If my children ever develop green-food-coloring allergies, it will be St. Patrick’s fault. That’s because on St. Patrick’s Day, I float green shamrock Lucky Charms marshmallows on top of my kids’ green-dyed milk. I serve them not-so-orange orange juice and various greenified culinary delights. But don’t worry—I always incorporate a bit of natural greenness, too. On St. Patrick’s Day, even broccoli gets a little love.
Anyway, with my thoughts today naturally meandering toward Green Eggs and Ham, I decided to generate a list of middle-grade books that fit into a St. Patrick’s Day-themed list o’ books. Here goes. . . .
Leprechauns Don’t Play Basketball by Debbie Dadey and Marcia Jones: From The Bailey School Kids series, this chapter book is an oldie-but-goodie for younger middle-grade readers.
Leprechaun in Late Winter by Mary Pope Osborne: Another leprechaun. Another oldie-but-goodie series (Magic Tree House). Another chapter book for younger middle-grade readers. And for an extra bit of fun, there’s even a nonfiction companion book that’s part of the Magic Tree House Fact Tracker series: Leprechauns and Irish Folklore.
Three Times Lucky by Sheila Turnage: When I think St. Patrick’s Day, I think shamrocks. And when I think shamrocks, I think of lucky four-leaf clovers. So obviously, any book with the word lucky in the title must be a perfect St. Patrick’s Day fit. It also doesn’t hurt that the first book of the Tupelo Landing series won the Newbery Honor Award.
The Hard Pan Trilogy by Susan Patron: Ten-year-old Lucky is a memorable character I couldn’t help but love in The Higher Power of Lucky (book #1), Lucky Breaks (book #2), and Lucky for Good (book #3).
Charlie Joe Jackson’s Guide to Making Money by Tommy Greenwald: Okay. I hear your question already:
WHAT THE HECK IS THIS BOOK DOING ON A ST. PATRICK’S DAY BOOKLIST?!?!?
Well . . . St. Patrick’s Day means lots o’ green. So does money. And since I really like the Charlie Joe Jackson books, that connection was good enough for me. And just in case you’re still skeptical, please note that the book is written by Tommy GREENwald. Yep. It belongs.
Do you have a favorite middle-grade book that also fits into this St. Patrick’s Day booklist? Tell us about it in the comments below. (Receive a pot-of-gold bonus if you also recommend a green food I end up feeding my children this evening. But no peas. My daughter’s not a fan.)
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The Astounding Broccoli Boy by Frank Cottrell Boyce–can’t get greener than that!
“Rory Rooney likes to be prepared for anything, but when he inexplicably turns green and finds himself in an experimental hospital ward with his nemesis, school bully Tommy-Lee “Grim” Komissky, everyone is baffled but Rory believes he and Grim have become superheroes. “
Well, I’m too late to recommend a green food, but how about pistachios. I bet they would like them. Your suggestions sound good, I love Magic Tree House Books.
Fun titles for St. Patricks. I’m looking forward to reading Three Times Lucky.
Three Times Lucky is a great read. And if you like audiobooks, it’s a great listen, too–the audiobook reader has one of those voices that’s a perfect match for the story. 🙂