Summer Reading Program Annotations
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| Snow | As snowflakes come down, people in the city ignore them and only a boy and his dog thing the snowfall will amount to anything. |
| Today is Monday | Days of the week eating book |
| Max Cleans Up | Max’s big sister Ruby is dertemined to help him clean his room but he keeps rescuing things she wants to throw away. |
| Adventures of Marco and Polo | A penguin and a monkey become friends |
| Jubal’s wish | Jubal Bullfrog wishes for happiness for his animal friends and finds that sometimes wishes come true. |
| Elephant's Aloft | Directional words |
| Ten Apples on Top | Counting book |
| Click Clack Moo:Cows that type | Cows go on strike when the farmer refuses to give them what they want. |
| Olivia | Olivia is a feisty pig who has too much energy. |
| Brown Bear, Brown Bear | Rhyming color book |
| Are You My Mother | The adventures of little bird in search of mother |
| Bark, George | The puppy’s mother is in for a big surprise when she takes him to the vet to find out why he does not bark. |
| When I Get Bigger | A little critter book about growing up |
| Pancakes for Breakfast | A wordless picture book |
| The Spider Weaver | A spider shows two Ashanti weavers how to make colorful patterns in the cloth they weave. |
| Officer Buckle and Gloria | The children always ignore safety tips until a police dog helps with safety speeches. |
| Off to School, Baby Duck | The fear of the first day of school |
| Tie Your Socks and Clap Your Feet | nonsense poems about silly situations |
| My Monster Mama Loves Me So | all the things a mother does to show love |
| Martha and Skits | A new dog grows through all phases of being a puppy. |
| Noisy Nora | Little mouse |
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| Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears | A Mosquito tells a tall tale that sets off a chain reaction. Charming picture book lavishly illustrated in full color. Challenging |
| The Little House |
Beautifully illustrated story of a little house threatened by progress when tall buildings envelope the countryside. Challenging |
| Miss Rumphius | Alice Rumphius wants to travel the world and do the one thing her grandfather told her to do--make the world more beautiful. Challenging |
| Owl Moon | On a winter's
night under a full moon, a father and daughter trek into the woods to see
the great horned owl.
Challenging |
| Lon Po Po | Three sisters
staying home alone are endangered by a hungry wolf who is disguised as
their grandmother.
Challenging |
| George and Martha | Two
hippos teach each other how to behave with grace under pressure.
Average |
| The One in the Middle is the Green Kangaroo | Freddy
Dissel is tired of being nothing more than the middle child. Then
the school play gives him the chance to be recognized for himself.
Easy to Read |
| Flat Stanley | After a bulletin
board falls on Stanley while he's sleeping, he finds that being flat has
its advantages.
Challenging |
| Fossils Tell of Long Ago | Explains
how fossils are formed and what they tell us about the past.
Average |
| Arthur's New Puppy | Arthur's
new puppy causes problems when it tears the livingroom apart, wets on everything,
and refuses to wear a leash.
Average |
| Arthur Babysits | Arthur's
experience babysitting for the terrible Tibble twins is as challenging
as he expected.
Average |
| Curious George | Curiosity
gets George the monkey into trouble, until he learns to put it to good
use.
Easy to Read |
| Nate the Great Goes Undercover | Nate the
Great solves the case of Oliver's scattered garbage.
Average |
| Sylvester and the Magic Pebble | In a moment
of fright, Sylvester the donkey asks his magic pebble to turn him into
a rock and learns an important lesson.
Average |
| Tikki Tikki Tembo | Charming
Chinese folktale about a boy named Chang and his speech difficulties.
Challenging |
| The Teeny Tiny Woman | A teeny-tiny
woman puts a teeny-tiny bone in a cupboard before she goes to sleep and
is awakened by a voice demanding the return of the bone.
Easy to Read |
| Clifford's Good Deeds | When the
big red dog sets out to do good deeds, trouble follows quickly.
Easy to Read |
| Henry and Mudge in the Sparkle Days | In the winter,
Henry and his dog play in the snow, share a family Christmas dinner, and
gather around a crackling winter fireplace.
Average |
| One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish | Another story
in rhyme from Dr. Seuss.
Easy to Read |
| Just For You | A little
creature tries and tries to do something special for his mother, but something
always seems to go wrong.
Easy to Read |
| I Have A Sister My Sister is Deaf | A young girl
describes how her deaf sister experiences everyday things.
Easy to Read |
| Fish Face | Emily's new
schoolmate, who has displaced her as fastest runner in her class, is also
a thief. Nobody knows but Emily, and she's not sure anyone will believe
her.
Average |
| If You Give A Mouse A Cookie | Relating
a cycle of requests a mouse is likely to make after you give him a cookie
takes the reader through a young boy's day.
Average |
| May I Bring a Friend? | A boy visits
the royal family and brings all his animal friends.
Average |
| Amigo | Desperately
wanting a pet to love, a boy decides to tame a prairie dog who has already
decided to tame the boy for his own pet.
Average |
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| The Relatives Came | The relatives are coming from Virginia and there's going to be a whole lot of hugging and laughing and eating until the moment they leave. |
| Amber Brown is Not a Crayon | Amber Brown and Justin Daniels are best friends. They sit next to each other in school, help each other with fractions and spelling, and always stick up for one another. But when Justin finds out that he is moving away, everything begins to change. |
| Socks | It was Sock's lucky day when he went to live with the Brickers. They were a young couple who played with him, petted him, and fed him well. And there was always a nice warm lap for him to sit in. Socks was a happy cat. But that was before the Brickers came home with the new baby. Suddenly a crying little bundle was getting all the attention. Socks was called a big nuisance, and his bed was moved to the garage. Poor Socks! He thought he'd been replaced. What Socks didn't know then was that the baby was getting bigger every day, and before long he would be joining Socks in all kinds of fun and mischief! |
| Danny and the Dinosaur | When Danny visited the dinosaur room in the museum, he never dreamed the dinosaur would talk to him. Or that they would leave the museum together, with Danny seated way up high on the dinosaur's back. And that was just the beginning of their wonderful day! |
| Mrs. Toggle and the Dinosaur | There is a new student in Mrs. Toggle's class. Mr. Stickler, the principal, told Mrs. Toggle to expect a "dinosaur." A DINOSAUR! Can Mrs. Toggle and her class get ready in time? |
| A Tree is Nice | Trees are beautiful. They fill up the sky. If you have a tree, you can climb up its trunk, roll in its leaves, or hang a swing from one of its limbs. Cows and babies can nap in the shade of a tree. Birds can make nests in the branches. A tree is good to have around. A tree is nice. |
| Mop Top | Moppy is a six year old boy who never wanted to have his hair cut. This is a story of his adventures on the way to the barbershop. |
| Meet Felicity | Meet Felicity is from The American Girl Collection about a young girl who lives in Williamsburg, Virginia in 1774. Penny, the horse Felicity loves, is in trouble. Felicity must figure out a way to help her before it is too late! |
| The Frog Prince | This classic fairy tale is retold in easy to read format. |
| Mirandy and Brother Wind | With the junior cakewalk fast approaching, Mirandy is determined to capture the best partner for the dance. And who is the best partner? The wind, of course! But as Grandmama Beasley says, "Can't nobody put shackles on Brother Wind, chile. He be special. He be free." All the more reason for Mirandy to catch him; she'll get hold of that Brother Wind and win the cakewalk yet! |
| Charlotte's Web | This is the story of a little girl named Fern who loved a little pig named Wilbur-and of Wilbur's dear friend Charlotte A. Cavatica, a beautiful large grey spider who lived with Wilbur in the barn. With the help of Templeton, the rat who never did anything for anybody unless there was something in it for him, and by a wonderfully clever plan of her own, Charlotte saved the life of Wilbur, who by this time had grown up to be quite a pig. |
| Rent a Third Grader | Partner, the Police Department horse, wasn't headed for a very happy retirement. Unless somebody came up with the money to put him out to pasture, he'd be turned into...pet food! That's how Rent a Third Grader got started. Together, Brad, Jennie, and Louisa had to find ways for their classmates to make some money. But time was running out... |
| The Stories Julian Tells | Julian, that quick fibber and wishful thinker, is great at telling stories. He can make people-especially his younger brother, Huey-believe just about anything. But some stories can get you into a pack of trouble, and that's exactly where Julian and Huey find themselves all too often! |
| Ramona and Her Father | Ramona just wanted everyone to be happy. If only her father would smile and her mother would look less worried, her sister would be cheerful, and Picky-picky would eat his cat food. But Ramona's father had lost his job, and nobody was in a very good mood. Ramona kept trying to cheer up her family, but every new idea seemed to cause more trouble. Her sister Beezus called her a pest, her parents became impatient with her, and her teacher claimed she had forgotten her manners. But when her father told her he wouldn't trade her for a million dollars, Ramona knew everything was going to be OK. |
| Angel Child, Dragon Child | Ut has just come to the US from Vietnam and she does not like her new American School. The children all laugh when she speaks in Vietnamese. Most of all Ut misses her mother who had to stay in Vietnam. |
| The Hit Away Kid | Barry loves winning so much that he is willing to make up his own rules during a game. His coach is warning him and his sister is saying she saw him cheat. But it is when a dare comes from another team that Barry has to face his biggest challenge ever and to prove he is really "the hit away kid". |
| Aldo Ice Cream | When Aldo's mother asks him to help her deliver Meals on Wheels to the elderly and housebound, Aldo's summer vacation soon becomes very busy. |
| The Not-Just-Anybody Family | Junior Blossom wakes up in the hospital his last memory is of crouching on the barn roof with cloth wings tied to his arem, and of Maggie and Vern in the year below, urging him to fly. His was right before Junior spotted a police car approaching the farm. It's now up to Maggie and Vern to rescue Junior and solve the rest of their family's problems. |
| The Legend of the Indian paintbrush | A young Native American boy discovers that he has a special gift. |
| The Mouse and the Motorcycle | Ralph the mouse was terrified. All he had wanted to do was ride the little motorcycle someone had left on the table. Instead, both Ralph and the motorcycle had taken a terrible fall - right into the bottom of the wastepaper basket. He was trapped, left to wait for whatever fate was in store for him. But it turned out to be Ralph's lucky day. Along came Keith, the owner of the toy motorcycle, who was staying with his family in the hotel room where Ralph lived. Not only did Keith save Ralph's life, but he taught him how to ride the bike. And, when everyone was asleep, he turned Ralph loose in the hotel halls to enjoy the biking adventure of his life. But adventures can be both fun and trouble... as Ralph and Keith soon found out! |
| The Magic School Bus series-any title | Fasten your seatbelts as Ms. Frizzle and the Magic School Bus take readers on the most amazing field trips ever. Science has never been so much fun. |
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| Babe the Gallant Pig | When Babe, the piglet, was purchased by Farmer Hogget, it was with bacon and sausage in mind. Then Babe displays a special talent! |
| Dear Mr. Henshaw | A series of letters from Leigh Botts to the author, Mr. Henshaw, dealing with Leigh's hopes of becoming an author as well as other concerns of this bright young boy. |
| The Trumpet of the Swan | Louis, the Trumpeter Swan, has no voice. His father comes up with a bold plan to help Louis win his love, Serena. |
| The Fear Place | On a family camping trip in the wilderness, Doug must overcome his fears to search for his missing brother. |
| Minty: A Story of Young Harriet Tubman | The story of Harriet Tubman as a child. Beautiful picture book! |
| Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing | A story about some of the terrible (and funny!) problems that Peter Hatcher has with his little brother, Fudge. |
| If You're Not Here, Raise Your Hand | A collection of poems, funny and sad, about life as a student. |
| Skinnybones | Life looks hopeless when Alex's losing baseball team has to play T.J.'s winning team. Can Alex's sense of humor save him this time? |
| Bunnicula | Harold, a dog, and Chester, a cat, resort to hilarious antics to alert their family that the newly adopted bunny may actually be a vegetable vampire! |
| The Kid in the Red Jacket | When 10 year old Howard has to move to a distant state, he is forced to live on a street named Chester Pewe, adjust to a new school, and get used to being shadowed by the little girl in a nearby house. |
| The Castle in the Attic | William has a fantastic present in the attic, which is able to transport him to a wonderful adventure. |
| Fourth Grade Rats | Suds learns that his best friend is wrong. You don't have to be a tough guy, a 'rat,' to be a grown-up fourth grader. |
| Aliens for Breakfast | Finding an alien in his cereal box, Richard joins it in a fight to save Earth from the Dranes, one of whom is masquerading as a student in his class! |
| Amber Brown Is Not A Crayon | Amber learns that her best friend is moving to Alabama. |
| Ramona the Brave | Ramona struggles with the trials of growing up as she heads off to Kindergarten. |
| The Chocolate Touch | Instead of gold, everything John Midas touches turns to chocolate! |
| Encyclopedia Brown Takes the Case | Encyclopedia Brown solves 10 new mysteries including the "Case of the Talking House." |
| Wayside School is Falling Down | Unusual things continue to happen in the classroom on the thirtieth floor of Wayside School, which was accidentally built sideways with one classroom on each floor. |
| The People Could Fly: American Black Folktales | A collection of American Black folktales. |
| Grandpa's Mountain | Carrie loves her grandparents' store in the Blue Ridge Mountains, but a new national park threatens their home. |
| The Grand Escape | After years of being strictly house cats, Marco and Polo escape into the wonderful but dangerous outside world and are sent on three challenging adventures by a group of cats known as the Club of Mysteries. |
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| Hatchet | After a plane
crash, thirteen year-old Brian spends 54 days in the wilderness, learning
to survive initially with only the aid of a hatchet given to him by his
mother, and learning also to survive his parents' divorce.
Adventure |
| Ida Early Comes Over The Mountain | Tough times
in rural Georgia during the Depression take a lively turn when spirited
Ida Early arrives to keep house for the Suttons.
Historical Fiction |
| The Legend of Jimmy Spoon | The adventures
of a young white boy living among the Shoshoni Indians during the early
frontier days.
Historical Fiction |
| The Star Fisher | Fifteen-year-old
Joan Lee and her family find the adjustment hard when they move from Ohio
to West Virginia in the 1920's.
Historical Fiction |
| Steal Away | In 1855 two
thirteen-year-old girls, one white and one black, run away from a southern
farm and make the difficult trip north to freedom, living to recount their
story forty-one years later to two similar girls.
Historical Fiction |
| The Burning Questions of Bingo Brown | Eleven-year-old
Bingo's life isn't easy, so he writes down all of his crazy questions and
observations in a journal.
Realistic Fiction |
| Cassie Binegar | After her
grandfather's death, Cassie longs for a life that's orderly and predictable.
But during an eventful summer by the sea, she begins to learn that some
things are not meant to stay the same.
Realistic Fiction |
| The Cat Ate My Gymsuit | March organizes
a student protest on behalf of her suspended English teacher and incurs
the wrath of her school and father.
Humorous Fiction |
| The House of Dies Drear | Mystery about
a young boy's house, which had once played a part in the Underground Railroad.
Mystery |
| The Indian in the Cupboard | A young boy
discovers that his magic cupboard and key can turn toys into live people
and animals.
Fantasy |
| Pigs Might Fly | A runt piglet
born with deformed front feet is coached in swimming by a duck and an otter
and, when the pig farm is flooded, becomes a hero.
Fantasy/Humorous Fiction |
| Shoebag | Shoebag,
a happy, young cockroach who finds himself suddenly changed into a little
boy, changes the lives of those around him before returning to his former
life as an insect.
Fantasy |
| Morning Girl | A young Taino
girl goes swimming off her Bahamian island and meets Christopher Columbus'
landing party in this vivid portrait of a Native American family and their
culture.
Historical Fiction |
| Skinnybones | Life looks
hopeless when Alex's losing team has to play baseball against T.J.'s winning
team. But Alex has a hidden talent that could save the day-unless
it ruins his life first.
Humorous Fiction |
| The First Woman Doctor | The story
of Elizabeth Blackwell, the first woman doctor.
Biography |
| Exploring the Titanic | The author's account of how he discovered the Titanic based on his bestseller, "The Discovery of the Titanic." |
| Trumpet of the Swan | Louis, the
Trumpeter Swan, lacks a voice, but his father hits on a bold alternative
so that Louis might win his love, Serena.
Fantasy |
| Why Don't You Get a Horse, Sam Adams | A brief biography of Sam Adams, with some American History in a humorous vein added. |
| SHH! We're Writing the Constitution | This book
describes how the Constitution came to be written and ratified.
Historical Fiction |
| Midnight Fox | Tom, a city
boy forced to spend the summer on his aunt's farm, can't stand animals-until
he learns to love a black fox.
Realistic Fiction |
| The Wright Brothers: How They Invented the Airplane | Follows the
lives of the Wright brothers and describes how they developed the first
airplane.
Biography |
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