Today, I'd like to welcome guest blogger Heather Smith who is going to discuss ideas for first chapter books for children. Thank you, Heather, over to you.
When I first started reading chapter books I may have gone a little overboard. My first chapter book was The Hobbit.
Yeah, I do not really recommend that for anyone else. Instead, kids
should start out with something light and adventurous. Something fun to
read that is not too long. You do not want them to get frustrated or
bored with reading. With that in mind, here are some book ideas you may
want to try to get your child to take a look at. Depending on their
genre tastes, they may find a new favorite.
1. Monster of the Year by Bruce Coville – A fun and funny book for all ages, Monster of the Year
is the tale of two boys who accidentally start a monster competition in
their town. When the real monsters start showing up, the boys must
think fast to avoid unpleasant circumstances. Between Dracula’s taste
for warm V-8 juice and the Monster from the Black Lagoon’s bathroom
issues, kids will be rolling on the floor with laughter. They will also
be surprised to learn who ends up winning the completion for the most
monstrous of them all.
2. Chamber of Horrors: Amulet of Doom by Bruce Coville – Would
you trust a demon? That is the question kids have to ask themselves in
this spooky tale. When a girl inherits a strange ancient amulet, she is
in for more than a piece of jewelry. The demon trapped inside asks her
to make a terrible choice. Trust him and set him free, or condemn
herself to a lifetime of guarding the dangerous receptacle. The content
may be scary for some children, so it may be better to wait until they
are a bit older for this book.
3. Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher by Bruce Coville – When
Jeremy comes across a beautiful iridescent egg in the magic shop, he
must buy it. He carefully follows the shop owner’s directions on how to
care for the egg and is rewarded when something begins to hatch. That
something turns out to be a dragon. Easy to hide at first, the dragon
grows and grows and grows until he is no longer something that Jeremy
can keep hidden. Can Jeremy find a safe place for his dragon or is it
going to be taken away from him to be studied? Kids will have to read
the magical tale to find out!
4. Being of Two Minds by Pamela Service – When two children
from two different continents, one a regular American girl and the other
a prince, discover they have the power to see into each others' lives,
no one believes them. Not even their parents. But when the prince is
kidnapped, the girl has no choice but to go to Europe to find and rescue
him. Their adventure will uncover plots and places no one ever knew
about.
5. The Reluctant God by Pamela Service – The daughter of a
famed archeologist always helps her father out during the summer. Only
this summer he really found something. Uncovering an ancient tomb, the
sarcophagus is removed and brought to the museum to be studied. During
the night a lightening storm brings the mummy to life. The girl
encounters the mummy who asks for her help to retrieve something that
was stolen from him long ago. Without it, his spirit cannot find rest.
The two young people go off on an adventure to recover his treasure and
return to Egypt before his time is up. A great adventure story with a
touch of romance and a lot of history.
6. Weirdos of the Universe, Unite! by Pamela Service – When
the two weirdest kids in school team up for a class project, you know it
is going to end up being odd. But stranger things happen still when a
lighting strike at the library brings their search of ancient myths to
life. From dark and scary witches of Russia to Tribbles, their fables
come alive just in time to save the Earth from invasion. Will the
children and the fables succeed in stopping the aliens, or will the
Earth and everyone on it be destroyed?
7. Vision Quest by Pamela Service – After her father’s sudden
death, a young girl and her mother move to a desolate mining town. There
the girl finds a strangely inscribed rock that allows her to
communicate with a Native American boy in the past. Together they must
solve an ancient mystery and bring peace to the spirit of the shaman.
8. Storm at the Edge of Time by Pamela Service – The dark is
rising, and only one man can stop it. Using his magic powers, he brings
forth three guardians from diverse eras in time. One from the past, a
Viking boy, one from the present, abrainy girl, and one from the future,
a half-alien teenager. Together they must fight the darkness in each
age and return the universe to harmony. Along the way they learn about
how similar they really are.
9. Under Alien Stars by Pamela Service – When aliens take over
the Earth, most people just give up. But one boy decides he is not
going to take this lying down. He tries to kidnap the daughter of the
head alien, only to discover there are worse aliens out there, and that
she may be Earth’s only hope of survival. They team up to fight their
common enemy and end up finding out they have a lot more in common than
they ever thought possible.
10. The BFG (Big Friendly Giant) by Ronald Dahl – The
adventures of a little girl who sees something she is not supposed to.
One night she sees a giant blowing his trumpet into bedrooms. He notices
her and takes her home to where the giants live, explaining he is the
only good giant who does not eat people but rather gives children good
dreams. The little girl convinces him to give the Queen of England a
dream about the bad giants to stop them from eating people. The story is
a fun filled fantasy with plenty of potty humor to keep the kids
laughing.
11. The Borrowers by Mary Norton – What happens to all the
little things that get lost around your house? Well, they are never
really lost at all, merely borrowed by the tiny people that live in your
walls. That is the story behind The Borrowers, a tiny family that lives
in someone’s house and borrows what they need to survive. Children will
enjoy the adventures of the tiny people in a big world.
12. Charlotte's Web by E. B. White – Everyone knows the story of Charlotte’s Web.
When a spider saves a pig’s life, everything will change. This
heartwarming tale of friendship is a classic that everyone should share
with their children.
13. From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.
L. Konigsburg – The book with a very long name, this humorous tale is
all about two run away children. The oldest, a girl, decides she wants
to run away in comfort to the Metropolitan Museum of New York. She
brings along her little brother because he has all the money. The two
children live comfortably there for a little while until they try to
solve the mystery of the creation of a beautiful statue. They travel to
Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler’s house to uncover what the elusive widower
knows about the statue she donated. Eventually they solve the mystery
and get their reward. A great story full of learning and adventure.
These are just a few of the great titles every child should read. There
are so many great books to choose from that it is difficult to know
where to start. Find out what genre your child is interested in and
start from there. Once they learn to love reading, nothing can stop
them!
Author Bio
Heather Smith is an ex-nanny. Passionate about thought leadership and
writing, Heather regularly contributes to various career, social media,
public relations, branding, and parenting blogs/websites. She also
provides value to www.nanny.net/ service by giving advice on site design
as well as the features and functionality to provide more and more
value to nannies and families across the U.S. and Canada. She can be
available at H.smith7295 [at] gmail.com.
A few options from Robyn Opie Parnell:
Black Baron BUY NOW
The story of a great escape by the king of the cockroach
racing world and the desperate race against time to save him from
extermination!
Black Baron, Jake’s champion racing cockroach, hasn’t
lost a race and Jake is on top of the world. But then his “clean freak”
mum decides to clean up his bedroom and discovers Black Baron in a
shoebox under Jake’s bed. Mum is aghast – how could Jake keep such a
filthy pest? Black Baron escapes from his shoebox home, but Jake's mum
is not deterred; she calls the pest exterminator and an hilarious
slapstick tale ensues.
Stop! Do Not Read This Book
Sam hates to read. She hates books.
Unfortunately for Sam, her family are bookworms, her mom writes children's books and her teacher thinks reading is important.
Every day is a battle for Sam to avoid reading and to keep her secret. Life gets so bad, Sam is ready to move to Antarctica.
Instead, Sam is about to have the most embarrassing experience of her life. Will she survive?
Stop! Do not read this book -- and help Sam keep her secret.
Maya and the Crystal Skull
Kindle Price $2.99 BUY NOW
Move over Indiana Jones... Maya's life has changed. Her mother is dead,
killed in a car accident; she's befriended by Ethan, a boy who claims
he's from the spirit world; and now her father is missing. What does the
legend of the crystal skulls have to do with her father's
disappearance? Will Maya travel to Mexico to save him? How can Maya's
destiny have anything to do with the future of humankind? The Mexican
jungle, ancient Mayan ruins, dangerous bounty hunters and evil
kidnappers... Yes, Maya's life has changed. The fate of the world now
depends on her.
What kind of children’s books do you write?
