A good chapter book for developing readers.
598909
We've read all the books in the series. At 9 my youngest has probably out grown them, but for a developing reader 5 to 8 its a good series, nice family and friends set in an interesting Alaskan setting, a sense of the frontier and nature. Highly recommended, should be in all libraries or school collections aimed at this age group.
2291148
My 6 year old loves chapter books now. We have read one of the series so far and she enjoys ever after and monster high stuff.
880600
I think these books are a pretty good intro to the chapter book concept.  You CANNOT expect these books to be literary masterpieces.  We are not dealing with Charlotte's Web or A Cricket in Times Square.  In fact, we're not even quite dealing with Nancy Drew or the Hardy Boys series.  But ... when your child is getting a little too advanced for picture books and is ready to read a few chapters, this is a pretty decent place to start.  The text is pretty easy to read; there are black and white pictures about every 4 pages, and the plot is at the kids' level.  Note - the plot is NOT at the ADULT's Level.  It is not sophisticated - but it is not bad -and there is some continuity between books which is nice.  My only real complaint is sentence structure.  The author loves to write in  sentence fragments.  Like this.  And like this.  And it is annoying.  Especially for children.  Because incomplete sentences goes against what they are taught in school.  (Actually I think the sentence fragments are an attempt at a casual literary style that might mimick one's thoughts ... but it just isn't necessary and it gets annoying.)
Aside from the sentence fragments - just be aware that much of the text is in conversation form.  That might annoy some parents - but it makes for fairly quick and easy reading.  Generally speaking, the treehouse topics are fairly gender neutral - but may especially attract boys who sometimes need to be "won over" with "cool" topics like dinosaurs. Overall, I think the books are pretty enjoyable - just don't expect a masterpiece, and you might be surprised to see that your child likes the series.  A final caveat - these books are not meant for an adult to read aloud to a child - there are much better books for that purpose. These are meant for the early reader to read all by him/herself
485
This is the first series of chapter books my son actually wanted to read by himself.  While many of the reviewers complain about grammatical errors, etc., I feel these can be overlooked as these delightful stories keep a child's interest from start to finish.  Each chapter is fairly short and has frequent pictures (a must for beginning chapter readers).  The main characters have all sorts of adventures and the reader actually learns some historical facts.  While the books are probably too easy for advanced readers, they should appeal to most beginning chapter readers.  I think it is very important that children think reading is fun and the books from The Magic Tree House Series provide a wonderful introduction to chapter book reading!
3198217
Received this story for free. I am an adult, but I tend to read a lot of younger fiction so that I can share with my two boys. I found this to be a cute story with interesting characters. Overall the story has a positive message that should relate well to younger kids. I think older kids or kids who are avid readers may want more from the story, more character development and more to the ending. I thought the ending was a little anti-climactic, but I also realize that this is for a younger audience. I liked some of the animal characters a lot and would like to see more of them in the future, especially Ralph and the snake.

Overall, it is a cute story that younger kids starting out in chapter books should enjoy.
1942162
I really enjoyed the book but believe it would be better for young readers if it was in chapter form.
698368
My 7 year old son just loves these books.  They are great books for those that are ready to take on Chapter books, but have not been reading all that long.  They are also a good way to introduce more difficult words into their vocabulary.
1841441
The Bad Boys Club is a wholesome chapter book for young readers, especially boys.  As an adult, I enjoyed the suspense of figuring out how the boys were going to solve the mystery of the missing homework.  For the young readers, the main characters are good people, but not too good to be believable.  The story itself entertains while reinforcing values of friendship, loyalty and even scholarly achievement.  I loved the part where they were knee deep in garbage.  Overall, I think children will very much enjoy reading this book.
Bernardette Costa,
Author, The Six Colorful Annies
3363409
I am really surprised that this book is out of print. It's a cute little book about the first days of school and the adventures of Amanda Pig, a little girl who has been waiting and waiting until she is old enough to ride on the bus and go to school like her brother Oliver.

In regards to reading level I would say that this book is something a second grader might be reading. While the print is still fairly large there are quite a few words on some pages. See Amazon's "search inside this book" feature to judge for yourself.

Vocabulary includes words like: finally, ribbons, purple, animals, Alexander, laughing, lollipop, answer, skyscraper, suitcase, astronaut, and tomorrow.

Both of my children (boy and girl: 4 and 6 this month) enjoy this book and it is a fairly good read-aloud.

I particularly like that there is a chapter structure to the book as I think it gets new-readers prepared for the appearance of chapters in the future. In addition, I think the subplot about Lollipop's (Emily) shyness is dealt with nicely. As is Amanda's mistake of taking the teachers chair when the children gather for circle time. There is no hysterics or scolding, only a pointing out that Amanda made a mistake and that it is easily rectified.

Four Stars. Artwork is attractive and the stories are engaging for toddlers on up. Publishers Weekly has the reading level as appropriate for beginning readers (age 5 - 8) but I think that there are quite a few words per page and that it would be to much for a kindergartener and even most first graders.
3185308
Good but for a younger reader, which is a good thing, good messages.
634107
This was the first chapter book I read with my four year old. She loves it, think we have read it three times already.
4103621
The 9 year old I was tutoring dearly wanted to read from what he called chapter books, but his skills were just not up to most of them.  This book was within his current capabilities, and enhanced his confidence and willingness to dig in and sound out words.
1623837
This is a cute book for readers just starting out on chapter books. It has simple descri p tons and a plot that's easy for young readers to follow.

I enjoyed the style of the book. It had the feel of a classic (think The Secret Garden), but modern language that is accessible for today's young children.

Though a mystery, it is an innocent and sweet story. It was well below my 5th grader's reading level, but that actually made it a good read for a long car ride where she would have otherwise com p lined about boredom.
3007627
Young children can find inspiration to read through Grow & Read, an early reader program that spins off from The Nocturnals series. The first book, The Moonlight Meeting by Tracey Hecht & Rumur Dowling, introduces the main characters while also revealing a bit about their real animal characteristics.

Tobin is a shy pangolin who lets out a stinky gas when hes startled. Bismark is a brash sugar glider whos a bit aggressive and quick to take offense. Dawn is a fox, a thinker who comes up with solutions to conflict. The three meet and figure out a way they can all be happy sharing one juicy pomelo.

The Grow & Read program was created under the supervision of reading specialists and that shows in the way the book is structured. It lists a level on the front that corresponds generally to an age group, and theres light copy accompanied by illustrations on every page. Chapters are short, and the story includes well known words as well as more challenging ones to increase vocabulary.

The Moonlight Meeting story is cute and the whimsical illustrations by Waymond Singleton should help budding readers follow along and be encouraged to learn new words as they turn pages. Fun facts at the end should satisfy the interests of kids who are drawn to nonfiction.

I highly recommend The Moonlight Meeting for readers aged 6 to 8 and their parents.

The publisher provided me with a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
1849075
My 5 and almost 7 year old enjoyed this book. We have read it more than once to try out different scenarios. I should have looked at the pages though because I thought this was going to be more like a chapter book.
337890
Good imagery, suspense, interesting characters, occasional pictures, and a surprise ending all make this an enjoyable book especially recommended to read to children and an even better book for young readers who want a chapter book that's not too long.
3401205
Amazing illustrations and worth it for the young reader that isn't quite ready to read fun chapter books on their own.