first grade read aloud chapter books
[1]
Tumtum and Nutmeg (Series)
illus. Price, Nick
chapter book
read-aloud first grade and up
Tumtum and Nutmeg are mice who live in a mansion that happens to be located the the cupboard of a human house. The writing is clear and to the point, and I like it much more than most British works which I feel often ramble on a bit. The vocabulary is a little sophisticated, though I didn't need to take out my dictionary in order to define the words for my child.
[2]
The World According to Humphrey
chapter book
read-aloud first grade and up
highly recommended
audiobook CD
Another good book about rodents. This time a class pet hamster, Humphrey. This one is semi-realistic: the hamster is intelligent but he can not communicate with humans. He does have a talent for helping humans out. In fact, his purpose seems to be to solve the problems of all the humans around him.
[3]
The SOS File
Byars, Betsy; Myers, Laurie; Duffey, Betsy
chapter book
read-aloud first grade and up
A collection of short stories. Each child in a first grade class writes a story about an emergency that they had. All of the stories were pretty good, but one struck me. It was about a girl who was left in a dumpster at birth, was rescued, and when she was older went looking for her rescuer.
[4]
Gloria Rising
chapter book
read-aloud first grade and up
highly recommended
Everyone of Cameron's books we have read are excellent. Parents who like good role models will especially like her books. Gloria is a little girl who wants to be an astronaut. The main conflict is between Gloria and her fourth grade teacher, who is the epitome of strict, old style way of teaching.
[5]
Eoin Colfer's The Legend of Spud Murphy (Series)
chapter book
read-aloud first grade and up
Each book of this series has a legend that gets debunked. In Spud, two brothers are punished by being forced to spend the summer in the library, with the meanest librarian on earth. Well, she is pretty mean but it all turns out good in the end.
[6]
The Monster's Ring: A Magic Shop Book (Series)
illus. Coville, Katherine
chapter book
read-aloud first grade and up
A boy buys a ring from a strange shop which turns him into a dragon whenever he turns the ring. He gets back at the school bully. However, things don't work out when he can't turn back into a boy.
[7]
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory 
illus. Blake, Quentin
chapter book
read-aloud first grade and up
audiobook CD
A great book for beginning read-aloud chapter books. Charlie wins a ticket to visit the most spectacular chocolate factory in the world.
[8]
James and the Giant Peach
illus. Blake, Quentin
chapter book
read-aloud first grade and up
audiobook CD
A great book for beginning read-aloud chapter books. James escapes from a wretched life (being raised by his two aunts) in a giant peach, along with some rather large, but friendly, insects.
[9]
The Giants and the Joneses
illus. Swearingen, Greg
chapter book
read-aloud first grade and up
audiobook CD
A twist on Jack And Bean Stalk, but written from the point of view of a young female giant. The book is action-packed, but an interesting feature is the use of language. Donaldson created a giant language (with a dictionary at the back of the book) that kids will have loads of fun deciphering from context.
[10]
The Curious Adventures of the Abandoned Toys
illus. Schindler, S.D.
chapter book
read-aloud first grade and up
A story about abandoned stuffed animals who end up in a garbage dump. The story is familiar: a lost toy tries to find its owner, other toys try to deal with being thrown out. The writing is british. The vocabulary is extraordinarily complicated for an illustrated novel. So be prepared to define a lot of words, often 2 or 3 words in a single sentence. It is a great opportunity to increase your child's vocabulary. The illustrations are good, almost every page has one.
[11]
King of the Wind
illus. Dennis, Wesley
chapter book
read-aloud first grade and up
This is a famous Newberry award wining novel about a legendary race horse named Godolphin Arabian. One of the enduring traits of this book is that is tackles the prejudice that accompanies non-noble birth. Godolphin is not a purebred, and even though he is the fastest horse in the universe, he can not compete in the European races, because of his origins.
[12]
Bunnicula: A Rabbit Tale of Mystery
illus. Daniel, Alan
chapter book
read-aloud first grade and up
Bunnicula is a vampire bunny who sucks the juice right out of vegetables.
[13]
A Picture for Marc
illus. Trueman, Matthew
chapter book
read-aloud first grade and up
A child biography of Marc Chagall. This really explains what art is all about, why it is important, and why artists do it.
[14]
Babe
illus. Rayner, Mary
chapter book
read-aloud first grade and up
highly recommended
Babe is a pig who desperately tries to avoid the slaughter house. He is adopted by a mother sheep dog, and is determined to become useful on the farm by herding sheep. Though you can read this book to a preschooler, it is a little longer and more complicated then most of our other choices, so choose this book after your child is already comfortable listening to 100 page chapter books.
[15]
Alvin Ho: Allergic to Girls, School, and Other Scary Things
illus. Pham, LeUyen
chapter book
read-aloud first grade and up
highly recommended
Alvin Ho has severe anxiety. He has never talked at school. Not even to answer a question, and not to any other kids. Outside of school he talks fine, though he is anxious about quite a few things.
[16]
The Doll People (Series)
illus. Selznick, Brian
chapter book
read-aloud first grade and up
highly recommended
There are many toy stories out there, but for some reason I don't get sick of them. Just because toys are alive, does not determine the story, especially when the toys really stand for people. The novel under review is 255 pages long with many of Selznick's great illustrations. There isn't all that much text on each page, but nevertheless, this is a very long read aloud. I would only recommend it to an advanced listener. The book is also deep: when dolls are made, they must take an oath of secrecy to stay alive. If a human suspects they are alive, they fall into doll state, 24 hours of immobility. If they are reckless, they can fall into permanent doll state: death. Parents will enjoy it.
[17]
Judy Moody (Series)
illus. Reynolds, Peter
chapter book
read-aloud first grade and up
Judy Moody is a third grader that often gets into strong moods. She has a little brother, Stink, who also has a series of chapter books (see the preschool chapter book list). In fact, Stink is often the butt of some hilarious practical jokes. Overall, the books are humorous for kids, and to the adult, thanks to some clever puns.
[18]
Nim's Island (Series)
illus. Millard, Kerry
chapter book
read-aloud first grade and up
A father leaves his daughter alone on a tropical island while he goes off to study plankton. Well, she is not completely alone: a sea lion, iguana, and sea turtle keep her company.
[19]
Wayside School Stories
illus. Mccauley, Adam
chapter book
read-aloud first grade and up
This is a collection of loosely tied short stories that take place in school. All the stories are interesting. Most are strange; some have lessons; some poke fun at society. Both the young and old will enjoy these stories, though at different levels.
[20]
The Invention of Hugo Cabret
chapter book
read-aloud first grade and up
highly recommended
audiobook CD
I call this book: the worlds thickest picture book. The book measures roughly 526 pages, with something like 200 illustrations. When one does the subtraction one comes up with roughly 300 pages of text; however many text pages have only a few lines, and many pages are blank. What I am trying to say is that the book looks formidable, but it is quite possible to read the book to a preschooler. You can do it in 3-4 days, even. The illustrations are wonderful, and the story is complex and suspenseful. The writing is clear. It tells the story of an orphan who lives inside the walls of a Paris train station in 1931, fixing clocks and an automaton.
[21]
The Castle in the Attic
chapter book
read-aloud first grade and up
highly recommended
audiobook CD
A young boy is given a miniature castle by his beloved nanny who is returning to England. The castle turns out to be magical, containing a live knight. A classical quest adventure ensues. The book is a little dated, but it is a nice happy, non-scarey adventure, suitable for young ones.