The Year of Billy Miller by Kevin Henkes

I started in the blog world it was to find ideas for new read aloud books.  I was getting ready to teach second grade.  The plan was to loop with the cohort to third grade.  There are fabulous books out there to read to both second and third grade classes, but I wanted something new.  Fast-forward a lot of years, and I read the perfect read aloud for a first and second grade class.  Luckily, I got to enjoy The Year of Billy Miller by Kevin Henkes at home and share it with my nephew’s first grade teacher.  First and second graders are really cute, and I love seeing them in the hallways; and thank goodness I will have them later.

Billy Miller is a second grader that has a rough end of the summer.  He is very excited to be a second grader.  Billy is a kind kid that works hard to do the right thing.  His mother is a high school teacher, and his dad is a stay at home parent that happens to be an artist.  Billy’s little sister is very creative and expressive.   As the year progresses Billy finds that growing up is not always easy.  At times even sleeping through the night can be challenging.

I was excited to find a book that had no talking animals, dead dogs, runaway parents, etc.  After reading this book I want Billy in my third grade class.  Mr. Henkes wrote a realistic book about growing up without being preachy or filled with sad events.  This is a great read aloud for younger grades.