Our Favorite Read Aloud Books

Heart of the Matter Meme

The Mouse and the Motorcycle By Beverly Cleary, Paul O. Zelinsky, Louis Darling / HarperTrophy Ralph the mouse ventures out from behind the piney knothole in the wall of his hotel - room home, scrambles up the telephone wire to the end table, and climbs aboard the toy motorcycle left there by a young guest. His thrill ride does not last long. The ringing telephone startles Ralph, and he and the motorcycle take a terrible fall - right to the bottom of a metal wastebasket. Luckily, Keith, the owner of the motorcycle, returns to find his toy. Keith rescues Ralph and teaches him how to ride the bike.

The Bronze Bow, Paperback By Elizabeth George Speare / Houghton-mifflin Winner of the Newbery Medal! After witnessing his father's crucifixion by the Romans, Daniel bar Jamin wants only one thing---vengeance. In neighboring Capernaum, an itinerant rabbi teaches a different way---love. Will Daniel be able to reject hatred and embrace Jesus' message of forgiveness? 254 pages, softcover from Houghton Mifflin.

Caddie Woodlawn, Softcover By Carol Ryrie Brink / Simon & Schuster Trade Sales Caddie Woodlawn loves adventure and she refuses to be a "lady". She'd rather hunt than sew, plow than bake and she beats her brothers' dares every chance she gets. Caddie and her six brothers and sisters have many exciting experiences on the Wisconsin frontier of the 1860s-from a schoolhouse fire, to pranks played on a city-slicker cousin, to an amazing discovery in an old trunk. And when the Indians threaten to massacre the settlers, it is Caddie's courage and quick thinking that save her family and their neighbors. Recommended for ages 8 to 12. The 1936 Newbery Medal winner.

Dear America: The Diary of Patsy, a Freed Girl, Mars Bluff, South Carolina, 1865 By Joyce Hansen / Scholastic Trade In this latest addition to the Dear America series, Coretta Scott King Honor-winning author Joyce Hansen presents the inspiring story of Patsy, a freed girl who becomes a great teacher. Historical fiction for ages 8 to 12.

Little House in the Big Woods By Laura Ingalls Wilder / HarperFestival Wolves and panthers and bears roam the deep Wisconsin woods in the late 1870s. In those same woods, Laura lives with Pa and Ma, and her sisters, Mary and Baby Carrie, in a snug little house built of logs. Pa hunts and traps. Ma makes her own cheese and butter. All night long, the wind howls lonesomely, but Pa plays the fiddle and sings, keeping the family safe and cozy.

We have enjoyed reading many of the Dr. America Books. I love reading historical fiction to my kids.

My son read the entire series of - Lemony Snicket's: The Series of Unfortunate Events. I did not read any of them, but he said that they were the best books that he had ever read.

There is one more that I can't forget about - Double Fudge by Judy Blume. I laughed and laughed as I tried to read it out loud. We never read just one chapter at a time, because it was so hilarious. Here is a write up from Publisher's Weekly about Double Fudge.

Fans of Superfudge and Fudge-a-Mania will welcome the return of seventh-grader Peter Hatcher and his five-year-old brother, Fudge, who in this comical caper meet distant cousins from Hawaii. The two families unexpectedly encounter one another in Washington, D.C., where the New York City Hatchers have gone so that Fudge, who has developed an obsession with money, can visit the Bureau of Engraving and Printing. The Howie Hatcher clan proves an eccentric lot. Twins Fauna and Flora, unironicially nicknamed the Natural Beauties, would be in Peter's grade if they weren't home-schooled; apt to break into corny songs at any moment, they perform together as the Heavenly Hatchers. Their younger brother, who shares Fudge's real name (Farley Drexel), acts like a dog, growling and licking people. And their father won't stop calling Peter's dad "Tubby." Narrator Peter grits his teeth when the Honolulu Hatchers invite themselves to Manhattan to stay in his family's cramped apartment, where nestled in their sleeping bags on the living room floor they "slept flat on their backs, like a row of hot dogs in their rolls. All that was missing was the mustard and the relish." The boy is further appalled when the twins show up at his school and convene an assembly so that they can sing. Peter's wry reactions to the sometimes outsize goings-on, Fudge's inimitable antics and the characters' rousing repartee contribute to the sprightly clip of this cheerful read. Ages 8-12.