Mysteries for 4th Graders

I compiled this list for a local teacher and thought I would share.

Series:

• Brixton Brothers Series by Adam Rex
• The Secret Series (This Book is Not Good for You) by Pseudonymous Bosch
• The Sister's Grim by Michael Buckley
• Sammy Keyes by Wendelin Van Draanen
• Herculeah Jones series by Betsy Cromer Byars
• Benjamin Pratt and the Keepers of the School by Andrew Clements
• Chet Gecko by Bruce Hale
• Mr. Chickee by Christopher Paul Curtis
• Sherlock Files by Tracy Barrett

Stand Alone Titles:

• From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E Franweiler by E.L.Konigsburg
• Chasing Vermeer by Blue Balliet
• Hoot by Carl Hiaasen
• Masterpiece by Elise Broach
• The London Eye Mystery by Siobhan Dowd
• Pie by Sarah Weeks
• The Great Cake Mystery by Alexander McCall Smith
• Vanishing Acts by Phillip Margolin
• Horton Halfpott, or, The fiendish mystery of Smugwick Manor, or, The loosening of M'Lady Luggertuck's corset by Tom Angleberger
• Scat by Carl Hiaasen

Funny Books for Boys

This is a list of great books that will make your boy patrons LOL!

Series:
Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket
Lunch Lady series by Jarrett J Krosoczka (graphic novel)
Far Side Comics by Gary Larson (graphic novel)
Weenies series by David Lubar
Time Warp Trio by Jon Sciezka
Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney
Shredderman by Wendelin Van Draanen
Double Fudge by Beverly Cleary
Guys Read edited by Jon Sciezka
Mr. Chickee by Christopher Paul Curtis
Bunnicula by Jame Howe
My Weird School by Dan Gutman
Fly Guy by Tedd Arnold (easy reader)
Walter the Farting Dog by William Kotzwinkle (picture book)


Stand Alone Titles:
6th Grade Nickname Game by Gordon Korman
Where the Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein
Frankenstein Make a Sandwich by Adam Rex (picture book)
Frankenstein Takes the Cake by Adam Rex (picture book)
Knucklehead by Jon Scieska (biography)
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
My Rotten Life by David Lubar
Doctor Proctor's Fart Powder by Jo Nesbo
The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales by Jon Sciezka (picture book)
The True Story of the Three Little Pigs by Jon Sciezka(picture book)
A Pig Parade is a Terrible Idea by Michael Ian Black (picture book)
A Couple of Boys Have the Best Week Ever by Marla Frazee (easy reader)
Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Stein (picture book)



-Some content from guysread.com

High Interest Historical Fiction Chapter Books

Historical Fiction is a huge genre in children's literature. The list below is historical fiction read-a-likes inspired by the Lois Lowry book Number the Stars.

The Entertainer and the Dybbuk by Sid Fleischman

"In 1948 Europe, former American bomber pilot Freddie Birch is making a precarious living as a ventriloquist when he encounters young Avrom Amos. The boy is a dybbuk, the spirit of a Jewish youth murdered by the Nazis. He was one of the resistance fighters who helped Freddie escape from a POW camp. The ghost has "unfinished business" with the SS colonel who killed him, and he needs a living body—Freddie's—to accomplish it.Fleischman explores the sensitive topic of anti-Semitism—not just the overt evil of the Nazi system, but also the casual, pervasive bigotry of the period. Even Freddie has to deal with his own deep-seated prejudice. There is a strong emphasis on friendship and justice, and an ultimate affirmation of life and hope." --Elaine E. Knight (Reviewed August 1, 2007) (School Library Journal, vol 53, issue 8, p116)

Good Night, Maman by Norma Fox Mazer

Aimed at readers who have already encountered Anne Frank, this riveting historical novel from Mazer (Missing Pieces, 1995, etc.) is based on a little-known chapter of WWII history. Karin Levi's story begins in a tiny attic room in Paris in the 1940s, where she is hidden away with her brother, Marc, and their mother, practicing the art of quiet. German soldiers are conducting house-to-house searches, rounding up Jews, and the small family is soon on the run, depending on strangers for scraps of food and shelter. When Maman falls ill, Karin and Marc head for Naples without her; the children board the Henry Gibbons, a ship full of European refugees bound for Fort Ontario in Oswego, New York. Upon their arrival in America, their story turns from one of flight and danger to the happiness and sorrow associated with adjusting to a new language, customs, and schooling, and making new friends. Although it is a shock to Karin, it comes as no surprise to readers when Marc reveals that Maman is dead. Mazer skillfully paints Karin as brave and independent, yet depicts her devotion to Maman throughout, writing unsent letters and never losing sight of her belief that one day they will be reunited. Rather than relying on events and facts of the war and its atrocities to create sympathy, the author paints her central character's thoughts and feelings, her moments of weakness and her strength, so that the story is stirringly understated. (Kirkus Reviews, October 15, 1999)

Speed of Light by Sybil Rosen
Audrey Ina Stern, a Jewish girl living in Blue Gap, VA, in the 1950s, must come to terms with racism and anti-Semitism when her father, a city councilman, champions a black man for an opening in the local police department. Councilman Stern''s action triggers a sequence of events including phone threats, hostility from neighbors, and, ultimately, having his family''s home firebombed. For Tante, a distant relative who lives with the Sterns, these events rekindle haunting memories from her childhood, including imprisonment at Auschwitz and the loss of her family. Through the Sterns'' efforts, along with those of the courageous Mr. Cardwell, the black police candidate, and Miss Farley, an eccentric librarian, progress toward a more equal and just community is made. Tim Rausch, Crescent View Middle School, Sandy, UT Copyright 1999 Cahners Business Information. 

Witness by Karen Hesse

The author of Out of the Dust again turns language into music in her second quietly moving novel written entirely in verse. Here, 11 narrative voices chronicle actual events occurring in a sleepy Vermont town after the arrival of the Ku Klux Klan in 1924. Those victimized by the Klan include the families of Leanora Sutter, a 12-year-old African-American girl, and Esther Hirsh, the six-year-old daughter of a Jewish shoe salesman. Rounding out the portrait of the town are community leaders (an enlightened physician, a newspaper editor who moves from neutral to anti-Klan) as well as less prominent folk—shopkeepers, a Protestant minister—who are swayed into joining the white supremacist group. Staff (Reviewed August 20, 2001) (Publishers Weekly, vol 248, issue 34, p80) 

 The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg

After his older brother Harold is forced to join the Union Army, Homer runs away from their wicked uncle’s farm to save him. His southward journey divides easily into episodic adventures: outwitting two slave-hunting scoundrels with the help of a wealthy abolitionist; traveling south with an easily duped young clergyman; joining a medicine show led by a mysterious man; fleeing in a hot-air balloon with a disastrous flaw; and arriving at Gettysburg in time for the battle. If these adventures seem a little too colorful to be quite believable, first-person narrator Homer begins his tale by saying, the truth don’t come easy to me. The narrator’s humor and folksy charm bubbles to the surface from time to time, despite a streak of cruelty that runs straight through the story, from the farm to the battlefield. Notes on the period and a glossary are appended. This eventful, episodic novel is accessible to a younger audience than many others set during the Civil War. -- Phelan, Carolyn (Reviewed 01-01-2009) (Booklist, vol 105, number 9, p84)