From One Book Lover

My young friends Alex and Philip have begun their summer vacation — which, for me, always meant books. Scads and piles and armfuls of books. I'd go to the library a couple of times a week to return the ones I had inhaled and come home with more. It was a gorgeous week in Los Angeles when, as a fourth grader, I holed myself up in my room and read the the entire  Chronicles of Narnia . (It was five days, really.) I still remember shivering from the cold of the eternal winter and the White Witch. But this is today. What do — no, should — the kids of today read? Well, I'm glad you asked. Here are a few suggestions. (People of an age may recognize a title or two.) Up the Down Staircase — a New York City high school teacher new to the education system experiences life in a big-city high school. The Graveyard Book — A toddler wanders into a graveyard one tumultuous night and is raised by its residents. To Kill a Mockingbird — This classic page-turner is one of my...