.

Halls, Kelley Milner. Saving the Baghdad Zoo: a True Story of Hope and Heroes. Greenwillow,

2010. Firsthand account of how United States soldiers and volunteers saved the animals of

the Baghdad Zoo after the start of the Iraq War.

Krull, Kathleen. The Boy Who Invented Television: The Story of Philo Farnsworth. Knopf,

2009. The biography of Philo Farnsworth, who created the world’s first television image in

1928. Read any nonficton by this author.

Macaulay, David. The Way We Work: Getting to Know the Amazing Human Body. Houghton

Mifflin, 2008. A visual exploration of the inner workings of the human body, with close-ups

and cross-sections to look at the different body systems and how they function.

Mortenson, Greg. Three Cups of Tea (Young Reader’s Edition) Puffin Books, 2009.

The story of Dr. Greg Mortenson, who was rescued and healed by Himalayan villagers after

his failed attempt to climb K2. He returned to build schools for young girls previously denied

education by the Taliban.

St. George, Judith. So You Want to be an Explorer? Philomel Books, 2005.

Studies some of the great explorers throughout history, including Columbus, Marco Polo,

Alexander the Great, Chuck Yeager, Amelia Earhart and more.

Weitzman, David. Pharaoh’s Boat. Houghton Mifflin, 2009.

An illustrated account of the construction of Egyptian Pharaoh Cheops’ funeral boat, and

discusses its discovery centuries later during an archaeological dig.


Biography

Allen, Thomas B. George Washington, Spymaster. National Geographic, 2004.

This illustrated biography of George Washington focuses on his use of spies to gather the

intelligence that helped the colonies win the war.

Fleischman, Sid. Escape! The Story of the Great Houdini. Greenwillow Books, 2006.

Biography of the great magician, ghost chaser, aviator, and king of escape artists.

The Trouble Begins at 8: A Life of Mark Twain in the Wild, Wild West. Greenwillow

Books, 2008. The story of the childhood and youth of writer Mark Twain, recounting his

beginnings as an author, and also as a steamboat pilot, a journalist,

a prospector, a lecturer, and an adventurer who didn’t mind a little trouble.

Freedman, Russell. Washington at Valley Forge. Holiday House, 2008.

Provides an account of the six months when the soldiers in George Washington’s

command camped at Valley Force, enduring the harsh winter of 1777-1778 without

adequate food, clothing, or blankets.

Giblin, James. The Many Rides of Paul Revere. Scholastic, 2007.

Sets the record straight on Paul Revere’s life and his role in the American Revolution.

Describes his childhood, his work as a silversmith, and his role in the American Revolution.

Krull, Kathleen. The Boy on Fairfield Street: How Ted Geisel Grew Up to Become Dr. Seuss.

Random House, 2004.

Introduces the life of children’s author and illustrator Ted Geisel, popularly known as Dr.

Seuss, focusing on his childhood and youth in Springfield, Massachusetts.

Krull, Kathleen. Lives of the Presidents: Fame, Shame, and What the Neighbors Thought.

Harcourt, 2011.

Focuses on the lives of all the presidents as parents, husbands, pet-owners, and neigh-

bors, with humorous, little-known facts about hobbies, diets, hairstyles, and unusual habits.

McGinty, Alice. Gandhi: A March to the Sea. Amazon Children’s Books, 2013.

Recounts the March to the Sea, in which, Mohandas Gandhi and seventy protesters

marched from Ahmedabad to Dandi, in twenty-four days, to protest the laws and taxes that

Great Britain put on salt.


Nelson, Vaunda Micheaux. Bad News for Outlaws: The Remarkable Life of Bass Reeves,

Deputy U. S. Marshal. Carolrhoda Books, 2009. The story of Bass Reeves, a former slave,

who was recruited as a deputy U. S. Marshall, based on his ability to communicate with the

Native Americans in the Oklahoma territory.

Pastan, Amy. Gandhi. DK Publishing, 2006.

Chronicles the life of Indian nationalist leader Mohandas Gandhi, from his early years

working for social reform, through his championing of Indian independence, and his

influence on other world leaders, including Martin Luther King, Jr., and Nelson Mandela.

Woodson, Jacqueline. Brown Girl Dreaming. Nancy Paulsen Books, 2014.

The author shares her childhood memories and reveals the first sparks that ignited her

writing career in free-verse poems about growing up in the North and South.

Newbery Honor 2015.

Brown, Dinah. Who is Malala Yousafzi? Grosset & Dunlap, 2015.

Malala Yousafzai was a girl who loved to learn but was told that girls would no longer be

allowed to go to school. She wrote a blog that called attention to what was happening in her

beautiful corner of Pakistan and realized that words can bring about change. She has

continued to speak out for the right of all children to have an education. In 2014 she won

the Nobel Peace Prize. Read any title in the “Who is…” and “Who Was…” Series.

Fifth Grade Teachers’ Picks

Dr. Pearlman recommends:

Maniac Magee, by Jerry Spinelli

Bridge to Terabithia, by Katherine Paterson

Mrs. Everett recommends:

From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, by E. L. Konigsburg


Poetry

Dooley, Sarah. Free Verse. G.P. Putnam, 2016. The West Virginia coal mining town seems to be to blame for the loss of everyone Sasha loves. First her mother walks out, then her father dies in a mining accident. And finally her older brother dies while fighting a fire.

Florian, Douglas. A Kick in The Head: An Everyday Guide to Poetic Form. Candlewick, 2005.

A collection of poems that showcase twenty-nine poetic forms, each with a brief definition.

Lewis. J. Patrick. Countdown to Summer. Little, Brown & Company, 2009.

A collection of humorous poems, one for each day of the school year, including haiku,

limericks, riddles, shape poems, and nonsense verse.

Park, Linda Sue. Tap Dancing on the Roof. Clarion, 2007. Presents twenty-six sijo, traditional

Korean syllabic poems, on “inside” and “outside” themes.

Prelutsky, Jack. New Kid on the Block. Greenwillow Books, 1984.

Presents over 100 humorous poems about such strange creatures and people as Baloney

Belly Billy and the Gloopy Gloopers.

Pizza, Pigs, and Poetry: How to Write a Poem. Greenwillow, 2008.

Explains how to write poems about everyday subjects, such as experiences with their fami-

ly, friends, and pets, providing tips and example poems.

Rex, Adam. Frankenstein Makes a Sandwich & Other Stories You’re Sure to Like. Harcourt,

2006. A collection of twenty funny poems about the bad habits, anxieties, fears and foibles

of monsters.

Silverstein, Shel. Every Thing On It. Harper, 2011.

A collection of more than 130 original, never-before published poems and drawings by

Shel Silverstein. Read any book of poetry by this author such as: Falling Up, Where the

Sidewalk Ends, and A Light in the Attic.

Singer, Marilyn. Mirror Mirror: A Book of Reversible Verse. Dutton, 2010.

First, read the poems forward, then reverse the lines and read again to give familiar tales,

from Sleeping Beauty to Prince Charming, a new spin with magic.

Schlitz, Laura Amy. Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village. Candle-

wick, 2007. A collection of short one-person plays (monologues) featuring characters

between ten and fifteen years old, who live in or near a thirteenth- century English manor.

Newbery Medal 2008.

TITLE AUTHOR

The Pingry Lower School Library

2016 Summer Reading List Log

Name: ______________________________ Grade in September: _____

My Reading Goal (# of books to read): ___________________________

Reading Log, continued

TITLE AUTHOR

june 2016 - pingry school · a picture postcard can be sent from anywhere – even from your own...

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