Abbott, Tony. THE SECRETS OF DROON SERIES. In this easy transitional chapter book series, three friends discover the entryway to a magical world (appropriate for 2nd-3rd grades).- Alexander, Lloyd. CHRONICLES OF PRYDAIN SERIES. A young pigkeeper must battle the Horned King and destroy the Black Cauldron to rescue Princess Eilonwy.
- Barron, T.A. THE LOST YEARS OF MERLIN SERIES. A young boy discovers his true identity in this fantasy series based on the King Arthur legend.
- Barry, Dave. PETER AND THE STARCATCHERS. Peter is on a ship to Never Never Land, and meets Molly, a young starcatcher.
- Byng, Georgia. MOLLY MOON’S INCREDIBLE BOOK OF HYPNOTISM. English orphan Molly Moon takes her talent for hypnotism to gain fame in New York City.
- Colfer, Eoin. ARTEMIS FOWL SERIES. Twelve-year-old evil genius Artemis Fowl battles the fairy folk for his family’s long-lost fortune.
- Collins, Suzanne. GREGOR THE OVERLANDER SERIES. Gregor and his baby sister are pulled into an underground world, where they must battle giant-sized insects.
- Cooper, Susan. THE DARK IS RISING SERIES. Three children set out to find the grail of King Arthur, touching off a struggle between the forces of good and evil.
- Cowell, Cressida. HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON SERIES. Hiccup tries to past the test of his Viking clan by catching and training a dragon.
- Dahl, Roald. MATILDA. Brilliant first-grader Matilda triumphs over her book-hating parents and Miss Trunchbull, the odious school principal.
- Dahl, Roald. THE WITCHES. A boy and his grandmother thwart the plans of a group of witches, who want to turn children into mice.
- Duane, Diane. SO YOU WANT TO BE A WIZARD SERIES. Thirteen year old Nita and her fellow teen wizard Kit find the help she needs in a library book on wizardry.
- Eager, Edward. HALF MAGIC. Jane, Mark, Katharine, and Martha find a coin that grants half of every wish they make. Great to recommend to younger fans (appropriate for 3rd-4th grades).
- Funke, Cornelia. DRAGONRIDER SERIES. Firedrake, a silver dragon, is on a quest to find the land of called the “Rim of Heaven.”
- Ibbotson, Eva. THE SECRET OF PLATFORM 13. Odge, a young hag, accompanies an old wizard, a gentle fey, and a giant ogre on their mission to rescue the King’s son.
- Jones, Diana Wynne. ARCHER’S GOON. Howard and his sister are determined to find how their father’s writings have kept the mysterious and powerful Archer from leaving their town to rule the world.
- Leguin, Ursula. A WIZARD OF EARTHSEA SERIES. A boy grows up while attempting to subdue the evil he accidentally unleashed on the world while he was the apprentice to the Master Wizard.
- Lewis, C.S. THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA SERIES. The first two books are also popular movies, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe and Prince Caspian.
- Nesbit, E. FIVE CHILDREN AND IT. While digging in a sand pit, the children discover a Psammead – a creature with mysterious powers that leads children into adventure and excitement.
- Nimmo, Jenny. CHARLIE BONE SERIES. Charlie discovers he has the magical power of hearing people in photographs talk!
- Paolini, Christopher. ERAGON SERIES. Eragon finds a large egg that hatches into a dragon! He discovers his destiny – to be a dragon rider.
- Potter, Ellen. OLIVIA KIDNEY. Olivia discovers many unusual characters in her apartment building – including pirates, a psychic, and ghosts!
- Pratchett, Terry. THE WEE FREE MEN. Tiffany teams up with six-inch-high blue men to rescue her baby brother.
- Sage, Angie. MAGYK: SEPTIMUS HEAP BOOK ONE. The first in a series about a princess and a wizard; sequels include FLYTE and PHYSIK.
- Snicket, Lemony. SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS. Three orphans escape the clutches of evil Count Olaf, who is trying to take their fortune.
- Winthrop, Elizabeth. CASTLE IN THE ATTIC. William is given a toy medieval castle as a gift, and is magically transported to another world of wizards and dragons.
- Wrede, Patricia. Dealing with Dragons. A princess lives with a group of dragons and fights the wizards determined to take the dragons’ kingdom.
Also see the previous Harry Potter read-alike page from October 2011.