"I was so excited to receive a generous sampling of early readers from the "Books for Young Learners" (BYL) collection from Richard C. Owen Publishers, Inc.! I like to keep my first grade daughter's desire for reading fresh by keeping a variety of new books on hand whether from the library or from companies like BYL.

Richard C. Owen Publishers, Inc. has been publishing books for elementary students for almost 30 years. They offer a PK-3 collection totaling 174 titles, 82 of which are available in Spanish. Their books seem to cover a wide variety of topics in both fiction and non-fiction. All the books we received are soft cover and come in various sizes. Most are illustrated while some have photographs, and all books are leveled for shared, guided, and independent reading.

It is easy to find what you are looking for on the website. Titles are in alphabetical order and are color coded based on level--emergent, early, or fluent. Here, you will also be able to see if a title is available in Spanish, the word count, number of pages, whether it is non-fiction or fiction, the Reading Recovery level, and the Fountas and Pinnell guided reading levels.

A unique teacher's resource--Book Notes--can be downloaded for each book free of charge. With Book Notes, these books become more than just early readers. They provide the teacher/parent with additional information about the book and ideas for further discussion. Book Notes are organized and divided into six headings: Synopsis, What the Book Offers, Possible Skills Emphasis, Introducing the Book, Focus of Instruction, and Following the Reading.

There a few ways you can purchase Books for Young Learners. Single copies are $5.75 each. Six packs are $27.00. You can also purchase book packages based on the various reading levels, and prices vary based on package. A few themed packages are available as well.

My daughter and I enjoyed all of the books we received from BYL, especially the fiction ones. I do recommend these books as interesting and educational early readers, however, Christian parents should be aware that not all of the non-fiction books may present facts based on a creationistic viewpoint. Hidden in the Midden was one we encountered that mentioned animal teeth being millions of years old. Other than that I was pleased.

Editor Note: At the time of writing, the publishers are offering a special on five of their books. See this link for more information: http://www.rcowen.com/Parents.htm#Give_your_children_great_books_to_read

Product Review by Brandi Tesreau, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, LLC, November, 2011