Click Here to go to:         Picture Books

or Chapter Books of Ranked by Difficulty:      Low      Moderate      Higher      Advanced

This list of over 400 titles covers a wide range of interests and reading levels, so there should be something for just about any boy. Encourage boys to read what interests them, including fantasy, adventure, sports, and non-fiction. Its fine to read below, even well below, reading level. It is most important to read, and to read a lot. Parents (especially you dads out there), how about reading some of these with your sons?

Please note, these are mostly books published in the past few years (or of recent interest, like the "Lord of the Rings" books.) Boys are often attracted by what is new and contemporary. Also, there are some fine resources in print that cover older books, such as Kathleen Odean's Great Books for Boys. Check it out, then use this list as a supplement.

I would love to hear your reaction to any of these books, and your suggestions for more books to add to the list. Email me at talestoldtall@yahoo.com.

Want to learn more about boys and reading? Click here for a short list of books that will help you think about this important topic.

Read more about how to spark a reading interest in boys in my book Connecting Boys With Books, ALA Editions, 2003.

Picture Books:

Buehner, Caralyn. Superdog: the Heart of a Hero. HarperCollins, 2003.

Donaldson, Julia. The Gruffalo. Dial, 1999.

George, Kristine O'Connell, illustrated by Laura Stringer. Fold Me a Poem. Harcourt, 2005.

Gould, Robert. "Big Stuff" (Series):  Nonfiction

            Monster Trucks. Big Guy Books, 2004.

            Tractors. Big Guy Books, 2004.

            Big Rigs. Big Guy Books, 2004.

            Giant Earthmovers. Big Guy Books, 2004.

            Rescue Vehicles. Big Guy Books, 2005.

            Racers. Big Guy Books, 2005.

Duey, Kathleen. "Time Soldiers" (Series)

You know how adventure stories go, someone goes off, to another time or another place, and comes back with wild tales of amazing people or unbelievable creatures. They may even draw you a picture to show you what its like. But these kids come back with photographs and even video! Dinosaurs, pirates, knights in armor. Seeing is believing.

Rex. Big Guy Books, 2000.

Rex 2. Big Guy Books, 2000.

Patch. Big Guy Books, 2002.

Arthur. Big Guy Books, 2004.

Mummy. Big Guy Books, 2005.

Samurai. Big Guy Books, 2006.

Pony Express. Big Guy Books, 2006.

Goodman, Susan E., illustrated by Elwood H. Smith. The Truth About Poop. Viking, 2004.  Nonfiction

Kelley, Marty. The Rules. Knowledge Unlimitted, 2000.

Kudlinski, Kathleen. Boy Were We Wrong About Dinosaurs. Dutton, 2005.  Nonfiction

Martin, David. Piggy and Dad Go Fishing. Candlewick, 2005.

McMullan, Kate. I Stink! Joanna Cotler, 2002.

Monsell, Mary Elise. Underwear! Albert Whitman, 1988.

Pilkey, Dav. Kat Kong. Harcourt, 1993.

Pilkey, Dav. Dogzilla. Harcourt, 1993.

Pilkey, Dav. Dog Breath: The Horrible Trouble With Hally Tosis. Blue Sky Press, 1994.

Scieszka, Jon. The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales. Viking, 1993.

Scieszka, Jon. The True Story of the Three Little Pigs. Viking Kestral, 1989.

Shannon, David. No, David! Scholastic, 1998.

New!! Judy Sierra, pictures by Stephen Gammell. The Secret Science Project That Almost Ate the School. Simon & 

         Schuster, 2007.

Slangerup, Erik John. Dirt Boy. Sagebrush, 2003.

Wiesner, David. Sector 7. Houghton Mifflin, 1999.

Wiesner, David. The Three Pigs. Clarion, 2001.

Wiesner, David. Tuesday. Clarion, 1991.

Wong, Janet S., Illustrated by Stacey Schuett. Alex and the Wednesday Chess Club. McElderry Books, 2004.

Chapter Books:  Divided by level.

Abbott, Tony. “The Secrets of Droon” (Series)  Fantasy

            #1 The Hidden Stairs and the Magic Carpet. Scholastic, 1999.

            #2 Journey to the Volcano Palace. Scholastic, 1999.

            #3 The Mysterious Island. Scholastic, 1999.

            #4 City in the Clouds. Scholastic, 1999.

            #5 The Great Ice Battle. Scholastic, 1999.  

            #6 The Sleeping Giant of Goll. Scholastic, 2000.  

            #7 Into the Land of the Lost. Scholastic, 2000.

            #8 The Golden Wasp. Scholastic, 2000.

            #9 Tower of the Elf King. Scholastic, 2000.  

            #10 Quest for the Queen. Scholastic, 2000.

            #11 The Hawk Bandits of Tarkoom. Scholastic, 2001.  

            #12 Under the Serpent Sea. Scholastic, 2001.

            #13 The Mask of Maliban. Scholastic, 2001.

            #14 Voyage of the Jaffa Wind. Scholastic, 2002.  

            #15 The Moon Scroll. Scholastic, 2002.

            #16 The Knights of Silversnow. Scholastic, 2002.

            #17 The Dream Thief. Scholastic, 2003.

            #18 Search for the Dragon Ship. Scholastic, 2003.

            #19 The Coiled Viper. Scholastic, 2003.

            #20 The Ice Caves of Krog. Scholastic, 2003.

            #21 Flight of he Genie. Scholastic, 2004.

            #22 The Isle of Mists. Scholastic, 2004.

            #23 The Fortress of the Treasure Queen. Scholastic, 2004.

            #24 The Race to Doobesh. Scholastic, 2005

            #25 The Riddle of Zorfendorf Castle. Scholastic, 2005.

            The Moon Dragon. Scholastic, 2006.

            In the Shadow of Goll. Scholastic, 2006.

Chin, Karen, and Thom Holmes. Dino Dung: The Scoop on Fossil Feces. Random House, 2004.  Nonfiction

David, Lawrence. “Horace Splattly: The Cupcaked Crusader” (Series):

            Horace Splattly: The Cupcaked Crusader. Puffin, 2002.

            When Second Graders Attack. Puffin, 2002.

            The Terror of the Pink Dodo Balloons. Dutton, 2003.

            To Catch a Clownosaurus. Puffin, 2003.

            The Invasion of Theshag Carpercreature. Puffin, 2004.

            The Most Evil, Friendly Villain Ever. Puffin, 2004.

Gutman, Dan. The Get Rich Quick Club. HarperCollins, 2004.

Q: If you sold lemonade at 25 cents a glass, how many glasses would you have to sell to make a million dollars?

A: 4 million glasses of lemonade!

Q: If you washed cars for two dollars a car, how many cars would you have to wash to make a million dollars?

A: 500 thousand cars!

Q: If a UFO landed in front of you, how many pictures of it would you have to sell to make a million dollars?

A: One!

Kraft, Erik P. Lenny and Mel. Simon & Schuster, 2002.

             Lenny and Mel's Summer Vacation. Simon & Schuster, 2003.

             Lenny and Mel: After School Confidential. Simon & Schuster, 2004.

David Lubar. Punished! Plain City, OH: Darby Creek Publishing, 2006.

Mr. Vernack pointed to the vocabulary list on the board. “Logan, the first word is isolate. Can you use it in a sentence?”

“Sure,” I said. “I’m sorry isolate getting here.”

Everyone started laughing. Everyone except Mr. Vernack. He frowned and gave me the next word. Justice.

“Justice I was leaving home, my dog got loose.”

Mr. Vernack’s frown grew so big, his eyes became slits. He said one word: “Decide.”

“My dog chased a cat around decide of my house.”

“ Logan , is this some kind of joke?” Mr. Vernack asked.

“No, Mister Vernack. I was jest doing wit you asked.” I clamped my mouth shut. Nothing seemed to be coming out right.

He stared at me for a long time. Then he sighed and said, “Very well, I’ll give you one more chance. The next word is industry.”

That was easy. There was no way I could mess it up. “The cat got stuck up industry and wouldn’t come down.”

Puns are great, but what if you couldn’t stop making them? To your friends, your parents, your teachers, even your principal. Logan has to complete three Herculean tasks of language lunacy or face a life where no one will ever take him seriously in Punished! by David Lubar.

Mike Lupica. Two Minute Drill. (Mike Lupica’s Comeback Kids) Philomel, 2007.

"Two-Minute Drill" is the story of the proverbial last kid picked for the pick-up game, with one special skill that could make all the difference in the big game if he can only hold on long enough to to get to that all important last two minutes.

Pilkey, Dav. “Captain Underpants” (Series):

The Adventures of Captain Underpants: an Epic Novel. Little Apple, 1997.

Captain Underpants and the Attack of the Talking Toilets. Little Apple, 1999.

Captain Underpants and the Invasion of the Incredibly Naughty Cafeteria Ladies From Outer Space (and the Subsequent Assault of Equally Evil Lunchroom Zombie Nerds). Little Apple, 1999.

Captain Underpants and the Perilous Plot of Professor Poopypants. Blue Sky, 2000.

Captain Underpants and the Wrath of the Wicked Wedgie Woman. Blue Sky, 2001.

Captain Underpants and the Big, Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy, Part 1: The Night of the Nasty Nostril Nuggets. Blue Sky Press, 2003.

Captain Underpants and the Big, Bad Battle of the Bionic Booger Boy, Part 2: Revenge of the Rediculous Robo-Boogers. Blue Sky Press, 2003.

Sachar, Louis. "Wayside School" (Series)

            Sideways Stories from Wayside School. HarperCollins, 1978.

            Wayside School is Falling Down. HarperCollins, 1989.

            Sideways Arithmetic From Wayside School. HarperCollins, 1989.

            More Sideways Arithmetic From Wayside School. HarperCollins, 1994.

            Wayside School Gets a Little Stranger. HarperCollins, 1995.

NEW!! Sue Stauffacher. Wireman. Grand Rapids , MI : 2005-2006.   Comic Book

                        Order copies or download for free at www.suestauffacher.com.

Who needs adventure when just getting to, through, and from school is a life and death struggle? Andre is prey in the urban jungle, until a huge and reclusive stranger puts his mark on him. Hero or phantom? Comic book character or real life hero? In a world this dark, who can tell the difference?

Talbott, Hudson. Safari Journal: The Adventures in Africa of Carey Monroe. Silver Whistle, 2003.

Carey Monroe, on safari in Africa:

The road I followed leads to a little village on the other side of the creek. There’s a kid over there watching me. He looks about my age. I wonder if he’s ever seen a Frisbee. I took mine out of my pack and tossed it over the creek. He picked it up and threw it right back. The next time I threw it he caught it and sent it right back to me. We were tossing it back and forth until – SPLASH – it had to happen – it landed right in the middle of the creek. I started to wade in for it, but the kid went nuts!

“No! No! Mamba! Mamba!” he was yelling at me. And I’m thinking, “Who’s Mamba?” 

My newest Swahili word: Mamba=Crocodile!

Out of nowhere two giant jaws chomped down on my Frisbee!

New!   Choldenko, Gennifer. Al Capone Does My Shirts. Putnam, 2004.

Clements, Andrew. A Week in the Woods. Simon & Schuster, 2002.

One of these guys is the gung-ho cheerleader type, you know, rah-rah-rah, let’s show some spirit and all that. One is sullen and moody, and way too bored with school.

One of these guys is a go-get-em science teacher. The other is a slacker student with a bad attitude.

One is an outdoorsy environmentalist type. The other is more comfortable in a New York penthouse than he is in a tent in New Hampshire.

One lives on a school teacher’s salary. The other gets driven to school in a limousine.

Oh yeah, these two are going to get along great when they spend a week in the woods.  

New!!!  Colfer, Eoin. Legend of Captain Crow's Teeth. Miramax, 2005.

Colfer, Eoin. Legend of Spud Murphy. Miramax, 2004.

Coville, Bruce. “Bruce Coville's Alien Adventures” (Series):  Fantasy

            Aliens Ate My Homework. Minstrel Books, 1993.

Rod Albright has three problems: 

1. The schoolyard bully keeps smashing bugs in his hair.

2. The most wanted criminal in the entire galaxy is hiding somewhere in his neighborhood.

3. Five aliens hiding in his room just ate a hole in his science fair project… 

               So which one do you think he should take care of first?  

            I Left My Sneakers in Dimension X. Minstrel Books, 1994.

            The Search for Snout. Minstrel Books, 1995.

            Aliens Stole My Body. Minstrel Books, 1998.

NEW!! Delgado, Ricardo. Age of Reptiles. Graphic Novel

Elliott, David. The Transmogrification of Roscoe Wizzle. Candlewick Press, 2001.

Fleischman, John. Phineas Gage: A Gruesome But True Story About Brain Science. Houghton Mifflin, 2002.  Nonfiction

Gantos, Jack. "Joey Pigza" (Series):

            Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key. Farrar, Strauss, Graux, 1998.

            Joey Pigza Loses Control. Farrar, Strauss, Graux, 2000.

            What Would Joey Do? Farrar, Strauss, Graux, 2002.

Garfinkle, D.L. "Supernatural Rubber Chicken" (Series)

            Fowl Language. (Book 1) Mirrorstone, coming June 2008.

He stinks, he is lying on a pile of dirty boxer shorts, and every word out of his mouth is a nasty insult. This is NOT Cinderella’s fairy godmother. But Ed the supernatural rubber chicken can grant wishes. Is he Nate and Lisa’s dream come true? Or is he their worst nightmare? That depends on whether they can get the right wish to the right person, or if their wishes all go haywire. Hey, what’s the chance that a supernatural rubber chicken might mess up a wish? About as good as the chance that D.L. Garfinkle’s new series will make you fall out of your seat laughing.

            Fine Feathered Four Eyes. (Book 2) Mirrorstone, coming June 2008.

            Poultry in Motion. (Book 3) Mirrorstone, coming September 2008.

Gleitzman, Morris. Toad Rage. Random House, 2004.

Gleitzman, Morris. Toad Heaven. Random House, 2005.

NEW!! Gutman, Dan. Getting Air. New York : Simon & Schuster, 2007.

What do you call:

A couple of skateboarding guys who are forced to wear dresses…

A stewardess who is forced to eat bugs…

And a grandmother who just lost all her friends in a plane crash?

In Dan Gutman’s Getting Air, you’d call them the lucky ones.

Hale, Bruce. “From the Tattered Casebook of Chet Gecko, Private Eye” (Series): Mystery

            The Chameleon Wore Chartreuse. Harcourt, 2000.

            The Mystery of Mr. Nice. Harcourt, 2000.

            Farewell, My Lunchbag. Harcourt, 2001.

            The Big Nap. Harcourt, 2001.

            The Hamster of the Baskervilles. Harcourt, 2002.

            This Gum for Hire. Harcourt, 2002.

            The Malted Falcon. Harcourt, 2003.

            Trouble is My Beeswax. Harcourt, 2003.

            Give My Regrets to Broadway. Harcourt, 2004.

            Murder, My Tweet. Harcourt, 2004.

            The Possum Always Rings Twice. Harcourt, 2006.

            Key Lardo. Harcourt, 2006.

NEW!!  Kehlert, Peg. The Ghost's Grave. Dutton, 2005.

Korman, Gordon. The Chicken Doesn't Skate. Scholastic, 1996.  

Korman, Gordon. "Everest" (Series):

            Book One: The Contest. Scholastic, 2002.

            Book Two: The Climb. Scholastic, 2002.

            Book Three: The Summit. Scholastic, 2002.

Korman, Gordon. "Island" (Series):

            Book One: Shipwreck. Scholastic, 2001.

            Book Two: Survival. Scholastic, 2001.

            Book Three: Escape. Scholastic, 2001.

Korman, Gordon. No More Dead Dogs. Hyperion, 2002.

If you have been in school three days, you know the deal. A teacher hands you a book, and on page one you are introduced to a boy and his dog. What’s going to happen?

Right, the dog’s gonna die.

Wallace Wallace knows this too, but Wallace Wallace has a little character flaw: he cannot tell a lie. So when his English teacher assigns a book report on “Old Shep, My Pal”, Wallace Wallace says it is just one more dumb dead dog book. But “Old Shep, My Pal” is the teacher’s favorite book, and the teacher is also the director of the school play… you guessed it, “Old Shep, My Pal”. How will he show Wallace Wallace the true beauty of this heart-wrenching story? He makes Wallace Wallace skip football practice and sit on rehearsals until Wallace Wallace sees the light, and the battle of nerves is on. 

But you know, if you complain about something long enough, people expect you to fix it. And that is how Wallace Wallace becomes the new director of “Old Shep, My Pal”, and now he, his buddies, the drama club, and the football team, along with an Eastern European pizza delivery boy on a moped, must guarantee that there are NO MORE DEAD DOGS! In No More Dead Dogs, by Gordan Korman.

Lupica, Mike. Heat. Philomel, 2006.

Lupica, Mike. Travel Team. Philomel, 2004.

Markle, Sandra. Outside and Inside Mummies. Walker & Company, 2005.  Nonfiction

Masoff, Joy. Oh Yuck!: the Encyclopedia of Everything Nasty. Workman, 2000.   Nonfiction

Masoff, Joy. Oh Yikes!: History's Grossest, Wackiest Moments. Workman, 2000.   Nonfiction

Myers, Walter Dean. Patrol: an American Soldier in Vietnam. HarperCollins, 2002.

Peck, Richard. The Teacher’s Funeral: A Comedy in Three Acts. Dial, 2004.

When your school has only one room and one teacher, and the teacher dies just days before school starts, then you might expect to be free from school for the year. Russell thought that, until his older sister reached into the coffin of his former teacher and pried the pointer she carried from her cold, dead, fingers. This will be a school year to remember.  

Roberts, Ken. The Thumb in the Box. Douglas & McIntyre, 2001.  

NEW!! Roberts, Ken. Thumb on a Diamond. Groundwood Books, 2006.

Explain to me how to get on and off an elevator, if I’ve never seen one…

I’m sitting in a restaurant for the first time, and someone is holding a pen and a pad of paper, and staring at me. What do I do?...

Okay, now tell me how to play baseball if I’ve never played, or even seen, a game…

The New Aukland Beavers are about to play in the Provincial Middle School Baseball Championship. Unfortunately, they have never played baseball.

Rodda, Emily. “Deltora Quest” (Series):  Fantasy

            The Forests of Silence. Apple, 2001.

            The Lake of Tears. Apple, 2001.

            City of the Rats. Apple, 2001.

            The Shifting Sands. Apple, 2001.  

            Dread Mountain. Apple, 2001.

            The Maze of the Beast. Apple, 2001.  

            The Valley of the Lost. Apple, 2001.

            Return to Del. Scholastic, 2001.

Scieszka, Jon. “The Time Warp Trio” (Series): 

            Summer Reading is Killing Me. Viking, 1998.

As if the title wasn’t enough, Winnie-the-Pooh gets carried off by Dracula, and the librarian is really the devil.

            Knights of the Kitchen Table. Viking, 1991.

            The Not-So-Jolly Roger. Viking, 1991.

            The Good, The Bad, and the Goofy. Viking, 1992.

            Your Mother Was a Neanderthal. Viking, 1993.

            2095. Viking, 1995.

            Tut Tut. Viking, 1996.

            Sam Samurai. Viking, 2001.

The Samurai scowled down at us. “No one disturbs our master’s peace with their entertainments unless they ask me, leader of the Red Devil bodyguards, Owattabutt.” The samurai posed proudly.

Fred’s eyes bugged out. I couldn’t stop him.

“Oh what a butt?” asked Fred.

“Owattabutt of Minowa,” said the samurai.

“Oh--what a butt,” repeated Sam.

We tried our best not to laugh. We really did. But you know us.

It took us about three seconds to crack up, freak out Owattabutt, have our hands tied behind our backs, and get surrounded by a gang of red samurai warriors with spears.

Then things really went bad.

How could they get worse?… read Sam Samurai by Jon Scieszka and find out. 

            It's All Greek to Me. Viking, 1999.

            See You Later, Gladiator. Viking, 2000.

            Hey Kid, Want to Buy a Bridge?. Viking, 2002.

            Viking It and Liking It. Viking, 2002.   

            Me Oh Maya. Viking, 2003.

            Da Wild, Da Crazy, Da Vinci. Viking, 2004.

            Oh Say, I Can't See. Viking, 2005.

            Marco? Polo! Viking, 2006.

            Nightmare on Joe's Street. Viking, 2006.

            Lewis and Clark... and Jodi, Freddi, and Samantha. Viking, 2006.

            The Seven Blunders of the World. Viking, 2006.

NEW!! Singer, Marilyn. What Stinks? Darby Creek, 2006.  Nonfiction

Smallcomb, Pam. The Last Burp of Mac McGerp. Bloomsbury USA, 2003.

Solheim, James. It's Disgusting and We Ate It!: True Food Facts from Around the World and Throughout History. Simon & Schuster, 1998.   Nonfiction

NEW!!  Solway, Andrew. What's Living in Your Bedroom? Heinemann, 2004.  Nonfiction

Spinelli, Jerry. Loser. Joanna Cotler, 2002.  

How do I present this book to you? The title itself is a word we adults don’t want you to use. But what if the word didn’t matter? What if it didn’t matter that you run with arms and legs flailing wildly and still you don’t go anywhere? What if it didn’t matter that you love school so much you show up on Saturday? What if you could wear a four-foot giraffe hat for the pure joy of wearing a four-foot giraffe hat? What if it was okay to be a loser? Wouldn’t it be fun? And wouldn’t it be great to know someone who could do all those goofy things and a hundred more, and just be as happy as can be.

Spinelli, Jerry. Milkweed. Knopf, 2003.  

NEW!!  Stone, Jeff. "The Five Ancestors." (Series)   Fantasy

                Tiger. Random House, 2005.

                Monkey. Random House, 2005.

                Snake. Random House, 2006.

Strasser, Tod. "Help! I'm Trapped..." (Series)

                Help! I'm Trapped in My Teacher's Body. 1993

                Help! I'm Trapped in The First Day of School. 1994

                Help! I'm Trapped in Obedience School. 1995

                Help! I'm Trapped in My Gym Teacher's Body. 1996

                Help! I'm Trapped in Obedience School Again. 1997

                Help! I'm Trapped in My Sister's Body. 1997

                Help! I'm Trapped in the First Day of Summer Camp. 1997

                Help! I'm Trapped in Santa's Body. 1997

                Help! I'm Trapped in a Movie Star's Body. 1998

                Help! I'm Trapped in My Principal's Body. 1998

                Help! I'm Trapped in an Alien's Body. 1998

                Help! I'm Trapped in My Lunch Lady's Body. 1999.

My friends and I in the lunch lady bodies trudged back toward the kitchen. I couldn’t believe it!

“You guys really want to be lunch ladies for the rest of your lives?”

“There are worse things,” said Andy in April’s body.

“Like what?” I asked in May’s body.

…an the survey says…

           #3 Armpit sniffer in a deodorant factory

           #2 Athlete’s foot medicine tester

           And the #1 job that is worse than lunch lady… The guy with the shovel who walks behind the elephants at the circus.

            Help! I'm Trapped in a Vampire's Body. 2000

            Help! I'm Trapped in a Professional Wrestler's Body. 2000

            Help! I'm Trapped in a Supermodel's Body. 2001

NEW!!  Strasser, Todd. Is That a Dead Dog in Your Locker? Scholastic, 2006.

Sullivan, Michael. Escapade Johnson and Mayhem at Mount Moosilauke. Big Guy Books, 2006.

Melinda was sitting across across from me, going through a tree identification guide and drawing leaves in her notebook. I strained my neck  as she flipped through a few pages and saw drawings of flowers, animal tracks, and…

“Poop!” I said, a little louder than I wanted to. All conversation stopped, and I mean immediately.

Melinda glared up at me. “It’s called scat.”

“In my world, it’s called poop.”

“When animals do it in the woods, it’s called scat, and it’s one way of knowing what animal species are in the environment.”

“Wow,” said Davy, “that has to be the only time you could tell someone their drawings look like crap and it would be a compliment...”

Escapade Johnson’s name may mean adventure, but he is the most boring kid in the Elementary School in Sanbornton, NH, which means he is the most boring kid in the most boring town in the most boring state in the country.

So how does he end up setting the town’s only fire truck on fire, feeding the whole town’s ballots to a moose at the last election, hunting witches in the woods, and staring down a bear on the side of a mountain?

Begin the adventure with Escapade Johnson and Mayhem at Mount Moosilauke.   

Tocher, Timothy. Chief Sunrise, John McGraw, and Me. Cricket Books, 2004.

Baseball fans in the crowd? What would you do to get a shot at the big leagues? Would you jump from a moving train? Would you share living quarters with a horse? Guys, would you play baseball in a skirt? Would you change your name and pretend to be someone you are not?

Hank Cobb and Chief Sunrise have to do all this and more to get a chance to try out before the greatest big league manager in history in Chief Sunrise, John McGraw, and Me.  

Van Draanen, Wendelin. "Shredderman" (Series):

                Secret Identity. Knopf, 2004.

                Attack of the Tagger. Knopf, 2004.

                Meet the Gecko. Knopf, 2005.

                New!! Enemy Spy. Knopf, 2005.

Van Draanen, Wendelin. Swear to Howdy. Knopf, 2003.

…While Sissy’s handing the cokes over to mama and dad, Joey’s face is all frantic, trying to tell me something.

“What?” I whispered. 

He just kept twitching at the face.

“What?” I asked again, and then it clicked. He hadn’t put bugs in just Sissy and Amanda Jane’s drinks. He’d put them in all the cups. My eyes shot back and forth. From my parents to my sister. From my parents to my sister. And when I was sure no one was looking, I mouthed, “Bugs?”

He nodded.

I whispered, “Why?”

“Didn’t want’em to go to waste!”

…We were almost out of the park when the screaming started.” (pp. 17-19)  

Vande Velde, Vivian. Wizard at Work. Magic Carpet Books, 2003.

So, what did you do on your summer vacation? All this particular wizard wanted to do was work in his garden and fish. He didn’t want to deal with princesses in peril, curses, ghosts, or sea monsters, and he CERTAINLY didn’t want a princess tagging along while he dealt with the curse of the ghost of a sea monster, but for a wizard, it’s all in a days work. 

Webber, Desiree. The Buffalo Train Ride. Eakin Press, 1999.   Nonfiction

Would you share a cramped train car with a buffalo? Or five? You might if it meant a chance to save these magnificent animals and return them to a life of roaming the American plains. This is the true story of the men who preserved one of the great symbols of America.

Webber, Desiree. Bonehead: Story of the Longhorn. Eakin Press, 2003.  Nonfiction

Whedon, Josh, Karl Moline, and Andy Owens. Fray. Dark Horse, 2003.    Graphic Novel

For fans of “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”, here is a futuristic view of the Slayer legend. Thousands of years in the future, the demons have all been defeated, the Slayers have ceased to be called, and the watchers, with all their knowledge and no way to use it, have gone mad. But who are these “Lurks” that now prowl the darkness, preying on the underbelly of society? One girl, with powers she does not understand, must face the rising tide in Fray, by Karl Molin