jpklehm Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 I'm putting a book list together for 5th - 7th graders, and came across some books I'm not familiar with. If you've read these books, can you give me your insight, please? I'm looking for quality stories, on a variety of topics. Alabama Moon, by Watt Key Becoming Naomi Leon, by Pam Munoz Ryan The Wednesday Wars, by Gary Schmidt The Winter Room, by Gary Paulsen Bread and Roses, too, by Katherine Paterson The Mystery of Rascal Pratt, by Robbie Scott Kit's Wilderness, by David Almond The Shakespeare Stealer, by Gary Blackwood The Canning Season, by Polly Horvath Thanks for any help you can give! :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deanna1949 Posted June 7, 2013 Share Posted June 7, 2013 I've read The Canning Season and enjoyed it, but I would preread it if I were you before I gave it to the ages you've mentioned. It has some questionable situations and language. Read some amazon reviews for details. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpklehm Posted June 7, 2013 Author Share Posted June 7, 2013 That's great to read because I read one or two summaries and since it was listed as more of a humorous book, I didn't think it would have anything questionable in it. This is why I'm asking! Thanks so much for the information. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JudoMom Posted June 7, 2013 Share Posted June 7, 2013 The Shakespeare Stealer is fabulous. I read it to my boys two years ago & don't recall anything inappropriate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie Smith Posted June 7, 2013 Share Posted June 7, 2013 Here is something on The Wednesday Wars. http://blogs.slj.com/afuse8production/2012/05/30/top-100-childrens-novels-37-the-wednesday-wars-by-gary-d-schmidt/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
busymotherof4 Posted June 7, 2013 Share Posted June 7, 2013 My 12 year old loved The Shakespeare Stealer. I have it on my list to read to my 6 year old next year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpklehm Posted June 7, 2013 Author Share Posted June 7, 2013 Great to read about The Shakespeare Stealer and The Wednesday Wars. I'm excited to read them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MerryAtHope Posted June 7, 2013 Share Posted June 7, 2013 Loved the Shakespeare Stealer here too! Sorry, haven't read the others. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cosmos Posted June 7, 2013 Share Posted June 7, 2013 The Wednesday Wars is fantastic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted June 7, 2013 Share Posted June 7, 2013 The boys both loved The Shakespeare Stealer and sequels. L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenrwheeler Posted June 7, 2013 Share Posted June 7, 2013 I love Wednesday Wars. So many great characters and themes. There are some issues that children will need to be guided with in a follow-up discussion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plansrme Posted June 8, 2013 Share Posted June 8, 2013 Another thumbs' up to Shakespeare. As for Canning Season, the same author wrote The Pepins and Their Problems and Everything on a Waffle, both of which my third grader loved. Waffle had a dark theme but was really well done. Pepins is just silly, but in a good way. Don't know if that is any help, but I did not know there was another book out. Will have to see if my 9 yo wants to read it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sparkle Posted June 8, 2013 Share Posted June 8, 2013 The only one I've read is Bread and Roses, Too and I thought it was quite good. Interesting characters and a very satisfying ending. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpklehm Posted June 10, 2013 Author Share Posted June 10, 2013 Fantastic! Thank you to everyone who offered your opinions. Has anyone read these: Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome Call it Courage by Armstrong Sperry Young-Fu of the Upper Yangtze by Elizabeth Foreman Lewis Again, thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lizzie in Ma Posted June 10, 2013 Share Posted June 10, 2013 Loved the Shakespeare Stealer series, it is a trilogy. Here is an all in one on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/dp/0525473203 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpklehm Posted June 10, 2013 Author Share Posted June 10, 2013 Loved the Shakespeare Stealer series, it is a trilogy. Here is an all in one on Amazon http://www.amazon.com/dp/0525473203 Great, Lizzie, I'll make a note to mention this to my students, in case they want to read more from this author. I know my son, who is in the class, enjoys reading series. Thanks again! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted June 10, 2013 Share Posted June 10, 2013 Fantastic! Thank you to everyone who offered your opinions. Has anyone read these: Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome Call it Courage by Armstrong Sperry Young-Fu of the Upper Yangtze by Elizabeth Foreman Lewis Again, thank you! Like the previous posters, we enjoyed The Shakespeare Stealer; I'd guess it's for gr. 5-8. Call it Courage is best for gr. 5-6; boy overcomes his fear of the ocean. It felt VERY similar to Li-Lun, Lad of Courage, but perhaps a bit more interesting and realistic. Young Fu is more at a gr. 7-9 level. You definitely want to first cover the historical times of 1920s China to help understand what's going on and why the characters make the choices they do. This 5-minute article by Frank Smitha on the Macro History & World Timeline website is VERY helpful "nutshell" info, as it shows the events/movements/key people from the turn of the century up through the 1927 Peasant Rebellion -- all of which is the backdrop to Young Fu. I know Swallows and Amazons is much-loved by many, but we couldn't get into it at all; it was one of the few books we ever dropped after a few chapters. Slightly similar in tone/setting/characters to Swallows (and at a grade 5-8 level) were these that DSs far preferred: - The Treasure Seekers (Nesbit) - Five Children and It (Nesbit) - The Phoenix and the Carpet (Nesbit) - Half Magic; Magic by the Lake; Knight's Castle; Time Garden; Seven-Day Magic (Eager) - Five on a Treasure Island (Blyton) Not personally familiar with it, but if you have girls, The Penderwicks (Birdsall) might be a substitute for Swallows and Amazons. And, not that you asked for it (lol), BUT... here are a few "not to be missed" books that were much loved by our DSs in grades 5-7: - The Toothpaste Millionaire (Merrill) -- gr. 4-6 - By the Great Horn Spoon (Fleischman) - gr. 4-7 - The Hobbit (Tolkien) -- gr. 5+ - The Phantom Tollbooth (Juster) -- gr. 5+ - My Side of the Mountain (George) -- gr. 5+ - The Wolves of Willoughby Chase (Aiken) -- gr. 5-8 - Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH (O'Brien) -- gr. 5-8 - Rikki-Tikki Tavi (Kipling) -- gr. 5-8 - From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler (Konigsburg) -- gr. 5-8 - In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson (Lord) -- gr. 5-8 - Holes (Sacher) -- gr. 5-8 - The Great Wheel (Lawson) -- gr. 5-8 - Detectives in Togas (Winterfeld) -- gr. 5-8 - Island of the Blue Dolphins (O'Dell) -- gr. 5-8 - One Hundred and One Dalmatians (Smith) -- gr. 5-8 - The Pushcart War (Merrill) -- gr. 6+ - The Neverending Story (Ende) -- gr. 6+ - Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (Carroll) -- gr. 6+ - The Westing Game (Raskin) -- gr. 6-9 - The Master Puppeteer (Paterson) -- gr. 6-9 - Hittite Warrior (Williamson) -- gr. 6-9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie Smith Posted June 10, 2013 Share Posted June 10, 2013 And because of the previous post has me thinking of it. (Again, not cause anyone asked) SLJ put together a list of the top 100 books for ages 9 to 12 and here is the list: http://www.slj.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/SLJ_Fuse8_Top100_Novels.pdf Every book comes with a good description of why it's loved. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chelli Posted June 10, 2013 Share Posted June 10, 2013 Replying to this so I can find these books again in a couple of years when I'm putting together my dd's reading list! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted June 10, 2013 Share Posted June 10, 2013 Lori D, these are some of our favorite books! So you think Holes will work for as young as 5th grade, huh? For some reason I was thinking that one was a little more mature. I actually do own it, I need to read it for myself to figure out if dd is ready for it. I've been reading Lois Lowry's series, The Giver and Gathering Blue, and I have mixed feelings about them, but I think dd will probably like them, and they do offer food for thought. Oops, thread hijack, sorry! Like the previous posters, we enjoyed The Shakespeare Stealer; I'd guess it's for gr. 5-8. Call it Courage is best for gr. 5-6; boy overcomes his fear of the ocean. It felt VERY similar to Li-Lun, Lad of Courage, but perhaps a bit more interesting and realistic. Young Fu is more at a gr. 7-9 level. You definitely want to first cover the historical times of 1920s China to help understand what's going on and why the characters make the choices they do. This 5-minute article by Frank Smitha on the Macro History & World Timeline website is VERY helpful "nutshell" info, as it shows the events/movements/key people from the turn of the century up through the 1927 Peasant Rebellion -- all of which is the backdrop to Young Fu. I know Swallows and Amazons is much-loved by many, but we couldn't get into it at all; it was one of the few books we ever dropped after a few chapters. Slightly similar in tone/setting/characters to Swallows (and at a grade 5-8 level) were these that DSs far preferred: - The Treasure Seekers (Nesbit) - Five Children and It (Nesbit) - The Phoenix and the Carpet (Nesbit) - Half Magic; Magic by the Lake; Knight's Castle; Time Garden; Seven-Day Magic (Eager) - Five on a Treasure Island (Blyton) Not personally familiar with it, but if you have girls, The Penderwicks (Birdsall) might be a substitute for Swallows and Amazons. And, not that you asked for it (lol), BUT... here are a few "not to be missed" books that were much loved by our DSs in grades 5-7: - The Toothpaste Millionaire (Merrill) -- gr. 4-6 - By the Great Horn Spoon (Fleischman) - gr. 4-7 - The Hobbit (Tolkien) -- gr. 5+ - The Phantom Tollbooth (Juster) -- gr. 5+ - My Side of the Mountain (George) -- gr. 5+ - The Wolves of Willoughby Chase (Aiken) -- gr. 5-8 - Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH (O'Brien) -- gr. 5-8 - Rikki-Tikki Tavi (Kipling) -- gr. 5-8 - From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler (Konigsburg) -- gr. 5-8 - In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson (Lord) -- gr. 5-8 - Holes (Sacher) -- gr. 5-8 - The Great Wheel (Lawson) -- gr. 5-8 - Detectives in Togas (Winterfeld) -- gr. 5-8 - Island of the Blue Dolphins (O'Dell) -- gr. 5-8 - The Pushcart War (Merrill) -- gr. 6+ - The Neverending Story (Ende) -- gr. 6+ - Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (Carroll) -- gr. 6+ - The Westing Game (Raskin) -- gr. 6-9 - The Master Puppeteer (Paterson) -- gr. 6-9 - Hittite Warrior (Williamson) -- gr. 6-9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lori D. Posted June 10, 2013 Share Posted June 10, 2013 So you think Holes will work for as young as 5th grade, huh? For some reason I was thinking that one was a little more mature. I actually do own it, I need to read it for myself to figure out if dd is ready for it. I've been reading Lois Lowry's series, The Giver and Gathering Blue, and I have mixed feelings about them, but I think dd will probably like them, and they do offer food for thought. Oops, thread hijack, sorry! re: Holes Well, if you're reading aloud together or have an advanced reader, then yes, grade 5. ;) That's why I tend to give a range on books... re: The Giver I was just re-reading part of this recently, as I thought I was going to be doing an "Other Worlds" Literature co-op class for middle school -- and I do have to say, some topics raised by The Giver are disturbing, at least to me (particularly the euthanasia). I do think most 7th/8th graders can handle it, but I'd save it for high school for a sensitive student; don't know if I'd be brave enough to do it with *younger* than 7th/8th, but that's just me. :) Chrysalis Academy, I know I've contributed book ideas on some of your past threads, but did I ever mention Below the Root (Snyder) to you? It's the first book of what became the Greensky trilogy, but stands alone very nicely. That's a great one for about grade 6-9. There are 2 sequels ( And All Between, (#2) and Until the Celebration (#3). #2 and #3 get into slightly heavier concepts, and the writing of #3 is the weakest, but both are worth a look -- unless your DD falls in love with the world of Greensky and the "darker" aspects of books #2 and #3 would "ruin" it for her. But you would certainly get some good discussion out of even just the first book. You might want to check these out first before trying out The Giver -- Greensky trilogy is a great "stepping stone" in similar sorts of topics to get to The Giver and its sequels... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cosmos Posted June 10, 2013 Share Posted June 10, 2013 - The Pushcart War (Merrill) -- gr. 6+ Great list, Lori! I just wanted to give a shout-out to The Pushcart War, in particular. I don't see this book on very many lists and had never heard myself of it until I read it a few years ago. What a thought-provoking book -- great for stimulating discussion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrysalis Academy Posted June 10, 2013 Share Posted June 10, 2013 re: Holes Well, if you're reading aloud together or have an advanced reader, then yes, grade 5. ;) That's why I tend to give a range on books... re: The Giver I was just re-reading part of this recently, as I thought I was going to be doing an "Other Worlds" Literature co-op class for middle school -- and I do have to say, some topics raised by The Giver are disturbing, at least to me (particularly the euthanasia). I do think most 7th/8th graders can handle it, but I'd save it for high school for a sensitive student; don't know if I'd be brave enough to do it with *younger* than 7th/8th, but that's just me. :) Chrysalis Academy, I know I've contributed book ideas on some of your past threads, but did I ever mention Below the Root (Snyder) to you? It's the first book of what became the Greensky trilogy, but stands alone very nicely. That's a great one for about grade 6-9. There are 2 sequels ( And All Between, (#2) and Until the Celebration (#3). #2 and #3 get into slightly heavier concepts, and the writing of #3 is the weakest, but both are worth a look -- unless your DD falls in love with the world of Greensky and the "darker" aspects of books #2 and #3 would "ruin" it for her. But you would certainly get some good discussion out of even just the first book. You might want to check these out first before trying out The Giver -- Greensky trilogy is a great "stepping stone" in similar sorts of topics to get to The Giver and its sequels... Thanks, Lori, I think you did mention Below the Root in a past thread, when I was asking about Sci Fi/Fantasy stuff. I will get it from the library and take a closer look at it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpklehm Posted June 11, 2013 Author Share Posted June 11, 2013 Young Fu is more at a gr. 7-9 level. You definitely want to first cover the historical times of 1920s China to help understand what's going on and why the characters make the choices they do. This 5-minute article by Frank Smitha on the Macro History & World Timeline website is VERY helpful "nutshell" info, as it shows the events/movements/key people from the turn of the century up through the 1927 Peasant Rebellion -- all of which is the backdrop to Young Fu. I know Swallows and Amazons is much-loved by many, but we couldn't get into it at all; it was one of the few books we ever dropped after a few chapters. Slightly similar in tone/setting/characters to Swallows (and at a grade 5-8 level) were these that DSs far preferred: - The Treasure Seekers (Nesbit) - Five Children and It (Nesbit) - The Phoenix and the Carpet (Nesbit) - Half Magic; Magic by the Lake; Knight's Castle; Time Garden; Seven-Day Magic (Eager) - Five on a Treasure Island (Blyton) And, not that you asked for it (lol), BUT... here are a few "not to be missed" books that were much loved by our DSs in grades 5-7: - The Toothpaste Millionaire (Merrill) -- gr. 4-6 - By the Great Horn Spoon (Fleischman) - gr. 4-7 - The Hobbit (Tolkien) -- gr. 5+ - The Phantom Tollbooth (Juster) -- gr. 5+ - My Side of the Mountain (George) -- gr. 5+ - The Wolves of Willoughby Chase (Aiken) -- gr. 5-8 - Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH (O'Brien) -- gr. 5-8 - Rikki-Tikki Tavi (Kipling) -- gr. 5-8 - From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler (Konigsburg) -- gr. 5-8 - In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson (Lord) -- gr. 5-8 - Holes (Sacher) -- gr. 5-8 - The Great Wheel (Lawson) -- gr. 5-8 - Detectives in Togas (Winterfeld) -- gr. 5-8 - Island of the Blue Dolphins (O'Dell) -- gr. 5-8 - The Pushcart War (Merrill) -- gr. 6+ - The Neverending Story (Ende) -- gr. 6+ - Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (Carroll) -- gr. 6+ - The Westing Game (Raskin) -- gr. 6-9 - The Master Puppeteer (Paterson) -- gr. 6-9 - Hittite Warrior (Williamson) -- gr. 6-9 Thank you so much, Lori D, for these comments and suggestions. And I totally asked for any and all book suggestions, so this was perfect! Some we've read but many I haven't even heard about, so I'm very excited! It's always good to have personal recommendations about books, especially books for kids. I don't want to assign a book to my class and have something in it that isn't appropriate. I tend to read the books with the class so I don't give something away during our discussions, but I may not do it this way again this year. I may just try and read at least the first four books so I can put them on the syllabus confidently! :001_smile: Again, thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpklehm Posted June 11, 2013 Author Share Posted June 11, 2013 And because of the previous post has me thinking of it. (Again, not cause anyone asked) SLJ put together a list of the top 100 books for ages 9 to 12 and here is the list: http://www.slj.com/w...p100_Novels.pdf Every book comes with a good description of why it's loved. This website is wonderful, and a great resource. Thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jpklehm Posted June 11, 2013 Author Share Posted June 11, 2013 Replying to this so I can find these books again in a couple of years when I'm putting together my dd's reading list! :) Ha! I've done this myself many times. :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laura Corin Posted June 11, 2013 Share Posted June 11, 2013 Fantastic! Thank you to everyone who offered your opinions. Has anyone read these: Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome Call it Courage by Armstrong Sperry Young-Fu of the Upper Yangtze by Elizabeth Foreman Lewis Again, thank you! Swallows and Amazons and sequels are great! Highly recommended! L Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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