Fast & Fun

Adler, David A. The Jelly Bean Experiment. (Danny’s Doodles #1)
Danny is not sure what to make of Calvin Waffle, a quirky and smart new fourth grader, but when Danny convinces him to use his brain power to help the baseball team , they both have a chance to become heroes.

Applegate, Katherine. Never Glue Your Friends to Chairs. (Roscoe Riley Rules #1)
Roscoe Riley comes up with an interesting plan to keep the bee antennae on the first graders' heads and help the drummers stay in their seats for the open house performance.

Benton, Jim.  Lunch Walks Among Us. (Franny K. Stein #1)
Franny K. Stein is a mad scientist who prefers all things spooky and creepy, but when she has trouble making friends at her new school she experiments with fitting in—which works until a monster erupts from the trash can.

Bruel, Nick. Bad Kitty Gets a Bath. (A Bad Kitty Book)
Takes a humorous look at the normal ways cats bathe, why it is inappropriate for humans to bathe that way, and the challenges of trying to give a cat a real bath.

Grindley, Sally. Dear Max.
As Max, who is almost ten, and his favorite author, D.J. Lucas, exchange letters, the two writers help each other with their new books and develop a special friendship. 

Holm, Jennifer. Queen of the World! (Babymouse #1)
An imaginative mouse dreams of being queen of the world, but will settle for an invitation to the most popular girl’s slumber party.

Keller, Laurie. Bowling Alley Bandit. (Adventures of Arnie the Doughnut #1)  [AR BL 3.6, Pts. 1.0] Arnie the talking doughnut is delighted to be Mr. Bing's new pet "doughnut-dog," so when Mr. Bing starts rolling gutter balls during a big bowling tournament, Arnie suspects foul play and sets out to solve the mystery. 

Kerrin, Jessica Scott.  Martin Bridge Ready for Takeoff!
Martin develops a crush on his new bus driver, takes care of his friend's hamster with tragic results, and participates in a rocket exhibition that threatens a friendship.

Kirby, Stan. Captain Awesome to the Rescue! (Captain Awesome #1)
When second-grader Eugene and his family move to a new neighborhood and he starts at a new school, he has a chance to bring out his superhero alter ego, Captain Awesome, to find the kidnapped class hamster

Pennypacker, Sara. Clementine.
When sorting through difficulties in her friendship with her neighbor Margaret, eight-year-old Clementine gains several unique hairstyles while also helping her father in his efforts to banish pigeons from the front of their apartment building.
 
Trine, Greg.  The Curse of the Bologna Sandwich. (Melvin Beederman: Superhero #1)
After graduating from the Superhero Academy, Melvin Beederman heads for Los Angeles, where he unexpectedly teams up with Candace Brinkwater, school play actress, to nab the evil McNasty Brothers.

Winkler, Henry. Bookmarks are People , Too! (Here’s Hank #1) [AR BL 3.9, Pts. 1.0] Hoping to land the lead in the class play, Hank freezes during his audition and is only able to buzz like a fly, inspiring his teacher to create a special role for him as a silent bookmark that saves the show when a rival suffers an attack of stage fright.  

Zemke, Deborah. Bea Garcia: My Life in Pictures. (Bea Garcia #1) [AR BL 3.3, Pts. 1.0] When budding artist Bea Garcia's best friend moves to Australia and a loud, rambunctious boy moves into her old house, Bea must learn to make new friends.  
 

Fiction

Angleberger, Tom. The Strange Case of Origami Yoda.
Sixth-grader Tommy and his friends describe their interactions with a paper finger puppet of Yoda, worn by their weird classmate Dwight, as they try to figure out whether the puppet can really predict the future.

Barnett, Mac. The Terrible Two. (The Terrible Two #1) [AR BL 4.5, Pts. 4.0] When master prankster Miles Murphy moves to sleepy Yawnee Valley, he challenges the local mystery prankster in an epic battle of tricks, but soon the two join forces to pull off the biggest prank ever seen. 

Buckley, Michael. NERDS: National Espionage, Rescue, and Defense Society.
When Miss Information kidnaps the President's daughter, it is up to twelve-year-old Ruby, also known as Pufferfish, to use her super-nanobyte-enhanced allergies in leading the NERDS' investigation.

Clements, Andrew. Frindle.
When he decides to turn his fifth grade teacher's love of the dictionary around on her, clever Nick Allen invents a new word and begins a chain of events that quickly moves beyond his control.

Colfer, Eoin.  The Legend of Spud Murphy.
When their mother starts dropping them off at the library several afternoons a week, nine-year-old William and his brother dread boredom and the overbearing librarian, but they are surprised at how things turn out.

Grabenstein, Chris. Home Sweet Motel. (Welcome to Wonderland #1)
P.T. and his friend Gloria must solve a mystery at the world’s wackiest motel: “The Wonderland.”

Fitzhugh, Louise. Harriet the Spy. [AR BL 4.5, Pts. 8.0] A classic favorite, eleven-year-old Harriet keeps notes on her classmates and neighbors in a secret notebook, but when some of the students read the notebook, they seek revenge.  

Grabenstein, Chris. Home Sweet Motel. (Welcome to Wonderland #1)  [AR BL 4.5, Pts. 6.0] P.T. and his friend Gloria must solve a mystery at the world’s wackiest motel: “The Wonderland.”  

Griffiths, Andy. The 13-Story Treehouse. [AR BL 3.8, Pts. 1.0] In a treehouse with a bowling alley and a lemonade fountain, Andy and Terry are too busy with flying cats and sea-monkey mishaps to work on their next book.  

Kelly, Katy.  Lucy Rose. Here’s the Thing About Me. (Lucy Rose #1) [AR BL 5.1, Pts. 4.0] Eight-year-old Lucy Rose keeps a diary of her first year in Washington, D.C., her home since her parents’ separation, where she spends time with her grandparents, makes new friends, and longs to convince her teacher to let her take care of the class pet during a holiday.  

 

Pastis, Stephan. Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made. (Timmy Failure #1)
Timmy Failure, founder of the "best" detective agency in town, named Total Failure, Inc., may only be eleven years old, but with the help of his polar bear, Total, he already has plans for world domination.

Patterson, James. I, Funny. (I, Funny #1)
Resolving to become the world’s greatest standup comedian despite less-than-funny challenges in his life, wheelchair bound middle school student Jamie Grimm endures bullying from his cousin and hopes he will be fairly judged when he enters the local comedy contest.

Patterson, James. Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life. (Middle School #1)
When Rafe enters middle school, he teams up with his best friend to create a game to make school more fun by trying to break every rule in the school's code of conduct.

Paulsen, Gary.  Lawn Boy.
Things get out of hand for a twelve-year-old boy when a neighbor convinces him to expand his summer lawn mowing business.

Peirce, Lincoln.  Big Nate: In a Class by Himself. (Big Nate Novels #1)
Supremely confident middle school student Nate Wright manages to make getting detention from every one of his teachers in the same day seem like an achievement.

Roy, James. Max Quigley: Technically Not a Bully.
After playing a prank on one of his "geeky" classmates, sixth-grader Max Quigley's punishment is to be tutored by him.

Russell, Rachel Renee. Locker Hero. (The Misadventures of Max Crumbly #1)
Questioning his resolve to attend public school after years of being homeschooled, Max is targeted by a mean-spirited bully and aspires to become like his favorite comic book heroes.

Russell, Rachel Renee. Tales From a Not-So-Fabulous Life. (Dork Diaries #1)
Fourteen-year-old Nikki Maxwell writes and sketches in her diary about her struggle to be popular at her exclusive new private school and about giving up on being part of the elite group, before figuring out a way to simply be herself.
 
Sachar, Louis.  Sideways Stories from Wayside School.
Humorous episodes from the classroom on the thirtieth floor of Wayside School, which was accidentally built sideways with one classroom on each story.

Watson, Tom. A Tale of Two Kitties. (Stick Cat#1) [AR BL 4.5, Pts. 3.0] When Stick Cat hears terrible noises and a violent crash, he must navigate his way across the alley to rescue a man trapped in a building.

Watson, Tom. Stick Dog. (Stick Dog #1) [AR BL4.5, Pts. 2.0] Stick Dog and his four friends - Stripes, Mutt, Poo-Poo and Karen - will do anything to steal some sweet-smelling hamburgers from a family at Picasso Park!

Winkler, Henry.  Niagara Falls, or Does It? (Hank Zipzer #1)
Fourth-graders Hank, Ashley, and Frankie are excitedly preparing for a magic show at the Rock 'N Bowl when Hank's creative alternative to an English essay lands him in detention and grounded the week of the show.