• Characters in these books illustrate Habit 1

    A Question of Trust                                                             FIC BAU

    By Marion Dane Bauer

    After his mother leaves the family, Brian copes with his feelings of rejection by secretly taking care of a stray cat and her two newborn kittens.

     

    Class President                                                                          J HUR

    By Johanna Hurwitz

    Julio hides his own leadership ambitions to help another candidate win the nomination for class president.

     

    The Great Kapok Tree                                                            JE CHE

    By Lynne Cherry

    The many different animals that live in a great kapok tree in the Brazilian rainforest try to convince a man with an ax of the importance of not cutting down their home.

     

    The Cay                                                                                   FIC TAY

    By Theodore Taylor

    When the freighter on which they are traveling is torpedoed by a German submarine during World War II, an adolescent white boy, blinded by a blow on the head, and an old black man are stranded on a tiny Caribbean island where the boy acquires a new kind of vision, courage, and love from his old companion.

     

    The Giver                                                                               FIC LOW

    By Lois Lowry

    Given his lifetime assignment at the Ceremony of Twelve, Jonas becomes the receiver of memories shared by only one other in his community and discovers the terrible truth about the society in which he lives.

     

    The Summer of the Swans                                                      J BYA

    By Betsy Byars

    A teenage girl gains new insight into herself and her family when her mentally handicapped brother gets lost.

     

    Saint George and the Dragon                                        J 398.2 HOD

    By Margaret Hodges

    Retells the segment from Spenser's The Faerie Queene, in which George, the Red Cross Knight, slays the dreadful dragon that has been terrorizing the countryside for years and brings peace and joy to the land.

     

    Shoeshine Girl                                                                            J BUL

    By Clyde Robert Bulla

    Determined to earn some money, ten-year-old Sarah Ida gets a job at a shoe shine stand and learns a great many things besides shining shoes.

     

    Walk Two Moons                                                                   FIC CRE

    By Sharon Creech

    After her mother leaves home suddenly, thirteen-year-old Sal and her grandparents take a car trip retracing her mother's route. Along the way, Sal recounts the story of her friend Phoebe, whose mother also left.

     

    Where the Red Fern Grows                                                 FIC RAW

    By Wilson Rawls

    A young boy living in the Ozarks achieves his heart's desire when he becomes the owner of two redbone hounds and teaches them to be champion hunters.

     

    Stone Fox                                                                                   J GAR

    By John Reynolds Gardiner

    Little Willie hopes to pay the back taxes on his grandfather's farm with the purse from a dog sled race he enters.

     

    Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry                                                  J TAY

    By Mildred Taylor.

     

    A black family living in Mississippi during the Depression of the 1930s is faced with prejudice and discrimination which its children do not understand.
     

     

    The Dog Who Had Kittens                                                     JE ROB

    By Polly M. Robertus

    Baxter the Basset Hound comes to the aid of some kittens when their mother disappears one afternoon.

     

    The Patchwork Quilt                                                               JE FLO

    By Valerie Flournoy

    Using scraps cut from the family's old clothing, Tanya helps her grandmother and mother make a beautiful quilt that tells the story of her family's life.

     

    Swimmy                                                                                     JE LIO

    By Leo Lionni

    Swimmy, a small black fish, finds a way to protect a school of small red fish from their natural enemies.

     

    Arthur’s Pet Business                                                            JE BRO

    By Marc Brown

    Arthur's determination to prove he is responsible enough to have a puppy brings him a menagerie of animals to care for.

     

    Clifford’s Good Deeds                                                              JE BRI

    By Norman Bridwell

    Clifford, a very big dog who always overdoes his good deeds, finds something to do that is his size.

     

    Twas the Night Before Thanksgiving                                     JE PIL

    By Dav Pilkey

    School children on a field trip to Mack Nugget's farm save the lives of eight turkeys in this poem based on "The Night Before Christmas."