Mrs. Malecha Reads!

by Richard Buckley Illustrated by Eric Carle Lexile:  610 Genre:  Fantasy One day, tortoise decides that he would like to move faster.  So he decides to leave his shell behind and get things going.  But without the protection of his shell, the world is a much scarier place!  The tortoise survives, but is happy when he reaches his shell again.  That was too much adventure for one day.

by Deborah Guarino Illustrated by Steven Kellogg Lexile: 290 Genre:  Fantasy Who is your mama?  Is she a llama?  Lloyd is looking for his mama and he's not sure where to find her.  He knows she is not a bat, swan, cow, seal, or a kangaroo.  Where or where is mama llama?

by Doreen Cronin Illustrated by Betsy Lewin Lexile:  160 Genre:  Fantasy Cows that type?  Hens that want electric blankets?  Ducks who want a diving board? What is happening on Farmer Brown's farm.  He needs milk and eggs, but the hens ands cows are on strike. Something will have to be done!

by Anne Gutman Illustrated by Georg Hallensleben Genre:  Realistic Fiction Lisa is taking her first airplane trip alone to visit her Uncle in New York.  She is so excited to fly all by herself.  She runs into a few problems along the way; an unfriendly seat mate, a movie she can't see, and a full glass of orange juice that ends up being spilled.  But it wouldn't be a real adventure, without a few mishaps along the way!

by Rebecca Ashdown Genre:  Fantasy Bob and Flo are playing hide and seek with their new friend at preschool, Sam.  Bob is trying really hard to find good hiding places, but Flo and Sam keep finding him right away!  Bob is going to have to get really creative if he is going to hide from his friends!

Written and Illustrated by Jarvis Genre:  Fantasy Fred the elephant is very forgetful.  Luckily he has his good friend Monkey to help him remember what it is he is supposed to do.  However, Monkey sometimes likes to make Fred do silly things.  If only Fred could remember all on his own...

by Heather Tekavec Illustrated by David Huyck Lexile:  650 Genre:  Fantasy What would happen if you put the monkey cage right next to the playground?  This was one zookeeper's bright idea.  But things didn't work out the way she thought they would.  First of all, the monkeys stopped goofing around because they wanted to act like the children.  Then, the children got tired of watching the boring monkeys, so then they started to goof around.  Their parents didn't know what to do.  So the zookeeper stepped in and came up with the perfect solution!

by Michelle Knudsen Illustrated by Kevin Hawkes Lexile:  470 Genre:  Fantasy One day a lion walks into the library.  When this event is reported, the librarian asks if the lion is breaking any rules.  (Because we all know there are lots of rules in the library...)  But nobody seems to know whether or not there are rules about having a lion in the library.  Should he be able to stay or should the lion be asked to leave?  The librarians will have to decide what to do about the lion in the library.

by Isabella Hatkoff, Craig Hatkoff, and Dr. Paula Kahumbu Photographs by Peter Greste Lexile:  920 Genre:  Memoir This is the true story of two unlikely friends:  Owen, a hippopotamus, and Mzee, a giant tortoise. When Owen loses his mother in a tsunami in December of 2004, he is found on the beach by rescuers who take him to Haller Park for rehabilitation.  That is where he meets Mzee who becomes Owen't new mother.  No one is sure why the two bond the way they do, but is clear to everyone who visits, that this friendship is keeping both of them thriving.

by Jeanette Winter Genre:  Memoir This book is contains two words: "Mama" and "Baby." So most of the story is told through the artwork.  It is the true story of two unlikely friends:  Owen, a hippopotamus, and Mzee, a giant tortoise.  When Owen loses his mother in a tsunami in December of 2004, he is found on the beach by rescuers who take him to Haller Park for rehabilitation.  That is where he meets Mzee who becomes Owen't new mother.  No one is sure why the two bond the way they do, but is clear to everyone who visits, that this friendship is keeping both of them thriving.

by Vikki Myron and Bret Witter Illustrated by Steve James Lexile:  590 Genre:  Memoir One day, a small orange kitten showed up in the book return bin at the public library in Spencer, Iowa.  Vicky, the librarian, decided to clean the poor frightened kitten up and turn him into the library cat.  At first, Dewey wasn't sure what to make of all the people and all the things in the library.  But eventually he decides to become a library cat and help make the day brighter for every person who visits.  It's exhausting work, but someone has to do it, so why not Dewey, the library cat?

by Dottie Enderle Illustrated by Colleen M. Madden Genre:  Fantasy Every book has an address and the library gingerbread man lives at 398.2.  But he is not content to remain there so off he runs through the 400s, 500s and beyond.  Along the way characters from each of those addresses, chase after him until he gets to 998 and runs into the Arctic Fox.  Will the fox help him get out of a jam or is the library gingerbread man about to become the fox's lunch?

by Giles Andreae Illustrated by Guy Parker-Rees Lexile:  450 Genre:  Fantasy Gerald wants to dance more than anything.  All of the animals in the jungle are able to, except for him.  With his long neck and long legs, it seems that dancing is not something he will be able to do. All of the animals laugh at him, but Gerald does not give up.  It turns out that Gerald actually can dance, once he finds the music that is just right for him.