We can all remember the good old days of first grade, where sentences like “Dan and Nan ran fast,” predominantly made up our literature and the concept of compound words was revolutionary. From these humble beginnings came a new skill invaluable to our education: the ability to read. With this ability we made waves in terms of historical progress, as it was not very long ago that the ability to read was a luxury reserved for only the rich, the powerful, or the male. Reading has become commonplace in today’s culture, and often we take this gift for granted. However, recent data about Generation Alpha’s school performance is raising alarm bells in the educational community. According to a statistic from the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), a whopping 69% of America’s fourth graders aren’t proficient in reading. Teachers nationwide are concerned that this stunted learning will have negative ripple effects on these students for the rest of their education. Several factors are suggested to have contributed to this decline in literacy, including the COVID-19 pandemic and shutdown, decreasing attention spans, and increasing use of digital devices. This trend is complex in its causes and impacts, but one thing is clear: now, more than ever, we should embrace the leather tomes and embark on new adventures within their pages. This year for Christmas break, the Triangle is hosting a Sustained Seasonal Reading contest. Any person who reads three books from the list below over the holiday will receive a free Markham meal! To submit an application, fill out the form attached.
Contest Eligible Books:
Wednesday Wars by Gary Schmidt
In this Newbery Honor-winning novel, Gary D. Schmidt offers an unforgettable antihero. The Wednesday Wars is a wonderfully witty and compelling story about a teenage boy’s mishaps and adventures over the course of the 1967-68 school year in Long Island, New York.
Dear Mr. Knightley by Catherine Reay
Dear Mr. Knightley is an emotional, haunting tale of hope and perseverance in the face of adversity. With depth and honesty, Katherine Reay’s debut novel will grip your heart in the very first pages and not let go.
*The Giver by Lois Lowry
Twelve-year-old Jonas lives in a seemingly ideal world. Not until he is given his life assignment as the Receiver does he begin to understand the dark secrets behind this fragile community.
*Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie
Just after midnight, the famous Orient Express is stopped in its tracks by a snowdrift. By morning, the millionaire Samuel Edward Ratchett lies dead in his compartment, stabbed a dozen times, his door locked from the inside. Without a shred of doubt, one of his fellow passengers is the murderer.
And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
Ten people, each with something to hide and something to fear, are invited to an isolated mansion on Indian Island by a host who, surprisingly, fails to appear. On the island they are cut off from everything but each other and the inescapable shadows of their own past lives. One by one, the guests share the darkest secrets of their wicked pasts. And one by one, they die…
Hatchet by Gary Paulsen
This award-winning contemporary classic is the survival story with which all others are compared—and a page-turning, heart-stopping adventure, recipient of the Newbery Honor.
Once Upon a Wardrobe by Patti Calahan
1950: Margaret Devonshire (Megs) is a seventeen-year-old student of mathematics and physics at Oxford University. When her beloved eight-year-old brother asks Megs if Narnia is real, logical Megs tells him it’s just a book for children, and certainly not true. Homebound due to his illness, and remaining fixated on his favorite books, George presses her to ask the author of the recently released novel The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe a question: “Where did Narnia come from?” A heartfelt story about the making of Narnia.
*Twenty and Ten by Claire Bishop
“If we take these children, we can never betray them, no matter what the Nazis do.” Easy, thrilling read!
Evidence Not Seen by Darlene Deibler Rose
This is the true story of a young American missionary woman courage and triumph of faith in the jungles of New Guinea and her 4 years in a notorious Japanese prison camp. Never to see her husband again, she was forced to sign a confession to a crime she did not commit and face the executioner’s sword…
Counting by 7’s by Holly Goldberg Sloan
Willow Chance is a twelve-year-old genius, obsessed with nature and diagnosing medical conditions, who finds it comforting to count by 7s. It has never been easy for her to connect with anyone other than her adoptive parents, but that hasn’t kept her from leading a quietly happy life . . . until now.
This extraordinarily odd, but extraordinarily endearing, girl manages to push through her grief. Her journey to find a fascinatingly diverse and fully believable surrogate family is a joy and a revelation to read.
*The Christmas Box by Richard Paul Evans
The moving and unforgettable story of a widow and the young family who come to live with her is a modern classic you’ll want to share with all your loved ones from the “king of Christmas fiction.”
*Movie adaptations available
All book summaries come from Amazon.
If you have already read most or all of the books on this list and need more options, reach out to Mrs. Klass or Mrs. Smith!
Contest Form:
Once you’ve read three books and are ready to claim your prize, here are a few instructions. Fill out the form below so we know who is eligible, then email Mrs. Klass or Mrs. Smith and schedule a “BookTalk” so we can hear about the books you read. Arrangements will then be made for your reward. Good luck, and happy reading!
