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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.
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68 Items found Print
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Active Filters: 6th grade (Ages 11-12), Hardcover, Used Books & Materials
Adventures of Tom Sawyer
by Mark Twain
from Scholastic Inc.
Realistic Fiction for 6th-10th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
America is Born
A History for Peter #1
by Gerald W. Johnson (iilustrations by Leonard Everett Fisher)
from William Morrow & Company
for 4th-7th grade
in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS)
$36.00 (1 in stock)
Bad News for Outlaws
by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson
from Carolrhoda Books, Inc.
for 5th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$16.99 $8.00 (1 in stock)
Beowulf (retold)
by Michael Morpurgo
from Candlewick Press
for 3rd-8th grade
$7.64 $4.00 (1 in stock)
Black Beauty
Sterling Classics
by Anna Sewell, illustrated by Scott McKowen
Unabridged from Sterling Publishing Co.
Realistic Animal Stories for 4th-8th grade
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$6.50 (1 in stock)
Blind Colt
A World Famous Horse Story Library selection
by Glen Rounds
from Holiday House
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Book of the Ancient World
by Dorothy Mills
from Dawn Chorus
for 5th-8th grade
in Ancient History (Location: HISW-ANC)
$14.40 (1 in stock)
Bridge to Terabithia
by Katherine Paterson
First Ed from HarperCollins
Fantasy for 5th-9th grade
1978 Newbery Medal winner
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$8.00 (2 in stock)
Carry On, Mr. Bowditch
by Jean Lee Latham, illustrated by John O'Hara Cosgrave II
from Houghton Mifflin
Biography for 5th-9th grade
1956 Newbery Medal winner
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$16.00 (1 in stock)
Casey at the Bat
by Ernest L. Thayer & Christopher Bing
1st edition from Chronicle Books
for 2nd-6th grade
2001 Caldecott Honor Book
in Oversized Picture Books (Location: PIC-OVER)
$19.99 $10.00 (1 in stock)
Charles A. Lindbergh
by James Cross Giblin
from Clarion Books
Biography for 5th-8th grade
1998 NCTE Orbis Pictus Honor Book
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$7.00 (1 in stock)
Charlotte's Web
by E. B. White
from HarperCollins
for 2nd-6th grade
1953 Newbery Honor Book
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$4.80 (2 in stock)
Cheaper By the Dozen
by Frank Gilbreth & Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
from HarperCollins
Family Stories for 4th-9th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$6.40 (5 in stock)
Children of Odin
by Padraic Colum, illustrated by Willy Pogany
from Macmillan
Norse Mythology for 3rd-8th grade
$32.00 (1 in stock)
Cleopatra VII
Royal Diaries
by Kristiana Gregory
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-8th grade
in Royal Diaries (Location: SER-ROYAL)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
Dear Mr. Henshaw
by Beverly Cleary
from William Morrow & Company
Realistic Fiction for 5th-9th grade
1984 Newbery Medal winner
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$3.20 (1 in stock)
Downright Dencey
by Caroline Dale Snedeker, illustrated by Maginel Wright Barney
from Doubleday & Company
Realistic Fiction for 6th-9th grade
1928 Newbery Honor Book
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$17.60 (1 in stock)
Elijah Of Buxton
by Christopher Paul Curtis
from Scholastic Inc.
Nursery Rhymes for 4th-6th grade
2008 Coretta Scott King Author Award Winner, 2008 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$7.20 (2 in stock)
Ella Enchanted - Special Read-Aloud Edition
by Gail Carson Levine
from HarperCollins
for 3rd-7th grade
$7.20 (1 in stock)
Ersatz Elevator
Series of Unfortunate Events #6
by Lemony Snicket
from HarperCollins
Morbid Humor for 4th-8th grade
in Clearance: Fiction (Location: ZCLE-FIC)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Flaming Arrows
by William O. Steele, Illustrated by Paul Galdone
1st edition from Harcourt
Historical Fiction for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$6.40 (1 in stock)
From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler
by E. L. Konigsburg
35th Anniversary Edition from Atheneum
Mystery/Suspense for 4th-7th grade
1968 Newbery Medal winner
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$7.20 (1 in stock)
Gay-Neck: The Story of a Pigeon
by Dhan Gopal Mukerji
from Dutton Juvenile
for 4th-9th grade
1928 Newbery Medal winner
in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI)
$11.20 (2 in stock)
Graveyard Book
by Neil Gaiman
from HarperCollins
for 6th-9th grade
2009 Newbery Medal winner
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Grey King
Dark Is Rising Sequence #4
by Susan Cooper
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Fantasy for 4th-7th grade
1976 Newbery Medal winner
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$9.60 (1 in stock)
Holes
Holes Series #1
by Louis Sachar
10th Anniversary Edition from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for 4th-6th grade
1999 Newbery Medal winner
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$9.60 (1 in stock)
Homesick: My Own Story
by Jean Fritz
from Penguin Putnam
for 4th-8th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
How to Raise a Reader
by Pamela Paul & Maria Russo
from Workman Publishing
for Nursery-10th grade
in Recommended Book Lists (Location: LIR-REC)
$10.00 (2 in stock)
Island of the Blue Dolphins
by Scott O'Dell
from Houghton Mifflin
Realistic Fictio for 5th-8th grade
1961 Newbery Medal Winner
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$9.60 (1 in stock)
John Knox
by Simonetta Carr
from Reformation Heritage Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Church History for Kids (Location: XCH-KID)
$15.30 $8.00 (1 in stock)
Joyful Noise
by Paul Fleischman
1st edition from HarperCollins
for 4th-6th grade
in Poetry for Children (Location: POET-CHIL)
$6.40 (1 in stock)
Julie of the Wolves
"Julie" Trilogy Book 1
by Jean Craighead George
from HarperCollins
Adventure for 4th-8th grade
1973 Newbery Medal winner
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$9.00 (2 in stock)
Julie of the Wolves
"Julie" Trilogy Book 1
by Jean Craighead George, illustrated by John Schoenherr
from HarperCollins
Adventure for 4th-8th grade
1973 Newbery Medal winner
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Labors of Hercules Beal
by Gary D. Schmidt
from Clarion Books
for 4th-9th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$16.99 $6.40 (1 in stock)
Last Battle
Chronicles of Narnia Book 7
by C. S. Lewis
from HarperCollins
Allegorical Fantasy for 3rd-9th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$7.20 (2 in stock)
Listening for Lions
by Gloria Whelan
from HarperCollins
for 4th-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$6.40 (1 in stock)
Little Prince
by Antoine De Saint-Exupery
from Harcourt
Fantasy for 3rd-Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$7.50 (2 in stock)
Man of the Family
Little Britches Series #2
by Ralph Moody
1st edition from W. W. Norton and Co.
Biography for 5th-9th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$12.00 (1 in stock)
Men of Iron
by Howard Pyle
from Mint Editions
Historical Fiction for 6th-9th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$5.60 (1 in stock)
My Brother Sam Is Dead
by James & Christopher Collier
from Four Winds Press
Historical Fiction for 5th-8th grade
1975 Newbery Honor Book
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$7.20 (1 in stock)
New Way Things Work
by David Macaulay & Neil Ardley
2nd edition from Houghton Mifflin
for 4th-10th grade
in How Things Work (Location: SCIREF-HOW)
$9.50 (1 in stock)
North to Freedom
by Anne Holm
from Harcourt, Brace & World
for 4th-7th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$6.40 (2 in stock)
Our Only May Amelia
by Jennifer L. Holm
from HarperCollins
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$6.40 (1 in stock)
Out of the Dust
by Karen Hesse
from Scholastic Inc.
Realistic Fiction for 6th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$3.60 (1 in stock)
Peter the Great
by Diane Stanley
from William Morrow & Company
Biography for 3rd-6th grade
in Biographies (Location: BIO)
$15.29 $9.60 (1 in stock)
Pippi Goes on Board
Pippi Longstocking #2
by Astrid Lindgren
from Viking Press
Humor for 2nd-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Radical Book for Kids
by Champ Thornton
from New Growth Press
for 3rd-8th grade
in Devotions for Kids (Location: BIBR-DEV)
$28.04 $12.80 (1 in stock)
Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm
by Kate Douglas Wiggin
1st edition from Grosset & Dunlap
for 3rd-6th grade
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
Roller Skates
by Ruth Sawyer, illustrated by Valenti Angelo
from Viking Press
Realistic fiction for 5th-8th grade
1937 Newbery Medal winner
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$13.60 (1 in stock)
Single Shard
by Linda Sue Park
from Clarion Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$7.20 (1 in stock)
Sir Cumference and the First Round Table
by Cindy Neuschwander & Wayne Geehan
from Charlesbridge
for 2nd-6th grade
in Math Picture Books (Location: MATR-PIC)
$5.50 (1 in stock)
Slave Dancer
by Paula Fox
from Simon and Schuster
Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
1974 Newbery Medal winner
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$6.40 (2 in stock)
Slave Dancer
by Paula Fox
from Simon and Schuster
Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
1974 Newbery Medal winner
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$6.40 (1 in stock)
Slave Dancer
by Paula Fox, illustrated by Eros Keith
from Bradbury Press
Historical Fiction for 6th-10th grade
1974 Newbery Medal winner
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$9.60 (1 in stock)
Sounder
by William H. Armstrong
from HarperCollins
Realistic Fiction for 3rd-8th grade
1970 Newbery Medal winner
in Realistic Fiction (Location: FIC-REA)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
Storyteller's Beads
by Jane Kurtz, Michael Bryant
1st edition from Gulliver Books
for 4th-8th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Tales from Silver Lands
by Charles J. Finger
1971 printing from Doubleday & Company
for 4th-8th grade
1925 Newbery Medal winner
in Vintage Fiction & Literature (Location: VIN-FIC)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Tapir Scientist
by Nic Bishop, Sy Montgomery
from HMH Books for Young Readers
for 5th-7th grade
in Zoology (Location: SCI-ZOOL)
$7.60 (2 in stock)
Tell Me the Story
by Max Lucado, Ron Dicianni, Timothy Botts
1st edition from Crossway Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Christmas & Advent (Location: HOLIDAY)
$3.20 (1 in stock)
Truce
by Jim Murphy
from Scholastic Press
for 5th-7th grade
in World War I (1914-1919) (Location: HISA-20WW1)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
Two Little Confederates
by Thomas Nelson Page
from Sprinkle Publications
Historical Fiction for 4th-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
War That Saved My Life
by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley
Reprint from Dial Books for Young Readers
for 4th-8th grade
2017 Newbery Honor Book
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$9.00 (1 in stock)
When the Sea Turned to Silver
by Grace Lin
from Little, Brown & Company
for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.49 $4.80 (1 in stock)
Who Am I?
What We Believe Series #2
by John Hay & David Webb
from Apologia Educational Ministries
for 1st-8th grade
in Apologia What We Believe (Location: BIBWV-APO)
$41.60 $32.00 (2 in stock)
Wind in the Willows
by Kenneth Grahame, illustrated by James Lynch
from The Folio Society
Humorous Animal Fantasy for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$20.00 (1 in stock)
Wonderful Wizard of Oz
Wizard of Oz Book 1
by L. Frank Baum
from Disney Press
for 3rd-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Year of Impossible Goodbyes
by Sook Nyul Choi
from Houghton Mifflin
for 3rd-7th grade
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$4.80 (1 in stock)
Young Person's Guide to Music
by Neil Ardley
Reprint from DK Publishing
for 4th-8th grade
in Music Appreciation (Location: ELE-MUSAP)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
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