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Great Books to Read in Summer and Beyond for 3rd-5th Graders

Titles selected from the 2024 Summer Reading Lists created by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC). 

Click here to print a PDF version of this list.

Cover of The Book Of Turtles
Sy
Montgomery
Matt Patterson

Intelligent and enduring, turtles have been around since the time of the dinosaurs. Learn what we know—and don’t yet know— about these surprising reptiles. Illustrated with detailed, realistic paintings of more than thirty different turtle species.

Cover of The Human Kaboom
Adam
Rubin
Daniel Salmieri and others

A hilarious collection of six short stories, all with the same title. Includes a popcorn recipe and a bonus chapter titled “The Human Kaboom: (the one that hasn’t been written yet),” providing inspiration for kids to write their own story!

Cover of Into The Shadow Mist
Christina
Soontornvat
Kevin Hong

Who doesn’t love a book with a map? In book two of the Legends of Lotus Island series, the adventure continues with Plum and her friends, who must figure out what is putting the entire ecosystem at risk.

Cover of Leeva At Last
Sara
Pennypacker
Matthew Cordell

Young Leeva learns that there is a whole world outside of the home that she has been trapped in. Funny and perfect for multigenerational reading, the book shows how to make friends in new environments and pokes fun at bureaucracy.

Cover of Making Memories: Practice
Amy
Tangerine
Tracey English

This book is a beautiful way to keep busy during the summer, providing ways to record and celebrate the good days and work through the hard ones. It includes activities like making mandalas with found objects or a feeling box made with origami.

Cover of My Head Has A Bellyache: A
Chris
Harris
Andrea Tsurumi

Even the glossary, subject indexes, and title get caught up in this goofy, laugh-out-loud book of poetry and rhymes. Hand this appealing and silly book to fans of Shel Silverstein and Jon Scieszka.

Cover of The Remarkable Rescue At M
Elaine
Dimopoulos
Doug Salati

Butternut, who is learning the art of storytelling, spins tales of adventure for her rabbit colony while also questioning the validity of the colony’s rules, overcoming biases about egg-layers and other non-rabbit denizens of Milkweed Meadow, and orchestrating a remarkable rescue.

Cover of Search For A Giant Squid:
Amy Seto
Forrester
Andy Chou Musser

Dive into the science of deep-sea research in this engaging chooseyour-own-adventure-style informational book.

Cover of Something Like Home
Andrea Beatriz
Arango

Laura Rodríguez Colón moves in with her aunt and is forced to adjust to a new homelife and school, but she finds hope and companionship in the dog she adopts.

Cover of Things In The Basement
Ben
Hatke

When Milo searches for a lost sock in the basement of his new home, he discovers a new world, strange creatures, and how to be brave when faced with the unknown.