Classics, Nonfiction, and Children's Literature
The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman by Gennifer Choldenko (Knopf Books for Young Readers, 2024) begins with two hungry kids alone in an apartment, the building super banging on the door, warning that they will be evicted the following day. Right away, the issues are real in this middle grade novel. Sixth grader Hank has
On the Banks of Plum Creek by Laura Ingalls Wilder (published 1937) is kind of the last “little kid” book about Laura in the author’s fictionalized memoirs. Laura is about seven and, along with her older sister Mary, On the Banks of Plum Creek tells her childhood adventures in a sod house and in a
Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret by Judy Blume (Bradbury Press, 1970) is the classic puberty book, which talks frankly about a girl’s concerns with menstruation, a changing body, and wearing bras, among other things. But, it is even more about a young girl’s changing perspective on herself, on learning to accept herself as
In Tod of the Fens (published 1928), author Elinor Whitney creates a story connecting a group of men living in the low-lying fens of Lancashire, England with the happenings in the neighboring medieval town of Boston (see information on Wikipedia about Boston, England). With a distinct Robin Hood feel, the novel’s men in the fens
The children’s book Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder (published 1935) became a beloved classic thanks to the popular 1970s television show, but reading the book through today’s lens is painful. How can such a beloved classic be so racist? I loved the stories in this book. Mr. Edwards meets Santa Claus
The Boy Who Was by Grace Hallock (published 1928) is a uniquely organized story about the history of the Bay of Naples through the ages, each chapter using the same young goat boy (who has eternal life as a young man) as a key character. The prologue introduces the boy, named Nino, in the present
I’m a sucker for a good time travel story, so the third middle grade novel in the Mystwick School of Musicraft series, The Dark Refrain by Jessica Khoury (audiobook by Audible Originals, 2024), was definitely one I enjoyed. In this volume, Amelia Jones finds out that her grade is taking a one-month field trip to
Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder (published 1932) was the first book published by this acclaimed children’s author, and it kicks off the “Little House” series of stories that were loosely based on the author’s own childhood as a pioneer in Wisconsin. I find it to be more like a collection
In Newbery Honor book The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani (Kokila, 2018), the partition of India has a profound effect on the life of twelve-year-old Nisha, who is half-Muslim and half-Hindu and now must figure out where she is welcome. Along with her twin brother and her widower father, now Nisha finds she must leave their
Still riding the success of The One and Only Ivan, winner of the Newbery Medal in 2013, Katherine Applegate has added a fourth tale to the “Ivan and friends” series with The One and Only Family (Harper Collins, 2024). This book details Ivan’s experience in becoming a silverback and a father in the wildlife sanctuary.
The Pigtail of Ah Lee Ben Loo with Seventeen Other Laughable Tales and 200 Comical Silhouettes by John Bennett (published 1928) is an uneven collection of original stories and poems taking place around the world. The varied settings of the stories include somewhat realistic to fantastical and magical other worlds. About half of the stories were
As is so often the case with Kate DiCamillo’s wonderful books, I finished reading Ferris, her newest offering, and I felt immediately that I need to go back and read it again. It left me with a satisfied feeling that everything will be alright, even when things don’t work out like you’d want them too.
Page [tcb_pagination_current_page] of [tcb_pagination_total_pages]
