Many students find the school year drags on, but it doesn’t have to. Here are 30 books that are middle-grade chapter books that you can read with your child to make their time in the classroom more enjoyable and productive. Many of these titles will propel your child towards choosing a favorite book for themselves.
Teachers: Want to help make this school year fun for your 2nd grader? Start them out with one of these 30 best chapter books!
Contents
1. Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls
The best chapter book series for 2nd graders are the Good Night Stories for Rebel Girls series. It’s a collection of fairy tales that focus on powerful women in history and modern day.
2. Trapped in a Video Game
2nd grade readers often struggle to make sense of the world around them. One hundred and forty years ago, just as modern technology was beginning to enter our lives, A Tale of Two Cities was published. It follows several groups of people in two different cities at two different times across several chapters. The story is about how Parisian citizens are trapped in their own complacency and powerlessness by their rich political masters.
3. Amelia Bedelia
Amelia Bedelia is a chapter book by Peggy Parish that follows the exploits of a clumsy housekeeper named Amelia. She has trouble understanding spoken and written words, as well as numbers, but her job is to make the bungalow homey and show its owner Mrs. Rogers who’s in charge while she’s away. Amelia is always setting off misery in this story which includes trying to plug an electric outlet socket with a lightbulb and spilling paint on Mrs. Rogers’ favorite sofa cushion.
4. The Boxcar Children
The Boxcar Children is a series of chapter books. The books are about four orphans who were sent to live with their grandfather, whom they had never met. One day, they find an abandoned boxcar and move in. The children do not have any adults in their lives that they can trust, so it is up to them to solve mysteries and right wrongs – or at least try!
5. Magic Tree House
These chapter books are on the list of the most popular books for 2nd grader readers, and they’re also a top seller among children’s literature award winners. Magic Tree House Chapter Books are about an adventurous boy named Jack who goes on a series as he travels from one time period to another in search of his family tree.
6. The Never Girls
It’s a strange, dark and stormy night in Pixie Hollow when the newest arrival to the coolest place on earth is about to find out that adventure is just waiting for you. The not-so-boring life of a fairy godmother is one thing. But what about a whole family of fairies who are having their very first adventure? That’s exactly what happens in this new chapter book for kids ages 7 to 10, featuring Tinker Bell and her friends from Disney Fairies.
7. Ivy and Bean’s
Ivy and Bean are two little girls who refuse to behave the way they’re supposed to. In this first chapter book in their hilarious new series, Ivy and Bean manage to annoy everyone with their antics until they’ve drawn the attention of the local police officer, a beady-eyed man named Officer Buckle.
8. Nancy Clancy
Nancy Clancy is a private detective that helps people in need and solves crimes that adults can’t handle. The stories are interesting and sometimes suspenseful, but always imaginative, with a key theme of friendship throughout the book.
9. The Flat Stanley
Many children today spend their summer’s days exploring new things. Children’s favorite book is called The Flat Stanley which was written by Jeff Brown and illustrated by Natalia Marinchenko. It is about a boy named Stanley, who falls on his back in an accident before Thanksgiving. His family then takes turns writing letters to him describing what they are doing for Christmas and New Year’s Eve that year.
10. Emily Windsnap
Emily Windsnap is a young mermaid who is just beginning to explore and learn about life away from the sea. She soon finds out that part of her destiny lies on land, where people need her help. The reader follows Emily’s story as she learns how to be an undersea adventurer and works on discovering the true meaning of water and air.
11. My Big Fat Zombie Goldfish
This book is about a boy called Tom and his pet goldfish Frankie. The goldfish goes back in time when Tom’s brother creates a formula that turns him into a zombie. This book is about the adventures and conflicts of their daily lives as they try to escape from the scientist’s labs.
12. Junie B. Jones
Junie B. Jones is the #1 bestselling “chapter book for 2nd grader readers” and one of the most popular children’s book series in America. Junie B.’s antics and adventures make her a timeless favorite for young readers, who love comic relief as well as some serious learning about being good friends, family, school, playing fair, and lots more.
13. Unicorn Academy: Rainbow of Adventure
The Unicorn Academy is the newest chapter book series for kids. Join Molly and her best friends in their quest to find out what is going on at the mysterious school. They discover that Unicorns, like humans, have strengths and weaknesses. This epic adventure will have you up all night!
14. My Weird School Daze
My Weird School Daze by Dan Gutman is a good book for 2nd grade readers. This is because of the vocabulary used, the responses from teachers and students, and how easy it reads. The story line was funny with imaginative illustrations. It would be a good book to share with kids that are going through 2nd grade or kids that find reading hard because they can read it as an adventure story too.
15. Pokémon
For many people and kids alike the Pokémon series is still a favorite in the world of fiction. To be a part of this fantasy one must read these books to understand what it’s all about.
16. Ballpark Mysteries: The Dugout
The Ballpark Mysteries series is geared towards elementary-aged readers. The books are set in a baseball stadium, and the main characters are two kids named Mike and Kate who work together to solve mysteries that happen there.
17. The Ramona
The Ramona chapter book is about a girl called Ramona who is the youngest of four children. When she starts kindergarten, Ramona is full of excitement and eager to learn new things. But as time goes on she learns that life in kindergarten isn’t so easy for her and for people who are different from everybody else because soon she gets picked on. She soon starts to worry about everything and forgets all the fun that one has in kindergarten.
18. Anne of Green Gables
One of the most popular stories on this site, with a total of 181,000+ readings. Written by L.M. Montgomery this is a classic tale about a headstrong 6 year old girl who changes her school and home while always sticking to her own values and heritage. Anne of Green Gables is one of the best places to start for your little reader who has just learned how to read independently but hasn’t hit their stride yet.
19. The Complete Adventures Of The Borrowers
The Borrowers is a series of children’s novels by English author Mary Norton published between 1952 and 1993. Most of the novels are set in an old house in Surrey, England. The novels tell the adventures of a family of tiny people who live under the floorboards of the house, borrowing items from it and other houses to survive.
20. The Judy Moody
This series of books follows Judy Mood, the unapologetic five-year-old who refuses to act her young age, as she navigates the world with her friends and family.
21. Warriors
The first book in the original Warriors series by Erin Hunter, Warriors: Into the Wild tells how an ordinary house cat named Rusty joins a wild pack of forest cats and becomes one of their toughest fighters.
22. The Chocolate Touch
Using the King Midas legend as a springboard, a little boy discovers he has the power to turn anything and everything into chocolate with the simple touch of his lips.
23. Rebekah – Girl Detective Fifth Grade Mysteries
Explore Rebekah’s adventures as she takes on new cases and fiendish puzzles, while you discover her deductive reasoning skills, creative problem solving abilities and how to be a detective. She’s also not afraid to use her wits against bullies and other hazards that stand in your way when trying to solve a case.
24. The Hardy Boys Secret Files
The Hardy Boys Secret Files chapter book is an educational children’s reference book with interactive online games that combine learning and fun. It was written and illustrated by Franklin W. Dixon and published in 1956, making it one of the first chapter books for children published during the 20th century. The story follows two teenage brothers, Frank (The Hardy) and Joe Hardy, as they investigate mysteries with their Aunt Gertrude who owns a newspaper stand in Bayport, New York.
25. The Last Kids on Earth
The Last Kids on Earth is a humorous book about a group of kids who are immune to an infection that has killed every other person on the planet. The series follows these kids as they try to survive in spite of the difficulties and wonders this new world brings them.
26. Theodore Boone
Theodore Boone is a young lawyer-in-training who gets caught up in the middle of a murder trial that could send someone to death row. When Theo’s friend Jennifer asks him to investigate the sudden death of her father, his world is turned upside down. He soon finds himself in deep trouble with his parents and under suspicion from the police.
27. The Heroes of Olympus
The Heroes of Olympus by Rick Riordan is a chapter book that follows Fourteen-year-old Percy Jackson and his adventures with the seven demigods (five boys and two girls) who ran away from their camp. Along with their companions, they must pursue and stop the Queen of Monsters from conquering Olympus. They will pit themselves against Gaea, King Dionysus’s sister and the earth itself.
28. Gaither Sisters Trilogy
Many amazing people have been born into this country that have brought great change to the world. One such person is Rita Williams-Garcia, a creative genius and New York Times best-selling author of young adult fiction. With her help, we can learn about the dark past of racism in America and how it affected certain people in society.
29. Dog Man
Ever since he was a little pup, Dog Man has had a tough life. One day, he finally gets his chance at stardom when an Evil Cat Councilor captures him and transforms him into the world’s first superhero dog.
30. Dragon Masters
The Dragon Masters chapter book by Tracey West is a fictional novel that takes place in the not too distant past when there were dragons on Earth and humans couldn’t tell them apart from regular ol’ lizards.
