Recommended Reading for Second Grade Students

This list encompasses the many reading levels found among second graders and includes just a sampling of the many outstanding texts available to students.

Adventure

Amber Brown adventure stories by Paula Danzinger          

Arthur Tricks the Tooth Fairy by Marc Brown

Cam Jansen adventure stories by David Adler

Castle under Attack by Nicola Baxter

Gleam and Glow by Eve Bunting

Giggle, Giggle, Quack by Cronin, Doreen

Get Ready for Second Grade, Amber Brown by Paula Danzinger

Pinky and Rex(and other Pinky and Rex stories) by James Howe

Henry and Mudge: The First Book of their Adventures by Cynthia Rylant      

Teague, MarkThe Secret Shortcut  by Mark Teague

Usborne                               Agent Arthur's Desert Challenge  by Usborne

Animals

Ahlberg, Allan                       The Pet Shop

Amato, Carol                        Chessie, the Meandering Manatee

Berger, Gilda and Melvin        Brrr! A Book about Polar Bears

Buehner, Caralyn                  The Escape of Marvin the Ape

Byars, Betsy                        Little Horse

Cox, Judy                            Cool Cat, School Cat

Demas, Corinne                   The Perfect Pony
Fritz, Jean                           Where Are The Night Animals?

Griffith, Helen                       Alex and the Cat

Griffith, Helen                       Emily and the Enchanted Frog

Haas, Jessie                        Runaway Radish

Hoff, Syd                             Danny and the Dinosaur

Lobel, Arnold                       Owl at Home

Lobel, Arnold                       Frog and Toad

Marshall, James                  Fox on the Job

Minarik, Else                       Little Bear's Visit

Rylant, Cynthia                    Henry and Mudge and the Happy Cat

Biographies

Adler, David                    A Picture Book of Anne Frank

Busby, Peter                   First to Fly: How Wilber and Orville Wright Invented the Airplane

DePaola, Tomie                 26 Fairmount Avenue

Fantasy

Abbott, Tony                            The Hidden Stairs and the Magic Carpet

Cole, Joanna                       The Magic School Bus Inside the Earth
Coombs, Patricia                 The Magician and McTree
Griffith, Helen                       Emily and the Enchanted Frog
Howe, James                       It Came From Beneath the Bed
Osborne, Mary Pope            Magic Tree House stories

Pickett, Anola                      Old Enough for Magic

Folk and Fairytales

Aardema, Verna                        Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People's Ears

Galdone, Paul                  The Magic Porridge Pot
Kellogg, Steven                    Paul Bunyan, A Tall Tale
Kimmel, Eric                        Anansi and the Moss-Covered Rock

Kimmel, Eric                        Baba Yaga: A Russian Folktale

Lester, Julius                             John Henry

Marshall, James                         Hansel and Gretel
Schecter, Ellen                 The Town Mouse and the Country Mouse

Storr, Catherine                The Sword in the Stone
Tarcov, Edith                        The Frog Prince

Yolen, Jane                     Sleeping Ugly

Young, Ed                         Lon Po Po

Zemach, Margot                The Three Wishes: An Old Story

Historical Fiction

Bunting, Eve                     Dandelions

Bunting, Eve                     Train to Somewhere

Cohen, Barbara                 Molly's Pilgrim

Fritz, Jean                        George Washington's Mother

Hopkinson, Deborah                 Fannie in the Kitchen

Lasky, Kathryn                  She Wore A Dead Bird On Her Head

Nichol, Barbara                  Beethoven Lives Upstairs

Ross, Alice                      The Copper Lady

Ryan, Pam Munoz              The Flag We Love

Winter, Jonah                    Paul Revere and the Bell Ringers

Humor

Allard, Henry                                  Miss Nelson is Missing

Barrett, Judi                                  Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

Dahl, Roald                                    The Enormous Crocodile

dePaola, Tomie                           Bill and Pete

Levine, Caroline                  Riddles to Tell Your Cat

Mayer, Mercer                              There's a Nightmare in My Closet

Parish, Peggy                   Amelia Bedelia

Pilkey, Dav                       Dog Breath

Quackenbush, Peter           Henry's Awful Mistake

Sachar, Louis                        Marvin Redpost: Is He a Girl?

Small, David                     Imogene's Antlers

Steig, William                   Doctor De Soto

 Mystery
 

Adler, David                          Cam Jansen stories

Hayes, Geoffrey                      The Treasure of the Lost Lagoon

Hoban, Lillian                        The Case of the Two Masked Robbers

Rosenbloom, Joseph             Deputy Dan and the Bank Robbers
Rosenbloom, Joseph             Deputy Dan Gets His Man
Rylant, Cynthia                     The Case of the Missing Monkey

Sharmat, Marjorie W.            Nate the Great stories

Aliki                                    Corn Is Maize: The Gift of the Indians

Aliki                                             Mummies Made in Egypt

Aliki                                               My Visit to the Dinosaurs

Branley, Franklyn                      The Planets in Our Solar System

Berger, Melvin & Gilda            Brrr!: A Book about Polar Bears

Cole, Joanna                        You Can't Smell a Flower with Your Ear

Donelly, Judy                       The Titanic, Lost and Found

Donelly, Judy                       Moonwalk: The First Trip to the Moon

Dussling, Jennifer                 Bugs! Bugs! Bugs!

Heller, Ruth                         Chickens Aren't the Only Ones

Maestro, Betsy                    The Story of the Statue of Liberty

McMullan, Kate                    Dinosaur Hunters

Myllers, Rolf                         How Big is a Foot?

Nirgiotis, Nicholas                     Volcanoes

Pallotta, Jerry                  The Icky Bug Counting Book

Schwartz, David                        If You Made a Million
Simon, Seymour                  Incredible Sharks
Simon, Seymour                  Seymour Simon's Book of Trains
Simon, Seymour                  Super Storms
Yolen, Jane                         Letting Swift River Go

Poetry

Hopkins, Lee Bennett            Best Friends

Hopkins, Lee Bennett            Surprises

Kuskin, Karla                        Something Sleeping in the Hall

Merriam, Eve                        Blackberry Ink

Prelutsky, Jack                    What I Did Last Summer

Yolen, Jane                                Bird Watch: A Book of Poetry

Sports

Allard, Harry                        Miss Nelson Has A Field Day
Christoper, Matt                   The Dog That Pitched a No-Hitter
Klein, Monica                       Backyard Basketball Superstar
Krensky, Stephen                 Louise, Soccer Star?
Myers, Ernice                      Sidney Rella and the Glass Sneaker
Peterson, P.J.                      The Fireplug is First Base