- A Gathering of Days, by
Joan Blos
- Alida's Song, by Gary Paulsen
- American family farm - Ancona,
George
- Becoming Felix / Nancy Hope
Wilson. Worried about the difficulties on his family's Massachusetts dairy
farm, twelve-year-old JJ is willing to give up on his dreams of becoming
a great clarinet player and on his friendship with a new Jewish classmate
who shares his love of music.
- Chasing Redbird - Creech,
Sharon
- Esperanza Rising by Pam
Munoz Ryan (think she wrote Riding Freedom) takes place in the central
valley. Each chapter is headed by a crop that is being harvested (asparagus,
beets, etc).
- Farmer Boy, by Laura Ingalls
Wilder
- Farmworker's friend (bio
of Cesar Chavez) - Collins, David R.
- Harris and Me, by Gary Paulsen
- Jimmy crack corn -
Ransom, Candice
- Jip – Katherine Paterson
- LOTTERY ROSE by Hunt.
- Lyddie, by Katherine Paterson
- Midnight fox - Byars,
Betsy
- My Daniel, by Pam Conrad
- Night cry - Naylor, Phyllis
- Out of the Dust, by Karen
Hesse
- -Rice is Life by Rita
Golden Gelman also sounded good. It is a poetry book centering on how rice
is grown. Might go with Everyone Eats Rice.
- Ruthie's Gift, by Kimberly
Bradley
- Seedfolks by Paul Flesichman
for seventh or eighth grade students.
- Spider Sparrow, by Dick
King-Smith
- -Summer Soldiers by Susan
Hart Lindquist--During World War I all the fathers in a small community
of sheep ranchers in California go to war, except for one (who is of German
descent). The teenage sons of the families are left to manage the ranches.
Excellent story of boys having to grow up too early. Good for 7th or 8th,
I think. Ties to the end of the 8th-grade social studies curriculum.
- -The Barn by Avi-- A pioneer
family moves to Oregon. The mother dies, and the father is gravely ill,
leaving three children to run the farm. Good reading for 5th. Ties to the
social studies curriculum for that grade too.
- The Birchbark House by Louise
Erdrich
- The Crow by Jean Craighead
George (or has Crow in title) is about crows,
- THE DAY NO PIGS WOULD DIE...
Gary Paulsen. My 9th grade RSP
- The root cellar - Lunn,
Janet L.
- THE SECRET GARDEN by BurnettL
- Unbroken, by Jessie Haas
- Voices from the fields
- Atkins
When Zachary Beaver Came to
Town" by Kimberly Holt Think it was a Newbery Honor Book last year. It
is the first title that popped into my head. The father raises worms and
the next door neighbor has some kind of crops. In the final scene of the
book, the boys and the family release millions of ladybugs in the field
while some music plays (was quite moving, but can't remember the details).
It isn't a hard read; maybe a bit long (218p). "During the summer of 1971
in a small Texas town, 13 year old Toby and his best friend, Cat, meet
the fattest boy in the world – 600 lb Zachary."
