Fourth-Grade Books, Easy Reading (continued)

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Clymer, Eleanor. The Trolley Car Family. Scholastic, 1947, 216 pp. When Pa Parker loses his job because trolley cars are being replaced, the Parker famil)j along with a grouchy neighbor, make their home in an old trolley car in the country, while Pa looks for another job.

Danziger, Paula. Amber Brown Goes Fourth. Putnam's, 1995, 101 pp. Distressed because her parents have gotten divorced and her best friend has moved away, Amber has some difficulty adjusting to fourth grade. However, making a new best friend helps. Part of Amber Brown series.

Giff, Patricia Reilly. Shark in School. Delacorte, 1994, 103 pp. In addition to helping Matt make the transition to a new school, J.P. helps him to become a reader by supplying him with books that are so good that he struggles through them. Matt, in turn, becomes the first best friend that J.P. ever had.

Havilaand, Virginia. Favorite Fairy Tales: Book 16, Told in Norway. Beech Tree Books (William Morrow), 1961, 1996, 96 pp. Retells in easyread form, several well-known fairy tales: Why the Sea is Salt, The Princess on the Glass Hill, The Three Billy Goats Gruff, and others. Part of Favorite Fairy Tales series.

Hest, Amy. When Jessie Came Across the Sea. Candlewick, 1997, 36 pp. Chosen by the village rabbi to emigrate to America, Jessie sadly leaves her grandmother, who raised her after her parents died. Working hard, she saves enough money to bring her grandmother to America. Provides history tie-in: immigration; life in the early 1900s. Multicultural.

Hooks, William H. The Girl Who Could Fly. Macmillan, 1995, 51 pp. Adam Lee is puzzled by his new friend, Tomasina Jones. She can stop a ball in midair and read Adam's mind. Learning that their team has lost its star pitcher, Adam asks Tomasina to take his place, but Tomasina, who confesses that she is from another planet, doesn't think that would be fair. She coaches Adam and the rest of the team instead. When one of the team members falls into the water and nearly drowns, Tomasina literally flies to the rescue, thus revealing her special powers.

Kroll, Virginia. Faraway Drums. Little, Brown, 1998, 30 pp. Jamila, who is babysitting for her little sister while her mother works, is frightened by the unfamiliar noises of the apartment that the family has just moved into. To keep up her courage and that of her little sister's, she remembers stories of Africa that her grandmother told her, and pretends that each of the noises is an African sound. The banging on a nearby door becomes drums beating out a message. Noises from the street become hyenas fighting. Sirens are monkeys chattering. Excellent read-aloud.

Kroeger, Mary Kay, & Borden, Louise. Paperboy. Clarion, 1996, 31 pp. In the depression days of 1927, Willie helps his family by selling newspapers. The big news is the "long count" fight between Jack Dempsey and Gene Tunney. Provides history tie-in: depression; life in the 1920s.

Lears, Laurie. Ian's Walk: A Story about Autism. Whitman, 1998, 28 pp. Julie gets a little irritated with her autistic brother's strange behavior as they go for a walk. But she gives him a big hug when he slips away and she finds him.