A Snicker of Magic by Natalie Lloyd*

Felicity has wandered from town to town all her life with her wander-lust mother and little sister Frannie Jo.
When they arrive in Midnight Gulch, TN, to live with their aunt, Felicity hopes to make this town their home.  Midnight Gulch use to be magic but an over one hundred year old curse has left the people sad and without hope.
With Felicity's ability to see words form in the air and her new best friend Jonah who knows how to encourage individuals, the curse may soon be broken.
*Highly recommend.
Cannot recommend it enough!  Ms. Lloyd truly has a magical way with words!
Strategies/skills: inferring (character traits/development), word choice, determining importance-main idea, cause/effect, asking questions, visualizing, connections

Mercy Watson to the Rescue by Kate DiCamillo illustrated by Chris Van Dusen*

I love this series!
It is funny and wacky!  The Watsons have a pet pig, Mercy, who they keep in their home.  The sweet couple is naive and always gives Mercy lots of praise, the benefit of the doubt and lots of buttered toast.
A great series to read aloud to a preschooler who is ready for longer books.  Lots of beautiful, colorful illustrations by Mr. Van Dusen.
*Highly recommend.

Fly High, Fly Guy! by Tedd Arnold*

This humorous series about a boy Buzz and his pet fly (Fly Guy) is perfect for beginning readers.
In this book the family takes a road trip but are worried Fly Guy will become lost because he is too small.
Small Guy saves the day!
*Highly recommend.

Giant Squid by Mary M. Cerullo and Clyde F. E. Roper*

This book shares information about the mysterious giant squid and also relates about Clyde Roper's investigations of the giant squid.
Full of facts and incredible photographs.  My boys and I learned a lot just when we took a picture walk before we read it thoroughly.
I really like how the book reveals how scientists ask questions, investigate and experiment with ideas.
*Highly recommend.
Text features: contents, photographs, labels, picture captions, headings, subheadings, diagrams,
Strategies: synthesize,  determining importance-main idea, asking questions

Graphs, Graphs, Graphs! by Kelly Boswell

Part of a series of mathematical ways to show data.
Larger sized book makes it great to share with a larger group.
Organized in an appealing way-lots of color too.
The text engages the reader and requires him/her to respond to questions.
Critical thinking questions in the back to connect to Common Core.
Text features:  headings, labels, graphs, glossary, read more section, critical thinking questions, index

Outside the Box by Karma Wilson illustrated by Diane Goode

Very funny poems-wide variety of format/type.
My boys, of course, liked the potty humor ones best!

Treehouses and Playhouses You Can Build by David and Jeanie Stiles

Photographs of incredible little (and not so little!!) treehouses/playhouses.
Step by step instructions and diagrams included.