The first book in Cleary’s eight-book Ramona Quimby series hones in on Ramona and her older sister, Beezus. In this novel, she considers how Socks-a doted-on cat-handles the arrival of a new baby.īuy it: Socks at Amazon | Socks at Bookshop 5. Leave it to Cleary to consider all perspectives. Buy it: Henry and Ribsy at Amazon | Henry and Ribsy at Bookshop 4. Cleary’s specialty is bighearted comedy, and this is no exception. When Henry wants to go on a fishing trip, he’s told he can’t unless Ribsy can stay out of mischief. Henry and Ribsyįrom the start, Ribsy the dog has been Henry’s best friend, and a bit of a troublemaker. Buy it: Henry and Beezus at Amazon | Henry and Beezus at Bookshop 3. Readers who’ve already breezed through the Ramona Quimby novels will love picking this one up. Beezus appears as Henry’s best friend, helping him to get a bike when all his plans keep failing, and Ramona is-of course-the pesky little sister foiling their plans. Many of Cleary’s books take place in the same universe, and in this second Henry Huggins novel, characters Beezus and Ramona are introduced.

Buy it: Henry Huggins at Amazon | Henry Huggins at Bookshop 2. The first of a six-book series, this one is perfect for readers moving up from shorter chapter books. The title character Henry Huggins befriends a dog, Ribsy, and the two become an inseparable pair, threatened only when Ribsy’s original owner resurfaces. While Cleary’s first novel may not feature smartphones or Roblox, it remains eminently readable.

Henry and ribsy series