WILDWOOD CHRONICLES / COLIN MELOY reading information

THE WILDWOOD CHRONICLES  are a fantasy series by Colin Meloy.  The books are illustrated by his wife, Carson Ellise.

The story is about 2 seventh-graders who are drawn into a magical forest while trying to rescue a baby kidnapped by sinister crows. While there, they discover that the magical world and the real one are interconnected, and so an epic struggle ensues.

WILDWOOD was on the 2012 New York Times Best Seller list of Children's Chapter Books.  It also was a tied winner for the 2012 E.B. White Read Aloud Award.

**Ratings are from GoodReaders

 WILDWOOD

(The Wildwood Chronicles, Book I)

by Colin Meloy

Carson Ellis (Illustrations) 

**Starred Review** SchoolLibraryJournal

 3.61 Stars — 6,542 ratings

When Prue's brother is abducted by a murder of crows.  She and her friend Curtis undertake a rescue mission that leads them to the Impassable Wilderness, a magical forest.

Word Count: 118,138
Page Count:  576
Accelerated Reading level: 6.3 / points: 19.0
AR quiz: 146438
--sample pages and reviews available

UNDER WILDWOOD
UNDER WILDWOOD
(Wildwood Chronicles, #2)

3.89 avg rating — 906 ratings

Events get complicated in this book.  To start, the revolution that the kids began in South Wood is near collapse; and Prue and Curtis discover that there is a bounty on their heads, and that wolf assassins are hunting them. 

And when the Elder Mystic dies, Prue learns that she must find a way to reanimate the mechanical prince before the other side does.

Word Count: 121,865
Page Count:  576
Accelerated Reading level: 5.9 / points: 19.0
AR quiz: 156230
Lexile: 800L
--sample pages and reviews available


WILDWOOD IMPERIUM  -----Pre-Order
(Wildwood Chronicles, #3)

February 4, 2014!

Battles ensue on many fronts as Curtis and Prue fight Alexandra and the Coyote army.

compiled by GoodBooksforKids staff

GREGOR THE OVERLANDER reading levels

Suzanne Collins has another series besides Hunger Games. Written first, the Underland Chronicles have received considerable critical and reader praise. 

Suitable for middle-graders.

GREGOR THE OVERLANDER

11-year-old Gregor and his little sister, Boots, crawl through a grate in the laundry room and are hurtled into the dark world of the Underland where humans live uneasily beside giant creatures like spiders, bats, and cockroaches.

The fragile peace though is falling apart, and far from wanting to get involved, Gregor only wants to get himself and his sister back home.  That is until he discovers that he arrival in the Underland was foretold and that an important quest is his. 

Word Count: 55,665
Page Count:  320
Accelerated Reading level: 4.8 / points: 8.0
AR quiz: 71754
Lexile: 630L

Gregor Las Tierras Bajas (Spanish)

Book #2
GREGOR & THE PROPHECY OF BANE

Gregor returns to the underworld to rescue his kidnapped sister, Boots.  

Word Count: 56,663
Accelerated Reading level: 4.7 / points: 8.0
AR quiz: 82278
Lexile: 680L

Gregor y la Profecia de la Destruccion  (Spanish)



Book #3

GREGOR & THE CURSE OF THE WARMBLOODS

Gregor and Boots seek the cure for a terrible plague that threatens their mother's life.

Word Count: 66,278
Accelerated Reading level: 4.8 / points: 10.0
AR quiz: 88381


Book #4
GREGOR AND THE MARKS OF SECRET

Gregor returns to the Underland where he joins Princess Luxa and Ripred to stop the army led by the adolescent rat king, the Bane.

Word Count: 61,548
Accelerated Reading level: 5.0 / points: 9.0
AR quiz: 106347
Lexile: 730L


Book #5 
GREGOR AND THE CODE OF CLAW

When Gregor learns the ancient prophecy foretells his death, he gathers his courage to defend Regalia.

Word Count: 78,959
Accelerated Reading level: 5.0 / points: 12.0
AR quiz: 114627

HUNGER GAMES reading levels

SUZANNE COLLINS set the YA genre on fire when she and Scholastic published HUNGER GAMES back in 2008.  I mean, who would have imagined a series that would outsell Harry Potter.

THE HUNGER GAMES

PublishersWeekly Best Book of 2008  
Kirkus Best Book of 2008 
SchoolLibraryJournal Best Book of 2008 
HornBook Fanfare Choice 
ALA Booklist Best Book of 2008  
100 weeks at #1 on New York Times

In a future North America there are 13 districts dominated by a Capital that maintains brutal control through intimidation.  In order to insure that the districts don't forget that they are subservient, annual games are held where children are chosen to fight to the death against one another.  When sixteen-year-old Katniss's sister is chosen, she defies convention and volunteers to take her place. And this is where the adventure begins.

Reading Level Information:
Word Count: 99,750
Page Count:  384
Accelerated Reading level: 5.3 / points: 15.0
AR quiz: 123740
Lexile: 810L


CATCHING FIRE

PublishersWeekly Best Book of 2009 
Kirkus Best Book of 2009
SchoolLibraryJournal Best Book of 2008 
HornBook Fanfare ChoiceALA Booklist Editor's Choice 2009

100 weeks at #1 on New York Times
#1 New York Times Bestseller
#1 Publishers Weekly Bestseller
A Time Magazine Top 10 Fiction Book of 2009
A People Magazine (Top 10) Best Book of 2009
A New York Times Book Review Editor's Choice
A Los Angeles Times Best Children's Book of 2009

Katniss and Peeta have won the Hunger Games and now they and their families should be safe.  However, because they won by defying the Capital's rules, they find themselves being used as the figureheads for the rising unrest in the Districts.  

Word Count: 101,564
Page Count:  391
Accelerated Reading level: 5.3 / points: 16.0
AR quiz: 132824
Lexile: 820L


MOCKINGJAY

#1 New York Times Bestseller
#1 Publishers Weekly Bestseller
A New York Times Notable Children's Book of 2010
A New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice
A 2010 Booklist Editors' Choice
A 2010 Kirkus Best Book of the Year
A Publishers Weekly Best Book of 2010
#1 USA Today Bestseller
#1 Wall Street Journal Bestseller

Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has survived the Hunger Games twice. But now that she's made it out of the bloody arena alive, she's still not safe. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge. And what's worse, President Snow has made it clear that no one else is safe either. Not Katniss's family, not her friends, not the people of District 12.  A dark ending to this amazing trilogy.

Word Count: 100,269
Page Count:  400
Accelerated Reading level: 5.3 / points: 15.0
AR quiz: 138972
Lexile: 800L

JAY ASHER reading levels

13 REASONS WHY is one of the best selling Paperbacks of 2012 according to the New York Times.

13 REASONS WHY

by Jay Asher

Clay Jensen finds a box filled with cassettes on his porch when he gets home from school.  As soon as he begins listening to them he recognizes the voice of Hannah Baker, a fellow student who two weeks earlier committed suicide.

Hannah tells Clay that there were 13 reasons why she ended her life, and he is one of them.  Clay ends up criss-crossing his town with Hanna as his guide.  And he learns more than he wanted to know about himself and his schoolmates. 

The plot contains mild profanity and sexual references.

Word Count: 62,496
Page Count: 336
Accelerated Reading level: 3.9 / points: 9.0
AR quiz: 119218
Lexile: 550L


FUTURE OF US
by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler

Imagine that it's 1996 and your long friendship with your neighbor and best friend is nearing an end.  

Now imagine that you install one of those free AOL CDs that come in the mail, and you suddenly find your Facebook account -- 15 years in the future.  

That's what happens to Josh and Emma.  Question is, will this information help them to change the future neither of them want?

The plot contains mild profanity and sexual references.

Word Count: 66,931
Page Count:  366
Accelerated Reading level: 4.4 / points: 10.0
AR quiz: 148252

STEPHEN CHBOSKY reading levels

Besides being a novelist, STEPHEN CHBOSKY has written screen plays and directed movies.  His Perks of Being a Wallflower has catapulted him into the YA limelight.

THE PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER
by Stephen Chbosky

Charlie is starting his freshman year in high school. He's not a popular student, nor a particularly happy one.  His best friend, for example, killed himself, and this death raises the spector of his favorite aunt's death in a car crash on his 7th birthday.

Readers get to follow his struggles to find his place in the world through a series of letters.  

Adults should note that while the book ends on an up-note, but some of the content is about sexuality, drinking, and drugs.

Reading Information:
Word Count: 62,376
Page Count: 213
Accelerated Reading level: 4.8 / points: 9.0
AR quiz: 32374
Lexile: 720L