The Lion of Mars

Book cover for The Lion of Mars by Jennifer L. Holm

It is 2091, and humans have been living on Mars for twenty years. There are grown-ups who have come from several different countries on Earth to establish the settlements, and there are kids who were brought there as babies. There’s even a cat – Leo – fondly referred to as the “Lion of Mars.”   The … Read more

The Wild Robot Escapes

Book cover for the Wild Robot Escapes by Peter Brown

“But I am not safe here. If any human ever learns who I really am, they will have me destroyed. And that is why, when the time is right, I will try to escape.”   After living on a remote island and learning to speak the language of the animals, Roz the robot is facing a … Read more

Malcolm at Midnight

Book cover for Malcolm at Midnight by W. H. Beck

“A lot happens in a school when the teachers aren’t looking.”  So closes an anonymous letter left for Mr. Binney, fifth grade teacher at McKenna School. The letter is attached to a manuscript that tells a remarkable story of Malcolm and his noble quest to protect the school from the evil plan of Snip, a … Read more

Planet Omar: Accidental Trouble Magnet

Cover for Planet Omar: Accidental Trouble Magnet

Set in London, the Planet Omar series brings to life the vivid imagination of a 9-year-old boy facing a new school year at a new school. Thanks to Zanib Mian’s witty writing and the fully integrated illustrations by Nasaya Mafaridik, this book moves briskly with plenty of laughs – and lessons – along the way.   … Read more

Stef Soto, Taco Queen

Cover for Stef Sotto, Taco Queen by Jennifer Torres

What is life like when you are a seventh-grader who gets picked up from school every day in the family taco truck, lovingly named Tía Perla? Well, what was fun and exciting in elementary school – “corn chips and cold sodas for all my friends” – is now just humiliating.   Tía Perla, huffing and wheezing … Read more

Stella Díaz Never Gives Up

Cover for Stella Díaz Has Something to Say by Angela Dominguez

The girl who charmed you in Stella Díaz Has Something to Say is back for more heartwarming fun. And you don’t have to read the first book to appreciate the second book of this series.   If only I could do something big this summer, too.   It’s the beginning of summer vacation and Stella is dejected. … Read more

I Am Malala

I am Malala - Malala Yousafzai

“We realize the importance of our voices only when we are silenced.”  Malala Yousafzai was raised to stand up for what she believes. She took this to heart as her conviction was severely challenged when the Taliban took control of her formally peaceful town. Despite their tactics of fear and violence, Malala continued to stand … Read more

Brown Girl Dreaming

Brown Girl Dreaming - Jacqueline Woodson

Brown Girl Dreaming is the memoir-in-verse of acclaimed novelist, Jacqueline Woodson. A book rich in personal memories and unforgettable phrasing, it will be enjoyed by a wide range of students and their families. Growing up in Ohio, South Carolina, and then Brooklyn, Woodson uses a series of elegantly wrought poems to paint a richly layered … Read more

Charlotte’s Web

Charlotte's Web - E.B. White

Read to Them is proud to offer E.B. White’s classic Charlotte’s Web. An entire community reading about Farmer Zuckerman’s barn – from kindergarteners to 5th graders, from parents to administrators, from teachers to bus drivers – will give your school an experience that is nothing less than “TERRIFIC.” Whether you are an older sibling who … Read more

Save Me a Seat

Sarah Weeks - Save me a Seat - Gita Varadarajan

On the surface, Save Me a Seat is book about bullying. But there is so much more. It’s a book about different perspectives, told by two boys from different cultures. It’s a book about friendship. It’s a book about classroom dynamics. It’s a book about Indian food! Ravi’s family has just immigrated from India. He … Read more

Counting by 7s

Counting By 7's - Holly Goldberg Sloan

“What we expect rarely occurs; what we don’t expect is what happens.” This simple, realistic truth reveals the essence of this deeply affecting novel. Willow Chance is twelve years old, which can be a tough time for any kid and Willow isn’t any kid. She is eccentric, alternatively obsessed with rare medical conditions, botany, and … Read more

Esperanza Rising

Esperanza Rising - Pam Munoz Ryan

What better way to learn history than through the eyes of a beloved character as she experiences it firsthand? Esperanza Ortega guides us through her beautiful coming-of-age story in the 1930s. With the effects of the Mexican Revolution and the Great Depression lingering in her hometown of Aguascaleintes, Mexico, the wellborn Esperanza goes from anticipating … Read more

Ghost

Ghose - Jason Reynolds

Castle (“Ghost”) Cranshaw remembers the night he learned how to run… “The sound was big, and sharp enough to make me feel like my brain was gonna pop in my head, enough to make my heart hiccup. But the craziest thing was, I felt like the shot – loudest sound I ever heard – made … Read more

Wonder

Wonder - R.J. Palacio

Read to Them is proud to offer the special, moving, magical Wonder, by R.J. Palacio. One of the most acclaimed books of our time, Wonder has swept readers of multiple generations – a wide range of students, parents, librarians, and teachers. It is a title we’ll be talking about a generation from now. Wonder tells … Read more

Upside-Down Magic

Upside Down Magic - Sarah Mlynowski, Lauren Myracle, Emily Jenkins

Nory Horace was trying to turn herself into a kitten. She was hiding in case something went wrong. The world went blurry, and Nory’s heart beat faster.  Her body stretched and shrank. But wait. Her front legs weren’t kitten legs. And what was this nose?  It was more of a snout.  A beaver nose. Zamboozle! … Read more

Merci Suárez Changes Gears

Merci Suarez Changes Gears book cover

Introducing… Merci Suárez! She is fun, spunky, ambitious, mature (and sometimes immature) – making for one highly representative middle-schooler. Merci’s story is one of change, of accepting the hard truths in life and the bumps along the road. Hers is also the story of a loving family that helps during this tricky time. Join Merci … Read more

Rules

Rules - Cynthia Lord

“How else can hopes go, but up?” Rules is a book that begins as girl caring for her autistic brother. It is heartfelt and witty, a story that celebrates people’s differences and personal introspection and asks the question: What does normal really look like? We empathize right away with the protagonist, Catherine, who regularly has … Read more

Restart

ReStart - Gordan Korman

How many people get a do-over on life? Can a leopard change its spots? After a fall off the roof lands Chase in a coma, he regains consciousness with a concussion and amnesia. The concussion keeps the all-county running back temporarily off the football team. But the real challenge is the amnesia. Chase has to … Read more

Fish in a Tree

Fish in a Tree - Lynda Mullaly Hunt

“On the outside, happy and sad often look the same.” What is it like to try to read when the letters seem to move on the page? What is like to be in the room full of people – and still feel all alone? Meet Ally. She’s dyslexic, but she doesn’t know there’s an actual … Read more

Hoot

Hoot - Carl Hiaasen

“It’s important to stand up for what’s right, but sometimes there’s a fine line between courage and stupidity.” Hoot is the great Carl Hiaasen’s first foray into children’s literature, and he won the Newbery Honor for it. Well known for his adult novels with fast-paced, humorous tales of environmental shenanigans in Florida, Hiaasen hit a … Read more

Refugee

Refugee - Alan Gratz

Three characters; separated by continents, divided by decades, and bound by harrowing circumstances that reach beyond time and place. The journeys of the three protagonists in Alan Gratz’s Refugee are distinct in history, yet they share a common trajectory of escaping cruelty to find freedom. Josef from Germany in the 1930s, Isabel from Cuba in … Read more

Out of My Mind

Out of my Mind - Sharon M Draper

Melody Brooks is 11 years old. She has cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair. She cannot sit up by herself, walk, or talk. Yet her mind is filled with words, feelings, and ideas that she can’t express: “Words have always swirled around me like snowflakes – each one delicate and different, each one melting untouched … Read more

The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane *

The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane - Kate DiCamillo

“You must be filled with expectancy. You must be awash in hope.” Kate DiCamillo, winner of two Newbery Awards for The Tale of Despereaux and Flora and Ulysses (and a Newbery Honor for Because of Winn-Dixie), offers us yet another special tale with the deeper markings of a classic, a book likely to be in … Read more

Because of Winn-Dixie

Because of Winn-Dixie - Kate DiCamillo

“My name is India Opal Buloni, and last summer my daddy, the preacher, sent me to the store for a box of macaroni-and-cheese, some white rice, and two tomatoes and I came back with a dog.”  So begins Kate DiCamillo’s widely-loved, Newbery Honor Book, Because of Winn-Dixie. Opal has just moved to Florida with her … Read more