Best Fiction Books by Grade at VCL: Second Grade
Reader's advisory guide for best books at VCL organized by grade
Second graders
Children become more confident and fluent in their reading skills during this school year. They will most likely want to read series books with familiar characters as well as longer chapter books.
Many of our books for this age group have a large orange dot on the spine for easy locating in the fiction section.
Series books
- The Tiara Club at Ruby Mansions byCall Number: JUV-SERIES TIARAISBN: 9780061434846Publication Date: 2007-12-26Princess Chloe can't wait to wear her primrose petticoats to the Ruby Mansions ball. But she's forgotten her invitation! And when Princess Gruella wants to borrow her favorite dress, things get even worse.
- The Hidden Stairs and the Magic Carpet byCall Number: JUV-SERIES SECRETSISBN: 9780590108393Publication Date: 1999-06-01A hidden door. A magical staircase. Eric, Julie, and Neal have just found something magic in Eric's basement. They have discovered a staircase to another world! The world of Droon is amazing - full of magic, flying lizards, and fun, furry creatures. But how will Eric, Julie, and Neal find their way home? Maybe their new friend, Princess Keeah, can help?
- Horrid Henry byCall Number: JUV-SERIES HORRIDISBN: 9781402217753Publication Date: 2009-04-01Horrid Henry and his neighbor Moody Margaret decide to make the most sloppy, slimy, sludgy, sticky, smelly, gooey, gluey, gummy, greasy, gloppy glop possible. Is it the best glop in the world or the worst thing that's ever happened to them?
- Anyone but Me!* byCall Number: JUV-SERIES KATIEISBN: 9780448426532Publication Date: 2002-05-01Katie Carew, nicknamed Katie Kazoo by the class bully, had no idea what would happen when she wished that she could be anyone but herself. But now her wish has come true, and-switcheroo!-she keeps turning into other people and even animals! What is one ordinary third-grade girl with a really extraordinary problem to do? It's a good thing Katie is resourceful and smart enough to find a solution for every problem . . . no matter how much of a disaster she causes!
Fiction
- Bad to the Bone * byCall Number: J NOLANISBN: 9780761454397Publication Date: 2008-11-01Two canines have a ball trying to train their masters in this humorous "tail".
* Part of a series: Down Girl and Sit - Bed, Bats, and Beyond byCall Number: J HOLUBISBN: 9781581960778Publication Date: 2008-09-01Fang, a bat, is having a tough time getting to sleep. His brother Fink decides he needs a story - a scary story. Now Fan really can't get to sleep. Next, brother Batrick thinks he has the answer - an adventurous pirate story! Fang is so excited that he is even more wide awak. Then sister Batsy offers a dramatic romance story about Cleobatra. That's even worse! How will Fang finally get to sleep? There's one story yet to hear . . . will it be the one that works?
- The Chicken Squad * byCall Number: J CRONINISBN: 9781442496767Publication Date: 2014-04-08They're chicks on a mission-and on this, their first (mis)adventure, the Chicken Squad launches a galactic backyard expedition. Meet the Chicken Squad: Dirt, Sugar, Poppy, and Sweetie. These chicks are not your typical barnyard puffs of fluff. No sir, they're too busy solving mysteries and fighting crime. So when Squirrel comes barreling into the chicken coop, the chicks know they're about to get a case. But with his poor knowledge of shapes ("Big" is not a shape, Squirrel!) and utter fear of whatever it is that's out there, the panicky Squirrel is NO HELP. Good thing these chicks are professionals. But even professionals get worried. Especially once they see that round, shiny, green, BIG thing in the yard. What if it's a UFO full of aliens who want chickens as pets?
* First of a series: The Chicken Squad - Rosa and the Water Pony * byCall Number: J KITISBN: 9780807550885Publication Date: 2011-07-01The mermaid friends are excited about Mermaid Bay's annual carnival, where the best performance wins a beautiful pearl necklace! Rosa uses magic to create a pony out of water, and she plans to perform amazing tricks on its back. But just before the carnival begins, the magical water pony is stolen. Who is trying to sabotage the friends' performance--and why?
* Part of a series: Mermaid Mysteries - That Crazy Eddie and the Science Project of Doom byCall Number: J COXISBN: 9780823419319Publication Date: 2005-04-01Third grader Matt is dying to win first place at the school science fair. The prize is a gift certificate for fifty dollars and will buy him the skateboard of his dreams. But when he teams up with his best friend Eddie, he finds that working together isn't so easy. When Matt finds out what Eddie told the class when he was out sick, he wants to blow his top just like a real volcano. Will Matt lose the science fair competition and his best friend?
- The Case of the Stinky Socks byCall Number: J MONTGOMERYISBN: 9781575652856Publication Date: 2009-02-01The high school's star pitcher is missing his lucky socks, and his pitching is going to pieces! Can detective duo Milo and Jazz find the thief - before the big game?
*First in the series - Piper Green and the Fairy Tree byCall Number: J GREENISBN: 9780553499230Publication Date: 2015-08-04There are three things you should know about Piper Green: 1. She always says what's on her mind (even when she probably shouldn't). 2. She rides a lobster boat to school. 3. There is a Fairy Tree in her front yard. Life on an island in Maine is always interesting. But when a new teacher starts at Piper's school--and doesn't appreciate the special, um, accessory that Piper has decided to wear--there may be trouble on the horizon. Then Piper discovers the Fairy Tree in her front yard. Is the Fairy Tree really magic? And can it fix Piper's problems?
*First in the Series - Flat Stanley - His Original Adventure! byCall Number: J BROWNISBN: 9780060097912Publication Date: 2013-12-23When Stanley Lambchop wakes up one morning, his brother, Arthur, is yelling. A bulletin board fell on Stanley during the night, and now he is only half an inch thick! Amazing things begin happening to him. Stanley gets rolled up, mailed, and flown like a kite. He even gets to help catch two dangerous art thieves. He may be flat, but he's a hero.
*First in the series - Mrs. Noodlekugel and Four Blind Mice byCall Number: J PINKWATERISBN: 9780763650544Publication Date: 2013-09-24When Mrs. Noodlekugel's four mice make a terrible mess with cookie crumbs at tea, she decides to take them on the bus to visit the eye doctor and invites Nick and Maxine to come along! The mice ride on Mrs. Noodlekugel's hat, while Mr. Fuzzface, her talking cat, has the indignity of riding in a carrier. Afterward, the hungry crew head to Dirty Sally's Lunchroom, but the mice overdo their cheesecake and run out the door. Luckily a policeman is at the ready to help with the search as is a rough-edged, yarn-spinning alley cat with a surprising connection to Mr. Fuzzface!
- The Case of the Lost Boy byCall Number: J BUTLERISBN: 9780807509104Publication Date: 2010-03-01King has a very big mystery to solve. His family is missing, and he's been put in the P-O-U-N-D. Why doesn't his beloved human (Kayla) come to get him? When King is adopted by Connor and his mom, things get more confusing. The new family calls him Buddy! And just as Connor and Buddy start to get acquainted, Connor disappears! Buddy (aka King) has big problems to solve, but with some help from his friend Mouse (a very large dog) and the mysterious cat with no name, he shows what a smart, brave dog can do.