Reading Representation Grades 3-4

The books on this list have been curated for grades 3-4 by Guilford Free Library and Guilford Public Schools librarians. These titles showcase characters from a wide range of backgrounds, ethnicities, abilities, and family structures, affirming everyone’s presence and value in society while also being good stories that children enjoy! Reading stories from different perspectives inspires empathy, fostering self-love as well as a greater connection with others. This project is also presented by the Guilford Anti-Bias Anti-Racist (ABAR) Alliance, a collaborative partnership of educators, parents, and caregivers who work to further inclusion, equity, and tolerance within Guilford Public Schools. Learn more at www.GuilfordCtABAR.com .
 

Showing 1 - 20 of 21  There are a total of 78 valid entries on the list.

1. Ban this book

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Author:
Gratz, Alan, 1972-
Average Rating:
4.5 stars
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JBKCD J GRATZ
Description:
"In Ban This Book by Alan Gratz, a fourth grader fights back when From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E. L. Konigsburg is challenged by a well-meaning parent and taken off the shelves of her school library. Amy Anne is shy and soft-spoken, but don't mess with her when it comes to her favorite book in the whole world. Amy Anne and her lieutenants wage a battle for the books that will make you laugh and pump your fists as they start...

2. A boy called Bat

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Author:
Arnold, Elana K.
Average Rating:
5 stars
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Description:
When his veterinarian mom brings home a stray baby skunk that needs rehabilitation before it can be placed in a wild animal shelter, Bat, who has autism, resolves to prove that he is up to the challenge of caring for the skunk permanently.

3. The extraordinary education of Nicholas Benedict

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Author:
Stewart, Trenton Lee
Average Rating:
5 stars
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Description:
Nine-year-old Nicholas Benedict, an orphan afflicted with an unfortunate nose and with narcolepsy, is sent to a new orphanage where he encounters vicious bullies, selfish adults, strange circumstances, and a mystery that could change his life forever.

4. Flora & Ulysses

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Author:
DiCamillo, Kate
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JBKCD J DICAMILLO
Description:
It begins, as the best superhero stories do, with a tragic accident that has unexpected consequences. The squirrel never saw the vacuum cleaner coming, but self-described cynic Flora Belle Buckman, who has read every issue of the comic book Terrible Things Can Happen to You!, is just the right person to step in and save him. What neither can predict is that Ulysses (the squirrel) has been born anew, with powers of strength, flight, and misspelled...

5. Fuzzy

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Author:
Angleberger, Tom
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When Max (Maxine Zealster) befriends her new robot classmate Fuzzy, she helps him navigate Vanguard Middle School and together they reveal the truth behind the Robot Integration Program.

6. Fuzzy mud

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Author:
Sachar, Louis, 1954-
Average Rating:
5 stars
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JBKCD J SACHAR
Description:
"Two middle-grade kids take a shortcut home from school and discover what looks like fuzzy mud but is actually a substance with the potential to wreak havoc on the entire world"--

7. Garvey's choice

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Author:
Grimes, Nikki
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JBKCD J GRIMES
Description:
"Garvey's father has always wanted Garvey to be athletic, but Garvey is interested in astronomy, science fiction, reading--anything but sports. Feeling like a failure, he comforts himself with food. Garvey is kind, funny, smart, a loyal friend, and he is also overweight, teased by bullies, and lonely. When his only friend encourages him to join the school chorus, Garvey's life changes. The chorus finds a new soloist in Garvey, and through chorus,...

8. A handful of stars

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Author:
Lord, Cynthia
Average Rating:
4.5 stars
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JBKCD JFIC LORD
Description:
When her blind dog slips his collar, twelve-year old Lily meets Salma Santiago, a young Hispanic girl whose migrant family are in Maine for the blueberry-picking season, and, based partly on their mutual love of dogs, the two forge a friendship while painting bee boxes for Lily's grandfather--but as the Blueberry Queen pageant approaches Lily and Selma are confronted with some of the hard truths of prejudice and migrant life.

9. The jumbies

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Author:
Baptiste, Tracey
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JBKCD J BAPTISTE
Description:
Eleven-year-old Corinne must call on her courage and an ancient magic to stop an evil spirit and save her island home.

10. Macy McMillan and the rainbow goddess

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Author:
Green, Shari, 1963-
Average Rating:
4 stars
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JBKCD J GREEN
Description:
Olivia has been Macy McMillan's best friend ever since Macy transferred to Hamiliton Elementary from Braeside School for the Deaf. But then their sixth grade teacher assigned that embarrassing family tree project, and Olivia made a joke about Macy's father, and now neither girl is speaking--signing--to the other. It couldn't have happened at a worse time. With her mother getting married and an ugly For Sale sign jammed into their yard, Macy could...

11. Masterminds

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Author:
Korman, Gordon
Average Rating:
4.5 stars
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JBKCD J KORMAN
Description:
"A group of kids discovers they were cloned from the DNA of some of the greatest criminal masterminds in history for a sociological experiment"--

12. Ms. Bixby's last day

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Author:
Anderson, John David, 1975-
Average Rating:
4 stars
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JBKCD J ANDERSON
Description:
Loving their gifted teacher, three boys are dismayed when the teacher falls ill and leaves for the rest of the school year, a situation that compels them to share their stories while cutting class and journeying across town together on a fateful day.

13. The mysterious Benedict Society

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Author:
Stewart, Trenton Lee
Average Rating:
4.6 stars
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JBKCD JFIC STEWART
Description:
After passing a series of mind-bending tests, four children are selected for a secret mission that requires them to go undercover at the Learning Institute for the Very Enlightened, where the only rule is that there are no rules.

14. The mysterious Benedict Society and the perilous journey

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Author:
Stewart, Trenton Lee
Average Rating:
5 stars
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Description:
Reynie, Kate, Sticky, and Constance, all graduates of the Learning Institute for the Very Enlightened and members of the Benedict Society, embark on a scavenger hunt that turns into a desperate search for the missing Mr. Benedict.

15. The mysterious Benedict Society and the prisoner's dilemma

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Author:
Stewart, Trenton Lee
Average Rating:
5 stars
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Description:
When an unexplained blackout engulfs Stonetown, Benedict Society members Reynie, Kate, Sticky, and Constance follow clues on an adventure that threatens to separate them from their families, friends, and even one another.

16. The mysterious Benedict Society and the riddle of ages

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Author:
Stewart, Trenton Lee
Average Rating:
5 stars
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Description:
"After starring in three adventures, the inimitable quartet of Reynie, Sticky, Kate, and Constance haven't had a mission together in some time. But with the arrival of a new Society member--and a new threat--they must reunite to face dilemmas more dangerous than ever before, including the return of the villainous Mr. Curtain and his Ten Men and a formidable enemy with a mystifying ability to track their every move." --

17. The red pyramid

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Author:
Riordan, Rick
Average Rating:
4.5 stars
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JBKCD J RIORDAN
Description:
Brilliant Egyptologist Dr. Julius Kane accidentally unleashes the Egyptian god Set, who banishes the doctor to oblivion and forces his two children to embark on a dangerous journey, bringing them closer to the truth about their family and its links to a secret order that has existed since the time of the pharoahs.

18. The serpent's shadow

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Author:
Riordan, Rick
Average Rating:
5 stars
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JBKCD JFIC RIORDAN
Description:
Carter and Sadie prepare for the ultimate confrontation with the chaos snake Apophis at the same time the House of Life magicians launch a civil war, compelling the Kanes to tap the power of an ancient spell.

19. The throne of fire

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Author:
Riordan, Rick
Average Rating:
5 stars
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Description:
Carter and Sadie, offspring of the brilliant Egyptologist Dr. Julius Kane, embark on a worldwide search for the Book of Ra, but the House of Life and the gods of chaos are determined to stop them.

20. We're not from here

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Author:
Rodkey, Geoff, 1970-
Average Rating:
5 stars
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Description:
After a year on Mars, a young boy and his family migrate to the planet Choom, but the inhabitants of Choom, the Zhuri, who look like giant mosquitoes, don't really like humans and it up to the boy and his family to change their minds if they hope to survive.