A series to put a "Smile" on a young reader's face
- Staci
- Dec 11, 2018
- 2 min read
When giving books for the holidays, I always think it's a great idea to start your recipient off with a series. By giving them the first book or two, you can potentially spark their interest and then, in the future, you can give them the other books in the series for other occasions. It's a win-win, really: They get the books they enjoy, and you have a built-in gift-giving idea!
This Christmas, if you have a middle-grade reader on your list, I have a great series to recommend. My Life in Smiley by Anne Kalicky is along the lines of other wildly popular series such as Diary of a Wimpy Kid. In this series, we meet 11-year-old Max, who declares that he is determined to "leave his mark on history and become the hero of his generation." The first book, It's All Good, starts with Max's first day of sixth grade, and chronicles the daily life of this young man in his own words.
These are super fun reads! The pages are full of not only funny and relatable tales from the front lines of sixth grade, but also with drawings and doodlings that make these books look and feel like a real diary. No, excuse me. It's not a diary. It's an "autobiographical masterpiece," according to Max.
The My LIfe in Smiley series is perfect for both boys and girls of middle school age. Whereas other series like Dear Dumb Diary seem to be geared much more toward girls in particular, I think these books would appeal to both genders.
This Christmas, why not give books #1 It's All Good and #2 I Got This! and get a young reader in your life off to a great start on this fun, engaging series? Package the books with a super-fun bookmark, a clip-on booklight and some reading snacks (because really, who can read without snacks?) and you've got a very special, complete gift for the young reader in your life!
What else would you add to this gift? Let's chat!
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