Mr. Knocky

Written by: Jack Ziegler

First line: The three o'clock bell had just rung and I was running all over the schoolyard, yelling at the top of my lungs.

Why you should read this book: Mr. Knocky is a socially challenged old man who terrifies the local children with his weird and boring stories, which are presented without solicitation in the middle of the kids' games. One day, Mr. Knocky gets hit in the head with a snowball and ends up flat on his back in the snow. The kids are terrified, and when it turns out Mr. Knocky is OK, they are much more accepting of his presence and don't find his stories so weird and boring. 

Plain Noodles

Written by: Betty Waterton and Joanne Fitzgerald

First line: One sunny day when it was neither spring nor summer, Captain Figg came whistling out of his lighthouse and nearly tripped over his wife.

Why you should read this book: Empty nester Mrs. Figg desperately misses her adult children, who have all run off to join the circus, so she is delighted the day that a rowboat containing a dozen babies and one toddler drifts to shore. She happily spends the day caring for the babies while the toddler "helps" and remembers how difficult little kids actually are. Happily, the children's mothers all return to collect their children so Captain and Mrs. Figg can enjoy their golden years in peace.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You think the secret to raising a lot of kids is to get them to take care of each other. 

The Fourteenth Goldfish

Written by: Jennifer L. Holm

First line: When I was in preschool, I had a teacher named Starlily. 

Why you should read this book: Ellie never spent a lot of time with her scientist grandfather, because he was a cranky old man who didn't get along with her mom, but now that he's discovered the formula to reverse the aging process, he's posing as her thirteen-year-old cousin, and Grandpa Melvin is everywhere. After a misunderstanding at his lab, Melvin is desperate to break in and retrieve the research that will make him famous and save humanity from its own mortality. Ellie is increasingly interested in science and research, and increasingly uneasy about her grandfather's discovery and what it means for life on earth.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You are largely unconcerned with the fate of humanity.  

Summer Jackson: Grown Up

Written by: Teresa E. Harris

First line: My name is Summer Jackson and I'm tired of being seven.

Why you should read this book: A sassy second grader is tired of waiting for adult privileges and determines that she will become a grownup right now. In her mind it's easily accomplished by wearing high heels and sunglasses, carrying a briefcase and cell phone, and charging classmates for her consulting services. In order to save Summer from a life of boredom and ice cream-induces stomachaches (adults can eat as much ice cream as they want, right?) her parents had to remind her what's fun about being a kid.

Why you shouldn't read this book: Can't wait for the kids to grow up.

Sleepers, Wake

Written by: Paul Samuel Jacobs

First line: Dody found himself watching the time, measuring it by the hour, by the minute, by the second all night long.

Why you should read this book: A programming glitch wakes nine-year-old Dody up from suspended animation fifty years into a hundred-year journey through space, and now that he’s an old man who’s spent nearly his entire life alone on a ship with only a condescending computer for company, the voyage is over and his family is finally going to wake up too. While they need to get used to seeing their baby walking around in his grandfather’s body, Dody needs to get used to being among other people in a very unusual family dynamic. A series of missteps lands Dody and his siblings alone on the surface of a possibly hostile planet, and it’s up to Dody to prove that he has some of the sense that his wrinkled face suggests, rescue his sister and brother, and get everyone back to their parents in one piece.

Why you shouldn’t read this book: The writing and storytelling are not quite as good as the premise.

Indie Kidd 3: Being Grown Up Is Cool (Not!)

Author: Karen McCombie

First line: I was a bit bored.

Why you should read this book: Since her mother is overinvolved in animal rescue and their 19-year-old boarder is so laid-back, Indie decides that being an adult is much better than being a child, and starts to work on her list of reasons why Being Grown Up Is Cool. But Indie's fascination with adulthood doesn't always translate into grown-up behavior, and her family and peers are starting to worry about her. Will Indie have to give up doughnuts forever just to get a little respect?

Why you shouldn't read this book: You'd like to be able to watch TV and eat crisps without having to worry about where your next paycheck is coming from.

Now and Forever

Author: Ray Bradbury

First line: There was a desert prairie filled with wind and sun and sagebrush and a silence that grew sweetly up in wildflowers.

Why you should read this book: Bradbury beats a new path through a forest of familiar old tropes in a pair of novellas that parse time and desire. In "Somewhere a Band Is Playing," a reporter travels to a desert oasis of small town fantasy where he uncovers a true understanding of youth, aging, and drinking deep from the cup of miraculous life. In "Leviathan '99," an ambitious astronaut named Ishmael is tossed through an updated reimagining of Moby Dick as his mad captain drags the crew across the universe in pursuit of the great, white comet.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You prefer love stories with more sweat and space operas with more blood.

Clarence Goes Out West and Meets a Purple Horse

Author: Jean Eckman Adams

First line: Clarence is going on a trip.

Why you should read this book: Clarence is a little edgy about his trip to a dude ranch, but Smoky, his horse for the week, gives him plenty of confidence to ride, dance, gamble, and play the washtub in a cowboy band in this gorgeously and whimsically illustrated book. When Clarence learns that Smoky is getting long in the tooth and is about to be sent out to pasture, the little pig knows he must save his big friend. Sacrifice in the name of friendship makes perfect sense and changes Clarence's life for good.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You'd send an old horse to a glue factory.

The Grannyman

Author: Judith Byron Schachner

First line: Simon was a very old cat.

Why you should read this book: Simon, an ancient Siamese cat who is deaf, blind, arthritic, and has terrible breath, is still well-loved by his family, but he has led a long, full life and is ready to throw in the towel. Just as he lies down to die, the family presents him with a little Siamese kitten, and Simon's purpose in life is restored. A nice circle-of-life story celebrating the place of the elderly.

Why you shouldn't read this book: You just put your incontinent parents into a home.