GUIDED READING LEVEL CHARACTERISTICS
AND SUGGESTED AUTHORS
LEVELS P – Q – R
Many of the same authors write books for young adult readers at these higher levels. There are fewer series books and many more individual titles by the same author. Caution should be taken when younger readers are capable of reading texts at very high levels to insure that the story line or theme is appropriate for their age and maturity level.
P
John Erickson (The Case of . . . series)
Roald Dahl stories
Gary Paulsen stories
Donald Sobel (Encyclopedia Brown series)
Joanna Cole (Magic Schoolbus series)
Jean Craighead George (One Day . . . series)
Louis Sachar (Wayside School series)
Jon Scieszka (Time Warp Trio series)
Q
American Girl series
Lois Lowry (Anastasia series)
Carolyn Keene (Nancy Drew series)
Phyllis Reynolds Naylor stories
James Howe (Bunnicula series)
Jackie French Koller (Dragon series)
Laura Ingalls Wilder stories
Judy Blume (Fudge series)
Todd Strasser (Help I’m Trapped . . . series)
Kay Moore, Ann McGovern, Ellen Levine (These 3 authors write a type of If You Lived in the Time of . . .series)
Susan Shreve (Joshua T. Bates series)
James Herriot stories
Marvin Miller (You Be the . . . series)
R
Gary Paulsen (Amos and Dunc series)
Patricia MacLachlan stories,
Marguerite Henry stories
Jean Fritz series
Cynthia Rylant stories
Andrew Clements stories
E. L. Konigsberg stories
Mike Venezia (artist biography series)
Cornerstones of Freedom series
Jerry Spinelli stories

Marguerite Henry (Misty stories)
Phyllis Reynolds Naylor stories
Ralph Fletcher stories
E. B. White stories
These trade books are available at many public libraries as well as bookstores.
If you don’t know your student’s guided reading level, scan the titles until you find books your student can read independently and try other books at the same level.
Against the Odds by Joe Layden
All About Sam by Lois Lowry
Amazing but True Sports Stories by Phyllis Hollander
Attaboy Sam by Lois Lowry
Baby Island by Carol R. Brink
A Bad Spell for the Worst Witch by Jill Murphy
Book of Black Heroes from A to Z by Wade Hudson
The Bicycle Man by Allen Say
Bunnicula by James Howe
The Burning Questions of Bingo Brown by Betsy Byars
The Canada Geese Quilt by Natalie Kinsey-Warnock
Circle of Gold by Candy Boyd
The Daring Rescue of Marlon the Swimming Pig by Susan Saunders
The Dragon series by Jackie Koller
Eddie and the Fire Engine by Carolyn Haywood
Ellen Tebbits by Beverly Cleary
Emily’s Runaway Imagination by Beverly Cleary
Encyclopedia Brown series by Donald Sobol
Fantastic Mr. Fox by Roald Dahl
Felicia the Critic by Ellen Conford
Felita by Nicholasa Mohr
Finding the Titanic by Robert Ballard
Five Brave Explorers by Wade Hudson
Five Notable Inventors by Wade Hudson
The Forgotten Door by Alexander Key
George Washington’s Breakfast by Jean Fritz
George’s Marvelous Medicine by Roald Dahl
Gerbilitis by Stephanie Spinner
The Ghost Fox by Laurence Yep
The Giraffe and the Pelly and Me by Roald Dahl
A Girl Called Al by Constance Greene
A Head Full of Notions: A Story about Robert Fulton by Andy Bowen
Helen Keller by Stewart Graff
Hot Fudge Hero by Pat Brisson

Howliday Inn by James Howe
The Hundred Penny Box by Sharon B. Mathis
Hurricanes: Wild Weather by Lorri Hopping
If You Grew Up with Abraham Lincoln by Ann McGovern
If You Lived at the Time of the Civil War by Kay Moore
If You Lived With the Sioux Indians by Ann McGovern
If You Traveled on the Underground Railroad by Ellen Levine
If Your Name Was Changed at Ellis Island by Ellen Levine
The Indian School by Gloria Whelan
It’s Mine! by Leo Lionni
Jacob Two-Two Meets the Hooded Fang by Mordecai Richler
Jazz, Pizzazz, and the Silver Threads by Mary Quattlebaum
Joyful Noise: Poems for Two Voices by Paul Fleischman
Justin and the Best Biscuits in the World by Walter and Mildred Pitts
Koi’s Python by Miriam Moore and Penny Taylor
Koya Delaney and the Good Girl Blues by Eloise Greenfield
Last Chance for Magic by Ruth Chew
Last Look by Clyde Bulla
A Lion to Guard Us by Clyde Bulla
The Lotus Seed by Sherry Garland
The Magic School Bus series by Joanna Cole
The Magic Squad and the Dog of Great Potential by Mary Quattlebaum
Martin’s Mice by Dick King-Smith
The Matchlock Gun by Walter Edmonds
The Minpins by Roald Dahl
Mixed-Up Max by Dick King-Smith
A Nose for Trouble by Nancy Wilson
Odds on Oliver by Constance Greene
Oh, Brother by Johnnice Wilson
One Day in the Tropical Rain Forest by Jean C. George
Owls in the Family by Farley Mowat
The Private Notebook of Katie Roberts, Age 11 by Amy Hest
Roald Dahl’s Revolting Rhymes by Roald Dahl
The School Mouse by Dick King-Smith
Shoebag by Mary James
The Skates of Uncle Richard by Carol Fenner
The Spray-Paint Mystery by Angela Medearis
Stone Fox by John R. Gardiner
The Story of Alexander Graham Bell by Margaret Davidson
The Story of Harriet Tubman by Kate McMullen
The Tales of Olga da Polga by Michael Bond
Tar Beach by Faith Ringgold
A Taste of Blackberries by Doris B. Smith
Time Warp Trio series by Jon Scieszka
Tornadoes! by Lorraine Hopping
Tut’s Mummy: Lost and Found by Judy Donnelly

Twisters and Other Terrible Storms by Will and Mary P. Osborne
The Twits by Roald Dahl
The Wall by Eve Bunting
Wayside School Is Falling Down by Louis Sachar
Who Stole The Wizard of Oz? by Avi
Wild and Woolly Mammoths by Aliki
Witch’s Cat by Ruth Chew
The Worst Witch by Jill Murphy
Yang the Youngest and His Terrible Ear by Lensey Namioka
Addy series (American Girls) by Connie Porter
The Airplane by Julie Sinclair
The Alamo by Tom McGowen
Aliens Ate My Homework by Bruce Coville
All about Deer by Jim Arnosky
All about Owls by Jim Arnosky
All-of-a-Kind Family by Sydney Taylor
Amazing but True Sports Stories by Phyllis Hollander
Anastasia Krupnik series by Lois Lowry
And Still the Turtle Watched by Sheila MacGill-Callahan
Animal Ark series by Ben Baglio
Antarctica by David Peterson
Australia by David Peterson
The Automobile by Julie Sinclair
Babe, the Gallant Pig by Dick King-Smith
Beetles Lightly Toasted by Phyllis R. Naylor
Betsy-Tacy by Maud Lovelace
The Bicycle by Larry Hills
The Big Wave by Pearl Buck
Black Diamond: the Story of the Negro Baseball Leagues by Patricia McKissack
Black-Eyed Susan by Jennifer Armstrong
Brighty of the Grand Canyon by Marguerite Henry
By the Shores of Silver Lake by Laura I. Wilder
Canada by Elaine Landau
The Cat who Went to Heaven by Elizabeth Coatsworth
Centerburg Tales by Robert McCloskey
Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White
Class Trip to the Cave of Doom by Kate McMullan
Dear Mr. Henshaw by Beverly Cleary
Erosion by Becky Olien
Farmer Boy by Laura I. Wilder
Felicity series (American Girls) by Valerie Tripp
Florence Nightingale by Lucile Davis
Fourth Grade Wizards by Barthe DeClements
Franklin D. Roosevelt by Steve Potts

Fudge-a-Mania by Judy Blume
George Washington by T.M. Suel
The Ghost on Saturday Night by Sid Fleischman
Grandpa’s Face by Eloise Greenfield
Hank the Cowdog by John Erickson
Hannah of Fairfield by Jean Van Leeuwen
Harry’s Mad by Dick King-Smith
Homer Price by Robert McCloskey
India by Elaine Landau
James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl
Jim Ugly by Sid Fleischman
John Adams by Muriel Dubois
Josefina series (American Girls) by Valerie Tripp
Junebug by Alice Mead
Just Juice by Karen Hesse
Kirsten series (American Girls) by Janet Shaw
Langston Hughes by B. A. Hoena
The Lemonade Trick by Scott Corbett
Little House in the Big Woods by Laura I. Wilder
Little House on the Prairie by Laura I. Wilder
The Long Winter by Laura I. Wilder
The Lost Flower Children by Janet T. Lisle
Mary on Horseback: Three Mountain Stories by Rosemary Wells
Medieval Feast by Aliki
Mixed-up Max by Dick King-Smith
Molly series (American Girls) by Valerie Tripp
Mostly Michael by Robert K. Smith
The Mouse of Amherst by Elizabeth Spires
Native American Stories by Joseph Bruchac
On the Banks of Plum Creek by Laura I. Wilder
On the Banks of the Bayou by Roger MacBride
Onion Tears by Diana Kidd
Outside and Inside Bats by Sandra Markle
Outside and Inside Kangaroos by Sandra Markle
Outside and Inside Sharks by Sandra Markle
Outside and Inside Snakes by Sandra Markle
The Pennsylvania Colony by Martin Hintz
Peru by Elaine Landau
Peter Tchaikovsky by Mike Venezia
Picasso by Mike Venezia
Prairie Songs by Pam Conrad
A Rain Forest Tree by Lorien Kite
The Roar of the Crowd by Bill Wallace
Sacagawea by Barbara Wittman
Sierra by Diane Siebert
The Solar System by Gregory Vogt

Soup by Robert Peck
Superfudge by Judy Blume
The Supreme Court by Patricia Quiri
Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume
Technical Foul by Bill Wallace
The Telephone by Marc Nobleman
There’s a Boy in the Girl’s Bathroom by Louis Sachar
There’s an Owl in the Shower by Jean C. George
The Toilet Paper Tigers by Gordon Korman
The True Story of the Three Little Pigs by Jon Scieszka
The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams
Whose Side Are You on? by Emily Moore
You Be the Jury by Marvin Miller
Absolutely True Story: How I Visited Yellowstone Park… by Willo Roberts
Ace: the Very Important Pig by Dick King-Smith
Adventures of Spider: West African Folktales by Joyce Arkhurst
After the Goat Man by Betsy Byars
Asteroids by Gregory Vogt
Attack on Pearl Harbor by Tom McGowen
Babe Ruth by Guernsey Van Riper
Backward Bird Dog by Bill Wallace
Black Gold by Marguerite Henry
Born to Trot by Marguerite Henry
The Boston Tea Party by Conrad Stein
The Boy Who Lost His Face by Louis Sachar
The Bracelet by Yoshiko Uchida
Brian’s Winter by Gary Paulsen
The Bully of Barkham Street by Mary Stolz
The Cabin Faced West by Jean Fritz
Caddie Woodlawn by Carol R. Brink
The Castle in the Attic by Elizabeth Winthrop
The Central Pacific Railroad by Clark Evans
The Challenger Disaster by Tim McNeese
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
Children of Christmas by Cynthia Rylant
The Choctaw by Rachel Koestler-Grack
Close to Home: A Story of the Polio Epidemic by Lydia Weaver
The Computer by Gayle Worland
The Dark-Thirty by Patricia McKissack
Deserts by Neil Morris
Devil’s Bridge by Cynthia DeFelice
A Dog Called Kitty by Bill Wallace
A Dog on Barkham Street by Mary Stolz
Dominic by William Steig

The Enormous Egg by Oliver Butterworth
The Family under the Bridge by Natalie Carlson
Fig Pudding by Ralph Fletcher
Fire in the Sky by Candice Ransom
Flight by Robert Burleigh
Flying Solo by Ralph Fletcher
Freaky Friday by Mary Rodgers
Freedom Crossing by Margaret Clark
Frindle by Andrew Clements
Gentle Annie: the True Story of a Civil War Nurse by Mary Shura
The Girl-Son by Anne Neuberger
The Great Kapok Tree by Lynne Cherry
Harry Houdini: Master of Magic by Robert Kraske
Hatchet by Brian Paulsen
Have You Seen Hyacinth Macaw? by Patricia Giff
Hello, My Name Is Scrambled Eggs by Jamie Gilson
How to Eat Fried Worms by Thomas Rockwell
Hydroelectric Power by Josepha Sherman
Iggie’s House by Judy Blume
The Indian in the Cupboard by Lynne R. Banks
The Inuit by Rachel Koestler-Grack
The Iroquois by Rachel Koestler-Grack
The Island by Gary Paulsen
Jar of Dreams by Yoshiko Uchida
Jennifer, Hecate, Macbeth, William McKinley, and Me, Elizabeth by E.L.Konigsburg
Just Call Me Stupid by Tom Birdseye
Justin Morgan Had a Horse by Marguerite Henry
The Landry News by Andrew Clements
Leonardo da Vinci by Barbara Witteman
The Library Card by Jerry Spinelli
A Long Way To Go: a Story of Women’s Right to Vote by Zibby O’Neal
Lost on a Mountain in Maine by Donn Fendler
Louis Pasteur by Kremena Spengler
Love You, Soldier by Amy Hest
Mary Cassatt by B. A. Hoena
Math Wiz by Betsy Duffey
Meet Calliope Day by Charles Haddad
Meet Martin Luther King, Jr. by James de Kay
Megan’s Island by Willo Roberts
Michelangelo by Shelly Sateren
Midnight Fox by Betsy Byars
Miracles on Maple Hill by Virginia Sorensen
Mirandy and Brother Wind by Patricia McKissack
Misty of Chincoteague by Marguerite Henry
The Monster’s Ring by Bruce Coville
Mummies Made in Egypt by Aliki

Nasty, Stinky Sneakers by Eve Bunting
The Navajo by Therese DeAngelis
No More Magic by Avi
The Noonday Friends by Mary Stolz
Norway by Elaine Landau
The One Hundredth Thing about Caroline by Lois Lowry
Otherwise Known as Sheila the Great by Judy Blume
Our Only May Amelia by Jennifer Holm
Phoebe and the General by Judith Griffin (Alternate title: Phoebe the Spy)
Picasso by Shelly Sateren
Pigs Might Fly by Dick King-Smith
Pink and Say by Patricia Polacco
Pioneer Girl: the Story of Laura Ingalls Wilder by William Anderson
The Pony Express by Peter Anderson
The Radio by Gail Worland
The River by Gary Paulsen
Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes by Eleanor Coerr
Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan
Saudi Arabia by Wende Fazio
Shiloh by Phyllis R. Naylor
Skylark by Patricia MacLachlan
Snow Treasure by Marie McSwigan
The Space Race by Tim McNeese
Spider Boy by Ralph Fletcher
Staying Nine by Pam Conrad
Stray by Dick King-Smith
Strider by Beverly Cleary
Stuart Little by E. B. White
Sun and Spoon by Kevin Henkes
The Television by Marc Nobleman
Thurgood Marshall by Karen Gibson
Tomorrow’s Wizard by Patricia MacLachlan
The Trouble with Tuck by Theodore Taylor
The Trumpet of the Swan by E. B. White
Tutankhamen’s Gift by Robert Sabuda
Who’s That Stepping on Plymouth Rock? by Jean Fritz
The Witches by Roald Dahl
Women Explorers of the Oceans by Jetty Kahn
Zeely by Virginia Hamilton