Kick-off this year is October 7th and we run until November 15th-ish.
You can absolutely fall behind or start later, just don’t read ahead.
- The official hashtag for the year is #GRA24
#GRAMinh (for picture books)
#GRATola (early chapter books)
#GRABoom (upper elementary chapter book) - Global Read Aloud 2024 Picture Book webpage
- For a comprehensive FAQ post, go here
- To join the main Facebook group, please go here. To join the picture book author Facebook group, please go here. This is where news will be posted for the most part.
Week 1: Let Me Finish!
Author:Minh LĂŞ
Illustrator: Isabel Roxas
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, June 2016
Description:
When our young hero settles in to read, the last thing he wants is for some noisy animals to ruin the ending of the story.
But ruin it they do.
And as it turns out, the boy is quickly approaching a surprise ending of his own! Maybe he should have listened to the animals after all...
Resources:
Week 2: Drawn Together
Author:Minh LĂŞ
Illustrator: Dan Santat
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, June 2018
Description:
When a young boy visits his grandfather, their lack of a common language leads to confusion, frustration, and silence. But as they sit down to draw together, something magical happens—with a shared love of art and storytelling, the two form a bond that goes beyond words.
Resources:
Week 3: Lift
Author:Minh LĂŞ
Illustrator: Dan Santat
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, May 2020
Description:
Iris loves to push the elevator buttons in her apartment building, but when it's time to share the fun with a new member of the family, she's pretty put out. That is, until the sudden appearance of a mysterious new button opens up entire realms of possibility, places where she can escape and explore on her own. But when she's forced to choose between going at it alone or letting her little brother tag along, Iris finds that sharing a discovery with the people you love can be the most wonderful experience of all.
Resources:
- Have students use cups to build the tallest tower, measure them to see which group created the tallest building.
- Have students use a variety of building materials to create tall buildings.
Week 4: Built to Last
Author:Minh LĂŞ
Illustrator: Dan Santat
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers, May 2024
Description:
Two kids build entire worlds out of blocks, cardboard, and imagination. From boats attacked by a sea creature to a castle crumbling into the ocean. And they don’t mind when these creations break apart and CRASH to the floor. In fact, they think it’s pretty funny! Every time, a creation falls apart, they pick up the pieces and keep building bigger and better.
But when their latest masterpiece tumbles down in spectacular fashion, the boys aren’t laughing anymore. Have these two friends reached their breaking point?
Resources:
- Illustrator Page
- Lesson Plan
Week 5: Real to Me
Author:Minh LĂŞ
Illustrator: Raissa Figueroa
Publisher: Listening Library, May 2023
Description:
Others tried to tell me that she wasn’t real, that she was just imaginary.
But what did they know? She was real to me.
Then one morning... she was gone.
What do you do when your imaginary friend goes away? Did you dream up the entire friendship? Maybe... But you miss her laugh, her comfort, and her silly mischief. It all feels so real... you couldn't have just imagined those things, right?
This gentle audiobook illuminates the sweetness of first friendship, the sadness when it's lost, and the beauty in discovering new friends are just around the corner.
Resources:
- Illustrator Page
Lesson Plan: Make a Friend
Create your own imaginary friend. Pair this activity with Real to Me by Minh LĂŞ; illustrated by Raissa Figueroa.
What You’ll Need:
A variety of small reused food containers or boxes
- 1 – 4 toilet paper tubes or paper towel rolls
- Construction paper
- A variety of art supplies including glitter, pipe cleaners, googly eyes, pom-poms, ribbon, feathers, etc.
- Markers and/or paint for decorating
- Scissors, tape, and glue sticks for construction
- A hot glue gun
Activity:
- Using the small containers, boxes, toilet paper, and paper towel rolls decide on your friends body shape and leg. Have an adult work the hot glue gun to help assemble the friends.
- Once the body and legs are constructed decorate your friend however you would like using the supplies provided. Be sure to add a face, hair, and any other defining features such as a tail or horns.
- Give your friend a name!
Week 6: Your Choice! (Suggested Books: The Perfect Seat or The Blur)
The Perfect Seat
Author: Minh LĂŞ
Illustrator: Gus Gordon
Publisher: Little, Brown, & Co., 2019
Description:
Others tried to tell me that she wasn’t real, that she was just imaginary.
But what did they know? She was real to me.
Then one morning... she was gone.
What do you do when your imaginary friend goes away? Did you dream up the entire friendship? Maybe... But you miss her laugh, her comfort, and her silly mischief. It all feels so real... you couldn't have just imagined those things, right?
This gentle audiobook illuminates the sweetness of first friendship, the sadness when it's lost, and the beauty in discovering new friends are just around the corner.
Resources:
- Illustrator Page
- Lesson Plan
The Blur
Author: Minh LĂŞ
Illustrator: Dan Santat
Publisher: Random House, 2022
Description:
Meet a child with superhero-like abilities . . . and the parents who are racing to keep up with her in this sweetly funny picture book about the blur of childhood, from the award-winning creators of Drawn Together. A perfect gift to celebrate all of our special milestones--from graduations to birthdays and beyond!
From the very beginning, there was something different about this child... An ultrasonic voice. Fantastically elastic limbs. Super-magnetic powers. But it wasn’t until the child took her first steps that she became: THE BLUR!
Nothing can stand in her way as she takes the world by storm: always on the move and darting into danger! All too soon, she is zipping through the days, and zooming over the years…
Framed as an origin story, here is a fun superhero romp for kids, filled with bold and bright illustrations, that will pull at the heartstrings of every parent.
Resources:
- Illustrator Page
- Interview with Author and Illustrator
Tola lives in an apartment in the busy city of Lagos, Nigeria, with her sister, Moji, who is very clever; her brother, Dapo, who is very fast; and Grandmommy, who is very bossy. Tola may be small, but she’s strong enough to carry a basket brimming with groceries home from the market, and she’s clever enough to count out Grandmommy’s change. When the faucets in the apartment break, it’s Tola who brings water from the well. And when Mr. Abdul, the tailor, has an accident and needs help taking his customers’ measurements, only Tola can save the day. Atinuke’s trademark wit and charm are on full display, accompanied by delightful illustrations by Onyinye Iwu. Too Small Tola evokes the urban bustle and rich blending of cultures in Lagos through the eyes of a little girl with an outsize will—and an even bigger heart.
As each book is three stories, we will dive into two books this year.
Reading Breakdown:
Week 1: Too Small Tola story 1
Week 2: Too Small Tola story 2
Week 3: Final story in Too Small Tola
Week 4: Too Small Tola and the Three Fine Girls story 1
Week 5: Too Small Tola and the Three Fine Girls story 2
Week 6: Too Small Tola and the Three Fine Girls story 3
Joe Oak is used to living on unsteady ground. His mom can’t be depended on as she never stays around long once she gets “the itch,” and now he and his beloved grandmother find themselves without a home. Fortunately, Joe has an outlet in his journals and drawings and takes comfort from the lessons of comic books—superheroes have a lot of “and then, boom” moments, where everything threatens to go bust but somehow they land on their feet. And that seems to happen a lot to Joe too, as in this crisis his friend Nick helps them find a home in his trailer park.
But things fall apart again when Joe is suddenly left to fend for himself. He doesn’t tell anyone he’s on his own, as he fears foster care and has hope his mom will come back. But time is running out—bills are piling up, the electricity’s been shut off, and the school year’s about to end, meaning no more free meals. The struggle to feed himself gets intense, and Joe finds himself dumpster diving for meals. He’s never felt so alone—until an emaciated little dog and her two tiny pups cross his path. And fate has even more in store for Joe, because an actual tornado is about to hit home—and just when it seems all is lost, his life turns in a direction that he never could have predicted.
Reading Breakdown:
Week 1: Pages 1-39
Week 2: 40 – 80
Week 3: 81 – 120
Week 4: 121 – 160
Week 5: 161 – 203
Week 6: 204 – end