Alrighty!
Today I am goofing off and stepping away from the
mommy blog.
No pictures of my kids
like this one…
And definitely
no silly stories like how Rhett(4) was warned when we bought bright orange shorts that in general orange is not a neutral and he wouldn’t be able to wear it with other bright colors like, for instance, red. ย Oh, and when we bought him two new pairs of crocs it was my intention that he wear two shoes of the same color for a pair. ย I am crazy and un-imaginative that way.
I do NOT have time for that kind of
mommy blogger – ness!
Today I am asking YOU to give me some reading ideas.
Summer is upon me. ย My boys’ last day of school was on Monday.
I need reading suggestions for:
- 2nd grade boy
- 4th grade boy
- their harried 40 year old mother
I just LOVE a good book….and if you don’t read books, but have a good blog recommendation for me,
bring it on.
To thank you for your help, I will be sending a randomly selected comment below to receive a
$50 gift certificate to Barnes & Noble.
All you need to do is
comment with some sort of reading recommendation and you will be entered to win. ย The contest will close 5/18/10.
Easy, peasy.
And now I can get back to following around my children like paparazzi and blogging every word they say…
for the 2nd grader you can’t go wrong with Frog and Toad, Horrible Harry (funny) and Flat Stanley.
The 4th grader might really enjoy The Bridge to Terabithia and classics like the Black Stallion.
For moms these days I recommend The Happiness Project, it’s a eye opener.
You have to check out ‘Suzie Bitner Was Afraid of the Drain.’ It’s hilarious children’s poetry – was just released – and is by a Dallas Author/Illustrator. http://www.suziebitner.com — I think it’s on Amazon, too. My favorite is “The Eldest”- which is all about the differences between being the eldest child and the youngest — but the whole book is great. Barbara Vance (author) uses a lot of big words, so the kiddos learn,too. And its thick: like, 200 pages thick.
Also, the Boxcar Children series — it goes back a while, but those are great!!
My girls always like the Captain underpants series, and for you: Twenties girl by sophie kinsella is a great light hearted read, and for something deeper try House Rules by Jodi Picoult.
For you, Eat, Pray, Love. That is a great book. If you don’t already read her The Pioneer Woman is awesome. http://thepioneerwoman.com/
BTW I am new around here and I am lovin’ your blog!!!
The Hardy Boys are coming back with revised stories. They seemed to be geared for 3rd to 5th graders so your 2nd grader and 4th grader may like them.
I love historical fiction so I really like Michelle Moran’s books. Nefertitti and Cleopatra’s Daughter we both wonderful. She also interviews other historical novelists on her blog which has led me to other fantastic books. This is how I discovered Pope Joan by Donna Wolfolk Cross which is simply fantastic.
Michelle Moran’s site: http://michellemoran.com/
Michelle Moran’s blog about new historical discoveries: http://michellemoran.blogspot.com/
Michelle Moran’s author’s interview blog: http://historicalfictionauthorinterviews.blogspot.com/
Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Captain Underpants are great easy reads, especially for your younger guy. A series that my son really enjoyed last year was the Percy Jackson and The Olympians series. My son is about to finish 5th grade so I’m trying to remember what he read last summer…There is this series of books that are about bears…I think they are called Seekers. He still enjoys that series. But now he is trying to tackle my JRR Tolkien collection.
Another one for your younger guy is the Magic Tree House series. Very popular with my son a couple of years ago.
For yourself…I don’t think I would be much help. I tend to read only fantasy/sci-fi books. I’m currently plowing through my Dune series again and a local author that puts out a supernatural series called Greywalker. I also picked up Dead and Gone by Charlaine Harris (the True Blood series on HBO is based on her books).
I would recommend The Magic Treehouse books. My girls and their boy cousins love them!
I saw your “shameless” plug on the B2B email. Your wittiness brought me here!
I can’t help with the 4th grade boy, but.. for your son in 2nd grade, I highly recommend the Junie B. Jones books (http://www.randomhouse.com/kids/junieb/). My son thinks they’re hilarious!
As for you, check out the Odd Thomas series by Dean Koontz. I never read Koontz until Thomas came into my life, and now I’m hooked for good.
i remember loving the indian in the cupboard, the westing game, and bridge to terabithia around 4-5 grade…
best books i’ve read recently were 1 & 2 in the millenium trilogy–the girl with the dragon tatoo and the girl who played with fire. looking forward to book 3:)
Depending on the reading level of the boys:
For the second grader– The “Magic Treehouse” Series was a big hit at my house. And if you’re okay with gender neutral or a girl protagonist, Junie B. Jones has one of the best first person narrators in all of elementary school fiction. Captain Underpants is hilarious, too.
Somewhere between the two boys would lie The Boxcar Children.
For the fourth grader– Madeline L’Engle’s “Wrinkle in Time” series is great, but might be over his head. Judy Blume’s “How to Eat Fried Worms,” “Fudge” and “Superfudge” are also perrenial favorites for that age. If he’s more advanced, in both content and reading, Gary Paulson’s “Hatchet” and Walter Dean Myer’s “Monster” are both amazing books. So is “The Contender” by Robert Lipsyte.
For you, it really depends on what you like. If you like classical literature, or a little bit of silliness, “Pride and Prejudice and Zombies” made me cackle all the way through. Stephen King’s “The Stand” haunted me for weeks after reading it, and made me reevaluate a lot of things in my life. (And it’s the only Stephen King fiction I’ve been able to read.) If you like gritty war stories, there is none better than “The Things They Carried” by Tim O’Brien. And a surviving against all the horrible odds book is “Ellen Foster,” by Kaye Gibbons. And for all out laughter, Christopher Moore’s “A Dirty Job” was priceless.
If you like non-fiction, “Wesley the Owl”, by Stacey O’Brien was (forgive the pun) a hoot and was really interesting and educational. If you like animals, it’s a must read– light and easy to read. If you like memoirs, “Angela’s Ashes” should be on your list too. If you like books on writing, Stephen King’s “On Writing” is an honest look at a writer’s life and what it takes to be a good one.
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I think the most amazing books I can recommend though, especially for parents, are “We Need to Talk About Kevin” by Lionel Shriver. That book was, from start to finish, absolutely heartbreaking on so many levels–as a mom, a wife, a daughter. Rarely do books stay with me for long, but that one has, because it’s a self-examination of her parenting from start to finish. A
nd, non fiction, “Parenting with Love and Logic” by Foster Cline and Jim Fay has been beyond incredible for my family. Great advice and ideas for dealing with the munchkins.
Oh… and for interesting blogs… look me up!!! <>
I just started, but my life is never boring, and which means my blog won’t be either! I, too, am a proud mommy blogger, with both adopted and foster children, who have a wide, wide range of specialness.
Happy reading!!
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