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Mar252009
POSTED AT 05:24 PM
Sometimes, as a school librarian, I hear that boys don't like to read as much as girls. I believe, however, that boys love to read as much as girls, but have a harder time finding their reading niche. For this reason, I have compiled a bibliography of some of my "best sellers" for boys:
Graphic Novels (Abstract provided by Follett Software)
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Guibert, Emmanuel. Sardine in outer space. 1st American ed. New York : First Second, 2006.
Contains twelve cartoon stories in which young space pirate Sardine enlists the help of Uncle Yellow Shoulder and her friend Little Louie to foil the plans of Supermuscleman, a tyrant who wants all the galaxy's children to behave.
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Pilkey, Dav, 1966-. The adventures of Captain Underpants : an epic novel. New York : Blue Sky Press, c1997.
When George and Harold hypnotize their principal into thinking that he is the superhero Captain Underpants, he leads them to the lair of the nefarious Dr. Diaper.
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Smith, Jeff, 1960 Feb. 27-. Bone. 1st Scholastic ed. New York : Graphix, 2005.
Phoney Bone rigs the Spring Fair's annual Great Cow Race by putting Smiley in a bovine disguise and convincing everyone to bet their livestock on the Mystery Cow, and Fone Bone finds himself in a one-cousin battle with the rat creatures.
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Steinberg, David, 1962-. The adventures of Daniel Boom, a.k.a. Loud Boy. New York : Grosset & Dunlap, c2008.
Daniel Boom, a kid with no volume control, becomes Loud Boy and fights the Kid-Rid Corporation, which has silenced the world with a machine called the Soundsucker LX.
Adventure and Fantasy
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Clement-Davies, David, 1961-. Fire bringer. New York : Dutton Books, 2000.
In a Scotland beset by Norse invaders, the deer are fighting their own war.
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Collins, Suzanne. Gregor the Overlander : book 1. 1st ed. New York : Scholastic Press, c2003.
When Gregor and his sister are pulled into an underground world, they trigger an epic battle involving men, bats, rats, cockroaches, and spiders while on a quest foretold by ancient prophecy.
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DiTerlizzi, Tony. The wrath of Mulgarath. 1st ed. New York, NY : Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, c2004.
Provides readers with the fifth and final installment in this popular fantasy series about the incredible adventures of the Grace kids.
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Gutman, Dan. Jackie and me : a baseball card adventure. 1st ed. New York : Avon Books, c1999.
With his ability to travel through time by using baseball cards, Joe goes back to 1947 to meet Jackie Robinson, turning into a black boy in the process.
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Horowitz, Anthony, 1955-. Stormbreaker. 1st American ed. New York : Philomel Books, c2001.
After the death of the uncle who had been his guardian, fourteen-year-old Alex Rider is coerced to continue his uncle's dangerous work for Britain's intelligence agency, MI6.
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Korman, Gordon. The contest. New York : Scholastic, c2002.
Four climbers, winners of an American Junior Alpine Association contest, vie to become the youngest person ever to reach the peak of Mount Everest.
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Korman, Gordon. Swindle. 1st ed. New York : Scholastic Press, 2008.
After unscrupulous collector S. Wendell Palamino cons him out of a valuable baseball card, sixth-grader Griffin Bing puts together a band of misfits to break into Palomino's heavily guarded store and steal the card back, planning to use the money to finance his father's failing invention, the SmartPick fruit picker.
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London, Jack, 1876-1916. The call of the wild. New York : Scholastic, 2000.
The adventures of an unusual dog, part St. Bernard, part Scotch Shepherd, that is forcibly taken to the Klondike gold fields where he eventually becomes the leader of a wolf pack.
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Mikaelsen, Ben. Touching spirit bear. New York : HarperCollins, c2001.
After his anger erupts into violence, Cole, in order to avoid going to prison, agrees to go to a remote Alaskan Island where an encounter with a huge Spirit Bear changes his life.
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Oppel, Kenneth. Airborn. 1st ed. New York : Eos, c2004.
Matt, a young cabin boy aboard an airship, and Kate, a wealthy young girl traveling with her chaperone, team up to search for the existence of mysterious winged creatures reportedly living hundreds of feet above the Earth's surface.
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Paolini, Christopher. Eragon. New York : Alfred A. Knopf :, c2003.
In Aagaesia, a fifteen-year-old boy of unknown lineage called Eragon finds a mysterious stone that weaves his life into an intricate tapestry of destiny, magic, and power, peopled with dragons, elves, and monsters.
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Riordan, Rick. The Titan's curse / Percy Jackson Series book 3. 1st ed. New York : Miramax Books/Hyperion Books for Children, c2007.
The disappearance of the goddess Artemis while out hunting a rare, ancient monster, prompts a group of her followers to join Percy and his friends in an attempt to find and rescue her before the winter solstice, when her influence is needed to sway the Olympian Council regarding the war with the Titans.
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Skye, Obert. Leven Thumps and the gateway to Foo : Leven Thumps book 1. Large print ed. [Salt Lake City, UT] : Shadow Mountain, c2005.
When fate brings fourteen-year-old Leven and thirteen-year-old Winter together, they discover that for mankind to continue dreaming, the gateway between reality and dreams needs to be found and demolished.
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Ashland, Monk and Nigel Ashland. Kaimira: The Sky Village. New York: Candlewick Press, 2008.
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Stewart, Paul, 1955-. Beyond the Deepwoods / Edge Chronicles book 1. 1st American ed. Oxford ; New York : David Fickling Books, c2004.
Twig learns that he is adopted and travels out of his Deepwoods home to find the place where he belongs.
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Vogel, Malvina G. 20,000 leagues under the sea. Edina, Minn. : Abdo Pub., 2002, c1990.
An adaptation of the nineteenth-century science fiction tale of an electric submarine, its eccentric commander Captain Nemo, and its explorations of the undersea world
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More to come. . . (Next time, Historical Fiction for Boys and Nonfiction for Boys, as well as Humorous Fiction; AND, don't think I have forgotten the girls: A future post will focus on some of our girls' favorite books).
If you didn't see your favorite "boy" books here, please post a comment and share a favorite book with me!
Jan292009
POSTED AT 02:58 PM
Well, I have certainly taken advantage of icy weather conditions
these past few days. With plenty of food in the house, a warm cozy
fire in my fireplace, and a little spare time, I have made a dent in
the stack of books by my bedside that I have been meaning to read for
quite a while. I laughed, I cried, and today, I feel rested and
fulfilled after finishing and enjoying some new books that will soon
appear, ready for check out, at our school's Media Center and a couple
of books that aren't new but I had certainly missed until now.
The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt, published
in 2007, examines the life of a boy who's identity relies on being the
"son who is going to inherit Hoodhood and Associates." But when
Holling meets Mrs. Baker his world changes, sometimes for the better
and sometimes not. Several times in the book Holling meets with
possible catastrophe only to escape stronger and more able to succeed.
An ice storm even wreaks havoc (coincidence to be reading during an ice
storm) on the perfect family in the perfect house with the perfect car
out front. But, sometimes perfection doesn't live up to its name and
that's when the book gets really interesting. This book is perfect for
5th graders who are learning what is most important in life and with
continuous references to Shakespearean plays, it is definitely for the
literary minded.
If music makes your heart sing, Linda Urban's A Crooked Kind of Perfect,
will have you rolling in laughter. Zoe has big dreams of being a
concert pianist but with a reclusive Dad, a workaholic Mom, and a
wood-grained Perfectone D-60 vinyl seated organ there is no hope that
Zoe's dreams are coming true. But Zoe soon finds out that wishes have
a way of changing and dreams have a strange way of coming true in this
charming and humorous tale.
Two other books to consider: Phoebe Stone's Deep Down Popular and Ann Martin's Belle Teal
Dec172008
POSTED AT 05:21 PM
Elementary students love to read books with animal characters. Rats and mice are among some of the most popular animal characters in my Media Center. With the upcoming movie release of Kate DiCamillo's The Tale of Despereaux, students are scurrying to the library to read this book and others with furry little characters. But don't be fooled by the fur-covering, this book has some pretty intense topics such as abandonment, fear, and acceptance. Certainly enjoyable, this book makes for a great family book discussion and is great for classroom discussions too. Other delightful mousey tales include Beverly Cleary's unforgettable Ralph S. Mouse and his motorcycle, the hilarious adventures in the series of Geronimo Stilton, and E. B. White's classic tale of Stuart Little. Fantasy loving children are still reaching to the courageous mouse character in Brian Jacques Redwall series and Robert O'Brien's Rats of Nimh. Younger fans of mice will probably enjoy Laura Numeroff's If You Give a Mouse a Cookie series and of course, Leo Lionni's little creation, Frederick. Mouse characters aren't the only popular whisker faced rodents. Rats, usually seen unfavorably, have made a new name for themselves in several new books such as Michael Daly's Space Station Rat where RAT not only needs a friend, but also needs HELP and there is literally only ONE boy who can save him. Emmy and the Incredible Shrinking Rat by Lynne Jonell keeps readers interested as Emmy is bitten by the classroom rat and discovers she can now communicate with this rat. She also discovers a sinister plot by her evil nanny through the help of her new rat friend. This adventurous and laughable tale is certain to delight young audiences. Other rat-tastic tales include Avi's The Christmas Rat, Grace Lin's The Year of the Rat, and Sid Fleischman's Giant Rat of Sumatra which don't all necessarily include rats as characters but all reference the rat in unusual ways. Rat fans unite with these great books! Now, I realize that Humphrey is not a rat or a mouse, but I couldn't quite write a blog about rodents without including the loveable Humphrey from Betty Birney's The World According to Humphrey series. Humphrey, the class hamster, teaches life lessons and entertains as he presents the world from the view of a classroom hamster. More than one child has requested a pet hamster after reading these books, so PARENTS BEWARE: your child will fall in love with Humphrey! If your child asks for a pet "Humphrey," you might recommend that he or she read the following nonfiction books first; all by Jean Coppendale, You and Your Pet Mouse, You and Your Pet Rat, and You and Your Pet Hamster and Gerbil. Have a squeakingly good time reading these books, I did!
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