Campbell Hall

The Ahmanson Library

Reading Suggestions

Third and Fourth Grades

Summer 2004

The staff of the Ahmanson Library invites you and your

child to visit our library this summer.

Check out some of these suggestions or let us help you

find books just right for your family.

The Ahmanson Library

2004 summer hours

8:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

June 14 – July 30, 2004

Books to the ceiling,

Books to the sky.

My pile of books

Are a mile high.

How I love them!

How I need them!

I’ll have a long beard

By the time I read them.

Arnold Lobel

Ali, Maryum. I Shook Up the World, the Incredible Life of Muhammad Ali. Beyond Words Publishing, Inc., 2003. Before he became the greatest heavyweight boxing champion of the world, Muhammad Ali was known as Cassius Clay, a kid with a dream. This book covers how Ali began his boxing career, his experience at the 1960 Olympic Games, his battles with tough boxing opponents, and his activism during the civil rights movement.

Atwater, Richard. Mr. Popper’s Penguins. Little, Brown and Company, 1938. The unexpected delivery of a large crate containing an Antarctic penguin changes the life and fortune of Mr. Popper.

Avi. Silent Movie. Atheneum, 2003. In the early years of the twentieth century, a Swedish family encounters separation and other hardships upon immigrating to NYC, until their son is cast in a silent movie.

Bauer, Marion Dane. Runt. Clarion, 2002. Runt, the smallest wolf in the litter, must prove himself to earn the respect of the pack and a new name for himself.

Blume, Judy. Double Fudge. Dutton, 2002. His younger brother’s obsession with money and the discovery of the long-lost cousins, Flora and Fauna, provide many embarrassing moments for twelve-year-old Peter.

Borden, Louise. Sea Clocks, The Story of Longitude. Margaret K. McElderry Books, 2004. For hundreds of years ships had been sailing to places far and near without really knowing where they were. Sailors knew how to measure latitude, but they could not measure longitude. John Harrison solved this problem after 40 years of work.

Burleigh, Robert. Into the Air, The Story of the Wright Brothers’ First Flight. Silver Whistle, 2002. This is a graphic novel about the Wright Brothers’, owners of a bike shop, who were convinced that they could make a workable flying machine.

Carroll, Lewis. Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. First published 1865 and 1872. This is the enchanting fantasy of Alice, who falls down the rabbit hold and meets strange characters such as the Mad Hatter.

Christensen, Bonnie. The Daring Nellie Bly, America’s Star Reporter. Alfred A. Knopf, 2003. Introduces the life of Nellie Bly, who, as a “stunt reporter” for the New York World newspaper in the late 1800s, championed women’s rights and traveled around the world faster than anyone ever had.

Christelow, Eileen. Vote. Clarion, 2003. Using a campaign for mayor as an example, this book shows the steps involved in an election, from the candidate’s speeches and rallies to the voting booth where every vote counts, to the announcement of the winner.

Cleary, Beverly. Ramona’s World. Morrow, 1999. Enjoy the adventures of nine-year-old Ramona as she experiences the ups and downs of fourth grade, tries to be a good role model for her new baby sister, Roberta, and delights in her new best friend, Daisy.

Clements, Andrew. A Week in the Woods. Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2002. The fifth grade’s annual camping trip in the woods tests Mark’s survival skills and his ability to relate to a teacher who seems out to get him.

De Paola, Tomie. Things Will Never Be the Same. Penguin Putnam, 2003. Tomie De Paola describes his boyhood experiences at home and in school in 1941.

DeSpain, Pleasant, Tales of Cats. August House Publishers, Inc., 2003. Worshipped in some cultures, feared in others, loved as pets worldwide, cats are seen as possessing special power – athletic, supernatural, or intellectual. The nine tales included here show cats in all their glory. The cats in these stories are kind, cruel, independent, lovable – and always clever.

DeSpain, Pleasant. Tales of Enchantment. August House Publishers, Inc., 2003. From the earliest times of storytelling, magic has been a part of the most thrilling of tales – when miracles transport heroes and transform the outcome of the story itself. Leprechauns, dwarfs, shape-shifters, and the power of dreams, you’ll meet them all, and more, in these nine tales.

DeSpain. Pleasant. Tales to Frighten and Delight. August House Publishers, Inc., 2003.

Scary stories have always been popular, especially with children. And no wonder – hearing such stories heightens the imagination and keeps us alert. In the nine stories here, skeletons dance, cats talk, and greedy trolls are tricked by a simple innkeeper.

DiCamillo, Kate. The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread. Candlewick, 2003. The adventures of Despereaux Tilling, a small mouse of unusual talents, the princess that he loves, the servant girl who longs to be a princess, and a devious rat determined to bring them all to ruin are detailed in this suspenseful fairy tale. 2004 Newbury Award Winner.

Duey, Kathleen. Castle Avamir. Aladdin, 2003. Heart, the gypsy girl, must solve a riddle that makes no sense so she can save her beloved unicorns.

Fradin, Dennis Brindell. Nicolaus Copernicus, The Earth is a Planet. Mondo, 2003.

A biography of astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus, who challenged the belief of his age that Earth was the center of the universe and proved that it is, instead, a planet orbiting the Sun.

Gantos, Jack. Jack Adrift: Fourth Grade Without A Clue. Farrar, Straus & Giroux. 2003. When his father rejoins the Navy and moves the family to Cape Hatteras, 10-year-old Jack becomes confused by a crush on his teacher, contrary advice from his parents and a very strange neighbor.

Garland, Sherry. Children of the Dragon: Selected Tales from Vietnam. Harcourt, 2001. These Vietnam folktales include talking animals and beautiful princesses that enrich the readers’ understanding of this exotic country.

George, Kristine. Little Dog and Duncan. Clarion, 2002. A little girl tells in poems about her tiny dog and their very huge overnight guest, who is very different from Little Dog, but also very much the same.

George, Kristine. Hummingbird Nest: A Journal of Poems. Harcourt, 2004. When a mother hummingbird builds a nest on a family’s porch, they watch and record her actions and the birth and development of her fledglings.

George, Jean Craighead. Fire Storm. HarperCollins Publishers, 2003. Axel enjoys kayaking behind the raft of his aunt and uncle as they journey down Idaho’s Salmon River, until they find themselves in the middle of a forest fire.

Greene, Stephanie. Owen Foote, Super Spy. Clarion, 2001. Owen and his friends get bored with spying on their families and move on to more difficult missions, which involve walkie-talkies and camouflage.

Gutman, Dan. The Million Dollar Goal. Hyperion Books for Children, 2003. Twins Dawn and Dusk Rosenberg live for hockey, and worship the Montreal Canadiens. This funny book about family, hockey, and million dollar hopes has a compelling message about individualism and self-confidence.

Gutman, Dan. Race for the Sky, The Kitty Hawk Diaries of Johnny Moore. Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2003. Ordered to practice his writing skills in the blank book his mother gave him, fourteen-year-old Johnny would rather go fishing near his home on North Carolina’s Outer Banks and cannot think of anything important to write until two “dingbatters” from Ohio arrive in 19900 and try to build a flying machine.

Hale, Bruce. The Hamsters of the Baskervilles. Harcourt, Inc., 2002. Something is trashing the classrooms at Emerson Hicky Elementary School, and fourth-grade private eye Chet Gecko sets out to find the creature that’s responsible.

Haviland, Virginia. Favorite Fairy Tales Told in Germany. A Beech Tree Paperback Book, 1959. Seven well-known German tales: The Frog Prince, The Elves and the Shoemaker, Rapunzel, The Cat and the Mouse in Partnership, Rumplestilskin, Hansel and Gretel, and the Bremen Town Musicians.

Hurwitz, Johanna. Oh No, Noah! SeaStar Books, 2002. Noah Baxter moves to a new neighborhood and tries to fit in. This funny story is about change, loyalty, proving yourself, and friendship.

Ho, Mingfong. Brother Rabbit, A Cambodian Tale. Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books, 1997. A crocodile, two elephants, and an old woman are no match for a mischievous rabbit.

Johnston, Tony. The Mummy’s Mother. Scholastic Inc., 2003. Ten-year-old mummy Ramose has been peacefully sealed up in a secret Egyptian tomb with his mummy mother for more than four thousand years. Now grave robbers have invaded their hideaway and made off with Ramose’s mother, a queen. How can Ramose find his mother and save her from this terrible fate?

Kerley, Barbara. The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins. Scholastic Press, 2001. The true story of Victorian artist Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins, who built the first life-size models of dinosaurs in the hope of educating the world about these awe-inspiring ancient animals.

King-Smith, Dick. Clever Lollipop. Candlewick, 2003. Lollipop, the clever pet pig of Princess Penelope and her friend John, joins them in their lessons with a magician, helps restore the King’s appetite, and has a surprise present for Penelope’s birthday.

Krull, Kathleen. The Boy on Fairfield Street: How Ted Geisel Grew up to Become Dr. Seuss. Random House, 2004. Introduces the life of renowned children’s author and illustrator Ted Geisel, popularly known as Dr. Seuss, focusing on his childhood and youth in Springfield, Massachusetts. A wonderful selection to celebrate Dr. Seuss’s 100^th birthday.

Lankford, Mary D. Hopscotch Around the World. Morrow Junior Books, 1992. Presents directions for playing variations of hopscotch, an ancient game still played worldwide.

Lasky, Kathryn. Home at Last, Sofia’s Immigrant Diary. Scholastic, Inc., 2003. in 1903, ten-year-old Sofia and her family begin their life in America in Boston, where her father works in a grocer, her mother sells pasta, and she goes to school while trying to stay in touch with her old friend, Maureen.

Lasky, Kathryn. Hope in My Heart, Sofia’s Immigrant Diary. Scholastic, Inc., 2003. After her family immigrates to America from Italy in 1903, the-year-old Sofia is quarantined at the Ellis Island Immigration Station, where she makes a good friend but endures nightmarish conditions.

Lasky, Kathryn. The Man Who Made Time Travel. Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2003. In 1707, after nearly 2,000 sailors and four ships were lost in one stormy night off England’s coast, Parliament passed the Longitude Act guaranteeing 20,000 pounds ($12 million today) for a method to navigate the seas with accuracy. It took John Harrison, a self-educated village carpenter, years to create a workable device.

Levine, Shar. Wonderful Weather. Sterling Publishing Co., Inc., 2003. Where does weather come from? Weather happens every day and affects what you do. But why does it rain? Can you tell ahead of time if there’s a big freeze coming? One way to learn more about the weather is with these super science experiments.

Long, Laurel. The Lady & the Lion. Dial Books, 2003. With help from Sun, Moon, and North Wind, a lady travels the world seeking to save her beloved from the evil enchantress who turned him first into a lion, then into a dove.

Look, Lenore. Ruby Lu Brave and True. Atheneum, 2004. Ruby Lu, almost 8, goes to Chinese school, performs magic tricks, learns to drive, and has adventures with both old and new friends.

Lubar, David. Dog Days. Darby Creek Publishing, 2004. Larry is enjoying the summer, playing baseball and taking care of the stray dogs he’s brought home. Then his brother Paul finds another stray in an alley under mysterious circumstances, but the dog won’t come home with them. When the price of dog food rises and the price paid for scrap falls, Larry has to find a new way to feed his dogs and try to help the dog from the alley.

Mannis, Celeste Davidson. The Queen’s Progress, An Elizabethan Alphabet. Viking, 2003. Uses the letters of the alphabet to provide an account of Queen Elizabeth’s annual holiday, known as a “royal progress.”

Martin, Ann M., The Doll People. Hyperion Books for Children, 2000. A family of porcelain dolls that has lived in the same house for one hundred years is taken aback when a new family of plastic dolls arrives and doesn’t follow The Doll Code of Honor.

McDonald, Megan. Judy Moody Predicts the Future. Candlewick, 2003. After Judy obtains a mood ring, she tries to convince herself and her third-grade classmates that she can predict the future.

Mills, Claudia. Perfectly Chelsea. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2004. Nine-year-old Chelsea’s experiences, which include a fight with her best friend, making mistakes in the handbell concert, and saying goodbye to the only church minister she has ever known, help her to accept that things change and that people, including herself, are not perfect.

Mills, Claudia. 7 x 9 = Trouble. Farrar, Straus & Giroux, 2002. Wilson struggles with multiplication tables and the class hamster is missing just when Wilson needs his comfort most.

Mordicai, Gerstein. The Man that Walked Between the Towers. Roaring Brook, 2003.

A lyrical evocation of Philippe Petit’s 1974 tightrope walk between the World Trade Center Towers. Using a variety of perspectives to tell the story – from the close-up jacket picture of one foot on the rope to the foldout of Petit high above the traffic, swaying in the wind, it is easy to feel the exhilaration of the experience.

Osborne, Mary Pope. A Time to Dance, Virginia’s Civil War Diary. Scholastic, Inc., 2003. Virginia records the events of her life as her family moves to New York City in the aftermath of the Civil War, and she begins to dream of a life in the theater.

Partridge, Elizabeth. Kogi’s Mysterious Journey. Dutton Children’s Books, 2003. On the shores of Lake Biwa, the artist Kogi paints mountains, trees, waterfalls, and fish, hoping to create on paper the vigor and beauty that inspire him. But instead, his pictures disappoint him. This is the story of an artist’s daring quest to know firsthand the free, joyful spirit of nature and the pulsing, sometimes perilous energy of life surrounding us all.

Peters, Lisa Westberg. Earthshake, Poems from the Ground Up. HarperCollins Publishers, 2003. Presents twenty-two poems about geology. End notes provide information about the earth’s surface and interior, types of rocks, and how volcanoes, glaciers, and erosion modify the landscape.

Pinkney, Jerry. Noah’s Ark. SeaStar, 2002. Retells the biblical story of the great flood and how Noah and his family responded to God’s call to save life on earth.

Pinkwater, Daniel. The Magic Pretzel. Antheneum Books for Young Readers, 2000. Fourth-grader Norman Gnormal, who behaves a lot like a dog, finds his first real friends when the principal signs him up for the Werewolf Club at school.

Pringle, Laurence. Whales! Strange and Wonderful. Boyds Mills, 2003. Discusses species, physiognomy, and behavior of whales while always stressing their conservation and the efforts made to save whales.

Reiche, Dietlof. I, Freddy. Originally published by Beltz Verlad, Weinheim and Basel 1998. Translated and published by Scholastic Press, 2003. Freddy, a remarkablely intelligent golden hamster, learns how to read and how to write on a computer. He escapes captivity to become an independent and civilized creature.

Rodda, Emily. Charm Bracelet. HarperCollins, 2003. This is the first in a new Fairy Realm series by a well-known fantasy author. Every 50 years (once in a blue moon) the magic of the Realm must be renewed to prevent evil trolls from overtaking it. Jessie must help her grandmother complete the task of renewal.

Rodda, Emily. The Pigs Are Flying! Greenwillow Books, 1986. After complaining that her life is uninteresting, Rachel finds herself transported to a place where periodic storms occur which affect the inhabitants in strange ways and cause pigs to float in the air.

Rowling, J.K. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. Scholastic Press, 1999. During his third year at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry, Harry Potter must confront the devious and dangerous wizard responsible for his parents’ deaths.

Sakade, Florence, complied. Japanese Children’s Favorite Stories. Tuttle Publishing, 1958. Playful goblins with long noses, walking statues and a delightful hero who just happens to be one inch tall, these are some of the wonderful characters you’ll meet in this collection of the 20 best-loved Japanese children’s stories.

Seuling, Barbara. Robert and the Great Escape. Cricket Books, 2003. Robert Dorfman is back, in a fast-paced adventure that takes him from the ski slopes of Vermont to Mrs. Bernthal’s third-grade classroom, where Sally the snake is missing.

Silverstein, Shel. Falling Up. HarperCollins, 1996. Enjoy the last collection of humorous poems written by the popular American author.

Singer, Marilyn. Fireflies at Midnight. Atheneum, 2003. Poems bring the reader eye-to- eye with various creatures during a day, beginning at dawn, and into the evening. The illustrations are wonderful manipulated photos.

Stauffacher, Sue. Donuthead. Alfred A. Knopf, 2003. Franklin Delano Donuthead, a fifth grader obsessed with hygiene and safety, finds an unlikely friend and protector in Sara Kervick, the tough new student who lives in a dirty trailer, bonds with his mother, and is as “irregular” as he is.

Swain, Ruth Freeman. How Sweet It Is (and Was). Holiday House, 2003. Provides a brief history of a variety of candies and chewing gum. Includes recipes for sugar paste, fudge, and taffy.

Tang, Greg. Math Appeal. Scholastic Press, 2003. Rhyming anecdotes present opportunities for simple math activities and hints for solving.

Talbott, Hudson. Safari Journal. Silver Whistle, 2003. This fictional diary of a 12-year-old boy provides information, adventure, and entertainment through photographs, illustrations, handwritten diary entries, and hastily scribbled notes. Carey is to spend two weeks in Kenya with his "wacky Aunt Elaine," who is a fashion photographer on her way to a photo shoot.

Wallace, Bill. A Dog Called Kitty. Holiday House, 1980. Ricky is afraid of dogs until this persistent stray dog wins his love over time.

Wells, Rosemary. Rachel Field’s Hitty, Her First Hundred Years. Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers. 1999. A doll named Hitty recounts her adventures as she moves through a continually changing string of owners.

Winthrop, Elizabeth. The Castle in the Attic. Holiday House, 1985. A gift of a toy castle, complete with silver knight, introduces William to an adventure involving magic and a personal quest.

Wright, Betty Ren. Crandall’s Castle. Holiday House, 2003. Charli’s impulsive uncle, Will Crandall, decides to buy the town’s abandoned, possibly haunted castle and fix it up as a bed-and-breakfast. Charli and Sophia, a clairvoyant orphan who has come to stay with the Crandall family, know his plan is somehow dangerous.

Yep, Laurence. The Tiger’s Apprentice. HarperCollins Publishers, 2003. A tiger, a monkey, a dragon, and a twelve-year-old Chinese American boy fight to keep a magic talisman out of the hands of an enemy who would use its power to destroy the world.

Yolen, Jane. Mightier Than the Sword: World Folktales for Strong Boys. Silver Whistle, 2003. A collection of folktales from around the world that demonstrates the triumph of brains over brawn.

Graphic from

[Hammock.] "Colouring Sheets, Mysteries, & Fun." Toronto Public Library. [http://www.tpl.toronto.on.ca/KidsSpace/src2001/mysterious6.html] (Accessed May 14, 2004).