Tips for Selecting a Good Book

Check the cover.  Does the dust jacket catch your eye? 

Don't judge the book only by the cover.

Read the summary on the inside flap. 

Does the book sound like something you would enjoy?

Look at the illustrations and skim the text. 

Do the words and pictures make an interesting combination?

Look at what your friends are reading. 

Ask them for recommendations.

Read books by your favorite author.

Read books about your hobbies or other special interests.

Five Finger Tests

(How to check the reading level of a book.)

• Open the book to the middle. 
  

• Read the page.
  

• Put one finger up for every word you can not pronounce or do not know.
  

• If you get five fingers up on one page, the book is to difficult to read independently.
  

• If you do not get any fingers up, but are reading very slowly and decoding almost every word, you will not enjoy the book.