Wish


Barbara O'Connor - 2016
    She even has a list of all the ways there are to make the wish, such as cutting off the pointed end of a slice of pie and wishing on it as she takes the last bite. But when she is sent to the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina to live with family she barely knows, it seems unlikely that her wish will ever come true. That is until she meets Wishbone, a skinny stray dog who captures her heart, and Howard, a neighbor boy who proves surprising in lots of ways. Suddenly Charlie is in serious danger of discovering that what she thought she wanted may not be what she needs at all.

The Class Trip from the Black Lagoon


Mike Thaler - 2002
    These fun-filled chapter books mix school, monsters, and common kid problems with hilarious results.Oh, no! It's the class trip from the Black Lagoon. The kids have no idea where they're going but they imagine a day full of ferocious animals, maniacal monsters, and scary aerial acrobatics. And their teacher, mean Mrs. Green, is going to quiz them on everything! When the kids stop letting their imaginations run wild they soon realize that they're going to a very cool zoo. But that won't change the fact that there's never a dull moment in the Black Lagoon!

The Mystery of the Stolen Diamonds


David A. Adler - 1980
    When Jennifer "Cam" Jansen and her friend Eric are at the mall, they witness a robbery at the jewelry store! Can Cam's amazing photographic memory help catch a thief?

Meet Kaya


Janet Beeler Shaw - 2002
    Her father warns her that the horse isn't ready, but when a pesky boy insults Steps High, Kaya accepts his challenge to race. As they ride, Kaya loses sight of her little brothers. Her carelessness earns her a nickname that her friends won't let her forget.

The First Misadventure


Doreen Cronin - 2014
    They're daring. They know their shapes! They're chicks on a mission, and on this, their first (mis)adventure, the Chicken Squad launches a galactic backyard expedition.Meet the Chicken Squad: Dirt, Sugar, Poppy, and Sweetie. These chicks are not your typical barnyard puffs of fluff, and they are not about to spend their days pecking chicken feed and chasing bugs. No sir, they're too busy solving mysteries and fighting crime.So when Squirrel comes barreling into the chicken coop, the chicks know they're about to get a case. But with his poor knowledge of shapes ("Big" is not a shape, Squirrel!) and utter fear of whatever it is that's out there, the panicky Squirrel is NO HELP. Good thing these chicks are professionals.But even professionals get worried. Especially once they see that round, shiny, green, BIG thing in the yard. What if it's a UFO full of aliens who want chickens as pets? It's up to the Chicken Squad to crack a case that just might be out of this world.

My Big Fat Zombie Goldfish


Mo O'Hara - 2013
    Tom knows that there is only one thing to do: Zap the fish with a battery and bring him back to life! But there's something weird about the new Frankie. He's now a BIG FAT ZOMBIE GOLDFISH with hypnotic powers . . . and he's out for revenge!

All Four Stars


Tara Dairman - 2014
    (Just don’t tell anyone that she’s in sixth grade.)   Gladys Gatsby has been cooking gourmet dishes since the age of seven, only her fast-food-loving parents have no idea! Now she’s eleven, and after a crème brûlée accident (just a small fire), Gladys is cut off from the kitchen (and her allowance). She’s devastated but soon finds just the right opportunity to pay her parents back when she’s mistakenly contacted to write a restaurant review for one of the largest newspapers in the world.   But in order to meet her deadline and keep her dream job, Gladys must cook her way into the heart of her sixth-grade archenemy and sneak into New York City—all while keeping her identity a secret! Easy as pie, right?

Nancy Clancy, Super Sleuth


Jane O'Connor - 2012
    . . in her chapter book debut! Nancy and her best friend, Bree, have everything they need to solve a mystery, from their totally professional trench coats to their top-secret code. But when crime strikes in their classroom, will these super sleuths be able to crack the case?Find out in the glamorous start to an all-new chapter book series featuring everyone’s favorite fancy girl!

Freckle Juice


Judy Blume - 1978
    Sitting behind him in class, Andrew once counted eighty-six of them, and that was just a start! If Andrew had freckles like Nicky, his mother would never know if his neck was dirty.One day after school, Andrew works up enough courage to ask Nicky where he got his freckles. When know-it-all Sharon overhears, she offers Andrew her secret freckle juice recipe for fifty cents. It's a lot of money, but Andrew is desperate. At home he carefully mixes the strange combination of ingredients. Then the unexpected happens...

The Wild Robot


Peter Brown - 2016
    She has no idea how she got there or what her purpose is--but she knows she needs to survive. After battling a violent storm and escaping a vicious bear attack, she realizes that her only hope for survival is to adapt to her surroundings and learn from the island's unwelcoming animal inhabitants.As Roz slowly befriends the animals, the island starts to feel like home--until, one day, the robot's mysterious past comes back to haunt her.From bestselling and award-winning author and illustrator Peter Brown comes a heartwarming and action-packed novel about what happens when nature and technology collide.

The Last Holiday Concert


Andrew Clements - 2004
    Kids look up to him, and all the teachers let him get away with anything -- all the teachers except the chorus director, Mr. Meinert. When Hart's errant rubber band hits Mr. Meinert on the neck during chorus practice, it's the last straw for the chorus director, who's just learned he's about to lose his job due to budget cuts. So he tells the class they can produce the big holiday concert on their own. Or not. It's all up to them. And who gets elected to run the show? The popular Mr. Hart Evans. Hart soon discovers there's a big difference between popularity and leadership, and to his surprise, discovers something else as well -- it's really important to him that this be the best holiday concert ever, and even more important, that it not be the last.

Encyclopedia Brown, Boy Detective


Donald J. Sobol - 1963
    Try to crack the cases along with him--the answer to all the mysteries are found in the back!

Toys Go Out: Being the Adventures of a Knowledgeable Stingray, a Toughy Little Buffalo, and Someone Called Plastic


Emily Jenkins - 2006
    Zelinsky, readers will meet three extraordinary friends. Lumphy is a stuffed buffalo. StingRay is a stuffed stingray. And Plastic... well, Plastic isn't quite sure what she is. They all belong to the Little Girl who lives on the high bed with the fluffy pillows. A very nice person to belong to. Together is best for these three best friends. Together they look things up in the dictionary, explore the basement, and argue about the meaning of life. And together they face dogs, school, television commercials, the vastness of the sea, and the terrifying bigness of the washing machine.A Parents' Choice Silver Honor Winner, an ALA-ALSC Notable Children's Book, and an Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Platinum Book Award Winner, Toys Go Out is truly a modern classic.From the Hardcover edition.

Leepike Ridge


N.D. Wilson - 2007
    D. Wilson delighted readers with his first unforgettable action-adventure story of survival. . . .  Thomas Hammond has always lived next to Leepike Ridge, but he never imagined he might end up lost beneath it! The night Tom’s schoolteacher comes to dinner and asks Tom’s mother to marry him, Tom slips out of the house and escapes down a nearby stream on a floating slab of packing foam. The night and stars lull Tom to sleep, and when he wakes, he has ridden his foam raft all the way to the ridge, where the stream dives underground. Flung over rapids and tossed through chasms, Tom finally hits shore, sore but alive. What Tom finds under Leepike Ridge—a dog, a flashlight, a castaway, a tomb, and buried treasure—will answer questions he hadn’t known to ask, and change his life forever. Now, if only he can find his way home again. . . .

Ivy and Bean


Annie Barrows - 2006
    But when Bean plays a joke on her sister, Nancy, and has to hide quickly, Ivy comes to the rescue, proving that sometimes the best of friends are people never meant to like each other. Vibrant characters and lots of humor make this a charming and addictive introduction to Ivy and Bean.