Kidzworld's Top Reads of 2003

2003 was full of memorable Hollywood moments, like the Britney-Madonna kiss, the Bennifer wedding disaster and Eminem winning an Oscar - but more importantly there were some really great books that made their debut. So, if you didn't catch 'em the first time around, here are Kidzworld's picks of the top books of 2003.

1) Holes (Random House)

It's not just a hit Disney movie - Holes was first a book all about a boy named Stanley Yelnats. In Holes, Stanley is falsely accused of stealing a pair of sneakers (you'll find out why if you crack open the book), and sent to Camp Green Lake, a camp for boys gone bad. The boys' punishment at Camp Green Lake is not your average solitary confinement. Instead, detainees must dig holes in the middle of the Texan desert. Strange, huh?

2) The Healing Time of Hickeys (Raincoast)

This book has been called the Bridget Jones' Diary for teens. But you know what? It's better than that. If the title wasn't goofy enough, Haley Harmony, the main character, will definitely fill the goof-factor for ya. Haley is obsessed with a lot of things - a boy named J.T., how completely perfect her friends are, and how to make her teeth so white they glow in the dark. However, Haley's biggest obsession is recording every moment of TGYML (The Greatest Year of My Life), on her laptop she affectionately calls Junior. The problem, Haley quickly finds out, is that dubbing something TGYML before it even starts leaves room for nothing but disappointment - and disaster!

3) The Wolves in the Walls (HarperCollins)

The Wolves in the Walls is a story about Lucy and her family, and how they have wolves living in their walls - or at least that's what Lucy thinks. She hears scratching and nibbling in the walls and is convinced that the noises are coming from the wolves. But everyone that Lucy tells (her mom, dad and brother,) dismisses her concerns with more believable explanations. Little do they know, Lucy's tale isn't that far-fetched...

4) Harry Potter and the Order of Phoenix (Raincoast)

The Order of the Phoenix brings Harry Potter back for his fifth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, but life isn't that easy for the boy who survived The Goblet of Fire. The evil Voldemort is back, the Ministry of Magic peeps are being a bunch of jerks, everyone thinks Harry's crazy, Hogwarts' Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, isn't talking and there are enemies everywhere. It's not easy being a 15 year-old kid wizard! It's a good thing Harry Potter can always rely on Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley and the rest of the Gryffindors - or can he?

5) The Second Summer of the Sisterhood (Random House)

It's in The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants that we meet Lena, Carmen, Bridget and Tibby. And, it's in the Traveling Pants sequel, The Second Summer of the Sisterhood, that we meet up with them again. The Traveling Pants are a pair of jeans that Carmen found at a second-hand store. They were completely ordinary pants until the girls realized that despite their different shapes and sizes, the Traveling Pants fit every one of them perfectly! The pants make the girls feel like a million bucks and they seem to help their wildest dreams come true!

Related Stories:

Book Reviews - Kidzworld's Top Reads of 2002

Book Review - Whale Rider

Book Review - Leon and the Spitting Image

DVD Release - Disney's Holes

More Great Reads From 2003!

Read more: Book Shelf