The Universe of Fair is about an 11-year-old boy named Miller and his friend Lewis. More than anything, Miller wants his parents to realize how responsible he has become and allow him to go to the city fair this year alone with Lewis. (In the past his mom and dad have always taken him and his little sister Penny.) What happens when Miller inadvertantly gets his wish makes for an adventure packed book!
It Jes' Happened: When Bill Traylor Started to Draw is a picture book that tells the story of Bill Traylor, a folk artist from Alabama. Bill lived most of his life in the country working the land. He began life as a slave on an Alabama cotton farm. Once slavery ended, his family became sharecroppers. Late in his life, Bill found himself alone and moved to the city of Montgomery. His transition to city life was not easy, and he became homeless. He spent a lot of time remembering his life in the country and began drawing pictures on cardboard boxes, old signs, and discarded bags. Bill's artwork was discovered by a young artist and later displayed in a museum. Today Bill Traylor is known as one of the most important self-taught folk artists in America. 
Despite her upbringing on a pirate ship, Victricia Malicia Calamity Barrett is not your typical pirate. She cannot stand life at sea and is no good at living the pirate life. Victricia is quite a clutz and causes one mishap after another aboard the Potbellied Pirate. She prefers to spend her time reading and dreaming about life on dry land. After one particularly big blunder aboard ship, Victricia's pirate family agrees to leave her ashore where she is finally able to settle into the life of her dreams.
This picture book is a humorous version of the traditional Princess and the Pea fairy tale. In this version, Prince Henrik is looking to marry a princess who is not overly sensitive and delicate...a princess who is the opposite of a "real" princess! Henrik is determined to find the princess of his dreams so he devises a plan involving a thin camping mattress, an old sleeping bag, and a packet of frozen peas. Does such a princess exist in the kingdom? Read The Princess and the Packet of Frozen Peas to find out. Recommended for students ages 5-9.
In 1845 Henry David Thoreau began a radical experiment: He set out to see if he could live alone in the woods of Massachusetts by Walden Pond. While there, he built a cabin, grew his own food, and mostly observed the nature around him. The well known book, Walden, recounted Thoreau's observations for an adult audience; however, this simple, beautiful picture book now makes Thoreau's experiences acccessible for children. Recommended for 5-9 year olds.
If you are interested in dinosaurs and/or aspire to become an palentologist, Barnum's Bones: How Barnum Brown Discovered the Most Famous Dinosaur in the World is for you! If you don't already know, Barnum Brown is credited with discovering the world's first Tyrannosaurus Rex. This picture book full of wonderful, humorous illustrations provides a brief biography of an unusual boy who grew up to discover a very unusual dinosaur. An interesting Author's Note and a Selected Biography of more books to read on this subject are included at the book's end.
I read Wonder with my 6th grade daughter, and we both loved it! We looked forward to reading it each day and were kind of sad when we finished it. In this novel, Palacio tells the story of a year in the life of August Pullman, a 10-year-old boy. August is an "ordinary" kid in every way except for one...he was born with a facial deformity. Thus far, his parents have homeschooled him, but this year he is enrolling in middle school.
Don't Feed The Boy is a novel by an Alabama author named Irene Latham. Mrs. Latham is from Birmingham, and I met her this past summer while attending the Alabama School Librarian Association's summer conference. My 6th grade daughter read the book first and enjoyed it so much that she recommended it to me. 
You think baseball is tough now? Imagine trying to play if you couldn't hear the fans cheering you on, or your coach telling you it was your turn to go hit, or if you couldn't hear the umpire say "Strike" or "Ball," and doing all of that in the Major Leagues, against the toughest competition in the world! William Hoy had this problem and bravely rose to the challenge that his deafness presented. Read all about how he overcame his seemingly impossible roadblock to become an inspiration to so many. Despite his lack of hearing, he never gave up, and was inducted into three different Halls of Fame, and is in the top 25 of all time in MLB for steals, assists by an outfielder and double plays made by an outfielder! Read all about his inspiring success story in Silent Star -- The Story of Deaf Major Leaguer William Hoy.
