A simple summary of Easy Readers/Early Chapter Books

Part of a series introducing each genre, written by the organizer.

The first thing that stands out about books in these two genres is their shape. They're sized for their audience to hold while reading aloud (roughly 6 x 9 inches). Think "reading by nine" and you can visualize this K through 3 audience. Other helpful hints:

Easy Readers usually have a banner and some form of the word "read" on the cover. They have short, simple sentences presented in BIG type fonts. In an Easy Reader, the images are usually in full color and are designed to help the child decode the words in the text.

Early Chapter Books are like traditional chapter books, but thinner and with fewer pages. Their chapters are short (usually 3-6 pages), are illustrated (usually black and white), and have wide spacing between lines. Examples: Clementine by Sara Pennypacker; Roscoe Riley Rules by Katherine Applegate; My Weird School by Dan Gutman.

–Terry Doherty

Go to the Easy Reader/Early Chapter Book nomination page.