Read Alouds

Hello!

I had a request for ideas for books to read aloud. I began to make a quick list, but it turned into a much longer list than I had expected. I will star my favorites. Some of these are out of print, but you can get them through any online bookstore.

Books for Any Age
*The Little House series by Laura Ingalls Wilder. You probably know about these and have them in your library. The TV show is loosely based on the books which are much better.

*The Secret Garden by Burnett. I never got to read this aloud to my third graders because they had already heard it in second grade. (Right, Dorice?!) Don’t be intimidated if the children say they saw the movie. None of the movies live up to the book.

*Ramona the Pest by Cleary. Actually, ANY book by Beverly Cleary. There are many to choose from. If you don’t have any of them in your library, don’t let me know about it!

*Frindle by Andrew Clements. Any of his school stories are terrific.

*Snow Treasure by McSwigan. Excitement, adventure, gold, Nazis, and a true story. You can’t go wrong with this one.

The Hundred Dresses by Estes. Story of bullying and regret. Powerful and simple. Great discussion starter.

Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes by Coerr. True story of a Japanese girl who contracts leukemia as a result of the atom bomb. Very touching and sad. Teach children to make an origami paper crane, then let them fold cranes while you read this book.

The Best Christmas Pageant Ever – Robinson. Hilarious escapades of the Herdmans. Be ready for great big belly laughs.

The Courage of Sarah Noble by Dagliesh. Pioneer story of a young girl.

*Herbie Jones series by Kline. Very funny and realistic. The author is/was a teacher so she knows all about kids like Herbie. One of my favorites is the one in the bathroom.

*Owls in the Family by Mowat. True story of a young boy in Saskatchewan in the 40s or 50s who raises two owls as pets. Hilarious.

Stone Fox by Gardiner. Sled dogs, racing, prize money. This may be a lit set for some of you, so if it is, disregard for a read aloud.

**The Story of Holly and Ivy by Godden. My favorite Christmas story to read aloud to 3rd and 4th graders. I have a display case just outside my library and I turn the display case into a toy shop window when I read this book. I’m so happy that this is the year to read it. One of our volunteer aides collects dolls and is very involved in helping me with this display. We’ve been working on parts of it for nearly two years now. I’ll show pictures and tell you about it when I put it up. Meanwhile, buy this book if you don’t have it and read it. Get the edition that has the Barbara Cooney illustrations. That is the window that I copy.

*Safe Return by Dexter. I am currently reading this to fifth and sixth grades. They are studying countries in the world, so I chose to read this which is based on an event that happened years ago on the island just off Sweden named Gotland.

Caddie Woodlawn by Brink. The story of Brink’s grandmother in the mid 1800s. Won the Newbery medal so you know it is a good story. The story of the Woodlawn family continues in the book Magical Melons. There is one story in Magical Melons that the older boy tells to the younger ones that is absolutely hilarious, but I would recommend you read it first to see if it is something you want to read aloud. If not, the story can be skipped and none the wiser.

Homer Price by Robert McCloskey. Robert McCloskey is most famous for his picture books, most notably Make Way for Duckings, but his chapter books are great fun. My favorite story is the one about the doughnuts. I seem to remember Captain Kangaroo reading the story when I was a child. Now I have just dated myself!

The Great Brain series by Fitzgerald. I haven’t actually read this series, but one of our teachers read the books each year to her classroom and the students loved it. I’ve heard others wax rhapsodic about them, too, so I include them in this list for you.

Ida Early Comes Over the Mountain by Burch. Ida Early is described as an Appalachian ‘Mary Poppins’. She comes to be the housekeeper for a family.

My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George. You likely read this one when young, and know the story of the boy who runs away and practices survival skills. If you like this one, you might consider the sequels On the Far Side of the Mountain, then Frightful’s Mountain. And, if you do go this far with the series, you might as well add the resource book with survival skills to your library– Pocket Guide to the Outdoors: Based on My Side of the Mountain.

**Toliver’s Secret by Brady. This story is based on an incident during the Revolutionary Way. A young girl must carry a message baked inside a loaf of bread to another town across the river. It is easy enough. Get on her grandfather’s friend’s fishing boat which will take her to the town. Go to the tavern and deliver the loaf of bread to the owner, then he will make sure she gets home. She dresses up like a boy, but nothing goes the way Grandfather expected it would go. I LOVE this story.

**Understood Betsy by Fisher. The story of a young girl who is sent to relatives when illness prevents her aunt from taking care of her. Elizabeth Ann finds her courage and independence and grows into a strong happy girl. As Elizabeth Ann begins to become independent and learn to do things for herself, her name in the book goes from Elizabeth Ann to Betsy. I watch for this each time I reread this.

So, there is a list of read alouds that I like. I am positive that I left lots of books off this list, but that’s how things go. I might do another list again sometime and include some of your favorites.

Have a great week.

Audrey

Currently Reading:
The Edge by Roland Smith
Carney’s House Party by Maud Hart Lovelace
A Life Inspired: C. S. Lewis biography by Christopher Gordon
Secret Lives of the First Ladies (audio book) by Cormac O’Brien
The Complete Works of P. G. Wodehouse (I’m 29% through on my Kindle)