READING LIST Compiled by Sally Michael

Transcription

1 READING LIST Compiled by Sally Michael The following books are recommended books for passing on values or just for fun! This is not meant to be a comprehensive list but rather a starting point to help parents and children choose wholesome books. The age recommendations will vary depending on whether the child is reading the book himself or an adult is reading it to the child. The recommendations in the list are based on a child reading the book himself. Preschool books have not been included Due to their brevity, they are easy for a parent to quickly read and evaluate. Many preschool books are merely instructional (counting, colors, etc.) or fun; others (such as many of the Dr. Seuss books) are good tools for parents to use in passing on their values. Most of the books on this list are fictional works, as parents more closely need to evaluate works of fiction than nonfiction. EARLY ELEMENTARY The Adventures of Pinocchio-- Carlo Collodi Amelia Bedelia-- Peggy Parish "B" is for Betsy-- Carolyn Haywood (series) Bambi-- Felix Salten A Bear Called Paddington-- Michael Bond Betsy-Tacy-- Maud Hart Lovelace series The Black Stallion-- Walter Farley (see sequels) The Bobbsey Twins series-- Laura Lee Hope The Boxcar Children series--gertrude Warner The Cabin Faced West-- Jean Fritz Caddie Woodlawn-- Carol Brink Calico Bush-- Rachael Field Charlie and the Chocolate Factory-- Roald Dahl Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator Charlotte's Web-- E. B. White Stuart Little The Trumpet of the Swan A Child's Garden of Verses-- Robert Louis Stevenson Chocolate Fever-- Robert K. Smith The Chocolate Touch-- Patrick Skene Catling The Complete Peterkin Papers-- Lucretia Hale

2 The Complete Adventures of Peter Rabbit-- Beatrix Potter The Courage of Sarah Noble-- Alice Dalgliesh The Days of Laura Ingalls Wilder series-- T.L. Tedrow Missouri Homestead Children of Promise Good Neighbors Home to the Prairie The World's Fair Mountain Miracle The Great Debate Land of Promise Eddie books-- Carolyn Haywood (series) Encyclopedia Brown: Boy Detective-- Donald Sobol (sequels) Fables-- Arnold Lobel The Fables of Aesop-- Aesop The Five Little Peppers and How They Grew-- Margaret Sidney The Five Little Peppers Midway Frederick Douglass: Freedom Fighter-- Lillie Patterson Freedom Train-- Dorothy Sterling Frog and Toad are Friends-- Arnold Lobel Days with Frog and Toad Frog and Toad All Year Frog and Toad Together Mouse Soup Mouse Tales, etc.) Gentle Ben-- Walt Morey The Giving Tree-- Shel Silverstein Where the Sidewalk Ends Hailstones and Halibut Bones-- Mary O'Neill The Happy Hollisters...-- Jerry West (series) Hans Andersen-- His Classic Fairy Tales-- translated by Erik Haugaard (includes The Emperor's New Clothes, The Fir Tree, The Little Match Girl, The Nightingale, The Steadfast Tin Soldier, Thumbelina, The Ugly Duckling, etc.) Heidi-- Johanna Spyri Henry Reed, Inc.-- Keith Robertson Homer Price-- Robert McCloskey

3 Household Stories of the Brothers Grimm-- translated by Lucy Crane (includes The Elves and the Shoemaker, Hansel and Gretel, Little Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White, etc.) James and the Giant Peach-- Roald Dahl Just So Stories-- Rudyard Kipling Little House in the Big Woods-- Laura I. Wilder Little House on the Prairie Farmer Boy On the Banks of Plum Creek By the Shores of Silver Lake The Long Winter Little Town on the Prairie These Happy Golden Years The First Four Years The Littles-- John Peterson (sequels) The Mouse and the Motorcycle-- Beverly Cleary Mrs. Piggle Wiggle-- Hilary Knight (sequels) Misty of Chincoteague-- Marguerite Henry King of the Wind Black Gold Born to Trot Justin Morgan had a Horse Brighty of the Grand Canyon Sea Star Stormy, Misty's Foal White Stallion of Lippizza The Moffats-- Eleanor Estes The Middle Moffat Ginger Pye Rufus M. Pecos Bill Mr. Popper's Penguins-- Richard Atwater Paul Bunyan-- Esther Shepherd Rabbit Hill-- Robert Lawson Tough Winter Ben and Me Mr. Revere and I The Red Fairy Book-- Andrew Lange (see sequels) Sarah, Plain and Tall-- Patricia Machlachlan Soup and Me-- Robert Newton Peck Stuart Little-- E.B. White

4 The Tale of Peter Rabbit-- Beatrix Potter Thee, Hannah-- Marguerite de Angeli Trail of Apple Blossoms-- Irene Hunt Treasures of the Snow-- Patricia St. John The Velveteen Rabbit-- Marjorie Williams The Voyages of Dr. Doolittle-- Hugh Lofting (sequels) Winnie the Pooh-- A. A. Milne The House at Pooh Corner Now We are Six LATE ELEMENTARY AND JUNIOR HIGH Alfred Hitchcock and the Three Investigators series-- Robert Arthur Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass-- Lewis Carroll All Creatures Great and Small-- James Herriot (see sequels) *Note: These delightful tales of a country vet s work and life contain occasional swear words. More appropriate for junior high than for late elementary. All Things Bright and Beautiful All Things Wise and Wonderful The Lord God Made them All Every Living Thing All-of-a-Kind Family-- Sydney Taylor More All-of-a-Kind Family A Papa Like Everyone Else Anne of Green Gables-- Lucy Maud Montgomery Anne of Avonlea Anne of the Island Anne of Windy Poplars Anne's House of Dreams Anne of Ingleside Arabian Nights-- Andrew Lang The Best Christmas Pageant Ever-- Barbara Robinson The Best School Year Ever Big Red-- Jim Kjelgaard Irish Red: Son of Big Red Outlaw Red Haunt Fox Lion Hound Trailing Trouble Black Beauty- The Autobiography of a Horse-- Anna Sewell The Black Arrow-- Robert Louis Stevenson

5 The Book of Virtue William Bennett Born Free-- Joy Adamson The Borrowers-- Mary Norton The Borrowers Afield The Borrowers Afloat The Borrowers Aloft The Borrowers Avenged The Bronze Bow-- Elizabeth Speare The Buffalo Knife-- William Steele Calico Captive-- Elizabeth George Speare Call it Courage-- Armstrong Sperry Carry on Mr. Bowditch-- Jean Lee Latham Cheaper by the Dozen-- Frank Gilbreth and Ernestine Carey (*Note: this delightful book about a family with twelve children contains an occasional swear word.) Cricket in Times Square-- George Seldon The Diary of Anne Frank-- Anne Frank Early Thunder-- Jean Fritz Escape from Warsaw (also called The Silver Sword)--Ian Serraillier Freckles-- Gene Stratton Porter A Gathering of Days-- Joan Blos A Girl of the Limberlost-- Gene Stratton Porter Grimms Fairy Tales-- Grimms Brothers Hans Brinker or The Silver Skates-- Mary Mapes Dodge Hardy Boys series-- F.W. Dixon The Hobbit-- J.R.R. Tolkien The Lord of the Rings Huckelberry Finn-- Mark Twain Illustrated Classics-- These are recommended for reluctant or average readers who will not plow through original language and yet would still benefit from reading a classic, or for an avid reader who is not ready for the original version but needs challenging literature. The Incredible Journey-- Sheila Burnford Invincible Louisa-- Cornelia Meigs

6 Island of the Blue Dolphins-- Scott O'Dell The Jungle Book-- Rudyard Kipling Kidnapped-- Robert Louis Stevenson King Arthur-- Sir James Knowles Lassie, Come Home-- Eric Knight The Light in the Forest-- Conrad Richter Little Britches-- Ralph Moody (Occasional swear words; shown as inappropriate) Man of the Family The Fields of Home The Home Ranch Mary Emma and Company Shaking the Nickel Bush The Dry Divide A Little Princess-- Frances Hodgson Burnett Little Women-- Louisa M. Alcott Little Men Jo's Boys Eight Cousins Rose in Bloom An Old Fashioned Girl The Matchlock Gun-- Walter D. Edmonds The Moral Compass William Bennett My Friend Flicka-- Mary O'Hara My Side of the Mountain-- Jean George Nancy Drew series (older editions)-- Carolyn Keene National Velvet-- Enid Bagnold Nothing is Impossible-- Dorothy Aldis (biography of Beatrix Potter) Old Yeller-- Frank Gibson Otto of the Silver Hand-- Howard Pyle Papa s Wife Thyra Ferre Bjorn (also sequels) (The story of a pastor, his wife and their many children) Papa s Daughter Mama s Way Dear Papa Peter Pan-- James Barrie

7 Pippi Longstocking-- Astrid Lindgren Pippi Goes on Board Pippi in the South Seas Seacrow Island Mischievous Meg The Children of Noisy Village Rasmus and the Vagabond Pollyanna Eleanor Porter The Prince and the Pauper-- Mark Twain The Pushcart War Jean Merrill Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm-- Kate Douglas Wiggin The Rescuers-- Margery Sharp Miss Bianca Miss Bianca in the Orient Miss Bianca in the Salt Mines Rip Van Windle, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow and Other Tales-- Washington Irving Robin Hood-- Louis Rhead Robin Hood-- Prince of Outlaws-- Bernard Miles Robinson Crusoe-- Daniel Defoe Roll of Thunder, Hear my Cry-- Mildred Taylor Sarah Bishop-- Scott O'Dell The Secret Garden-- Frances H. Burnett The Sign of the Beaver-- Elizabeth George Speare The Story Girl Lucy Maud Montgomery The Golden Road The Story of My Life-- Helen Keller The Story of Thomas Alva Edison-- Margaret Cousins Swiss Family Robinson-- Johann David Wyss Tales from the Arabian Nights-- H.J. Dawood The Tales of Uncle Remus-- retold by Julius Lester Adventures of Brer Rabbit More Tales of Uncle Remus Tom Sawyer-- Mark Twain Treasure Island-- Robert Louis Stevenson Understood Betsy-- Dorothy Canfield

8 Up from Slavery-- Booker T. Washington A Walk Across America-- Peter Jenkins (see sequels) The Wheel on the School-- Meindert DeJong Where the Red Fern Grows-- Wilson Rawls The Wind in the Willows-- Kenneth Grahame The Witch of Blackbird Pond-- Elizabeth George Speare The Wizard of Oz-- Frank L. Baum The Lost Princess of Oz The Yearling-- Marjorie Rawlings HIGH SCHOOL The Adventures of Don Quixote de la Mancha-- Miguel de Cervantes (The Adventures of Don Quixote-- translated and abridged by Dominick Daly) Adventures of Sherlock Holmes-- Sir Arthur Conan Doyle Hound of the Baskervilles Ben Hur-- Lew Wallace Brady-- Jean Fritz The Call of the Wild-- Jack London The Dangerous Journey-- David Copperfield-- Charles Dickens Death Be Not Proud-- John Gunther The Deerslayer-- James Fenimore Cooper Emily of New Moon-- Lucy Maude Montgomery Emily's Quest Emily Climbs The Good Earth-- Pearl S. Buck Great Expectations-- Charles Dickens Ivanhoe-- Sit Walter Scott Jane Eyre-- Charlotte Bronte Johnny Tremain-- Esther Forbes King Arthur and His Knights-- Mary McLeod Kon-Tiki-- Thor Heyerdahl

9 The Last of the Mohicans-- James Fenimore Cooper The Legend of Sleepy Hollow-- Washington Irving Moby Dick-- Herman Melville Oliver Twist-- Charles Dickens Pride and Prejudice-- Jane Austen Robinson Crusoe-- Daniel Defoe The Scarlet Letter-- Nathaniel Hawthorne Silas Marner-- George Eliot A Tale of Two Cities-- Charles Dickens Tenant of Wildfell Hall Anne Bronte Uncle Tom's Cabin-- Harriet Beecher Stowe White Fang-- Jack London Wuthering Heights-- Emily Bronte CHRISTIAN BOOKS (* for mature readers) A Man Called Peter-- Catherine Marshall Ambassadors for Christ: Portraits of Believers from All Walks of Life-- John Woodbridge Angels in the Camp-- Jan Markell Beautiful Girlhood-- Karen Andreola *Beyond Betrayal-- Carolyn Koons Beyond Ourselves-- Catherine Marshall Bruchko-- Bruce Olson Christy- Catherine Marshall The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe-- C. S. Lewis Prince Caspian The Voyage of the Dawn Treader The Silver Chair] The Horse and His Boy The Magician's Nephew The Last Battle Dangerous Journey (the story of Pilgrim's Progress)--Marshall Morgan Dating vs. Courtship Paul Jehle *Foxe's Book of Martyrs-- John Foxe

10 God's Smuggler-- Brother Andrew God's Smuggler to China-- Brother David The Hiding Place-- Corrie ten Boom (sequel: Tramp for the Lord) Hind's Feet on High Places-- Hannah Hurnard (sequel: Mountains of Spices) *How Should We Then Live-- Francis Schaefer I Kissed Dating Goodbye Joshua Harris *John, Son of Thunder-- Ellen Gunderson Traylor Joni-- Joni Eareckson (sequel: A Step Further) *Know What You Believe-- Paul Little *The Knowledge of the Holy-- A. W. Tozer *Letters to Karen-- Charlie Shedd Little Children's Progress-- Helen L. Taylor Lords of the Earth-- Don Richardson Of Knights and Fair Maidens Jeff and Danielle Myers *Passion and Purity Elizabeth Elliot Peace Child- Don Richardson The People Who Couldn't Be Stopped-- Ethel Barrett *Pilgrim's Progress-- John Bunyan (also: The Holy War) Promises for Kids from the Book-- Richard L. Osborne Proverbs for Kids from the Book-- Tyndale House Pub. Sower Biography Series-- i.e. Susanna Wesley, Johnny Appleseed, The Wright Brothers, Billy Sunday, Florence Nightengale-- different authors (i.e. David Collins, Charles Ludwig) Stepping Heavenward Elizabeth Prentiss Tales of the Kingdom-- David and Karen Mains (sequel: Tales of the Resistance) *Their Light Still Shines-- Lewann Sotnak *This Present Darkness-- Frank Peretti (sequel: Piercing the Darkness) Through Gates of Splendor- Elisabeth Elliot (sequel: The Savage, My Kinsman) Torches of Joy-- John Dekker Vanya-- Myrna Grant