Chapter Books for Kids Grades 2-4
There are so many different reading levels at this age!
Hi guys!
This week we are moving past picture books into some chapter books. I had a request for chapter books for the 2-4 grade level (thanks Lindsey!)
These grade levels can span a HUGE difference in reading levels. This is also the age that kids get interested in chapter books. I really like that when kids start reading chapter books, their reading time increases. And I like that reading becomes something they want to do independently. Many of these recommendations are books that I hope your kids will pick up to read to themselves.
Some kids will be ready to jump in feet first, and that’s super fun. If that’s not your child, don’t worry. My oldest son wanted to read chapter books ASAP, the bigger the better. My younger son took much longer to want to do this. In part, I think it was because the chapter books he really likes are not the ones my older son likes. It took us a while and a bit of experimenting to figure out what he likes, and now that he is in the groove he’s opening up to books he was resistant to (I talked about how he’s reading Harry Potter 4 here). I always try to keep my recommendations varied, and I really tried to do that here. Both in reading level and content. If your kid still isn’t ready for chapter books, that is OKAY. Picture books are no less worthy than chapter books.
I do read aloud from a chapter book most nights, so I did include several books we’ve read aloud together and enjoyed. I also included a book that is FANTASTIC on audio.
I Recommend:
Mac B, Kid Spy: Mac Undercover by Mac Barnett, illustrations by Mike Lowery 149 pages. (series)
Mac Barnett is one of my favorite kids authors. Although he mainly writes picture books, he’s also written a few chapter books for kids. This is an introductory chapter book and it’s silly and sweet and has a fun mystery. Of all the books I’m recommending today, this one has the lowest reading level, so it’s a good choice if your child is just starting to dive into chapter books.
Frindle by Andrew Clements, illustrations by Brian Selznick 105 pages.
This stand alone book about a boy who invents a new word is really fun. I read it to my boys a few months ago and we all really enjoyed it. This one is nice and short, but not babyish.
I Survived: The Welllington Avalanche by Lauren Tarshis 144 pages (series). I know this is a wildly popular series, and I won’t lie: these books are formulaic, and you don’t read them for the artistic writing. But they won’t drive you nuts if you read them aloud, and they are a hit with kids who gravitate towards realistic fiction or non-fiction over fantasy and magical fiction. Non-fiction with an element of danger, even better. These books pile that on.
They feel a lot less babyish than say, The Magic Tree House Series, and by the time my kids get to 3rdgrade they don’t want books that feel babyish at all. I also enjoyed learning about historic events in the ones I’ve read, many of which I had not heard of (and immediately googled). That’s why I’m recommending the Wellington Avalanche book. Had you ever heard of this disaster? Me either.
This series has been a super hit with my son who had a harder time finding his footing in chapter books.
How to Train Your Dragon by Cressida Cowell, 240 pages (series)
We’ve all seen these movies, and they’re great—but guys there are 12 books in this series and they’re different from the movies. There are some similarities, but it feels like a whole new hilarious, zany, dangerous world. I think this is one of the best series for kids in this age range out there. And this is hands down my FAVORITE audio series for kids this age. I did read one of these books aloud to my kids and it was fun, but exhausting. So unless you have a lot of read-aloud stamina, I recommend this one on audio, or just for your child to read to themselves.
*Parents a heads up: one of the characters introduced in book 3 is named Big-Boobied Bertha.*
Half-Magic by Edward Eager 217 pages (series). This is an old book, first published in 1954. It’s sweet and funny and delightful. Sometimes old books drag a bit or spend lots of time with unnecessary descriptions, but this book doesn’t. I read it aloud to my kids recently and was surprised at how much we all liked this story about siblings who find a ring that is half-magic. Our copy is my kids grandma’s from when she was young, so that was special.
The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate, 336 pages (series). Ivan is a gorilla who has lived in a shopping mall his whole life. His life revolves around painting, watching tv, and his two animal friends who also live at the mall: Stella, an old elephant, and Bob, a stray dog. Then Ruby, a baby elephant who was captured in the wild, comes to live at their mall. This story is a fictionalized account of an actual gorilla named Ivan, who lived and painted at a mall in Washington State for most of his life until he was placed at Zoo Atlanta. My kids and I really enjoyed this book.
The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo 267 pages.
I read this book aloud to my boys and really liked it. Then I looked at the Goodreads reviews and, well, some people really do NOT like this book. I guess the hard part of recommending books is not everyone will like every book I recommend. That’s okay. I would still recommend this book any day.
So here’s what I liked about it. I liked that this book felt like a fairy tale, just written more modernly. I liked the themes, which included darkness vs. light, good vs. evil, compassion, difference in classes, love. I like the characters, who mostly felt unloved and that they didn’t fit in. I liked watching these characters learn about courage and choosing light. I liked the author’s writing style. I liked reading this aloud, because it had short chapters, which makes read-alouds so much easier.
Like any fairy tale, there are hard things in this book: mistreatment of children, for example. I felt like these hard things were told in an age-appropriate way and not condoned. It seemed like the hard things were what many readers did not like about this book. So you’ll have to be the judge for your family. Please let me know if you read this book about a little mouse condemned to a dungeon full of evil rats, a princess, a no soup decree, and a serving girl who wants to be a princess. I’m pretty curious about your opinion of it.
Hope this week is a good one for you and your kids, in real life and in book life.
Whitney