Skip to main content

50-41 of Top Children's Novels

The next 10 books in the list are out today and this puts us in the Top 50. I have a feeling my thoughts on the books to come will be extreme one or way another. Though there are a couple today I could take or leave. As always I have linked to Betsy's posts at Fuse 8.


50. Number the Stars by Lois Lowry
This is an excellent book in so  many ways. It is a book that introduces children to the concept of the Holocaust without throwing the full horror of it at them. The main themes of the story are friendship and family, both of which children identify with. Also, and this is key from a teacher's view, it is short enough to include as part of a history unit.


49. My Father's Dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannett
Cute and fun. This is an excellent book for kids who are crossing over from early readers to chapter books. It has to be given to a child at exactly the right time.

48. The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket
I have a fondness for The Series of Unfortunate Events because of how much circulation they got in my classroom. They were always being read, and they were perfect for those students who wanted to be seen reading a popular series but couldn't quite tackle Harry Potter yet. Personally I was never that taken with the books and never read past book three.

47. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
I loved this book growing up. I wore out more than one copy and reread it at least once a year all the way into high school. I still love it. I have always had issues with the end, but the way I wished it ended has changed over the years as I've grown up.

46.  The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi
I had a friend who loved this book. I tried to read it when we were in sixth grade and was bored out of my mind. It still causes me to feel like I would rather be doing anything else whenever I see it. Needless to say I haven't attempted to read it again.

45. The Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell
A well meaning teacher made me read this. The same teacher who made me read My Side of the Mountain. She must have loved stories about surviving while communing with nature. I don't.

44. Okay for Now by Gary D. Schmidt
Of all the recently published books to make the list this one makes me the happiest. I love Doug's voice, his hope, everything about his story. (My review.)

43. Jacob Have I Loved by Katherine Paterson
I loved this book as a middle schooler. As an adult there are elements of it that seriously creep me out.

42. Gone Away Lake by Elizabeth Enright
I read this book when I was in elementary school. I never reread it and have very little memory of it.

41.  The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by Frank L. Baum
I am forever indebted to this book for being the source material used for Wicked. Other than that I have no use for it.

Comments

KateCoombs said…
My Father's Dragon? :)
Brandy said…
Hahaha! Thanks. Lack of sleep, am changing it.
April said…
Glad you posted-I can't access old posts on Fuse 8 for some reason. I love Jacob Have I LOved-looking forward to reading it again and seeing what creeped you out. :-) The old man thing? I'd like to hear your thoughts about the end of Little Women. I just wish Amy got punched in the face in the end and her nose really did grow huge from it.
Brandy said…
That would be what creeps me out.

When I was little I wanted Jo and Laurie together and it made me so mad that Amy got him. And the old German guy=ewwww. Me in high school and beyond realized Jo and Laurie as they were together would be a disaster and thought it would be best if Jo remained single. Why did she have to get married???? Old German guy=still ewwwww. Interestingly I read somewhere recently (but can't find source so don't know if it's certain) that Louisa May Alcott actually wanted Jo to remain single but the fan girls were so insistent she get married, and Alcott was so insistent that it not be Laurie that German guy was created.
April said…
Hmm, I will have to read it again. I didn't mind the German guy-in fact I thought the end was sweet with them. Maybe I didn't realize how old he was. haha I would be fine with her single too. I still want Amy to get punched in the face.

Popular posts from this blog

Serafina and the Black Cloak

Serafina and the Black Cloak  by Robert Beatty is a thrilling tale of mystery and adventure set at the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, NC in 1899. Having lived in Asheville and visited the house several times, there was no way I was going to pass up a chance to read this. (Also it's MG fantasy, always a bonus for me.) Serafina lives in secret in the basement of the Vanderbilt's spacious vacation home. She has lived there most of her life. Her father worked on the house as it was being built and is the mechanic who runs the massive generator and keeps the electricity going. Serafina is the chief rat catcher, slipping through the halls of her massive home secretly and quietly. She is light on her feet, sees well in the dark, and is quick enough to catch the vermin and keep them out. Serafina knows she if different and strange. Her father insists she stay hidden. But all that changes when one night Serafina witnesses a horrible crime. A little girl, a guest in the house, is fleein

Shorter Musings MG Fantasy

Here are some shorter musings on recent MG fantasy reads. Anya and the Dragon   by Sofiya Pasternack This book is fun. It is a book full of adventure, an obvious bad guy, some more complicated morally gray area characters, and a strong, brave heroine. It is also a book about friendships, community, and fighting for what is right. All things that usually work for me really well. While I enjoyed this, I did feel it was a little overlong and there were certain plot points at the end I didn't love. However, there were things I thought were done really well, such as Anya's Jewish faith and the idea that power needs to be challenged. In the end it was a middle of the road read for me, but it is one I will certainly be recommending to dragon and fantasy adventure lovers I know! R is for Rebel   by J. Anderson Coats This is tough because I usually really like Coats's books. I had such a hard time with this one though on so many levels. It's difficult to get into because t

Favorite Kissing Scenes

When thinking of a favorite things post I could do for February I decided it would have to be kissing. I've already done couples and I was feeling in the mood to do something fluffy and Valentine's related. So kisses it is. I read more MG than YA, and the YA I read tends to not focus on romance so this was actually harder than I expected it to be though a few jumped into my head right away. (And one of my choices does actually come from a MG book. One is adult. Gasp!) The actual scene from the book is quoted followed by my thoughts. The king lifted a hand to her cheek and kissed her. It was not a kiss between strangers, not even a kiss between a bride and a groom. It was a kiss between a man and his wife, and when it was over, the king closed his eyes and rested his forehead against the hollow of the queen's shoulder, like a man seeking respite, like a man reaching home at the end of the day . - The King of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner Turner doesn't write the

Shadowshaper

Shadowshaper  by Daniel José Older is everywhere. Best of lists. Award buzz. Blogs everywhere. It's one of those books everyone is reading and talking about. I had it on my TBR but decided I definitely needed to read it before the year was out just so I could weigh in on one of the most talked about books of 2015 if asked. It is deserving of every good thing said about it. Every. One. Sierra was looking forward to a relaxing summer break. Her plans involved hanging out with her friends and painting. They did not involve being chased by zombie like creatures and threatened by a magical power connected to her family's heritage she has never heard of. When murals begin fading all over her Brooklyn neighborhood, Sierra is perplexed. When her grandfather, who had a stroke, begins to apologize and starts repeating strange phases and insisting Sierra get the help of a boy she barely knows to help her finish her mural, Sierra is concerned but mostly about her grandfather. Then at a

The Field Guide to the North American Teeanager

The Field Guide to the North American Teenager by Ben Philippe is a book I picked up on a whim at the bookstore when it first came out. I liked the cover. I thought it had an engaging premise. I went into it with a healthy does of trepidation because the execution could have gone so terribly wrong. Fortunately, Philippe is an excellent character writer, and I thoroughly enjoyed my time spent reading about Norris's adventures in Texas and high school. High school junior Norris Kaplan's life is ruined by his mother when she takes a job that requires them to leave the only home he has ever known in Montreal, Quebec. Moving is always hard, but Norris knows for him it will be harder than it's ever been for anyone else. Norris is moving to Texas. He will be a Canadian living in Texas. Not just a Canadian. A French Canadian who speaks fluent French. And not just your average run-of-the-mill French Canadian. A black son of Haitian immigrant parents French Canadian. If Norris has