
52 Great Reads
Every year, a list of books representing the literary heritage of the 50 states, the District of Columbia and the U.S. Virgin Islands is distributed by the Library of Congress's Center for the Book during the National Book Festival. Why not read the book suggested for your state or district and then learn, through these books, about the other places that interest you?
Click on a state to view suggested titles by state or download the complete 2012 list (PDF, 1.7 MB).
Alabama
2012 selection
The Secret World of Walter Anderson,
Hester Bass
To Kill A Mockingbird,
Harper Lee
The Well and the Mine,
Gin Phillips
Alaska
2012 selection
My Name Is Not Easy
Tells Alaska's Story,
Debby Dahl Edwardson
A Native Lad: Benny Benson
Tells Alaska's Story,
Sarah Hurst
Seldovia Sam and the Very Large Clam,
Susan Woodward Springer
Sharkabet:
A Sea of Sharks from A to Z,
Ray Troll
Arizona
2012 selection
Arizona Way Out West & Witty,
Lynda Exley and Conrad J. Storad
Code Talker: A Novel About the Navajo Marines of World War Two
,
Joseph Bruchac
Hip, Hip, Hooray, It's Monsoon Day/
¡Ajúa, ya llegó el chubasco!,
Susan Woodward Springer
The Three Little Javelinas /
Los Tres Pequeños Jabalíes,
Susan Lowell
Arkansas
2012 selection
The Extraordinary Education of Nicholas Benedict,
Trenton Lee Stewart
Icon,
Carla Killough McClafferty
Water Steps,
A. LaFaye
So Over My Head,
Jenny B. Jones
California
2012 selection
One Day and One Amazing Morning on Orange Street,
Joanne Rocklin
Calico Dorsey,
Susan Lendroth
Steinbeck's Ghost,
Lewis Buzbee
Operation Redwood,
S. Terrell French
Colorado
2012 selection
Light Up the Night,
Jean Reidy
Tallgrass,
Sandra Dallas
Down, Down, Down,
Steve Jenkins
M Is for Mischief:
An A to Z of Naughty Children,
Linda Ashman
Connecticut
2012 selection
Where the Wild Things Are,
Maurice Sendak
The Taxing Case of the Cows:
A True Story About Suffrage,
Iris Van Rynback & Pegi Deitz Shea
For the Duration,
Tomie dePaola
Chalk,
Bill Thomson
Delaware

2012 selection
Red Knot: A Shorebird’s Incredible Journey
Nancy Carol Willis

Agent Q, or The Smell of Danger!
M.T. Anderson

The Sweet Life of Stella Madison,
Lara M. Zeises

Jasper Dash and the
Flame Pits of Delaware,
M.T. Anderson
Florida

2012 selection
Secret of the Night Ponies,
Joan Hiatt Harlow

Hoot,
Carl Hiaasen

Tangerine,
Edward Bloor

I Love You, Stinky Face,
Lisa McCourt
Georgia

2012 selection
Return of the Library Dragon,
Carmen Agra Deedy

The Cheshire Cheese Cat,
Carmen A. Deedy & Randall Wright

14 Cows for America,
Carmen Agra Deedy

A Tree for Emmy,
Mary Ann Rodman
Hawaii

2012 selection
Moon Mangoes,
Lindy Shapiro

Kohala Kuamo`o: Nae`ole's
Race to Save a King,
Kekauleleanae'ole Kawai'ae'a

A President from Hawaii,
Dr. Carolan

Too Many Mangos,
Tammy Paikai
Idaho

2012 selection
The Birthday Box,
Leslie Patricelli

100 Cupboards,
N. D. Wilson

Mudgy and Milly,
Susan Nipp

My Darlin’ Clementine,
Kristiana Gregory
Illinois

2012 selection
Rock ’n’ Roll Mole,
Carolyn Crimi

Night Flight: Amelia Earhart
Crosses the Atlantic,
Robert Burleigh

Our Abe Lincoln,
Jim Aylesworth

Muddy as a Duck Puddle
and Other American Similes,
Laurie Lawlor
Indiana

2012 selection
Clifford the Big Red Dog,
Norm Bridwell

Crossing Stones,
Helen Frost

Diamond Willow,
Helen Frost

Paper Towns,
John Green
Iowa

2012 selection
The Magic Thief,
Sarah Prineas

The Buddy Files:
The Case of the Lost Boy,
Dori Hillestad Butler

The Rope Walk,
Carrie Brown

The Flamingo Rising,
Larry Baker
Kansas

Moon Over Manifest,
Clare Vanderpool

Amelia Earhart,
The Legend of the Lost Aviator,
Shelley Tanaka

Up, Down and Around,,
Katherine Ayres
Kentucky

2012 selection
Sailing to Freedom,
Martha Bennett Stiles

Which Side Are You On?:
The Story of a Song,
George Ella Lyon

A Family for Old Mill Farm,
Shutta Crum

Trouble in Troublesome Creek,
Nancy Kelly Allen
Louisiana

2012 selection
Goodnight Acadiana,
Leslie Crawford Costner

Molly the Pony: A True Story,
Pam Kaster

Two Bobbies: A True Story
of Hurricane Katrina,
Friendship, and Survival,
Kirby Larson & Mary Nethery

Why the Crawfish Lives in the Mud,
Johnette Downing
Maine

2012 selection
Lost Trail: Nine Days Alone in the Wilderness,
Donn Fendler

The Circus Ship,
Chris VanDusen

The Dump Man's Treasures,
Lynn Plourdey

Hardscrabble Harvest,
Dahlov Ipcar
Maryland

2012 selection
Closed for the Season,
Mary Downing Hahn

Confessions of the Sullivan Sisters,
Natalie Standiford

Granddaddy's Street Songs,
Monalisa DeGross

Jacob Have I Loved,
Katherine Paterson
Massachusetts

2012 selection
The Disappearing Island,
Corinne Demas

The Serpent Came to Gloucester,
M. T. Anderson

One Hen,
Katie Smith Milway

My Uncle Emily,
Jane Yolen
Michigan

2012 selection
Magic Trash: A Story of Tyree Guyton and His Art
of All Ages,
Jane Shapiro

For the Love of the Tigers:
An A-to-Z Primer for Tigers Fans
of All Ages,
Frederick C. Klein

Pocketful of Passage,
Loraine Campbell

January's Sparrow,
Patricia Polacco
Minnesota

2012 selection
BookSpeak! Poems About Books,
Laura Purdie Salas

Awesiinyensag,
Anton Treuer

Night Driving,
John Coy

Ojibwe in Minnesota,
Anton Treuer
Mississippi

2012 selection
A Daring Life: A Biography of Eudora Welty,
Carolyn J. Brown

When I Crossed No-Bob,
Margaret McMullan

The Secret Life of Walter Anderson,
Hester Bass

Flying Lessons,
Gilbert Ford
Missouri

2012 selection
Hate List,
Jennifer Brown

The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,
Mark Twain

The Feedsack Dress,
Carolyn Mulford

They're Off!:
The Story of the Pony Express,
Cheryl Harness
Montana

2012 selection
The Glaciers Are Melting,
Donna Love

The Governor's Dog is Missing,
Sneed B. Collard, III

Bug Feats of Montana,
Deborah Richie Oberbillig

Montana Place Names
from Alzada to Zortman,
Montana Historical Society
Nebraska

2012 selection
Sky Sailors: True Stories of the Balloon Era,
David Bristow

Holding Up the Earth,
Dianne Gray

Room One: A Mystery or Two,
Andrew Clements

Luck: The Story of a Sandhill Crane,
Jean Craighead George
Nevada

2012 selection
Play in the Clouds: A Tomas the Tortoise Adventure,
Mike Miller

Freeze Frame,
Heidi Ayarbe

The Orange Slipknot,
Jan Young

Under Open Skies,
Keeli McClintick
New Hampshire

2012 selection
Wish,
Joseph Monninger

The Messiest Desk,
Marty Kelley

To My Countrywomen:
The Life of Sarah Josepha Hale,
Muriel L. Dubois

Born to Be Giants:
How Baby Dinosaurs Grew to
Rule the World,
Lita Judge
New Jersey

Jazz,
Walter Dean Myers

Mrs. Spitzer's Garden,
Edith Pattou

The New Way Things Work,
David Macaulay
New Mexico

2012 selection
A History of New Mexico Since Statehood,
Robert J. Torrez, Sandra Mathews, Richard Melzer

The Day it Snowed Tortillas:
Tales from Spanish New Mexico,
Joe Hayes

Juan the Bear and the Water of Life,
Enrique Lamadrid &
Juan Estevan Arellano

Bad News for Outlaws:
The Remarkable Life of Bass Reeves,
Vaunda Micheaux Nelson
New York

2012 selection
Wonderstruck,
Brian Selznick

Journey into Mohawk Country,
George O'Connor

River of Dreams:
The Story of the Hudson River,
Enrique Lamadrid & Hudson Talbott

When You Reach Me,
Rebecca Stead
North Carolina

2012 selection
The Watch That Ends the Night: Voices from the Titanic,
Allan Wolf

Miss Dorothy and Her Bookmobile,
Gloria Houston

Blackbeard: The Pirate King,
Enrique Lamadrid & J. Patrick Lewis

North Carolina Curiosities,
Jerry Bledsoe
North Dakota

2012 selection
Dinomummy: The Life, Death and Discovery of Dakota, a Dinosaur from Hell Creek,
Philip Manning

Sakagawea,
Sakagawea Lise Erdrich

Gift Horse,
S. D. Nelson

Sacagawea,
Lise Erdrich
Ohio

2012 selection
Colo’s Story: The Life of One Grand Gorilla,
Nancy Roe-Pimm

B is for Buckeye: An Ohio Alphabet,
Marcia Schonberg

The Goosebump Series,
R. L. Stine

Zombies! Evacuate the School,
Sara Holbrook
Oklahoma

2012 selection
The Trial of Standing Bear,
Frank Keating

Where the Red Fern Grows,
Wilson Rawls

S Is for Sooner,
Kandy Radzinski

Chicken Dance,
Tammi Sauer
Oregon

2012 selection
Wildwing,
Emily Whitman

Don't Be Silly, Mrs. Millie,
Judy Cox

Apples to Oregon,
Deborah Hopkinson

The Captain’s Dog:
My Journey with the Lewis and Clark Tribe,
Roland Smith
Pennsylvania

2012 selection
Stop Snoring, Bernard!,
Zachary O Hora

The Breaker Boys,
Pat Hughes

Jim Thorpe: Original All-American,
Joseph Bruchac

Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie,
Jordan Sonnenblick
Rhode Island

2012 selection
The Amazing Adventures of John Smith Jr., aka Houdini,
Peter Johnson

Bella and Stella Come Home,
Anika Denise

Lemonade Mouth,
Mark Peter Hughes

The Wonder of Charlie Anne,
Kimberly Newton Fusco
South Carolina

2012 selection
Virals,
Kathy Reichs

Mercy Creek,
Matt Matthews

Carolina Clay: The Life and
Legend of the Slave Potter Dave,
Leonard Todd

Mercy Creek,
William P. Matthews
South Dakota

2012 selection
Walking Along: Plains Indian Trickster Stories,
Paul Goble

The Enchanted Buffalo,
L. Frank Baum

The Jumping Off Place,
Marian Hurd McNeely

The Raccoon and the Bee Tree,
Charles A. Eastman &
Elaine Goodale Eastman
Tennessee

2012 selection
Tarra & Bella: The Elephant and Dog Who Became Best Friends,
Carol Buckley

Penny Dreadful,
Laurel Snyder

Autumn Winifred Oliver
Does Things Different,
Kristin O'Donnell Tubb

On Viney's Mountain,
Joan Donaldson
Texas

2012 selection
Old Yeller,
Fred Gipson

Hummingbirds: Facts and Folklore
from the Americas,
Jeanette Larson and Adrienne Yorinks

The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate,
Jacqueline Kelly

Librarian On The Roof!
A True Story,
M.G. King
US Territories

2012 selection
Enchanting Tales of Guam,
Tina Camacho Pablo

Shake It, Morena!:
And Other Folklore from Puerto Rico,
Carmen T. Bernier-Grand

Juan Bobo: Four Folktales
from Puerto Rico,
Carmen T. Bernier-Grand

Hanging with Uncle Billy,
Mervelle A. Sage
Utah

2012 selection
Pingo,
Brandon Mull

Charlotte’s Rose,
A.E. Cannon

Book of a Thousand Days,
Shannon Hale

Rapunzel's Revenge,
Shannon Hale & Dean Hale
Vermont

2012 selection
The Canada Geese Quilt,
Natalie Kinsey-Warnock

Return to Sender,
Julia Alvarez

Electra to the Rescue:
Saving a Steamboat and the
Story of Shelburne Museum,
Valerie Biebuyck

Nora’s Ark,
Natalie Kinsey-Warnock
Virginia

2012 selection
Acoustic Rooster and His Barnyard Band,
Kwame Alexander

Fires of Jubilee,
Alison Hart

Students on Strike,
John A. Stokes

When the Whistle Blows,
Fran Cannon Slayton
Washington

2012 selection
Envy,
Gregg Olsen

Larry Gets Lost in Seattle,
John Skewes

Jacob Lawrence:
American Scenes, American Struggles,
Nancy Shroyer Howard

Volcano: The Eruption and
Healing of Mount St. Helens,
Patricia Lauber
Washington, D.C.

2012 selection
Eliza’s Cherry Trees: Japan’s Gift to America,
Andrea Zimmerman

This is Washington, D.C.,
M. Sasek

Our White House:
Looking In, Looking Out,
Various Authors/National Children's
Book & Literacy Alliance

First Pooch: The Obamas Pick a Pet
Carole Boston Weatherford
West Virginia

2012 selection
Child of the Mountains,
Marilyn Sue Shank

Passing the Music Down,
Sarah Sullivan

Golden Delicious:
A Cinderella Apple Story,
Various Authors/National Children's
Book & Anna Eagan Smucker

When the Whistle Blows,
Fran Cannon Slayton
Wisconsin

2012 selection
Lutie Stearns and the Traveling Libraries of Wisconsin,
Stuart Stotts

B is for Badger: A Wisconsin Alphabet,
Kathy-jo Wargin

Old Bear,
Kevin Henkes

Yes Day!,
Amy Krouse Rosenthal
Wyoming

2012 selection
The Guardian Team: On the Job with Rena and Roo,
Cat Urbigkit

Dee and the Mammoth,
Eugene Gagliano

Friday My Radio Flyer Flew,
Zachary Pullen

Little Wyoming,
Eugene Gagliano
