We
love pumpkins. Pumpkin pie. Pumpkins sitting in the garden or carved
and sitting on the porch. This list features fun books to share that
feature Pumpkins!
**all ratings from GoodReads
Five Little Pumpkins (boardbook)by Dan Yaccarino
3.99 avg rating — 1,167 ratings
Remember this one?
Five little pumpkins sitting on a gate,
The first one said, "Oh my, it's getting late."
The second one said, "But we don't care."
The third one said, "I see witches in the air."
The fourth one said, "Let's run, and run, and run."
The fifth one said, "Get ready for some fun."
Then whoosh went the wind, and out went the lights,
And five little pumpkins rolled out of sight!
Dan Yaccarino's vivid drawings accompany this classic little 'finger play' poem.
Word Count: 71
Page Count: 16
Accelerated Reading: 1.6 / points: 0.5
AR quiz: 163002
Lexile: AD250L
I Like Pumpkins by Jerry Smath
3.60 avg rating — 47 ratings
Pumpkins here, pumpkins there,
I see pumpkins everywhere!
Pumpkins, pumpkins they come in all sizes.
I like pumpkins, there full of surprises.
Official Description: Some pumpkins are tall; some pumpkins are squat. Some pumpkins are big; some pumpkins are not. It's that time of year again! The Halloween season is all about yummy candy, ghosts and goblins, and of course, pumpkins. In Jerry Smath's latest Halloween 8x8 title, a little girl tells her favorite things about pumpkins--like pumpkin masks, pumpkin seeds, and scary jack-o'-lanterns. But her favorite of all is . . . delicious pumpkin pie!
Page Count: 32
It's Pumpkin Time! by Zoe Hall
** Starred review ALA booklist**
3.69 avg rating — 188 ratings
In this colorful book
two children start preparing for Halloween in the Springtime! There's
some early gardening information in this one, as well as kids'
favorite activities -- making jack o'lanterns and dressing up in fun
customs.
All summer long my brother and I get ready
for our favorite holiday.
Can you guess what it is?
Halloween!
And can you guess what we do to get ready?
We plant a jack-o-lantern patch!
Page Count: 40
Accelerated Reading: 2.3 / points: 0.5
AR quiz: 58325
Lexile: 530L
Pumpkin Pumpkin by Jeanne Titherington
3.73 avg rating — 290 ratings
Official Description:
Softly colored pencil illustrations in a realistic style effectively
communicate Jamie's pride as a very young gardener. He plants a seed,
then grows and harvests a pumpkin from which he saves seeds for next
year. The large, detailed drawings capture Jamie's anticipation and
pleasure just right. The garden creatures appearing on every page and
grandpa, whom we catch sight of now and then, are a delightful
supporting cast. Nonreaders can easily follow the story in pictures
alone. Very large, clear print on facing pages makes the simple
narrative inviting for beginning readers, too. Libraries serving young
children shouldn't miss this satisfying book in the tradition of Ruth
Krauss and Crockett Johnson's The Carrot Seed (Harper, 1945) and Bijou
Le Tord's Rabbit Seeds (Four Winds, 1984). The strong sense of the
cycles of nature and a youngster's accomplishment make for a winning
combination. Anna Biagioni Hart, Sherwood Regional Lib . , Alexandria, Va.
Nonreaders can easily follow the story in pictures alone. Very large, clear print on facing pages makes the simple narrative inviting for beginning readers, too. Libraries serving young children shouldn't miss this satisfying book in the tradition of Ruth Krauss and Crockett Johnson's The Carrot Seed (Harper, 1945) and Bijou Le Tord's Rabbit Seeds (Four Winds, 1984). The strong sense of the cycles of nature and a youngster's accomplishment make for a winning combination. Anna Biagioni Hart, Sherwood Regional Lib . , Alexandria, Va.
Word Count: 75
Page Count: 24
Accelerated Reader: 2.4 / points: 0.5
AR quiz: 7238
Lexile: 260L
Pumpkin Circle: The Story Of A Garden by George Levenson
4.06 avg rating — 131 ratings
"A first-rate introduction to the growth cycle." -- Boston Globe
"A visually striking book…." -- Booklist
100 Best Titles for Reading & Sharing. Children’s Books 1999. -- Selected by, New York Public Library
1999 Top Ten Science Books for Youth -- Booklist
Outstanding Science Trade Book for Children for 2000 -- Selector’s Choice, NSTA/CBC
Fabulous color photographs and
text that swoops and swirls tell us the life cycle of pumpkins from
seeds to sprouts. Take a look at the sample pages Amazon has to see for
yourself. This one is also available in Spanish!
Word Count: 448Page Count: 40
Accelerated Reader: 3.0 / points: 0.5
AR quiz: 55910
Lexile: NP
Spanish
Circulo De Las Calabazas: Historia De Un Huerto
Word Count: 448
Accelerated Reader: 3.0 / points: 0.5
AR quiz: 55910SP
How Many Seeds in a Pumpkin by Margaret McNamara
G. Brian Karas (Illustrator)
4.07 avg rating — 302
Official Description:
"HOW MANY SEEDs in a pumpkin?" Mr. Tiffin asks his class as they gather
around the big, medium, and small pumpkins on his desk. Robert, the
biggest kid, guesses that the largest one has a million seeds; Elinor,
sounding like she knows what she's talking about, guesses the medium one
has 500 seeds; and Anna, who likes even numbers better than odd ones,
guesses that the little one has 22. Charlie, the smallest boy in the
class, doesn't have a guess. Counting pumpkin seeds is messy business,
but once the slimy job is done, to everyone's surprise, the smallest
pumpkin has the most seeds! As Charlie happily exclaims, "Small things
have a lot going on inside of them."
Word Count: 1,153
Page Count: 40
Accelerated Reading level: 3.2 / points: 0.5
AR quiz: 116271
Pumpkin Soup by Helen Cooper
** Starred review School Library Journal**
3.96 avg rating — 1,070 ratings
Official Description:
A Cat, Squirrel, and Duck all share a home and chores, including soup
making. One stirs, one slices, and one adds salt. Duck causes
chaos when he/she decides they want to change jobs and run the show.
Bad feelings result and Duck goes off to sulk. This absence leaves
Cat and Squirrel floundering and deciding that the soup isn't quite a
good as when Duck helped too. They go out to look for Duck but find
him at home. The book ends with them agreeing to that maybe
swapping chores isn't so bad. The results may not be as neat, the
resulting soup is just as tasty.
Word Count: 750Page Count: 32
Accelerated Reader: 3.1 / points: 0.5
AR quiz: 44376
Lexile: AD310L
also available as Sopa De Calabaza!
Word Count: 723
Accelerated Reader: 3.4 / points: 0.5
AR quiz: 4437SP
The Biggest Pumpkin Ever by Steven Kroll
Jeni Bassett (Illustrator)
Two adorable mice grow the BIGGEST pumpkin ever.
Word Count: 985
Page Count:
Accelerated Reader: 3.5 / points: 0.5
AR quiz: 11160
Lexile: AD570L
Pumpkins by Ken Robbins
3.67 avg rating — 54 ratings
“...Robbins’ salute to this squash glimmers as brightly as a jack-o’-lantern.”—Booklist
“Robbins provides a crisp photographic account of Halloween’s iconic veggie.”—Publishers Weekly
“Certain to become an autumn favorite.”—School Library Journal
The author documents the life cycle of the pumpkin with close-up, naturalistic photos and clear, simple text.
Word Count: 455
Page Count: 32
Accelerated Reading level: 3.7 / points: 0.5
AR quiz: 110847
The Runaway Pumpkin by Kevin Lewis
S.D. Schindler (Illustrator)
3.83 avg rating — 409 ratings
Rhythmic
chorus makes this one a good read-aloud. The story has a huge
careening pumpkin rolling down a hill towards a farm. But instead of
running everyone is smacking their lips and thinking of good eats.
Word Count: 406
Page Count: 32
Accelerated Reading level: 4.2 / points: 0.5
AR quiz: 70841
Lexile: NP
For something entirely different try...
The Pumpkin Runnerby Marsha Diane Arnold
Brad Sneed (Illustrator)
3.98 avg rating — 62 ratings
Good one-on-one read.
Good group read too!
Good group read too!
See Don's review here
Wonderful, inspiring story about a simple man.
Word Count: 1434
Page Count: 32
Accelerated Reading level: 4.9 / points: 0.5
AR quiz: 27972
Lexile Measure: 760L
compiled by GoodBooksforKids Staff
Updated October 2014
