Adventure

Adventure books take their readers on an exciting journey or experience. Usually, there is something bold, risky, or even dangerous about this experience. The characters leave their everyday lives to undertake a physical adventure or the pursuit of knowledge or understanding.

You may read any book you like about a character having an exciting journey or unusual experience, something different from their everyday lives. If you have questions or need more ideas, see your school librarian! And remember: one story may fit into several categories, but you can only use it in one.

Here are some ideas of books you might read . . .

  • The Runaway Bunny by Margaret Wise Brown, illustrated by Clement Hurd

  • Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak

  • We’re Going on a Bear Hunt by Michael Rosen and Helen Oxenbury

  • Harold and the Purple Crayon by Crockett Johnson

  • The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats

  • Amos and Boris by William Steig (also Dominic, Abel’s Island, Doctor DeSoto, Brave Irene, Shrek!, and many others by Steig)

  • Are You My Mother? By P.D. Eastman

  • Stellaluna by Janell Cannon

  • Stuart Little by E.B. White

  • Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren

  • Frog and Toad books by Arnold Lobel

  • Mouse Tales and Mouse Soup by Arnold Lobel

  • The Magic Tree House series by Mary Pope Osborne

  • Junie B. Jones Series by Barbara Park

  • The Dog Man Series by Dav Pilkey

  • The Flat Stanley series by Jeff Brown

  • Mac B KidSpy series by Mac Barnett

  • The Princess in Black series by Shannon and Dean Hale

  • Ada Lace series by Emily Calandrelli

  • Zelda and Ivy series by Laura McGee Kvasnosky

  • The Bad Guys series by Aaron Blabey

  • The Bailey School Kids series by Debbie Dadey, Marcia Thornton Jones

  • Judy Moody series by Megan McDonald

  • Ruby Lu series by Lenore Look

  • The Famous Five series by Enid Blyton

  • Alvin Ho series by Lenore Look, illustrated by LeUyen Pham

  • Hey Jack! series by Sally Rippin

  • Stink series by Megan McDonald

  • My Weird School series by Dan Gutman

  • Nancy Drew and the Clue Crew series by Carolyn Keene

  • Nate the Great series by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat

  • Geronimo Stilton series by Elisabetta Dami

  • Calendar Mysteries series by Ron Foy

  • I Survived series by Lauren Tarshis

  • Katie Woo series by Fran Manushkin

  • Henry and Mudge series by Cynthia Rylant

  • Encyclopedia Brown series by Donald J. Sobol

  • Half Magic: Tales of Magic series by Edward Eager

  • The Chicken Squad series by Doreen Cronin

  • The Boxcar Children series by Gertrude Chandler Warner

  • Mercy Watson series by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Chris Van Deusen

  • Secret Agent Jack Stalwart series by Elizabeth Singer Hunt

  • The Last Kids on Earth series by Max Brallier

  • Ivy & Bean Series by Annie Barrows

  • The Secret Platform series by Eva Ibbotson

  • Chronicles of Claudette series by Jorge Aguirre and Rafael Rosado

  • Space Taxi series by Wendy Mass and Michael Brawer

  • The Knights' Tales Series by Gerald Morris, Illustrated by Aaron Renier

  • Journey by Aaron Becker

  • The Secret Shortcut by Mark Teague

  • Doors in the Air by David Weale, illustrated by Pierre Pratt

  • King Arthur’s Very Great Grandson by Kenneth Kraegel

  • Jonathan and the Big Blue Boat by Philip C. Stead

  • Jumanji by Chris Van Allsburg

  • Jemmy Button by Jennifer Udman and Valerio Vadali

  • Free Fall by David Weisner

  • The Highway Rat by Julia Donaldson and Alex Scheffler

  • Fortunately by Remy Charlip

  • Hiawatha and the Peacemaker by Robbie Robertson, illustrated by David Shannon

  • The Day Louis Got Eaten by John Fardell

  • Henry's Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad by Ellen Levine and Kadir Nelson

  • We’re Going on a Lion Hunt by David Axtell

  • George Flies South by Simon James

  • Thunder Rose by Jerdine Nolen, illustrated by Kadir Nelson

  • Louise, the Adventures of a Chicken by Kate DiCamillo & Harry Bliss

  • The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick

  • The Paper Princess by Elisa Kleven

  • Quest by Aaron Becker

  • Sebastian and the Balloon by Phillip C. Stead

  • The Adventures of the Dish and the Spoon by Mini Grey, Ruth Belov Gross

  • Kamik’s First Sled by Matilda Sulurayo, illustrated by Qin Leng

  • SkySisters by Jan Bourdeau Waboose, illustrated by Brian Deines

  • Stickeen by John Muir, retold by Donnell Rubay, illustrated by Christopher Canyon

  • Crow and Weasel by Barry Lopez, illustrated by Tom Pohrt

  • Salt in His Shoes: Michael Jordan in Pursuit of a Dream by Doloris Jordan with Roslyn M. Jordan, illustrated by Kadir Nelson

  • The Bad Seed by Jory John, illustrated by Pete Oswald

  • Frogged by Vivian Vande Velde

  • Bear Came Along by Richard T. Morris, illustrated by LeUyen Pham

  • Camp Tiger by Susan Choi, illustrated by John Rocco

  • Sign Off by Stephen Savage

  • Vroom! by Barbara McClintock

  • Carl and the Meaning of Life by Deborah Freedman

  • Circle by Mac Barnett, illustrated by Jon Klassen

  • Crab Cake: Turning the Tide Together by Andrea Tsurumi

  • Field Trip to the Moon by John Hare

  • Fly! By Mark Teague

  • Gittel’s Journey: An Ellis Island Story by Kelly Lyons, illustrated by Daniel Minter

  • Ida and the Whale by Rebecca Gugger, illustrated by Rothlisberger

  • Little Doctor and the Fearless Beast by Sophi Gilmore

  • Moonshot: The Flight of Apollo 11 (re-release) by Brian Floca

  • Music for Mister Moon by Phillip Stead, illustrated by Erin Stead

  • My Papi Has a Motorcycle by Isabel Quintero, illustrated by Zeke Pena

  • Otto and Pio by Marianne Dubuc

  • Recipe for Disaster by Tom Anglebaer, illustrated by James Chapman

  • The Fisherman and the Whale by Jessica Lanan

  • Saturday by Oge Mora

  • Hey Grandude! By Paul McCartney, illustrated by Kathryn Durst

  • Stretchy McHandsome by Judy Schachner

  • Tomorrow Most Likely by Dave Eggers, illustrated by Lane Smith

  • ¡VAMOS! Let’s Go to the Market by Raúl Gonzalez III

  • The Good Egg by Jory John, illustrated by Pete Oswald

  • The Cool Bean by Jory John, illustrated by Pete Oswald

  • Ada Twist and the Perilous Pants by Andrea Beaty, illustrated by David Roberts