1) The River Between Us by Richard Peck - Just read this and loved it. So many twists and turns. An instant classic!
2) Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli - Ooooh, what a great character. I think we all know a Stargirl. And maybe some of us are Stargirls!
3) House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer - Ohmygosh! What a terrific page turner.
4) Jim the Boy by Tony Earley - So well done, it feels like something that was written a long time ago. Great characterization.
5) No More Dead Dogs by Gordon Korman - A fast and funny read!
Top Five-ish All-time Favorites (for now) that Lisa Cannot Live Without:
1) Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech - What a great storyteller Sharon Creech is!
2) To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee - I cried at the end of this book, because I never wanted it to end.
3) The Giver by Lois Lowry - My daughter recommended this to me. It left me breathless.
4) Winnie-the-Pooh books by A.A. Milne - See Winnie-the-Pooh and Lisa Too link.
5) Charlotte's Web by E.B. White - Perfect.
Top Ten Favorite Books That Lisa Would Defy Bedtime Rules to Read with a Flashlight (When she was a Kid):
1) Anne of Green Gables by J.M. Montgomery - When I was a kid, I loved books about orphans!
2) All-of-a-Kind Family books by Sydney Taylor - This series of books really brought old New York alive for me. When I wasn't thinking about orphans, I was thinking about how wonderful it would be to have a lot of sisters.
3) Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle books by Betty McDonald - I wanted to be Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle's next-door neighbor and visit her upside-down house!
4) Nancy Drew books by Carolyn Keene - This is really bad, but sometimes I couldn't stand it and would read the last page first.
5) The Trouble with Jenny's Ear by Oliver Butterworth - A fun and funny book. It may be out of print now.
6) Little Women by Louisa May Alcott - I totally identified with Jo. But then, who doesn't?
7) Katie John books by Mary Calhoun - I named my daughter after the main character of this book series!
8) Beezus and Ramona books by Beverly Cleary - These books get even better over time.
9) Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder - I loved reading these on rainy days.
10) The Secret Garden by Francis Hodgson Burnett - Oh, to be transported back to that secret garden!
Can't wait to read one of the books? . . . want to buy one right now? Here's an easy link to each book on Amazon.com.
Happy reading!