Local Children’s Favorite Books

What is your favorite book? Why is it your favorite? In preparation for Children’s Book Week (November 12-18), children throughout Butte County answered these questions in interviews with library staff members.

The November 1, 2007 issue of the Chico Enterprise-Record includes comments about many local children’s favorite books. However, we got so many great suggestions we couldn’t fit them all into the newspaper column! For a complete list of the books that local children have called their favorites, add the following books to those listed in the newspaper.

Eight-year-old Jesse Quinn, a 3rd grader in Paradise, likes the Tintin books by Herge’.

A favorite of Raiden Montero, a 7-year-old 2nd grader in Gridley, is The Gingerbread Man because, he explains, “the gingerbread man looked so tasty.” Raiden said he was sad when the fox ate him, but luckily Raiden’s reader didn’t let the story end there. “I liked the ending,” Raiden says, “because they made more gingerbread men.”

Gabriel Owen, a 5-year-old kindergartener in Durham, likes About Kitten’s Family, the story of a little girl who takes care of a baby kitten, a bird, and a turtle. “The book makes me feel happy,” says Gabriel, “because God loves everyone.”

Durham’s Shane Walker, who is 10, likes “adventure stories that have a lot of action”—the whole Guardians of Ga’hoole series by Kathryn Lasky, Holes by Louis Sachar, and anything by Mark Twain.

In Chico, 4-year-old Erik Martinek describes his favorite book, Pezzettino by Leo Lionni. “Pezzettino is an orange piece,” he explains, “There’s not a single piece missing and Pezzettino decides he doesn’t need to be a part of something else. He can be himself.”

The favorite book of Erik’s 2-year-old brother, Kevin, is Baby Faces by Margaret Miller.

A favorite of Chico’s 11-year-old Jenny Zhu is the playful If You Give a Mouse a Cookie by Laura Joffe Numeroff. It is a never-ending circular story of an easily distracted little mouse.

Eleven-year-old Sara Ward of Chico says that Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak is the first book she remembers her dad reading to her. “Each time I read the book I think of my dad,” she says. Sarah remembers that whenever she was in time-out she would float off in her imagination to the land of the Wild Things and let the rumpus begin. She thinks this was a starting place for her current love of fantasy.

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte is a favorite of two young fans. Eight-year-old Sofiya Almeteva of Chico remembers fondly that her mother read the book to her in Russian. “Jane was so brave, when she left at 18 all alone,” says Sofiya. Oroville’s 9-year-old Emmeline Newton, a 4th grader, likes Jane Eyre “because it is scary and sad at the same time but it isn’t that funny and it would be a good book for you!”

A favorite of 11-year-old Bonnie Pong in Chico is Not a Box by Antoinette Portis. It is a cute story about a bunny “that makes me think of me,” says Bonnie, “because I make imaginary things out of junk.”

Kody Newton, a 12-year-old in 7 th grader in Oroville, explains that he likes Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain because “it is an adventure, and I like the old style of writing used by Mark Twain.”

Both 11-year-old Priya Chattopadhyay in Chico and 6-year-old Aiden Fisk, a 2nd grader in Oroville have enjoyed Magic Tree House by Mary Pope Osborne. Priya remembers “being read the whole Magic Tree House series and loving every minute.” Aidan likes it “because the tree house will go anywhere.”

The Three Little Pigs is the favorite of Mongtzerjay Xiong, who is 6 years old and in 1 st grade in Oroville. He says, “It is funny and the two pigs didn’t listen to their big brother so they learned a lesson and the wolf got eaten.”

Hans Sommers, a 6-year-old 1st grader in Oroville, says that his favorite book, Winnie the Pooh by A. A. Milne, is funny. “I like when Winnie eats too much and gets stuck in Rabbit’s hole. When they finally pull him, he pops out and gets stuck in the tree tops.” The book has good pictures, too.

Orphan by Choice , is a favorite book of Michelle Sommers, a 13-year-old 8 th grade student in Oroville. “It tells the sad story of divorce and how it affects the children’s lives. It also tells how love and prayers can bring couples back together. I like how Phyllis got back to her parents and Clay and Margaret got together.”

Nathanael Graber, who is 11 years old and in 6 th grade in Oroville, says his favorite book is The School Train because “It is a book of two boys that almost didn’t get to go to school. They almost missed the school train.”

Oroville’s 7-year-old 2 nd grader Benjamin likes a book about deep sea creatures “because of an awesomely awesome viper fish.”

Gurpartap, an 8-year-old 3 rd grade student in Oroville, finds Eric Carle’s The Very Busy Spider “awesome.”

Awesome” also describes the excitement of many children in Paradise, Gridley, Durham, Chico, and Oroville when they talk about their favorite books.