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Best Children's Royalty Books

Princesses Wear Pants
In the tradition of Not All Princesses Dress in Pink and Princess in Black , Princesses Wear Pants follows the unflappable Princess Penelope Pineapple, who knows how to get the job done while staying true to herself. Unfortunately for Princess Penelope, not everyone in the Pineapple Kingdom thinks pants are always appropriate princess attire. Savannah Guthrie is the cohost of TODAY on NBC as well as an attorney and legal analyst.
Reviews
"Good story and a reminder not to judge too quickly."
"Trying to get our four year old to recognize that a princess isn’t about what she wears."
"The authors, Savannah Guthrie and Allison Oppenheim, have written a fun book for children with good lessons learned. Princess Penelope Pineapple lived with her brother Prince Philippe, their royal cat, Miss Fussywiggles, in a lovely castle. Adults will enjoy reading this book to their children.The children will be able to identify with Princess Penelope in her understanding of why and when it is necessary to wear pants."
"My 3 year old granddaughter loves this book."
"I really wanted to love this book, but I found the rhymes to be forced and the moral is also a bit of a stretch."
"Cute book & gave to my granddaughter for Christmas."
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Disney Princess Reading Adventures Disney Princess Level 1 Boxed Set
Disney Reading Adventures is a curriculum-based, leveled reading program that offers children the support and guidance they need as they progress on the reading continuum from emergent readers to independent readers who read for meaning.
Reviews
"We have a set of Mickey themed books and I was so excited to get these Princess themed books for my kindergartner for Christmas."
"in these books there are a LOT of words that are just plain not gonna work for a beginning reader to sound out correctly."
"My daughter is learning the phonics way, so sounding the words out is difficult, but possible."
"These are perfect to build confidence in new readers who love the princesses."
"Thses are our first I cam read books."
"These are very simple books (think one, repeating sentence per page) for the young, beginner reader."
"We love these books and as aneeded added bonus, I have my 6 year old son read these to his 3 year old sister for some added reading time... he is able to read an entire story in under 5 minutes, they are VERY short and simple..."
"My 6yo loves these books."
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5-Minute Princess Stories (5-Minute Stories)
Princesses are often royally busy, but they always have time to help a lost puppy, invite a new friend to tea, or even cheer up a little dragon!
Reviews
"The stories are just the right length for a bed time story for my 4 year old."
"In two days we read the whole book, and then started to read her favorites again!"
"These are great stories that don't take too long."
"Cute new stories."
"My daughter loves her stories and we have already read this entire book!"
"Granddaughter loves this book."
"Its not the same old stories."
"my daughter loves this book."
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Best Children's Royalty Books

Alanna: The First Adventure (Song of the Lioness series Book 1)
So one day they decide to switch places: Disguised as a girl, Thom heads for the convent; Alanna, pretending to be a boy, is on her way to the castle of King Roald to begin her training as a page. With Alanna: The First Adventure , veteran fantasy author Tamora Pierce has created a lively, engaging heroine who will charm middle-school readers with her tomboyish bravado and have them eagerly searching for the next book in the Song of the Lioness series. Gr 5-8-Actress Trini Alvarado, known for her roles in such films as Little Women and Paulie: A Parrot's Tale, superbly narrates this unabridged audio version of Alanna: The First Adventure (Atheneum, 1983), the first book in the popular The Song of the Lioness quartet. Tamora Pierce's story of Alanna, a girl of noble birth who disguises herself as a boy in order to become a knight, is a spirited fantasy/adventure that is only made more captivating by Alvarado's lively performance.
Reviews
"This book introduces her first character, Alanna, who wants to become a lady-knight and switches places with her brother, who wants to be a magician, taking his place at court under the guise of "Alan" while her brother apprentices with a sorcerer."
"But I digress, Alanna, The First Adventure which I'll be referring to as ---> ATFA for the rest of the review is the story of a young girl coming into her own."
"I have loved this series for years and I can't wait for my children to be able to read it."
"I actually own several copies of Alanna: The First Adventure, and have loved the book since I was a kid."
"I remember having to buy new editions because I would wear out the old ones, I did love the new cover art each time I had to get one though😀 The lead female character is a strong independent woman who has made an impact on many decisions I have made in life."
"I re-read my copies every few years and purchased this newest edition recently for the daughter of a friend who loves fantasy and adventure books as much as I do."
"Tamora Pierce has a fantastic writing style that is easy to read and captivating. I highly recommended this for anyone who likes this style of book, Pierce will keep you engaged and wanting more."
"There are clear hurdles to being a knight as she wishes, and the book does a fair job of pointing out the difficulties of the central character who by dint of personal effort slowly but surely learns to stand on her own two feet."
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Best Teen & Young Adult Medieval Historical Fiction

Seraphina
Rachel Hartman’s award-winning debut will have you looking at dragons as you’ve never imagined them before… Seraphina is a half-dragon, descended from a dragon mother who took human form and a father who has no particular fondness for Seraphina’s kind. Seraphina guards her true self with all of her being, but when a member of the royal family is brutally murdered, she’s suddenly thrust into the spotlight, drawn into the investigation alongside the dangerously perceptive Prince Lucian. "—Christopher Paolini, New York Times bestselling author of Eragon. Amazon Best Teen Book of the Month, July 2012 : In Seraphina , dragons and humans maintain an uneasy peace and for a woman who is both there is nowhere to turn for acceptance--not even within herself. Seraphina has spent her young life concealing the truth of her parentage and authentic nature, a task that proves ever more difficult when she is thrust into the spotlight of the royal court. As the anniversary of the treaty between the two sides approaches, court intrigue reaches a fever pitch and hard-won truths, betrayals, and intricacies of the heart are laid bare. She is in charge of Princess Glisselda's music lessons; she books performers for the 40-year celebration of the peace treaty between dragons and humans, and she rehearses the rowdy court musicians. When she plays the solo for the funeral of the realm's murdered prince, Seraphina is suddenly raised into entirely new, visible levels of peril. Seraphina fears that if she tells the prince and the princess what she is, they'll hate her forever, but their work to preserve the treaty celebrations is bringing them closer together.
Reviews
"If you are thinking about the mechanics of such a conception, worry not - the dragons can shift to human forms called saarantrai when they want to enter human society. In the past, they waged a war with the humans for the hunting grounds that became human kingdoms, but in this relatively newer peace of four decades, tensions are rising again now that the leader of the dragons is about to sit the kingdom that forged the truce. It also has lighter moments like the running gag of everyone identifying her as ‘that Maid Dombegh who played so wonderfully at the funeral’, the dragons being confounded by any and all human emotions (especially the leader of the dragons who becomes convinced he is in love), her fellow musicians at court who are a little in love with her and tease her for trying to be as strict as the old court musician."
"While the world is rich and interesting, it also can be confusing and slightly frustrating trying to understand or imagine how things may sound or look, and the writing style certainly is not a terribly advanced one."
"Seraphina by Rachel Hartman has dragons, an awesome new fantasy world, a strong message about the stupidity of discrimination, and a great narrator. I don't know D: I'm so glad I've fixed this problem, however, since Seraphina really surprised me with the direction it went, but I'm really excited to eagerly await Shadow Scale with you all now :D. I also no longer have to be embarrassed that I hadn't read THE dragon YA of 2012, haha. I actually picked the audiobook up from the library last year and ended up returning it, so I was happy to finally finish that process, haha. Seraphina the character has a mental garden that she must maintain in order to keep sane, which I must admit was one of my favorite unexpected additions to the fantasy story :D. Dragons! Summary: Seraphina is an excellent high fantasy dragon story and I'm relieved that I finally found a way to fit it in! (Audiobooks are the best for that :D.) It proves that YA can have deep world-building and plot elements focused on adventure and intrigue instead of romance."
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Best Children's Pirate Books

Time Capsule: A seriously awesome kid's journal
For the child who's curious to discover how mighty his own story can be. Invite your child to explore his creativity and discover how mighty the pen can be by diving deep into what sparks his interest. Katie Clemons is a storycatcher and award-winning journal crafter.
Reviews
"My son of 9 has this journal and we are both having lots of fun with it!"
"The pages have great text font and a variety of different designs. When the kid finishes the journal, he/she draws a map on the last page and actually hides the book! The quality of the book - the cover is matte, but feels very smooth."
"I got this for my 8 year old son as part of his writing practice in our homeschool."
"This is a really thoughtful journal full of activities and writing prompts designed just for your kiddo! It has a good mix of questions, identifying info for your child, spots for pictures, etc."
"The author clearly has a great creative mind and is passionate about helping kids record their stories. I hope that my daughter can enjoy using one of these in a few years, to spark her creative, wild, and adventurous - and dare I say tomboy?"
"This journal is so thoughtfully constructed and designed to help kiddos become self-reflecting, by guiding them through the process of recording their thoughts and the events they've experienced."
"The Time Capsule journal is a great way to preserve the precious and silly thoughts of childhood, and to give kids a chance to examine who they are and who they hope to become."
"Before my daughter (9) began this journal she was never excited to begin our school day, but now she looks forward to it each day."
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Best Children's Travel Books

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul
Greg Heffley and his family hit the road in author-illustrator Jeff Kinney's latest installment of the phenomenal bestselling Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. Will the Heffley family make it home?
Reviews
"I checked my email and there was a purchase of this book that I didn't make. If anyone knows how to take off the one click purchase option on kindle PLEASE let me know."
"The ninth installment of the hilarious Diary of a Wimpy Kid series, The Long Haul features Greg and the rest of the Heffley family embarking on a road trip at the start of summer vacation. The Long Haul and the rest of the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series fall under the genre of realistic fiction graphic novel, with both the writing and illustrations by Jeff Kinney. Though I would suggest this book for children in grades 4-7, it is funny enough and for parents or older siblings to enjoy as they read along. Because the drawings are just stick figures outlined in black, it is hard to tell whether multiple cultures and races are being represented."
"We loved this as a family."
"Whole series is great."
"My grandson finished this series in third grade and was disappointed when he had read them all and there wasn't something to look forward to."
"Great series-Introduced it to my teens years ago and passed them down to my 8 year old."
"fun story."
"My son love's these books."
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Best Children's Archaeology Books

The Egyptology Handbook: A Course in the Wonders of Egypt (Ologies)
But in a remarkable turn of fortune for Miss Sands's many fans, detectives have uncovered a second volume penned in her own hand — a course book on ancient Egyptian history and culture intended for the voyager's beloved niece and nephew. Dugald Steer has written many books for children including the best-selling DRAGONOLOGY and its companion, THE DRAGONOLOGY HANDBOOK, as well as the forthcoming WIZARDOLOGY. He has illustrated many books for children including the Smarties book Prize-winning FIREWORK MAKER'S DAUGHTER by Phillip Pullman. Helen has also written a number of successful children's books including THE TIN FOREST and THE DRAGON MACHINE, both illustrated by Wayne Anderson.
Reviews
"My kids got a lot of use out of this, and I learned a couple things myself."
"fabulous book with attention paid to detail!"
"Perfect companion to the Egyptology series."
"Exactly what any budding Egyptologist needs!"
"I love these 'ology' books!"
"The "ology" books are so fun."
"What greater way is there to get someone interested in Egypt's history than this?"
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Best Children's Social Science Books

Maps
This book of maps is a visual feast for readers of all ages, with lavishly drawn illustrations from the incomparable Mizielinskis.
Reviews
"Ireland and Israel aren't in this book, but neither are Norway, Portugal, Denmark, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Ukraine, Turkey and several other European countries, along with every central American country, all nations in the Caribbean, the Philippines, South and North Korea, Indonesia, most of Africa and many others I'm not going to list. It's funny to me that the absence of both Ireland and Israel were highlighted in the reviews, since both countries have an entire book devoted to them by Sasek."
"Purchased for the younger ones, and the teens couldn't put it down."
"Love this book, it’s like an educational where’s Waldo in that you can spend hours looking at all the picture details."
"European pages are packed with famous and semi-famous Europeans; African pages are packed with exotic animals."
"This was a gift for our grandson and He was thrilled with it!"
"i think i've bought six of these books, five as gifts: this is a beautifully designed, wonderfully executed atlas which is perfect for a bright and motivated child but perfect for not-so-bright or motivated adults who just love maps and atlases."
"It is, indeed, Maps."
"I do understand that not all countries can be shown on this book but at least one or two countries representing Central America, the Caribbean and the Middle East."
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Best Children's Where We Live Books

The Christmas Wish
This New York Times bestselling Nordic tale in the tradition of The Snowman, The Polar Express, and the many books of Jan Brett will have readers of all ages believing in the magic of Christmas. The full-page photographs look like they could be movie stills, so sharp and seamless are the figures that Anja and the animals cut against the winter landscape of Northern lights, glaciers, and snowy pine trees.
Reviews
"Great book!"
"I have most all of Lori evert books and they are such a great story and the most beautiful pictures."
"Beautiful story."
"Beautiful story, great gift for adults and children alike."
"Sweet story, awesome photos."
"Such a Beautiful book!"
"Beautiful book to keep for years to come."
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Best Children's Multicultural Story Books

Ordinary People Change the World Gift Set (Ordinary People Change World)
Brad Meltzer and illustrator Christopher Eliopoulos answer that question, one great role model at a time. And now you can buy the first four—Abraham Lincoln, Amelia Earhart, Rosa Parks, and Albert Einstein—together in a wonderfully designed slipcase that includes an exclusive, autographed print, suitable for framing. Christopher Eliopoulos began his illustration career as a letterer for Marvel, and has worked on thousands of comics, including Franklin Richards: Son of a Genius, Pet Avengers, and Cow Boy, all of which he wrote and illustrated.
Reviews
"These books also have important character building lessons and are overall great books for kids."
"My 3, almost 4 year old, also loves them!"
"She likes how they are fun to read and talk about when they were kids too."
"I love history myself and will purchased this series for my grandchildren."
"A must for any child in your family, even my 13 year old loves them."
"Came in excellent condition."
"Love these books, my 5 year old listens intently and they prompt her to ask lots of good questions."
"These are my favorite books for children."
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Best Children's Explore the World Books

5,000 Awesome Facts (About Everything!) (National Geographic Kids)
Lively and information-packed, this book is literally busting its covers with fascinating, fun-tastic facts on super, sensational topics that kids love. "Filled with photographs, this beautifully designed book is organized into two-page spreads that each focus on a different topic, making it easy and fun to read."
Reviews
"One of our favorite things about this book is how it has inspired questions and discussions between our children and my wife and I about various subjects."
"I gave this book to him for Christmas so we could both bone up on awesome facts--in fact, we read it often at bedtime, startling each other with one amazing piece of information after the other."
"I got this for my 10 year old son in hopes it would spark more reading and less electronics."
"Great Book!"
"He even tells me things that he has learned from reading this book."
"Bought this for a ten-year old for Christmas."
"I was surprised how big this book was."
"This is a well done book for any inquisitive young person."
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Best Children's Books on Immigration

Grandfather's Journey
When he was a young man, Allen Say’s grandfather left his home in Japan to explore the world. For years, Say continued writing and illustrating children's books on a part-time basis.
Reviews
"Short, easy to read text combined with beautifully simple illustrations tell the story of Mr. Say’s grandfather, who split his life between Japan and the United States, longing for both."
"I love reading this with my students who have all come from other country's and can relate to missing one country when you are in the other."
"But, overall, this is a great book."
"A great way to get children excited about reading, learning and discussing a variety of topics."
"I've bought several copies because I keep giving mine away as gifts to adults who I know will find it moving because they've experienced something similar."
"A beautiful story that so caringly follows the life of a Japanese immigrant who comes to the United States (but the story is a universal one).."
"This is a wonderful book to read with beautiful art work for a kindergartener to enjoy."
"I have lived overseas, so the story of a man who loves both Japan and America, and longs for America when he is in Japan and vice versa, really touched me."
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