Neil Armstrong Is My Uncle

Neil Armstrong Is My Uncle and Other Lies Muscle Man McGinty Told Me
by Nan Marino


Shortly after Tamara's best friend Kebsie moved out of Mrs. Kutchner's foster home, Muscle Man McGinty moved in with Mrs. Kutchner. Tamara hates Muscle Man McGinty  She thinks he's a liar and can't understand why all the other kids on Ramble Street seem to like him so much.  


Sad and lost without her friend, Tamara takes her anger out on Muscle Man.  The funny thing is that they have a lot in common and would probably make good friends.  You'll have to read the book to find out if Tamara discovers how good a friend Muscle Man could be. 


Published: 2009

Genre: Historical Fiction

Locations: Classroom Library, Public Library, and Amazon

Inside Out & Back Again

Inside Out & Back Again
Thanhha Lai


In this amazingly beautiful story told in short poem like chapters, Ha tells her family's courageous journey from her childhood home in war torn South Vietnam all the way to her new home in Alabama. 


Throughout the book, Ha and her family are faced with numerous obstacles to overcome.  Will they find their missing father?   Can they escape the Communists and survive on a boat? Will they find a sponsor in the US?  Can they adjust to a new country's customs, language, and be accepted by their new neighbors whom seem so different? 


With Ha's engaging spirit you can't help but root for her as she faces each new challenge with her family by her side.  


Published: 2011


Genre: Historical Fiction


Location: Class Library, Public Library, and Amazon  

Football Nightmare

Football Nightmare
by Matt Christopher and Robert Hirschfeld


Have you ever let your friends, teammates or self down. Keith did. All he did was drop a pass, but it was a big pass.  A pass that would have guaranteed his team an undefeated season and won them a championship.  But Matt dropped the pass and his team lost. No undefeated season.  No championship.


Keith took responsibility for the loss.  He felt so much shame about that dropped pass that Keith's heart, confidence, and his will to play football were broken. 


When the next season rolls around Keith has to decide what to do. Is he so scared of disappointing his teammates that he will hide out at home while they play football or will he choose to face his fear of disappointing everyone again and play the game he loves?


Published: 2001

Genre: Realistic Fiction/Sports

Locations: School Library, Public Library, and Amazon

Coyote Autumn

Coyote Autumn
by Bill Wallace


After coyote hunters kill the mama, daddy, and most of the litter, Brad discovers 1 remaining pup. Brad has always dreamed of having a pet and he knows the defenseless pup can't survive on its own so he takes the coyote home despite the challenges that face him. 


Can Brad convince his parents to let him keep the coyote pup. Can Brad protect the pup from the hunters that killed its family.  Finally, can Brad convince the wild pup to be a pet?  Read Coyote Autumn to learn all the details of Brad's adventures with a coyote pup.


Published: 2000

Genre: Realistic Fiction/Adventure

Locations: School Library, Public Library, and Amazon

Chicken Chicken

Chicken Chicken
by R.L. Stine


Hi, I'm Crystal.  I'm in a bit of a panic right now.  See, my brother Cole and I are turning into chickens.  No, not scaredy cat style chickens, actually cluck, cluck, eat seeds off the ground chickens.  My lips are turning into a beak, my brother and I keep clucking and we are both growing feathers.  Yeah, you read that right feathers.


It all started the other day when we knocked Vanessa's groceries out of her hands.  We had always joked that she was a witch, well it turns out she is. After her groceries tumbled to the ground she stared at us and chanted, "Chicken Chicken."  Since then Cole and I have been feeling kind of fowl.  


Somehow, someway we need to convince Vanessa to turn us back to plain old humans not chicken humans.  I'm just not sure what we're going to do but I sure hope it works. 


Published: 1997

Genre: Fantasy

Locations: School Library, Public Library, and Amazon

Welcome to Dead House

Welcome to Dead House
by R.L. Stine


When Josh and Amanda arrived at their new house in Dark Falls they sensed something wasn't quite right.  Josh didn't want to go in,  their dog Petey ran away, and Amanda is certain she saw a boy in an upstairs window.  


As they spent more time in Dark Falls, things got stranger and stranger.  There were no lights at night, the neighbor kids ran home whenever the sun comes out, Amanda saw kids and kept hearing giggles and whispers in her house, and Petey insanely barked at everyone he met. 


Amanda was pretty sure she was seeing ghosts but she knew ghosts aren't real and wanted to believe that truth.  Was she seeing ghosts or was she just imaging things? Read Welcome to the Dead House to find out! 


Published: 1992

Genre: Fantasy

Locations: School Library, Public Library, and Amazon

The War with Grandpa

The War With Grandpa
by Robert Kimmel Smith


I was so excited when I heard my grandpa was coming to live with us, but then I discovered the planned living arrangements.  Grandpa was getting my room, the room I had since I was born, and I was getting booted and forced to move into the third floor room.  I couldn't believe he was taking my room, the only room I had ever slept in.  


Let's just say I wasn't happy about losing my room, in fact I was mad, and even though I love my grandpa I declared war.  I was going to get my room back no matter what the consequences.  


I'm not going to tell you specifically what happened during the war, but just let me say I did some dastardly things and so did Grandpa. We both learned some lessons too.  If you want to find out who won the war, and if I got my room back, read my book The War with Grandpa.


Published: 1984

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Locations: School Library, Public Library, and Amazon

Just Grace

Just Grace
by Charise Mericle Harper


Grace is a sweet funny girl who loves to help others.   When Grace discovers her scary next door neighbor, Mrs. Luther, is extremely sad about breaking her leg, Grace decides to cheer her up.  Will Grace be successful or just make things worse?  I'll give you a clue, Grace does a little bit of both.  If you are looking to laugh and feel happy read Just Grace.


Published: 2007

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Locations: Class Library, School Library, Public Library, and Amazon

Touching Spirit Bear

Touching Spirit Bear
by Ben Mikalesen

This book is amazing.  I read it in two sittings over the course of 12 hours. I really couldn't put it down. 


Cole is angry.  His father is abusive and his mother is neglectful.  He takes his anger out on others by breaking things and hurting others. After he beats up his classmate Peter, he avoids going to jail by being sent to live alone on an isolated Alaskan island.


Will Cole be able to survive on the island?  Will he be able to come to terms with anger? You'll need to read Touching Spirit Bear to find out. 


Published: 2001

Genre: Realistic Fiction / Adventure

Locations: Classroom Library, Public Library, and Amazon

The Attack On Pearl Harbor

The Attack on Pearl Harbor
by Jane Sutcliffe\
illustrated by Bob Lentz


This graphic novel provides a detailed account of the Japanese attack on the Naval Base at Pearl Harbor. It shows the battle  from both the American and Japanese perspective and makes for an interesting quick read. 


Published: 2006


Genre: Graphic Novel / Non-fiction

Locations: Class Library, Public Libary, and Amazon

The Tarantula in My Purse

The Tarantula in My Purse
by Jean Craighead George


If you love pets and want to learn about wild animals, this is the book for you.  Jean Craighead George shares the wonderful adventures she and her three children had with wild animals that they brought into their home.  Experience the funny, mysterious, exciting, joyful, and heartbreaking moments of trying to raise wild animals.  As you read, be sure to constantly think about what you would you do if you were in these situations. 


Published: 1996

Genre: Memoir/Auto-biography

Locations: Class Library, Public Library, and Amazon

The Search for Delicious

The Search for Delicious
by Natalie Babbitt


After the King, Queen and Royal Court argue over which food is truly delicious, 12 year old Gaylen is sent out by the  King to poll the kingdom to determine which food actually is the most delicious. He quickly discovers that his task is much more important, he needs to save the kingdom from civil war. 


The King's brother-in-law Hemlock wants to be king and has come up with a devious plan to dam all the water from coming into the kingdom until the people overthrow the king.  Gaylen meets a variety of helpful characters, including a woldweller, three dwarfs, and a mermaid, but will they be enough to help him stop Hemlocks's nefarious plan?


Published: 1969

Genre: Fantasy

Locations: School Library, Public Library, Amazon

School of Fear Class Is Not Dismissed

School of Fear Class Is Not Dismissed
by Gitty Daneshvari


You don't go to the School of Fear to learn how to be scary, you go to the School of Fear to get over your fears.  In this second book of the three part series, four students/participants return to learn from the extremely bizarre Mrs. Wellington at the School of Fear.  


Madeline, from London,  has a phobia of spiders. Theo, the hall monitor,  is terrified that he or his family will get hurt at every turn.  Lulu, the tough one is claustrophobic and Garrison, the cool one, is terrified of water.  Watching these four interact as their friendship grows is the best part of the book. 


Besides getting over their fears, the students/participants have to help Mrs. Wellington determine who is stealing from their school and who is threatening to blackmail her.  And as an added bonus they have to deal with super clingy new student/participant Hyacinth and her apparently outspoken pet ferret Celery.  


P.S. You will want to read book 3 if you read this book. It is available at the public library. You do not need to have read book 1 to enjoy this book. 


Published: 2010

Genre: Exaggerated Realistic Fiction

Locations: Class Library, Public Library, Amazon

Homer Price

Homer Price
by Robert McCloskey


Homer Price is a collection of six amusing short stories.  You could read them all or just one and still get a laugh. And the order doesn't matter. 


Throughout the book Homer has many adventures. Homer tames a skunk and confronts a group of robbers.  He learns that heroes aren't always as perfect as you thought and modern machinery sometimes has its limitations.  He discovers that people like to make up their own minds and children are sometimes smarter than adults. Finally, he learns that street signs are important. If you are looking for an easy read and a few laughs, read Homer Price. 




Published: 1943

Genre: Funny Fiction

Locations: School Library, Public Library, Amazon

How Angel Peterson Got His Name

How Angel Peterson Got His Name
by Gary Paulsen


In a nutshell, this book is about all the crazy, stupid stuff Gary Paulsen and his friends did when they were 13.  Gary and his friends planned out a bunch of crazy stunts with skis, bikes, kites, parachutes, and barrels and unfortunately followed through with them.  Luckily, none of them died. If you enjoy laughing at other people's blunders, this book is for you. 


Published: 2003

Genre: Memoir/Auto-biography

Locations: Classroom Library, Public Library, Amazon