Book List- Over 100 books read!

Picture Books Author/Illustrator/Title 20/20	Annotations
1.Dr. Seuss The Lorax	The Oncelor moves into town and cuts down all of the truffala trees, and pollutes the air and water- forcing all the animals that live there to leave. Moral- take care of the environment while we still have something to take care of.
2.Dr. Seuss Green Eggs and Ham	The character Sam tries to get his friend to try something that is unfamiliar to him- green eggs and ham. Good book for teaching rhyming words. Moral- try something new and you may like it.

3.Dr. Seuss And To Think That I Saw It On Mulberry Street	This is one of Dr. Seuss's first books. Its about a boy who has to make up stories about what happens to him as he is walking home from school. He thinks his walk is much too boring on it's own so he embellishes it.
4.Dr. Seuss Gertrude McFuzz	This story is about a bird that only has one feather and wants more like another beautiful bird she knows. She ends up getting a ton of feathers - so many that she can no longer fly and realizes that she likes her one little feather. Good book on liking who you are.
5.Dr. Seuss Horton Hatches the Egg	Horton hatches an egg for a bird that said she would be right back and doesn’t. He stays on the egg because "I meant what I said, and I said what I meant, and an elephant is faithful 100%" Good book for teaching the importance of keeping your word, or commitment.
6.Dr. Seuss The Grinch Stole Christmas	A Classic! There is more to Christmas than gifts.
7.Dr. Seuss I can Read with My Eyes Shut!	The moral is “The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn the more places you’ll go.”

8.Tomie dePaola Country Angel Christmas	The little county angels come through for the heavens on Christmas and prove that just because one is little, does not mean that they can’t help.
9.Tomie dePaola An Early American Christmas	A new family moves into town and celebrates Christmas different than everyone else. Soon, people start adapting. Very good, as always with Tomie dePaola.
10.Tomie dePaloa The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush	This story is about an Indian boy who is given the gift of art and chooses to embrace it, rather than fighting.
11.Karen Kingsbury Illustrated by Mary Collier Let Me Hold You Longer	EXCELLENT!! Anyone who has not read this book needs to- especially if you have children. This book points out the fact that we are always focusing on our children's firsts- first step, first words, etc. we pay less attention to their lasts. It is very good and very sad! Great for adults and parents, maybe not so much for children, though there are great illustrations.
12.Doreen Cronin Click, Clack, Moo Cows That Type	The cows get a hold of the type writer and start making demands to farmer brown- they want electric blankets because it is cold in the barn at night! Very funny story!
13.Doreen Cronin Giggle, Giggle, Quack	When farmer brown goes on vacation and leaves his brother in charge of the farm, his animals take advantage of the situation and get to eat yummy food, and take baths in the house! Cute story, Follow up to Click, Clack, Moo and good for a thematic unit on farm animals.
14.Pamela Hall Elemenopee	When the children keep running the L,M,N,O,P letters of the alphabet, the other letters start teasing them so they decide to join the number line. Then the other letters realize they can't spell words without them and ask them to come back. Great story with young students learning letters, and put great emphasis ton the fact that you cant just run those five letters together. Good book.
15.Maurice Sendak In The Night Kitchen	Imaginative. A little boy sneaks out to the night kitchen and gets baked in a cake because the bakers think he is milk. He breaks out, flies in a dough airplane to the Milky way and gets real milk for the bakers. Very cool!
16.Cynthia Rylant When I Was Young In The Mountains	A recollection of events that happened to a young girl- swimming in the waterhole, eating, going to church etc. Good to use to talk about past times, or perhaps a good way to spark a journal prompt.
17.Mordicai Gerstein The Man Who Walked Between The Towers	This is a very powerful and significant book! It is a true story of a man named Philippe Petit who in 1974 walked on a tight rope pulled between the two twin towers in NYC. It is an incredible story, and has great significance to our American culture. Great for any age!


18.Jamie Lee Curtis Big Words	This book tells children that they can broaden their vocabulary and shows them examples of how. Great book for introducing vocabulary words.
19.Sarah Stewart Illustrated by David Small The Gardener	This is a story about a little girl going to stay with relatives when times are hard at home and creating a beautiful garden around her. This is a great story! Very moving. Can be analyzed in many different ways. Good for all ages.
20.Eric Carle The Very Hungry Catapillar	Classic counting story about a very hungry catapillar that turns into a butterfly.
Poetry and Verse 5/5
21.Rachel Field Prayer for a child	This is a great poem prayer book. It is just about a little girl saying a prayer for blessings of all the things important to her. Very sweet. Does have a religious aspect. Great for home reading.
22.Hope Anita Smith The Way A Door Closes	This is a book of different poems that tells the story of a young boy who’s father leaves, and he is unsure if he will return, but he does. Touching story with a good ending. Probably for older kids from 4-6^th grade would be the best.
23.Shel Silverstein A Light in the Attic	A classic of course! Full with the best kids poems like “Ations” and “Hot Dog”. I enjoy reading through this book every time I get the chance regardless of the number of times I have already done it! Great for all ages.
24.Jack Prelutzky A Pizza the Size of the Sun.	This is a great collection of poetry by Jack Prelutsky. Many of them are super funny and consists of mostly random subjects.
25.Shel Silverstein Where the Sidewalk Ends	A favorite from my childhood. Full of great, powerful and silly poems

Folktales 5/5
26.William J. Bennett Why Frog and Snake Never Play Together	This is an African folktale about a young frog and a young snake meet and have a fun day together and teach each other new things. When they get home they are told never to play with each other again. The next day when they meet, they keep their distance and just sit alone and think about how much fun they had the day before. It is a good story for illustrating how much companionship the world has missed out on because they listen when others tell them they shouldn't be friends.
27.Glen Rounds The Morning the Sun Refused to Rise- an original Paul Bunyan tale	This book is about how the earth’s axis became frozen from a blizzard and a Paul Bunyan and his gang had to come in and fix it. It is a pretty comical story! Good example of Folklore. A little long, and gets a little boring at times. Good for 4^th grade and up.
28.Paul Galdone The Magic Porridge Pot	This story is about a little girl and her mother who get a magic porridge pot from an old woman in the forest and end up running the streets full of porridge. It is a classic tale that I remember from my childhood. This book was ok, but I think that I will try to find an alternative book that tells the same story.
29.Lenny Hort The Goatherd and the Shepherdess	This is a Greek mythology story/ love triangle. It has great illustrations and a good example of common Greek mythology, though was a little long and dry for my taste, but had a good ending. Best for older grades. Karen Greenfield
30.Karen Greenfield Sister Yessa’s Story	This was an interesting book about a woman story teller who told a story about a huge turtle that carried all the animals on his back until he started dropping them at random places around the world- the elephants and giraffs in the grasslands of Africa, the whales in the ocean etc. As she tells the story couples (2) of animals follow her and in the end she brings all the couples into her brothers place, an ark. This story is like biblical meets epic meets folklore! Good Stuff!
Realistic Fiction 7/7
31.Carol Matas Play Ball	This book is about a girl playing baseball, and proving that girls can be successful at a “boys game.” Great for young girls. Girl power!
32.Robie H. Harris Happy Birth Day!	This book is about the birth of a baby. It discusses the biology- including the function of the umbilical cord, nursing and burping, but it is done in a very juvenile way. I think this book would be great to read to your own child, but maybe not so much in the classroom.
33.Leslie Kimmelman Hanukkah Lights, Hanukkah Nights	This is the story of a family that celebrates……you guessed it Hanukkah. It talks about common Jewish practices such as playing with a dreidel and lighting the menorah. Great for talking about the different celebrations around the holiday season. Probably best for grades 3 and under.
34.Bijou Le Tord My Grandma Leonie	This is a story a boy’s grandmother coming to live his family. It talks about all of the fun things they did together. Then the grandmother get sick and goes to the hospital, and doesn’t come home. It is actually really sad! I do think that this could be a very important book to read to children because it introduces a very crucial part of the human experience- death. I do however believed it would be used best in the home VS the classroom.
35.Ellie Mathews The Linden Tree	This is the story of a girl who lived on a farm and who’s mother died. This books shows the dynamics by which a family can and must change after losing a family member, and struggles that they must face. This book was very good and very sad. I kept Kleenex with me while reading it.
36.Blume, Judy. Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret	This story is about a young girl who faces many common adolecence problems and dealing with choosing a religion, she confides and talks to her own god.
37.SkyLark Patricia MacLachlan	This story is about the character Sarah and the children (from Sarah Plain and Tall) traveling to Maine and while on their journey they realize how strong their new family really is. Quick and easy read- super book for fourth and fifth graders
Graphic Novels 3
38.Dean Haspiel and Jay lynch Mo and Jo Fighting Together Forever	This book was the first graphic novel that I have read and I must say that I am not a big fan so far, but will keep my mind open for better examples of graphic novels. The reading from one bubble to another is a little distracting. Anyway. The story was ok- about a brother and sister fighting, and end up getting a super hero’s suite and becoming a crime fighting team. OK
39.Hope Larson A Salamander Dream	This graphic novel is about a girl who has a salamader spirit friend. Honestly, I did not understand this story the first couple times I looked through it. After I read about what it was about, I was able to put the story together.
40.Jayson Shiga Meanwhile	This is a graphic novel that I found online and is supposed to be interactive- you choose where the book leads by picking different paths. Help Devin! I could barely follow the story- a boy goes to an ice cream shop and then goes home. Thats pretty much all I got from this story.
Historical Fiction 4/4
41.Sarah Plain and Tall Realistic fiction Patricia MacLachlan	Taking place in the early 20^th century, this is a great story about dealing with hardships and rebuilding a broken family. I first read this book in 5^th grade. My teacher used to say “Sarah short and beautiful, its time to read Sarah plain and tall.” This made me like the book more. A classic.
42.Valerie Tripp Changes for Felicity	This book takes place when the colonies are trying to separate from England. The main character Felicity faces great challenges such as the controversy between her family and her best friends family’s- different political views and she is worried about her horse who is going to have a foal. Great for young girls to read.
43.Valerie Tripp Brave Emily	This book is set in the 1940’s. A young girl Emily, comes from England to live with Molly to get away from the bombing of London. The girls do homework, learn to play the flute and become good friends. Emily misses home and gets the courage at the end to ask for help for England. Cute story. Good for young girls.
44.Jim Murphy The Journal of Brian Doyle	This is a book about a young boy who leaves him home to become a whale hunter on an Alaskan ship. He is then faced with great adventures and danger. This book was interesting. It is written in journal entry form and is historical fiction because of the direct link between the history of the whale industry. A pretty quick read. Probably best for 6^th graders.

Autobiography/ Biography 4/4
45.Anne Frank Anne Frank The Diary of a Young Girl	The diary of a young Jewish girl who is hidden away during WWII to keep from getting put in a concentration camp. Great for 6-8th grade
46.Joyce Milton The Story of George Washington A Quiet Hero	This book is part of the Famous Lives Series that includes many other famous people. It talks about George Washington as a soldier, leader and later our president. It also highlights his many achievements along the way. This is a longer book- best for older students 4^th grade and up.
47.Kellogg, Steven. Johnny Appleseed Biograhy	This book talks about the life of John Chapman, AKA Johnny Appleseed. It discusses his love of nature and animals describing his love of nature, his kindness to animals, and his physical strengths.
48.Shelley Swanson Sateren Monet	This is a book about the life of the famous painter Monet. It tells about him as a child, how he and other artists of this era invented impressionistic art, and his success later on in life. Great for an artistic study.
Fantasy 3/3
49.Alison James Eucalyptus Wings	This book is about two girls who create a magic potion that allows them to fly. It ends with one of the girls’ fathers building them a swing that they can use to fly forever. Many of the pages in the middle of the book (when they are flying) have no words, just the picture. Good for building imaginations! Probably best for 4^th grade and under.
50. C.S. Lewis The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe	Classic! I loved reading this book. It totally expands the imaginations and is so great to read aloud to younger readers and assign to older kids. Four siblings go exploring on a rainy day when the youngest (Lucy) finds an incredible wardrobe. Once inside, the children find the incredible land of Narnia have quite the experiences trying to get home
51.Charlottes Web E.B. White	A tear jerker every time! A story about a spider, a pig and the struggles of real life.
Science Fiction 3/3
52.Wrinkle in Time Science Fiction Madeleine L'Engle	This book stretches the imagination to new lengths. This story is about a brother and sister who go on a mission to save their father from a far away planet. They travel through different dimensions and meet interesting characters like Mrs. Who, Mrs. Which and Mrs. Whatsit. Classic story and great example of Science Fiction.
53.David Southwell Unsolved Extraterrestrial Mysteries	This book is WEIRD! It talks about alien abductions, UFO’s, Cattle Mutilations, and how the Germans planted underground bases on the moon. The scariest thing is that this the author really, honestly believes all this stuff! Scary and not a good book for the classroom.
54.Irene Trimble WALL E The Junior Novelization	This is the story takes place in the future and the humans living on earth decide to leave, except the little robot Wall E. who helps to clean up the earth and eventually save man kind. Cute little book. Good for fourth graders.
Nonfiction/ Informational 6/6
55.Edward R. Ricciuti What On Earth Is A Skink?	The title of this book caught my eye and I had to know what a skink is. This book is an informational book about skinks- what they look like, where they live, what they eat, how they reproduce, how they survive etc. (By the way, a skink is a reptile that looks like a mix of an iguana and a snake with legs- and is considered a lizard)! Another interesting fact: When they mate, the male wraps his jaw around the female’s neck. I think this would be best for a more mature audience like 5-6 grade.
56.Mary Ling In the Air	This book is all about things that fly- it covers everything from butterflies to helicopters and many things in between. There were photographs shown to represent the flying objects which made the book very real and were interesting to look at. This would be a great book to read during a thematic unit on airborne objects. It would work best for grades K-4.
57.Althea Illustrated by Mike Vince 58.How Life Began	This book is about evolution. It starts with the explanation of single celled organisms (like Amoeba) evolving overtime into animals like dinosaurs and birds and eventually mammals. I think this book was helpful at breaking down evolution into simple terms, but was still some what complicated to understand. This book would be best for 6 grade and up.
59.Neil Morris Illustrated by Mik Brown Where Does My Spaghetti Go When I Eat It?	This is a great informational book that covers many subjects including sleeping, healing, teeth, senses, skeletal structures and of course digestion! It also discusses fun things like freckles and goose bumps. I think this book would be great to have in a classroom in a reading center or even for reference when those awkward questions are asked! Good for any grade K-6.
60.Miles Harvey Look What Came From Egypt	This book is full of great information about things that come from Egypt including food, inventions, toys and games, instruments and even a recipe! I choose this book because when I was a young child I had a pen-pal from Egypt and was always trying to find books to learn more. I would have loved this book. Good for all ages, even adults.
61.Judith St. George and David Small So You Want To Be President?	This is a book that talks about the characteristics of past presidents and names funny facts about them. Good for grades 4 and up.

62.Robin Pulver

Illustrated by R.W. Alley

Mrs. Toggle’s Zipper

Cute story about a teacher who has a broken zipper, can’t get her coat off and gets help from others who work at the school. Cute, good for young children.

63Tracey Campbell Pearson

Diddle, Diddle, Dumpling

The original nursery rhyme put to pictures (also included the words). The more I am hearing how nursery rhymes are fading from our youth, the more I want to familiarize myself with them so I can share my knowledge with my future students. This book would be best for young students. (k-1)

64.Lisa Desimini

Sun and Moon A Giant Love Story

This is a cute love story about a giant boy who was afraid of the dark- who always followed the sun, and giant girl who followed the moon. The two were united with an eclipse. It would be a fun book to read just because, or perhaps introduce the idea of a solar/ lunar eclipse.

65.Lynne Jonell

It's My Birthday Too

Great book for sibling rivalry. A boy wants his brother to act like a dog at his birthday party so he doesn't steal away the attention- in the end he wants a brother, not a dog. Cute!

66.Denise Fleming

Lunch

Bright, interesting illustrations. Few words on each page. About a mouse eating lunch. Show half of each food on a page- great for teaching prediction. Very descriptive words- sweet, tender, tasty, crisp, tart, shiny etc. Great vocabulary. Good way to teach about adjectives, and expand vocabulary in general.

67.Edward Lear

The New Vestments

Not a classic. This book is about a man that invents new kinds of clothing- dead mice, rabbit skins etc. Yuck! Interesting illustrations, but not much else! I would not read it in my classroom.

68.Nikki Giovanni

Illustrated by Bryan Collier

Rosa

This is a very good book about Rosa Parks. It is written in such a way that it really tells a story, and not lists a bunch of facts. Great pictures too! Good for k-5^th grade.

69.Shaheen Bilgrami

Night Shadows

A creative picture book about shadows. Windows with shadows that can be very deceiving, and sometimes look scary. When you turn the light on (pull the tab) the scary figures turn out to be everyday people and objects.

70.Joseph Low

Mice Twice

A cute story about a cat trying to eat a mouse, but ends up getting stung by a wasp- the bigger they are, the harder they fall! Good.

71.Tony DiTerilizzi

The Spider and the Fly

The spider tricks the fly into thinking he is friendly and then of course eats her. Black and white illustrations. Variety of Vocabulary. Good for fall season.

72.Maurice Sendak

Outside Over There

Interesting. Great illustrations. A girl is babysitting her sister when gobblins come and take her. She goes "outside over there" to get her back from the gobblins and ends up with her family.

73.Eric Rohmann

Time Flies

This is a picture only book that was inspired from the theory that birds are relatives of dinosaurs. A bird is in a dinosaur museum and imagins flying with dinosaurs from the past. Beautiful illustrations.

74.Bob Graham

Spirit of Hope

Around the Pond: Who’s Been Here?

This is a cool story about a brother and sister who go into the forest to pick berries and end up encountering many different clues (foot prints, piles of branches etc) to who has been there. Great book for using on an animal, or outdoor themed unit. Good for k-3.

75.Laurie Keller

Scrambled States of America

This was an interesting and silly book. All of the states in the United States decide to put on a talent show and you end up learning things about each state. Pretty entertaining, but a little too off the wall for my taste.

76.Elissa Haden Guest

Iris and Walter

This book is about a little girl who moves from the city to the country and how she adjusted to her new life and made a friend named Walter. Cute story. Good for young children.

77.Author not listed- a favorite folk-tale

The Little Red Hen

Great story about the benefits of hard work. A Hen goes and does all the work to make bread and gets no help from her animal friends. In the end she reaps the benefits, and her friends do not.

78.Jon Scieszka and Lane Smith

The Stinky Cheese Man and other Fairly Stupid Tales

This is a collection of fairy tales, remade to be silly. It is a cute book and fun for little ones 2nd through 5th grade and maybe older.

79.No author listed- Parragon Publishing

Who's hiding in the Ocean?

An interactive book for young children. Shows animals that live in the ocean- good for teaching underwater vocabulary like- coral reef, anemones etc. and viewing underwater creatures like whales, sharks crabs etc.

80.Peter Sis

The Wall

This is a very interesting book. It tells about the life of Peter Sis and the experiences he had as a child in Czechoslovakia during the Cold War. It is told through drawings, that he drew, as well as little tidbits of information. Probably best for older students.

81.Tomie dePaola

The Art Lesson

This is a great true story about Tommy dePaola's begining experiences with drawing.

82.Maurice Sendak

Where The Wild Things Are

A classic for sure! A little boy lets his imagination take him to far away land while he sits in his room- punished for being WILD! Great!

83.Dav Pilkey

The Moon Glow Roll-O-Rama

This book is about how the moonlight creates magic that makes animals fly and brings them to a special place where they go to dance and roller skate! This is a cute book that rhymes. Good for all ages.

84.Virginia Overton McLean

Chasing The Moon To China

This book is about a girl who visits China. It starts out with her parents announcing that her and her family will be visiting China and goes on to tell about the plane ride and all about her trip. It is great about explaining Chinese culture and has real photographs. This book, though had some great information, is very outdated and should probably not be read in a classroom. The idea of the book is fantastic, but it said things like “The Chinese have never seen a hamburger, hot dog, or pizza.” I don’t think so!

85.Cass Hollaner

The House That Stood on Booker Hill

A story of how a house was built, the memories of a family, and then the house gets sold and new memories will be made. Ok. Good for teaching reading to young children.

86.John Scieszka

Knights of the Round Table

Cute book about Joe, Fred and Sam who are reading a book about the days of knights, and suddenly get sucked into it. They meet King Arthur and battle dragons, then are home again. Did it really happen? Nobody knows. Good, imaginative story.

87.Clement C. Moore

Illustrated by Christian Birmingham

The Night Before Christmas

A classic tale put to beautiful illustrations

88.Tomie dePaola

The Miracles of Jesus

Tomie dePaola adapts passages from the New Testament.

89.Mary Claire Helldorfer

Illustrated by Sandra Speidel

Clap, Clap

A book about the daily gifts we receive from the Lord. Amazing illustrations.

90.Elaine Moore Illustrated by William Low Good Morning, City	The activities that go on in the city. The sun comes up, though many have been up and working for hours. Great pictures.
91.Natalie Honeycutt Illustrations by Annie Cannon Whistle Home	Aunt Whistle came to watch a child while their mother is gone. A story about a girl missing her mother and when she whistles, her mom comes home.
92.Terry Jones The Fly-by-Night	A little girls has a dream that she is taken by a flying cat and gets taken far from her home, but eventually returns.
93.Tomie dePaloa Charlie Needs A Cloak	Charlie, a sheepherder needs a new cloak. This book tells about the steps it takes to make one- shearing the wool, sewing etc. Entertaining and informational.
94.Sue Kassirer Illustrated by Page O’Rourke What’s Next Nina?	Nina barrows her sister’s necklace without asking and breaks it.
95.Janet Palazzo What Makes the Weather?	Talks about the sun and fog and snow and rain. Great for a weather theme.
96.David A. Adler Illustrations by Robert Casilla A Picture Book of Martin Luther King, Jr.	A book about Martin Luther King’s life from the beginning- his struggles and accomplishments.
97.Barbra Lehn What is an Athlete?	Lists the important qualities of an athletes.
98.Alexandra Parsons Why Do Tigers Have Stripes?	An informational book about the different characteristics of animals. Good book for thematic unit on animals.
99.Elizabeth MacDonald Mr. MacGregor’s Breakfast Egg	Mr. MacGregor want’s his egg for breakfast, but there are many things stopping him from getting it like traffic jams and lack of food for the hen. Good for young children.
100.Judy Hindley The Big Red Bus	The bus gets stuck in a pot hole and creates a traffic jam. Tractor and steam roller save the day.
101.Ashley Crownover Illustrated by David Wariner Jack and the Beanstalk	The classic tale, with interesting illustrations.
102.Dr. Seuss Mr. Brown Can Moo! Can you?	Great Seuss book for very young children about animal sounds.
103.Molly Wigand Illustrated by Mike Esberg The Snow Must Go On!	The animals and characters from the South Pole put on a show and characters from the North Pole show up to see it.
104.Erica Magnus Around Me	This is an awesome book that shows how nature can be brought down to a child’s size and perspective.