Favorite Books For 6th Graders
by: Jacqueline Woodson – (Nancy Paulsen Books, 2014) 352 pages.
The book: Brown Girl Dreaming is a perfect combination of free verse poems written by Woodson. She conveyed her childhood experiences through these well-written lines. Throughout the book, the writer uses powerful imagery, which helps greatly in conveying significant issues such as faith, sexual abuse, and racism. This is a book perfect for all ages.
Perfect for: Those interested in poetry.
The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate
by: Jacqueline Kelly – (Henry Holt and Co., 2009) 352 pages.
The book: The story revolves around the evolution of an 11 years old Texas girl named Calpurnia. She explores the natural world with her wise, old grandfather’s help, The story is so fun and light to read.
Perfect for: Kids who are interested in historical legends.
Just as Long as We’re Together
by Judy Blume – (Orchard Books, 1987) 290 pages.
In the book: Stephanie and Rachel are best friends. One day a new girl named Alison moves into their neighborhood. Alison is a very nice girl and Stephanie becomes her friend too! This is something that Rachel does not want. The story revolves around their lives and all the stuff going on in them.
Perfect for: Developing the value of friendship.
Gilda Joyce, Psychic Investigator
by: Jennifer Allison – (Sleuth/Dutton, 2005) 321 pages.
The book: Gilda is a fun little girl who thinks she is a psychic investigator. Ever since her father passed from cancer, she has been obsessed with the paranormal. She believes that this may reconnect her with her late father. One summer, she visits her relatives in San Francisco, and with this visit, Gilda starts a new journey. An investigation of a haunted house is the type of journey Gilda is looking for. Young teenagers who had experienced similar losses would appreciate this book and relate to it. Also, teenagers who like scary and mysterious novels will be so interested in this one.
Perfect for: Kids who like the mystery.
The Alchemyst: The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel
by Michael Scott – (Delacorte Books for Young Readers, 2007) 400 pages.
In the book: Twins Sophie and Josh, while their parents are overseas on an archaeological excavation, are working and enjoying the summer in San Francisco along with their aunt. Josh was working at the bookshop. A black limo comes up one day and numerous men get out. They abduct the bookshop owner’s wife; steal an old metal bounded book, and Sophie, Josh, and the owner of the bookstore are forced to flee for their own lives.
The Alchemyst is a fantastic choice for Harry Potter lovers who are looking for a new series to get enthusiastic about. Even the most pessimistic young fantasy enthusiasts can find something to like in the story’s abundance of fights and magic. Watch for The Magician, the series’ following novel.
Perfect for: Kids who enjoy fantasy literature.
The American Story: 100 True Tales from American History
by: Jennifer Armstrong, illustrated by: Roger Roth – (Random House, 2006) 368 pages.
The anecdotes in this massive book with 360pagesare taken from the records of significant and minor historical occurrences in America. From the creation of America’s first city in 1565 to the perplexing 2000 presidential election, its 100 brief narratives—each generally 1 to 5 pages long—recount in clear and chronological sequence tales of bravery, discovery, freedom, and hardship that helped to form the American experience. … This book breaks down history into enticing bite-size chunks with smart writing and vivid watercolor images.
Perfect for: Children that enjoy history.
by: C.S. Lewis – (HarperCollins, 1950)
The hook: Even though kids may have already seen the film, this book with 7 series, which skillfully blends the paranormal with the real world, is a classic inspiring children’s fiction for fifty years. The main characters, youngsters from reality, are magically teleported to Narnia, where, with the lion Aslan’s sage guidance, they play pivotal roles in determining the course of events in this parallel universe. Narnia’s entire fate is in jeopardy in every of Lewis’s captivating novels, which are all written in exquisite prose: Can good triumph over this evil?
Perfect for: Readers aged 8 and higher, who are attracted to enigmatic symbols and magic.
The Mysterious Edge of the Heroic World
by: E.L. Konigsburg – (Simon & Schuster, 2007) 244 pages.
For intelligent children, this is wonderful writing. There are passing references to violent and sexual topics, but they are not more than that. There is a little polite profanity. Families may discuss the broad historical context and Hitler’s particular aesthetic preferences. Why would a tyrant like Hitler have found it so crucial to dominating the arts? Why would others take the chance with their lives? What could make artwork so crucial? Additionally, the author may be rather subtle at times, so even skilled readers would need some assistance understanding the plot.
Perfect for: Youngsters that enjoy historical fiction.
Wizardology: The Book of the Secrets of Merlin
by: Dugald A. Steer, illustrated by: Anne Yvonne Gilbert, John Howe, and Helen Ward – (Candlewick Press, 2005) 28 pages.
This book is jam-packed with the knowledge that is delivered in fairly formal English. This book’s abundance of manipulatives on every page is what makes it so interesting. The diagrams, spells, and eventually the learning, get additional complexity thanks to these manipulatives.
Perfect for: Children that enjoy fantasy and science fiction.
Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl
by: Anne Frank – (Bantam, 1993) 304 pages.
The book: In her diary, Anne Frank, the 13-years-old girl, depicts and documents her life during the period of Nazi occupation. She uses eloquent language and vivid images to describe her experience in the hideout. In her diary, Anne writes about how they are living in confinement, fearing that one day the place will be discovered by the enemies. Unfortunately, what she feared happens and her diary ends and so does her life. The story of Anne and those who were with her is a very tragic yet powerful one.
Perfect for: Teenagers, wanna-be writers, or children interested in Nazi Germany.
Survivors: True Stories of Children in Holocaust
by: Allan Zullo and Mara Bovsun – (Scholastic Paperbacks, 2005) 208 pages.
This compelling, visual book explores the lives of nine girls and boys who survived the Holocaust. The survivors relate their gruesome, heartbreaking childhoods in interviews with adults. Lucia hid in a little trunk; Markus pretending being dead; Matheis leaped out of his boxcar and ran to the woods; while a few of them hid in attics or haystacks, pretended to be someone else, or made it out of the concentration camps. Each youngster had the physical and moral fortitude, unwavering hope, and the desire to live, yet they were all permanently wounded.
Perfect for: Mature kids with a passion for knowing more about the Holocaust. For those who are drawn to tales of resiliency and the human spirit’s capacity for survival.
by Susan Creech – (HarperTrophy, 1995) 288 pages.
A small girl traveling with her grandma and grandpa in this 1995 Newbery Medal-winning story amuses them by telling stories of an imaginary friend. She has to face her emotions for her separated mother at the same time. Visit the library to find Walk Two Moons.
The Golden Compass: His Dark Materials, Book 1
by: Philip Pullman – (Alfred A. Knopf, 1996) 432 pages.
10-year-old Lyra’s soul, like everyone else’s in her universe, dwells outside of a body as a pet daemon. At Oxford College, Lyra and her ferocious, mischievous demon, Pantalaimon, were reared by the older students who are responsible for looking after Lyra. The Gobblers who snatch children abduct Lyra’s buddy Roger, so Lyra sets out to locate him with the beautiful Mrs. Coulter and a mystical compass that can predict the future, but the future can understand just those who can read a compass. Science, theology, and magic are all interwoven in this gripping story of witch tribes, polar bears, and air balloon journeys. Two additional novels follow the adventure.
The movie also sounds interesting. Check out the series’ first book’s narrative in the 2007 version featuring Nicole Kidman in the main role.
Perfect for: Children that enjoy witty fantasy with a twist.
by: Mary O’Hara – (Lippincott, 1941) 352 pages.
Ken McLaughlin, age 10, is a daydreamer struggling to focus in class and yearning for the chance to raise a colt on the Wyoming horse farm owned by his family. When Ken finally gets the chance, a passionate and lasting attachment forms between him and the mustang Flicka.
The movie is also fun. Readers wishing for a more recent remake might watch the film Flicka from 2006, which recasts the narrative with a female lead and may appeal to classic cinema fans who prefer the book’s 1943 adaptation.
Perfect for: Children that aspire to buy a horse.
by: S.E. Hinton – (Viking Press, 1967) 224 pages.
Ponyboy, a proud Greaser from the underclass, is always eager for a fight with the wealthy Socs (also known as “Socials”). However, after Johnny, his best buddy, inadvertently murders a member of the gang named Socs, Ponyboy, then 14 years old, is forced to face the harsh realities of his existence and make decisions that will shape his future. The Outsiders was written in 1967, and tweens and adolescents today may still relate to the story’s themes of violence, class, and adolescence.
If you want to watch the movie, see Francis Ford Coppola’s 1983 adaption, but parents should be aware that it contains violence and intoxicated minors.
Perfect for: Youngsters that enjoy rough, realistic stories.
