Adventure books (many containing dragons):
the My Father's Dragon trilogy, by Ruth Stiles Gannet
My Father's Dragon (again)
the Doctor Dolittle books, by Hugh Lofting
Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, by Grace Lin
Half Magic, by Edward Eager
How to Train Your Dragon, by Cressida Cowell
The Spiderwick Chronicles, by Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black
Thomas and the Dragon Queen, by Shutta Crum
The Marvelous Land of Oz, by L.Frank Baum
Ozma of Oz, by L.Frank Baum
Kenny and the Dragon, by Tony DiTerlizzi
The Reluctant Dragon, by Kenneth Grahame
Raising Dragons, by Jerdine Nolan
The Wind on the Moon, by Eric Linklater
The Princess and the Goblin, by George Macdonald
Beach adventures:
The Paradise Trap, by Catherine Jinks
The Worry Week, by Anne Lindbergh
Books about kids:
Anna Hibiscus, by Atinuke
(more on Anna Hibiscus at this link)
The Riverside Kids books (starting with Busybody Nora), by Johanna Hurwitz
The Jamie and Angus Stories, by Anne Fine
The Sophie books, by Dick King-Smith
Lulu and the Brontosaurus, by Judith Viorst
The Stories Julian Tells, by Ann Cameron
Clementine, by Sara Pennypacker
Books about animals:
Martin's Mice, by Dick King-Smith
Three Terrible Trins, by Dick King-Smith
The Mouse and the Motorcycle, by Beverly Cleary
Mr. Popper's Penguins, by Richard and Florence Atwater
The Wind in the Willows, by Kenneth Grahame (abridged and illustrated by Inga Moore)
Charlotte's Web, by E.B. White (more on it here)
How to Scratch a Wombat, by Jackie French (nonfiction)
The Trumpet of the Swan, by E.B. White
The Cricket in Times Square, by George Selden
Books about toys:
Toys Go Out, by Emily Jenkins
Winnie the Pooh, by A.A. Milne
Books that deal with death:
Charlotte's Web, by E.B. White
Early chapter books for slightly older kids:
Ramona the Pest , by Beverly Cleary (and other Ramona books, of course)
Fairy Tales:
The Fairy's Return by Gail Carson Levine
Shakespeare's Storybook: Folk Tales that Inspired the Bard
Mystery:
Ottoline and the Yellow Cat, by Chris Riddell
Ottoline Goes to School, by Chris Riddell
the Nancy Drew series, by Carolyn Keene
the Encyclopedia Brown mysteries, by Donald J. Sobel
the Meg Mackintosh series, by Lucinda Landon
the "Get a Clue" series, by Julian Press
Nate the Great, by Marjorie Weinman Sharmat
Poetry:
When We Were Very Young, by A.A. Milne
Now We Are Six, by A.A. Milne
Politics:
Bad Kitty Runs for President, by Nick Bruel
Really good abridged versions of books for older kids:
The Wizard of Oz, by L. Frank Baum (abridged, Santore illustrations)
Peter Pan, by J.M. Barrie (abridged, Classic Starts version)
The Wind in the Willows, by Kenneth Grahame (abridged and illustrated by Inga Moore)
Merlin and the Making of a King (by Margaret Hodges, illus. Trina Schart Hyman)
Tales from Shakespeare, by Tina Packer
The Winter's Tale, retold by Bruce Coville
