Grade: 4

Written as a series of free-verse poetic journal entries, this book features an encouraging teacher, a child’s blossoming love of poetry, and the loss of a dear pet. At first, Jack is reluctant to write poetry, “because boys don’t write poetry. Girls do.” As his teacher introduces works by various poets, including William Carlos Williams, Robert Frost, and Walter Dean Myers, Jack wonders about what the poems mean. Why does so much depend upon a red wheelbarrow and some white chickens? If the guy is in the snowy wood, why doesn’t he just keep going if he has so many miles to go before he sleeps? (The seven poems Jack mentions in his journals are printed in the back of the book.) But as Jack emulates the styles of these famous poets, he soon finds his own voice and a growing appreciation of poetry.

Holly Black and Tony DiTerlizzi’s three adventurous Grace children are back — and learning more about Arthur Spiderwick’s field guide from Aunt Lucinda and a band of elves — in the third installment of the popular Spiderwick Chronicles. With mystery and supernatural suspense in every page turn, this entry has Mallory, Simon, and Jared learning more than expected about their book. When they visit Aunt Lucy in the nursing home, she tells them that in her youth, she was wrongly accused of having the field guide and warns them to leave the house and get rid of the book, lest they become harassed and charmed like she has been. The Grace kids suddenly realize that their treasured book has been stolen, and after they find a map in Uncle Arthur’s library, they come face to face with elves who almost capture Jared and hint that Uncle Arthur may still be alive.

At the start of this novel, set in the 1840s, Lyddie Worthen’s father abandons the family in search of work. Fourteen-year-old Lyddie cares for her family until her mother gives her away as a servant in order to settle a debt. The kindness of her Quaker neighbors, a friend’s loan of five silver dollars, and a generously repaid debt from a runaway slave, help Lyddie to cling to her dream of saving her family’s farm. After years of toiling in a sewing mill in Lowell, Massachusetts, Lyddie earns enough to save the farm, but uses the money to save her siblings from a fate similar to her own. Just as the mill’s machinery passes thread from one loom to the next, the characters in the story pass gifts — tangible and intangible — to one another. This empowering novel about hardship, determination, giving, and love shows readers that the most beautiful aspect of humans is the humanity that lies within us.

The math curse begins on a Monday when a little girl’s math teacher tells the class that you can think of almost everything as a math problem. And sure enough, from Tuesday morning through the rest of the day almost every event in this girl’s life constitutes a math problem — some real, others wacky! Tuesday night she dreams she is trapped in a room with no doors and windows and must solve math problems for a lifetime. But she frees herself by putting a hole in the wall and jumping out, only to be told the next day by her science teacher that “you can think of almost everything as a science experiment!”

In the tradition of her previous biographical accounts,My Name is Celia and My name is Gabriela , Brown dazzles readers in this telling of Gabriel García Márquez’s magical childhood. Mesmerizing color-pencil, full-page illustrations wrap around the text to create what seems to be a perfect balance of art and language. Based on García Márquez’s adult autobiography Living to Tell the Tale (Knopf), this wonderful, engaging narrative transports readers to Gabito’s early childhood in northern Colombia. He shares heartwarming times with his grandpa and learns about the tough life of the fruit pickers he observes in the nearby banana plantation. The curious, budding storyteller is a dreamer who cherishes life’s every moment. When he decides to share his enchanted world with others, he is on his way to becoming one of the most acclaimed Latin American authors. Young readers will relate to Gabito’s escapades into his private and real worlds and understand without puzzlement how he moves between them effortlessly. Together with Brown’s other titles, this is a must-have for any library collection, especially those interested in adding multicultural titles. An accessible, high-quality choice for bilingual families.—Liliana Barro Zecker, Associate Professor, School of Education, DePaul Univ., Chicago, IL

This beautifully illustrated picture book tells the story of Molly Bannaky, a brave but lesser-known figure from Colonial history. Bannaky, a former indentured servant, marries a slave and starts a farm with him.

Route 66 may be the best way to see the U.S.A., and your students are sure to get their travel kicks by reading this fictional keepsake. In 1946, ten-year-old Molly McIntire takes a road trip with her family. She collects a scrapbook of souvenirs and memories, including photos of well-known people, state postcards, national park ticket stubs, and dinner receipts. Through Molly’s backseat perspective, readers will learn that Springfield, Illinois, is not only the home of Abe Lincoln, but also the home of Cozy Dog hotdogs! Comical events, such as using a Mohave water bag to cool the car’s engine, accompany practical post-World War II realities. Readers will inevitably compare Molly’s life to their own!

Readers get a close look at the planning, construction, and use of the Jefferson home. Fisher includes black-and-white paintings, photographs, and house plans.