Books for Preschoolers

1. •   The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle
   

2. •   Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown
   

3. •   Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you see? by Bill Martin, Jr.
   

4. •   The Rainbow Fish by Marcus Pfister
   

5. •   Corduroy by Don Freeman
   

6. •   The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats
   

7. •   The Runaway Bunny by Margaret Wise
   

8. •   Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney
   

Books for Children Ages 4-8

1. •   The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg
   

2. •   Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss
   

3. •   The Cat in the Hat by Dr. Seuss
   

4. •   Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
   

5. •   Love You Forever by Robert N. Munsch
   

6. •   Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by Judith Viorst 
   

7. •   The Mitten by Jan Brett
   

8. •   Stellaluna by Janell Cannon
   

9. •   Oh, The Places You'll Go by Dr. Seuss
   

10. •   Strega Nona by Tomie De Paola
    

11. •   The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams
    

12. •   How the Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr. Seuss
    

13. •   The True Story of the Three Little Pigs by Jon Scieszka
    

14. •   Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by John Archambault
    

15. •   The Complete Tales of Winnie the Pooh by A. A. Milne
    

16. •   If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Joffe Numeroff
    

17. •   The Lorax by Dr. Seuss
    

18. •   Amazing Grace by Mary Hoffman
    

19. •   Jumanji by Chris Van Allsburg
    

20. •   Math Curse by Jon Scieszka
    

21. •   Are You My Mother? by Philip D. Eastman
    

22. •   The Napping House by Audrey Wood
    

23. •   Sylvester and the Magic Pebble by William Steig
    

24. •   The Tale of Peter Rabbit by Beatrix Potter
    

25. •   Horton Hatches the Egg by Dr. Seuss
    

26. •   Basil of Baker Street by Eve Titus
    

27. •   The Little Engine That Could by Watty Piper
    

28. •   Curious George by Hans Augusto Rey
    

29. •   Wilfrid Gordon McDonald Partridge by Mem Fox
    

30. •   Arthur series by Marc Tolon Brown
    

31. •   Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse by Kevin Henkes
    

32. •   The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton
    

33. •   Amelia Bedelia by Peggy Parish
    

34. •   The Art Lesson by Tomie De Paola
    

35. •   Caps for Sale by Esphyr Slobodkina
    

36. •   Clifford, the Big Red Dog by Norman Bridwell
    

37. •   The Paper Bag Princess by Robert N. Munsch
    

Books for Children Ages 9-12

1. •   Charlotte's Web by E. B. White
   

2. •   Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
   

3. •   The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis
   

4. •   Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson
   

5. •   Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
   

6. •   A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
   

7. •   Shiloh by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
   

8. •   Little House on the Prarie by Laura Ingalls Wilder
   

9. •   The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett
   

10. •   The Boxcar Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner
    

11. •   Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan
    

12. •   The Indian in the Cupboard by Lynne Reid Banks
    

13. •   Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell
    

14. •   Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli
    

15. •   The BFG by Roald Dahl
    

16. •   The Giver by Lois Lowry
    

17. •   James and the Giant Peach: A Children's Story by Roald Dahl
    

18. •   Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder
    

19. •   Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred D. Taylor
    

20. •   Stone Fox by John Reynolds Gardiner
    

21. •   Number the Stars by Lois Lowry
    

22. •   Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh by Robert C. O'Brien
    

23. •   The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson
    

24. •   Matilda by Roald Dahl
    

25. •   Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume
    

26. •   Ramona Quimby, Age 8 by Beverly Cleary
    

27. •   The Trumpet of the Swan by E. B. White
    

28. •   The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis
    

29. •   The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster
    

30. •   Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt
    

31. •   Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery
    

32. •   The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson
    

33. •   Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder - Laura Ingalls Wilder Webquest
    

34. •   Sideways Stories from Wayside School by Louis Sachar
    

35. •   Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh
    

36. •   A Light in the Attic by Shel Silverstein
    

37. •   Mr. Popper's Penguins by Richard Atwater
    

38. •   My Father's Dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannett
    

39. •   Stuart Little by E. B. White
    

40. •   Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech
    

41. •   The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare
    

42. •   The Watsons Go to Birmingham-1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis 
    

Teachers/Parents

1. •Raising Boys - Steve Biddulph
   

2. (A valuable resource that I refer back to each year)
   

3. 
   

4. •Why First Borns Rule The World And Last Borns Want To Change It - Michael Grose
   

5. (about birth order - awesome!!)
   

1. •The Journey for kids- Brandon Bays
   

2. (For parents with struggling or troubled kids)
   

1. •The Princess B----face Syndrome
   

2. (how to prepare for your daughters teenage years! - great book)
   

The Story

so far........

Age groups in children's literature

Sometimes a book is referred to as a middle grade novel or as a picture book. What is the difference between the two? What age groups do they cover? Following are general age guidelines. These age guidelines have been modified over the years and will probably be modified in the future. Plus some of the groups overlap each other.

Picture Books - Ages 0-4. Picture books are usually around 32 pages in length and the amount of text is usually one or just a few sentences per page. There are also "board" books which are made of thick board. They are made of this material because they are for infants and can better weather how an infant may physically handle a book.

Chapter Books or Early Readers - Ages 5-8. Chapter books have short chapters that are specifically designed for emerging young readers.

Middle Grade - Ages 7-10 and Ages 8-12.

Sometimes there are "lower middle grade (ages 7-9) and "upper middle grade" (Ages 10-13). The average length of a middle grade novel is 20,000 words or 100 pages.

Young Adult or Teens - Ages 13-18.

This area has a great range of topics. Some of the books in this category mimic adult books and are geared for 17-18 year olds. This category is often not placed within the children's section at the bookstore, but is closer to the regular adult section.