Elysian
4th Grade - 6th Grade
Chapter Books:
The Time Warp Trio series, Scieszka
Three friends have adventures as they travel through time.
Alanna, the First Adventure, by Tamora Pierce. Alanna wants to be a warrior. She won't let her gender or her mysterious power
known as the Gift stop her. (Check out the other books by Pierce!)
City of Ember, DuPrau.
In the year 241, 12-year-old Lina trades jobs on Assignment Day to be a Messenger to run to new places in her decaying but beloved city, perhaps even to glimpse Unknown Regions.
All-of-a-Kind Family, Taylor
Five sisters greet
their new baby brother on the old
Amber Was Brave, Essie Was Smart, Williams
Two loving sisters help each other through a family crisis.
Baseball Fever, Hurwitz
Will Ezra's father let him play?
Edwina Rose Sachs writes about her immigrant family in the early 1900s.
Double Fudge, Blume
Try all the books about Fudge.
Dracula Is a Pain In the Neck, Levy
Who is haunting Robert's sleep-away camp?
If I Only Had a Horn, Orgill
Young Louis Armstrong starts to play the blues.
In the Year of the Boar and Jackie Robinson, Lord
Shirley Temple Wong
enters 5th grade in 1947
Travel with the
statue from 19th century
Poppy, Avi
A courageous mouse ventures into the forest to save her family. Try other books by Avi, a wonderful author!
Stuart Little, White
The classic story of a mouse in NYC.
Before We Were Free, Alvarez
Anita and her
family face danger in the 1960s
Children of the Longhouse, Bruchac
A brother and sister in a 1400s Mohawk village make peace.
Dangerous Skies, Staples.
The events of one spring day change the lives of two teenagers forever. Issues of racism and hypocrisy in an unflinching and powerful story.
A Corner of the Universe, Martin
Hattie's smalltown life is turned upside-down when her uncle comes home.
Dave at Night, Levine
An orphaned boy discovers the exciting Harlem Renaissance.
Don't You Know There's a War On?, Avi
During WWII, Howie and his 5th grade class fight to save their teacher's job.
Fast Sam, Cool
The new kid on
The extraordinary life of the 32nd president.
From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, Konigsburg
Claudia and her brother, Jamie, run away to the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Harriet, the Spy, Fitzhugh
A 6th
grader on the
Last Summer With Maizon, Woodson
Margaret faces 6th grade alone when Maizon goes to boarding school.
Malcolm X: By Any Means Necessary, Myers
A probing biography of a turbulent life.
My Side of the Mountain, George
Sam runs away to
the
The Pushcart War, Merrill
The pushcart peddlers face down the mighty truckers.
Remember Me to
On a scavenger hunt, Frank and Kendra go to museums, restaurants and Macy's.
The School Story, Clements
Natalie becomes a published author at age 12.
Slake's Limbo, Holman
Aremis Slake lives in the subway's underground tunnels.
So You Want to be a Wizard, Duane
A library book helps Nita fight bullies.
How Tia Lola Came to Stay, Alvarez
Miguel just wants
to quietly fit in with the kids in his new home town in
Ruby Holler, Creech
13-year-old twins get a second chance when they go to live with an older couple in a place called Ruby Holler.
Zeely,
Geeder spends the summer at her Uncle's farm and meets a woman who looks like a Watutsi queen.
Just Juice,
This is the story
of a determined 9 year old with learning disabilities who helps hold her family
together in a poor community in
Hoot, Hiaasen.
Everything on a Waffle, Horvath
After Primrose Squarp's parents disappear at sea, she spends an eventful year in British Columbia, awaiting their return.
Anastasia Krupnik, Lowry
The story of a ten-year-old girl who loves to make lists, provides a look into the world of growing up in a warm family.
Felita, Mohr
Felita lives with
her strong and loving family from
Caddie Woodlawn, Brink
Caddie is 11,
growing up in
Bud, Not Buddy, Curtis
An orphan named Bud
sets out to find his "famous musician" Dad in 1930's
Jim Ugly, Fleischman.
Jake's father is dead, or is he? With the help of his father's dog, Jim Ugly, Jake sets out across the wild west to find out.
Nory Ryan's Song, Giff.
Twelve-year-old
Nory Ryan and her friends and family learn how to help one another and survive
during the Potato Famine in
The Clay Marble, Ho.
Twelve-year-old
Dara and her family find themselves in a Cambodian refugee camp in
Snow Treasure, McSwigan.
A great adventure based on the true story of a group of Norwegian children who smuggled nine million dollars in gold past the Nazi's during World War II.
A Year Down Under, Peck.
Mary Alice spends the year of 1937 with her feisty Grandmother in this 2000 Newbery Medal winner.
The Twins, the
Pirates, and the
This is an exciting story about runaway slaves who are 12-year-old twins.
A Jar of Dreams, Uchida.
This is the first
of three novels about Rinko, a Japanese-American girl growing up in
The Town Cats and Other Tales, Alexander
This book includes eight stories featuring a chess-playing cat, a cat who becomes mayor for a day, and cats who outwit kings.
The Search for Delicious, Babbitt
Gaylen is sent on a quest to discover the true meaning of the word "delicious."
Molly Moon's Incredible Book of Hypnotism, Byng
English orphan, Molly Moon, wins a talent competition which enables her to leave her miserable orphanage and travel to NYC.
Artemis Fowl, Colfer.
A twelve-year-old boy plots to steal the fairy folk's gold.
The Boggart, Cooper
The Volnik family
inherits a castle in
The Witches, Dahl.
A brave young boy
sets out to save the children of
The Tale of Desperaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, some Soup, and a Spool of Thread, DiCamillo.
The wonderful adventure of a mouse and a princess.
Island of the Aunts, Ibbotson.
Three children are kidnapped by a trio of eccentric women who need them to care for the various mermaids, selkies, and other magical creatures they rescue from harm.
Ella Enchanted, Levine.
Try this one - it's much better than the movie.
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Lewis.
Four children go through a wardrobe to a land ruled by a wicked witch. Try other books in the series!
The Castle in the Attic, Winthrop.
A castle comes to life when our hero steps into it.
The Wizard's Map, Yolen.
First book in
Tartan Magic series. Tells of the Dyer children's visit to
Al Capone Does My Shirts, Choldenko.
The story of a 12-year-old boy and his autistic sister living on Alcatraz island in 1935. A great story.
Danny, Champion of the World, Dahl.
A wonderful story of a boy, his dad and sleeping pheasants.
Downsiders, Shusterman.
When 14-year-old Lindsey meets Talon and discovers the Downsider world, evolved from an abandoned subway tunnel built in NY in 1867, she and her new friend experience the clash of their two cultures.
From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, Konigsburg.
Two NYC kids run away and live in the Metropolitan Museum where they are suspicious about a new statue. A great book.
Jazmin's Notebook, Grimes.
Jazmin, a African American teenager who lives with her older sister in a small Harlem apartment in the 1960's writes poetry and keeps a record of her life.
The Lightning Thief, Riordan.
After learning that he is the son of a mortal woman and Poseidon, god of the sea, 12-year-old Percy is sent to a summer camp for demigods like himself, and joins his new friends on a quest to prevent a war between the gods.
Millicent Min, Girl Genius, Yee.
In a series of journal entries, 11-year-old child prodigy Millicent Min records her struggles to learn to play volleyball, tutor her enemy, deal with her grandmother's departure, and make friends over the course of a difficult summer.
P.S. Longer Letter Later, Danziger and Martin.
Two girls communicate through letters. A great story. And check out the follow-up: Snail Mail No More.
Poetry
Thirteen Moons on Turtle's Back: a Native American Year of Moons, Bruchac.
Each cycle of the moon is given its own legend in this group of 13 poems.
I, Too, Sing
Latino Rainbow: Poems About Latino Americans, Cumpian.
American Sports Poems, Knudson.
Classic Poetry: an Illustrated Collection, Rosen.
Good Luck Gold and Other Poems, Wong.