Christmas Prezzie List #2 - Young Readers

All righty -here is where we talk about those books for kids who are just getting into reading. For my recs here, I'm mostly going with what the expert (in this case, my eldest kiddo) likes to read. The kid will snuggle on the couch with these books, reading them to herself, her brother, or one of the parentals, so I count that as a win.

Fly Guy series by Tedd Arnold

I'd give this one to a boy or a girl. Buzz has a pet fly, named Fly Guy. They have adventures, such as going on a cross country trip or meeting another kid with a pet fly at the park. There was even a school trip to a flyswatter factory. The kiddo thinks they are great. She can pretty easily read all of the words (and it even has chapters like mom's grown up books). The favorites right now are Fly High, Fly Guy and Buzz Boy and Fly Guy (where Buzz creates his own comic book).

Rocks and Fossils by Chris Pellant

It's not just the fantasy books in our house. We bring on the science too. This was a great intro to fossils for first readers (the preschooler loved it too). Just the right level of info along with fantastic photos/illustrations.

Fancy Nancy series by Jane O'Conner

I'm going to say that these are geared more for a girl audience. Nancy is very, very fancy. She loves to dress up, loves first grade, and everything French. She also has an exceedingly good vocabulary (the pages are peppered with the "fancy" name for things). We just recently read the original Fancy Nancy book, but to be honest, that wasn't her favorite. My resident Fancy Nancy aficionado prefers the Explorer Extraordinaire (where Nancy and her best friend Bree have their own nature club) or Poet Extraordinaire (where you have the introduction of many different forms of poetry). There are others on stargazing (another favorite) as well as Tea Parties (got some decent easy recipes and craft ideas in that one). You'll find different versions all over the bookstore/library. There are hardbacks, but also in the First Reader section, you'll find small paperbacks. Illustrations are well done too.