Battle of the Books 2026

Looking to finish your reading for Battle of the Books? Use this list to place a hold with your Waunakee Public Library card!

Due to high demand across school districts, we can't guarantee these books will be available at the library on a given day, so we recommend placing a hold using the links below.

Books typically arrive at the library in less than a week, and you'll receive a notification when it is ready for pickup.  

4th Grade Reading List:

Dragons in a Bag by Zetta Elliott (chapter book, 154 pages, 1st book in series)

Fish in a Tree by Lynda Mullaly Hunt (chapter book, 276 pages)  

Heat by Mike Lupica (chapter book, 220 pages)  

Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai (verse novel, 262 pages)  

Knight Owl and Early Bird by Christopher Denise (picture book) 

Lumberjackula by Mat Heagerty (graphic novel, 143 pages) 

Ranger in Time: Hurricane Katrina Rescue by Kate Messner (chapter book, 127 pages, book 8 in series)

Song for a Whale by Lynn Kelley (chapter book, 303 pages) 

Space Case by Stuart Gibbs (chapter book, 337 pages)  

There’s a Ghost in this House by Oliver Jeffers (picture book)  

What if You Could Sniff Like a Shark by Sandra Markle (picture book nonfiction) 

Winnie: the True Story of the Bear who Inspired Winnie-the-Pooh by Sally Walker (picture book nonfiction)  

5th Grade Reading List:

Book Scavenger by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman

Buffalo Dreamer by Violet Duncan

Dog Man: The Scarlet Shedder by Dav Pilkey

A Duet for Home by Karina Yan Glaser

The Floating Field: How a Group of Thai Boys Built Their Own Soccer Field by Scott Riley

Gibberish by Young Vo

The Hero Two Doors Down by Sharon Robinson

I Survived the Black Death, 1348 by Lauren Tarshis

Knight Owl and Early Bird by Christopher Denise

Lumberjackula by Mat Heagerty

The Misfits: A Royal Conundrum by Lisa Yee

The Mona Lisa Vanishes by Nicholas Day

The One and Only Family by Katherine Applegate

Out of My Mind by Sharon Draper

Pahua and the Soul Stealer by Lori Lee

Pax by Sara Pennypacker

Sal and Gabi Break the Universe by Carlos Hernandez

There’s a Ghost in this House by Oliver Jeffers 

Three Billy Goats Gruff by Mac Barnett

Vlad, the Fabulous Vampire by Flavia Drago

6th Grade Reading List:

Al Capone Does My Shirts by Gennifer Choldenko

The Benefits of Being an Octopus by Ann Braden

The Bletchley Riddle by Ruta Sepetys & Steve Sheinkin

Circus Mirandus by Cassie Beasley

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Hot Mess by Jeff Kinney

The First State of Being by Erin Entrada Kelly

Heroes by Alan Gratz

Hope Was Here by Hope Bauer

Ice Dogs by Terry Lynn Johnson

The Last Mapmaker by Christina Soontornvat

Louder than Hunger by John Schu

The Marvellers by Dhonielle Clayton

The Mona Lisa Vanishes by Nicholas Day

New Kid by Jerry Craft

Pony by R.J. Palacio

Show Me a Sign by Ann Clare LeZotte

Something Like Home by Andrea Beatriz Arango

Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt

Unplugged by Gordan Korman

We Are Big Time by Hena Khan