Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl is about a young man named Charlie Bucket who wins one of five golden tickets and gets to tour Mr. Wonka’s Chocolate Factory that is full of secrets. Charlie is a very poor boy who lives in a small cottage with his parents and both sets of grandparents. Charlie and his Grandpa Joe go to the factory along with the four other children that won a golden ticket. All of the other children disobey Mr. Wonka and end up with something crazy wrong with them. At the end of the book, Charlie is rewarded for being so good by learning that when he is old enough he gets to take over Mr. Wonka’s Chocolate Factory! Charlie is ecstatic and his whole family, once impoverished, gets to move into the magnificent factory! This book teaches children that the kids that break the rules will be punished, but the kids that behave and are respectful get grand rewards. This book allows kids to learn a valuable lesson in a very exciting and crazy way. It is also a very good book to read because there is a movie based off of the book!

War Horse by Michael Morpurgo takes place during World War I. The book follows the life of Joey, a beautiful horse that lived on a farm with Albert, who took very good care of him and loved him. When the war hits, Albert’s dad sells Joey and Joey gets trained to charge the enemy, carry wounded soldiers, and drag heavy artillery. Albert was devastated when Joey got sold and he vowed that when he was old enough he was going to join the war and find Joey. Joey goes on many adventures and has many new loving owners that take good care of him. Luckily, despite charging the enemy, Joey lives. In one battle, Joey gets lost and runs off. He gets cut by some barbed wire and eventually some British soldiers find him and take him to the War Veterinary Clinic. As soon as Joey gets there, he gets washed and after he is cleaned, the boy that cleaned him begins to talk to Joey and all of a sudden Joey realizes it is Albert! Albert is so happy to see Joey, because Joey is the only reason he joined the war. He cannot believe he finally found him. In the end, after a few hardships, Albert gets to keep Joey. This book shows how strong the bond between people and animals can be and it also teaches children to never give up. Albert knew that his chances of finding Joey were slim, but he never gave up and because of this, his dreams came true. It was a heartwarming book to read, and it is now also a movie!

My Friend the Enemy by Dan Smith takes place during World War II. British Peter and his best friend Kim witness a German plane crash and they see a parachute. The two of them decide to sneak out past the curfew that is set because of the man in the parachute that the soldiers saw, but could not find. When they are exploring the plane crash, they come across the German. He is severely injured and Peter and Kim decide to hide him and take care of him because they are afraid the British soldiers will kill him if they find him. Kim, Peter, and the German man Erik become friends and Erik adores both Peter and Kim. Erik is only 19, the same age as Kim’s brother who is also fighting in the war. Peter’s father is fighting in the war, and one day he and his mom receive a telegram that Peter’s father was killed. Peter is devastated and begins to take out his anger on Erik, but Kim stops him. Some of the other boys in town begin to bully Peter and Kim and when Erik hears them being bullied right out of his hiding spot, he comes to help them because Kim got knocked down by one of the bullies and becomes unconscious after she hit her head on a rock. Erik rushes Kim to the doctor, risking his own life. In the end, the British soldiers do not harm Erik and they thank him for helping Kim. This book teaches children to get to know someone before deciding whether they are good or bad. One man’s enemy is another man’s friend.

The 100-Year Old Secret by Tracy Barrett follows the adventures of Xena and Xander who are related to Sherlock Holmes. They inherit his unsolved casebook from the Society for the Preservation of Famous Detectives, which Xena and Xander get invited to join because of Sherlock Holmes. The two kids take a lot of pride in solving the cases, and put all of their energy towards the cases . They work on solving a case regarding a famous painting that disappeared more than 100 years ago. They investigate together, and eventually the two children solve the case that no one else could. They are honored and everyone is amazed. This book teaches children that if you try hard enough, anything is possible. It also encourages everyone to not get discouraged and to never give up.

I was a Rat by Philip Pullman follows the adventures of a boy named Roger, who was once a rat. When Roger gets turned into a boy he turns up on the porch of an older couple Bob and Joan. Bob and Joan take him in and care for him, but one day Roger gets taken and Bob and Joan will do anything to find him. Roger becomes part of a circus because of the guy that took him, but eventually he escapes the circus. In the end, the princess helps Bob and Joan find Roger because Roger knew the princess when he was a rat and she just worked in a kitchen. Bob and Joan were so happy when they found Roger and they all lived happily ever after. This book teaches children to love and accept everyone, no matter how different they are. Everyone is special in their own way and they should not be judged because of it.