If your husband likes grittier, dialogue-driven mysteries then anything by Ed McBain would be a winner. He's an absolutely fantastic writer...There are cop fictions and then, in a class of their own, there are Ed McBain cop fictions. He also wrote the classic book, "The Blackboard Jungle" under the name Evan Hunter.
ABSOLUTLEY "Hank the Cowdog"!!! He's as much fun for the adults as for the kids!!! Faythe likes the "ABC Mysteries". Someone mentioned Francine Rivers for adults. I'll second that; also Bodie Thoene. And Tommy Tenney's "One Night With the King". It's the one they made the movie from. One of the best books I've read in a long time. Right now, we're reading a really cute series to the kids. The first book is "The Prince of the Pond" by Donna Jo Napoli. It's the story of the Frog Prince. But this girl frog finds him, and can't imagine how he's lived so long when he knows NOTHING about being a frog. Doesn't even LIKE bugs!!! REALLY cute!!!
Magic Treehouse - levels, etc OK, I went through the posts quickly but it didn't look like anyone posted an answer to your Treehouse levels, etc. Most of the Treehouse books range from a 2.3 to 3.3 (if I remember correctly...and many hover in the middle). They can be read at any point although they do seem to go in groups of 4......ie. references to the first 3 in book 4, etc. However, you'll still enjoy 4 if you haven't read 1-3. The educational aspect is it introduces topics to my kids they might not otherwise care to explore.....and if it as a Research Guide that goes with it....yippee!!! I love the Research Guides. My oldest read the book about the Titanic and we have the research guide....a few years later, she was again sparked to read more about the Titanic....so now she's read a Dear America book about the Titanic, the DK Eyewitness book about it, and several others....and still looks for more......all from a $3 paperback that's about 64 pages.........cannot beat that. I'm trying to get DD7 interested in them. She's read a few but still balks at chapter books despite the fact she reads at a 3rd grade + level.....she prefers larger print due to her vision issues and Magic Treehouse isn't super large so she has to concentrate harder than with other books.....she does love to listen to the audiobooks though....the public library carries them nearby so we alternate. Rhonda C.
I totally forgot about these! Thanks! And thanks to ya'll all for posting and answering! We checked out some Horrible Harry books from the library. They look to be a mid-second grade level, if that, probably under the level we're looking for right now. I've HEARD the "Hank the Cowdog" series is funny, says my 70+ yo grandma ps teacher. :lol: We also checked out an Encylopedia Brown book, so I'll get back to ya'll on that. What age would the Hardy Boys be good for? Too much for a 3rd-ish grader, with a high reading level, but a lower-ish comprehension level? Maybe... 5th-ish grade? I was (and still am) a die-hard Nancy Drew fan. Christian picked out Old Yeller after watching the movie several times this week. YIPPEE!! Anyone know anything about Jigsaw Jones? Or the Ark books? (These look to be for smaller kids....) Jacki - what age group/reading level are the A to Z Mysteries geared towards? Any generalized info you can share about them?
I LOVED Encyclopedia Brown as a kid! We found the first Hank the Cowdog at WalMart today, so we picked it up. I couldn't find #1 at the library and I just picked one at random and I wasn't sure who was who. So we'll see if this helps. Maybe it is above my level!:lol:
Bridge to Terebithia is about a 5th grade level, and I think Tom Sawyer & Huck Finn are about that level, too. The Chronicles of Narnia, Anne of Green Gables, Bunnicula (there were a few of those), Pipi Longstocking, Tuck Everlasting, and Wind in the Willows are all 4th -6th grade level. How to Eat Fried Worms is 4th grade. Where the Red Fern Grows is 4th or 5th grade. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory & Artemis Fowl are both about 5th grade.
A to Z Mysteries (I had it wrong the first time!) are about the same level as the Magic Treehouse. Hardy Boys are "harder" than those, but a good 3rd grade reader could do them without trouble. Also, if you can find the old Happy Hollisters or Bobbsey Twins, they're good, too. They came out with a repring of the Bobbsey Twins not too long ago; Mom bought them for Faythe. I have some hardback Happy Hollisters from when I was a kid. I'd say they are between the Magic Treehouse and Hardy Boys. Be sure to read "By the Great Horned Spoon". Also, Old Yeller has a sequel called "Savage Sam". It's a bit violent, dealing with Little Arliss, Travis, and 'Lizbeth being kidnapped by Indians. Disney made it into a movie, too.
you can go to the accelerated reading programs site and get a list of books by grade level. I printed them out last year. You can also print them in alphabetical order and it still tells you the grade level. If we see a book we like we will look it up on the list and decide if it is appropriate grade level wise (I don't want him reading things too far below his level.) As far as magic tree house, Garrett loved them! He still reads them, but he was most into them in 1st grade.
