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Doorways to Great Reading

If there's a one-world government, it's television. King of the Technological Age, he sits enthroned in homes around the world, a little box of images and sound emitting edicts to his unified followers from his electrical shrine. That description may be a bit overwrought, but the fact remains: more people these days would prefer to watch TV than read a good book.

Many parents are desperate to expose their kids to quality literature, whether it's a classic like Anne of Green Gables, a more recent novel like Mimus, or simply something other than the TV Guide. In response, a number of literature-based curricula have been developed, and in turn have become increasingly popular among both homeschool families and school educators.

As great and noble as this effort has been, there are a couple problems we see with the literature-curriculum approach: 1) literature is treated as curriculum, and 2) children aren't exposed to the depth and variety available because reading is limited to the curriculum suggestions. Consequently, a lot of children grow to dislike reading, associating it as they do with schoolwork and not having a good time.

We've accumulated many of the titles used by the major literature-based curriculum lines, and those products are among our best sellers. We're also not entirely opposed to the literature approach, but we also want to offer a much broader selection of literature, titles that don't find their way into the program guides but are nevertheless worth reading.

Numerous book lists, catalogues, and publishers (including many dedicated to reprinting the more obscure classic titles) have guided us in the construction of our fiction and literature sections. (Employees have also been an important factor in this process, and you can read about their favorites here.) Doorways to Great Reading collects the best of these lists in one place.

Discovering classic literature is more than just checking off titles from a master list, however. Though books like Honey for a Child's Heart, The Well-Educated Mind, and The Book Tree are great places to start and offer excellent guidelines, they are still jumping-off places. Developing the skills to find good books on your own (and imparting those skills to your children) is the end these books are supposed to help you achieve.

When Lucy Pevensie opened the wardrobe and found Narnia, her first experience with a snowbound landscape gave her little indication of the adventure and wonder she'd find there. Great books are the same way: the more you read, the more you realize how many are really out there, and the better you get at finding them.

If your adventure in the realms of literature hasn't started, or is still in its beginning stages, use the booklists you'll find here as maps of sorts, there to help you navigate but not to make the journey on your behalf. The travel is up to you, and whether you decide to explore Ben-Hur or The Wind in the Willows, it's travel that will take you far from your front door and back many times over.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he is a husband and father, teaches adult Sunday school in his Presbyterian congregation, and likes weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.
Did you find this review helpful?
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Active Filters: 4th grade (Ages 9-10), New Books & Materials
100 Cupboards
by N. D. Wilson
from Random House
Fantasy for 3rd-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.99
500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins
by Dr. Seuss
from Random House
for 2nd-4th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.99
A is for Abigail
by Lynne Cheney
1st edition from Simon and Schuster
for Kindergarten-4th grade
in Biography Anthologies (Location: BIO-ANTH)
$19.99 $10.00 (1 in stock)
Abel's Island
by William Steig
from Square Fish Publishing
Animal Fantasy for 3rd-5th grade
1977 Newbery Honor Book
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$7.99
Abigail Adams
by Natalie S. Bober
from Simon Pulse
Biography for 4th-7th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$13.95
Abraham Lincoln
by Edgar & Ingri D'Aulaire
75th Anniversary Edition from Beautiful Feet Books
Picture Book Biography for 3rd-6th grade
1940 Caldecott Medal winner
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$17.95
Acceptable Time
Wrinkle in Time Series #5
by Madeleine L'Engle
from Square Fish Publishing
Fantasy for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$7.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Adam of the Road
Puffin Newbery Library
by Elizabeth Gray
from Puffin Books
Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade
1943 Newbery Medal winner
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$9.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Adam of the Road
Puffin Modern Classics
by Elizabeth Gray
from Puffin Books
Historical Fiction for 3rd-8th grade
1943 Newbery Medal winner
in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF)
$8.99
Adventures of Jerry Muskrat
Thornton Burgess Peter Cottontail Books #10
by Thornton W. Burgess
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-4th grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$4.00 $2.50 (1 in stock)
Adventures of Richard Wagner
by Opal Wheeler
from Zeezok Publishing
for 3rd-6th grade
in Opal Wheeler Great Musicians Series (Location: BIO-OPAL)
$14.95
Adventures of Tintin Volume 1 (3-in-1)
Adventures of Tintin
by Herge
from Little, Brown & Company
Comic Book for 2nd-6th grade
in Adventures of Tintin (Location: COM-TIN)
$28.99
Aesop's Fables for Children
by Aesop, illustrated by Milo Winter
Pap/Com from Dover Publications
for 2nd-5th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$14.99
Aladdin and Other Tales from the Arabian Nights
Puffin Classics
by N.J. Dawood, illustrated by William Harvey
from Puffin Books
Fairy Tales for 2nd-6th grade
$7.99
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
Puffin Classics
by Lewis Carroll
from Puffin Books
Fantasy for 2nd-7th grade
in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF)
$7.99
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
by Lewis Carroll, Illustrated by John Tenniel
from SeaWolf Press
Fantasy for 2nd-7th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$6.89
All Sail Set
by Armstrong Sperry
from David R. Godine
Nautical Fiction for 4th-8th grade
1936 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$14.95 $10.00 (1 in stock)
All-of-a-Kind Family
by Sydney Taylor, illustrated by Helen John
from Yearling
Family Stories for 2nd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
All-of-a-Kind Family Downtown
All-of-a-Kind Family Series #2
by Sydney Taylor, illustrated by Beth & Joe Krush
from Lizzie Skurnick Books
Family Stories for 2nd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$12.95
Along Came Galileo
by Jeanne Bendick
from Beautiful Feet Books
Biography for 4th-8th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$13.95
Amazing Life of Benjamin Franklin
by James Cross Giblin
from Scholastic Inc.
for 1st-4th grade
2001 NCTE Orbis Pictus Honor Book
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$7.99
Amelia to Zora
1st edition from Charlesbridge
for 3rd-5th grade
in Biography Anthologies (Location: BIO-ANTH)
$7.95
America's Paul Revere
by Esther Forbes
from Sandpiper Books
Biography for 2nd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$12.99
American Tall Tales
by Mary Pope Osborne, Michael McCurdy
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Fairy Tales & Fables for 4th-8th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$19.99
Anak, the Eskimo Boy
by Piet Prins
from Inheritance Publications
Realistic Fiction for 2nd-4th grade
in Morality Tales (Location: FIC-WH05)
$8.95
And Then What Happened, Paul Revere?
by Jean Fritz & Margot Tomes
from PaperStar Books
Biography for 2nd-4th grade
in American Revolution (1765-1783) (Location: HISA-18REV)
$7.99 $4.50 (2 in stock)
Angel on the Square
by Gloria Whelan
from HarperCollins
for 4th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$9.99 $5.50 (1 in stock)
Anna Hibiscus
by Atinuke
Reprint from Candlewick Press
for 1st-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
Anno's Journey
by Mitsumasa Anno
from Beautiful Feet Books
for 2nd-Adult
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$14.95
Answering the Cry for Freedom
by Gretchen Woelfle, Illustrated by R. Gregory Christie
from Calkins Creek
for 4th-7th grade
in American Revolution (1765-1783) (Location: HISA-18REV)
$19.99
Ant and the Elephant
by Bill Peet
from Sandpiper Books
Animal Fantasy for Preschool-4th grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$9.99
Apple and the Arrow
by Conrad & Mary Buff
from Houghton Mifflin
Realistic Fiction/Historical Fiction for 4th-6th grade
1952 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$9.99
Applewhites at Wits End
by Stephanie S. Tolan
Fir from HarperCollins
for 4th-6th grade
2003 Newbery Honor book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
Ark, The
by Margot Benary-Isbert
2021 Revision from Purple House Press
for 3rd-10th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$23.00
Ashanti to Zulu
by Margaret Musgrove, Leo & Diane Dillon
from Puffin Books
Word Books for 2nd-5th grade
1977 Caldecott Medal winner
in Alphabet & Counting Books (Location: PIC-ALPH)
$8.99
Astrid the Unstoppable
by Maria Parr, translated from the Norwegian by Guy Puzey
from Candlewick Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
At the Back of the North Wind
Everyman's Library Children's Classics
by George MacDonald, illustrated by Arthur Hughes
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Fairy Tale for 4th-Adult
$20.00
Augustine
by P. de Zeeuw
from Inheritance Publications
Biography for 4th-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$9.95 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Baby Island
by Carol Ryrie Brink
from Simon and Schuster
Realistic Fiction for 2nd-4th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99
Ballet Shoes
by Noel Streatfeild
from Yearling
Realistic Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99
Bambi
by Felix Salten
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Animal Stories: Fantasy for 4th-6th grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$8.99
Bambi
by Felix Salten, illustrated by Steve Johnson & Lou Fancher
from Charles Scribner's Sons
Animal Stories: Fantasy for 4th-6th grade
in Scribner Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SCRIB)
$29.99 $18.00 (1 in stock)
Banner in the Sky
by James Ramsey Ullman
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction for 4th-8th grade
1955 Newbery Honor Book
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.99 $4.50 (2 in stock)
Bard of Avon
by Diane Stanley & Peter Vennema
from William Morrow & Company
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$9.99
Bark of the Bog Owl
Wilderking #1
by Jonathan Rogers
20th Anniversary Edition from Rabbit Room Press
for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$14.99
Bartholomew and the Oobleck
by Dr. Seuss
from Random House
for 2nd-4th grade
1950 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$16.99
Bear Called Paddington
by Michael Bond
from HarperCollins
Animal Fantasy for 2nd-4th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$15.99 $8.00 (1 in stock)
Bear Called Paddington
by Michael Bond
from HarperCollins
Animal Fantasy for 2nd-4th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.99
Beat the Story-Drum, Pum-Pum
by Ashley Bryan
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 3rd-7th grade
$9.99 $5.50 (4 in stock)
Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare
by Edith Nesbit
from Yesterday's Classics
Shakespeare/Drama for Children for 4th-8th grade
$13.95
Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare
by Edith Nesbit
from Living Book Press
Shakespeare/Drama for Children for 4th-8th grade
$16.99
Beezus and Ramona
Ramona Collection Book 1
by Beverly Cleary
Reissue from HarperTrophy
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$6.39
Belles On Their Toes
by Frank Gilbreth & Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
from HarperCollins
Family Stories for 4th-9th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$15.99
Bellmaker
Redwall #7
by Brian Jacques
from Firebird Press
Fantasy for 4th-9th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$10.99
Ben and Me
by Robert Lawson
from Little, Brown & Company
Humor/historical fiction for 2nd-5th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Ben Washington is the Newbie on the Block
Ben Washington series #1
by Jasmine Mullen
from Moody Press
for 3rd-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$9.99
Ben Washington is the Odd Man Out
Ben Washington series #1
by Jasmine Mullen
from Moody Press
for 3rd-5th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$9.99
Benjamin Franklin
by Edgar & Ingri D'Aulaire
from Beautiful Feet Books
Picture Book Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$17.95
Benjamin West and His Cat Grimalkin
by Marguerite Henry & Wesley Dennis
Reprint from Aladdin Paperbacks
for 3rd-6th grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$6.39 $4.40 (1 in stock)
Beowulf (retold)
by Michael Morpurgo
from Candlewick Press
for 3rd-8th grade
$8.99
Beowulf the Warrior
by Ian Serraillier
from Bethlehem Books
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$11.95
Best Christmas Pageant Ever
by Barbara Robinson
from HarperCollins
Humor for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.99
Best-Loved Doll
by Rebecca Caudill
from Henry Holt and Company
Personification Stories for
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$12.99
Betsy and Tacy Go Over the Big Hill
Betsy-Tacy #3
by Maud Hart Lovelace
from HarperTrophy
for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$9.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Betsy-Tacy
Betsy-Tacy #1
by Maud Hart Lovelace
2nd edition from HarperCollins
Family/Friendship Story for 3rd-6th grade
HarperTrophy
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$9.99
Betsy-Tacy and Tib
Betsy-Tacy #2
by Maud Hart Lovelace
2nd edition from HarperCollins
Family/Friendship Story for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$9.99
Betty Greene
Christian Heroes: Then & Now
by Geoff & Janet Benge
from YWAM Publishing
Biography for 4th-7th grade
in Christian Heroes: Then and Now (Location: BIO-BENGE)
$11.99
BFG
by Roald Dahl
from Puffin Books
for 2nd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.99
Bible Smuggler
by Louise Vernon
from Herald Press
Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$10.99
Big Red
by Jim Kjelgaard
from Holiday House
Realistic Animal Stories for 4th-8th grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$17.99
Biggest Story Bible Storybook
by Kevin DeYoung, illustrated by Don Clark
from Crossway Books
for Kindergarten-6th grade
in Bible Stories for Kids (Location: BIBR-STO)
$34.99
Birds' Christmas Carol
by Kate Douglas Wiggin
from Yesterday's Classics
Christmas/Advent for 3rd-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$15.95
Black Beauty
Puffin Classics
by Anna Sewell
from Puffin Books
Realistic Animal Stories for 4th-8th grade
in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF)
$8.99
Black Cauldron
Prydain Chronicles #2
by Lloyd Alexander
from Henry Holt and Company
Fantasy for 4th-8th grade
1966 Newbery Honor Book
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.99
Black Island
Adventures of Tintin
by Herge
from Little, Brown & Company
Comic Book for 2nd-6th grade
in Adventures of Tintin (Location: COM-TIN)
$14.99
Black Pearl
by Scott O'Dell
Reprint from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$9.99
Black Ships Before Troy
by Rosemary Sutcliff & Alan Lee
from Frances Lincoln
Greek Mythology for 3rd-8th grade
$24.99
Black Ships Before Troy
by Rosemary Sutcliff
from Laurel-Leaf Books
Greek Mythology for 4th-8th grade
$8.99
Black Star of Kingston
Green Ember Old Natalia #1
by S. D. Smith
from Story Warren Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$9.95
Blue Birds
by Caroline Starr Rose
Dgs from Puffin Books
Narrative Poetry / Novel-In-Verse for 4th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$10.99
Blue Fairy Book
by Andrew Lang, editor
from Dover Publications
Fairy Tales for 3rd-8th grade
$16.95
Blue Lotus
Adventures of Tintin
by Herge
from Little, Brown & Company
Comic Book for 2nd-6th grade
in Adventures of Tintin (Location: COM-TIN)
$13.99
Blue Willow
Puffin Newbery Library
by Doris Gates
from Puffin Books
for 4th-7th grade
1941 Newbery Honor Book
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.99 $4.50 (1 in stock)
Bolivar
by Sean Rubin
from Archaia
for 3rd-6th grade
in Comic Books & Graphic Novels (Location: FIC-COMIC)
$14.99
Book of Boy
by Catherine Gilbert Murdock, illustrated by Ian Schoenherr
Frist Paperback from Greenwillow Books
for 3rd-7th grade
2019 Newbery Honor Book
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.99
Book of Pirates
by Howard Pyle
from Dover Publications
for 4th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$39.99
Book of Three
Prydain Chronicles #1
by Lloyd Alexander
from Henry Holt and Company
Fantasy for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.99
Book Tree
by Elizabeth McCallum & Jane Scott
2nd edition from Canon Press
for Preschool-12th grade
in Recommended Book Lists (Location: LIR-REC)
$19.00
Books Children Love
by Elizabeth Wilson
2nd edition from Crossway Books
for Kindergarten-8th grade
in Recommended Book Lists (Location: LIR-REC)
$17.00 $7.00 (2 in stock)
Bootlace Magician
by Cassie Beasley
from Puffin Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.99
Borrowers
Borrowers Series #1
by Mary Norton
from Harcourt
Fantasy for 3rd-6th grade
1952 Carnegie Medal
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$9.99 $5.00 (1 in stock)
Borrowers Afield
Borrowers Series #2
by Mary Norton
from Harcourt
Fantasy for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$7.99
Borrowers Afloat
Borrowers Series #3
by Mary Norton
from Harcourt
Fantasy for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$7.99
Borrowers Aloft
Borrowers Series #4
by Mary Norton
from Harcourt
Fantasy for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$7.99
Borrowers Avenged
Borrowers Series #5
by Mary Norton
from Harcourt
Fantasy for 3rd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$7.99
Boxcar Children #01
by Gertrude Chandler Warner
from Albert Whitman & Company
Orphan Stories for 2nd-4th grade
in Boxcar Children (Location: SER-BOX)
$6.39 $2.80 (1 in stock)
Brady
by Jean Fritz
from Puffin Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.99
Breadwinner, The
by Deborah Ellis
from Groundwood Books
for 4th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$11.99
Breaking Stalin's Nose
by Eugene Yelchin
from Square Fish Publishing
for 4th-7th grade
2012 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$8.99
Brighty of the Grand Canyon
by Marguerite Henry
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Realistic Animal Stories for 3rd-6th grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$6.39 $3.20 (1 in stock)
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