The Ultimate Guide to Free Graded Reader eBooks: McGuffey, Elson and MORE!

McGuffey was our starting point. Finding the McGuffey Readers online was like discovering hidden treasure. Treasure from the past aiding us in the present. Thanks to technology McGuffey, Elson, Treadwell, Baldwin and other readers have been dusted off and placed on modern electronic shelves. I marvel at the idea of a student in the latter 1800’s and early 1900’s holding a printed copy of these books in their hands. They would have turned printed pages as vocabulary, sentence structure and passage length increased. Old books in new hands. New readers experiencing new lands.

With 24 graded reader series including over 200 books I invite you to join along on the reading journey. To aid your navigation into these readers I’ve created a guide to get your started. So, grab a cup of coffee, sit back and enjoy!

Your Guide to Navigating the Graded Reader eBooks Ultimate List

• The series are listed below with a link to take you to the books.
• At the bottom of each series is a link “Return to List” which will bring you back to the main list.
• Each series has four screenshots representing the books. The name of the series, book and page number are included to give you a feel of the books included.
• Under the screenshots you will find the list of books.
• The copyright date is included to assist if you wish to view older books first. Some series have multiple versions of a book and the copyright allows you to differentiate between them.
• Click on the link of a book or it’s image to be taken to its Google Book page.
• If you have Google Play Books you can click the “EBOOK-FREE” link to add it to your bookshelf.
• If you wish to download the book directly without using Google Play Books, click on the gear located at the top right hand corner of the book page. A drop down menu will appear. Select your download option from this menu.
• Many books can be downloaded in PDF and EPUB format.
• Happy reading!

Graded Reader eBook Series

• Aldine Readers
• Analytical Readers
• Appletons’ School Readers
• Baldwin-School Reading by Grades
• Beacon Series
• Carroll-Brooks Readers
• The Child’s World Readers
• Classics for Children
• The Elson Readers
• The Franklin Readers
• The Golden Rule Series
• Graded Literature Readers
• Holton-Curry Readers
• Independent Readers
• Kendall Series of Readers
• McGuffey Readers
• Metcalf-Call Readers
• Monroe’s Readers
• The New Century
• Reading with Expression
• Sanders’ Series
• The Summers Readers
• Treadwell: Reading-Literature Series
• Wheeler’s Graded Readers
• BONUS
  • The Louisa Alcott Reader
  • The Kipling Readers (Elementary and Upper Grades)
  • Robert Louis Stevenson Reader
    

  Aldine Readers

  

  

  

  

  • Learning to Read: A Manual for Teachers Using The Aldine Readers (1918)
  • Primer (1916)
  • First Reader (1906)
  • Second Reader (1918)
  • Third Reader (1908)
  • Fourth Reader (1909)
  • Fifth Reader (1920)
  • Sixth Reader (1910)
  • First Language Book: Grades 3 and 4 (1913)
  • Second Language Book: Grades 5 and 6 (1914)
  • Third Language Book: Grades 7 and 8 (1917)
  • Manual for Teachers Using Second Language Book (1914)
  • Manual for Teachers Using Third Language Book (1917)
  • The Busy Brownies at Play-Supplementary Reader (1916)

  Analytical Readers

  

  

  

  

  • Second Reader (1866)
  • Third Reader (1867)
  • Fourth Reader (1867)
  • Fifth Reader (1867)
  • Sixth Reader (1867)

  Appletons’ School Readers

  

  

  

  

  • The First Reader (1878)
  • The Second Reader (1886)
  • The Third Reader (1902)
  • The Fourth Reader (1885)
  • The Fifth Reader (1902)

  Baldwin-School Reading by Grades

  

  

  

  

  • First Year (1897)
  • Second Year (1897)
  • Third Year (1897)
  • Fourth Year (1897)
  • Fifth Year (1897)
  • Sixth Year (1897)
  • Seventh Year (1897)
  • Eighth Year (1897)

  Beacon Series

  

  

  

  

  • Beacon Reading: A Manual of Instructions for Teachers Using the Beacon Readers
  • The Beacon Primer (1912)
  • Second Reader (1914)
  • Third Reader (1914)

  Carroll-Brooks Readers

  

  

  

  

  • How to Teach Reading: A Manual for the Use of Teachers. To Accompany Monroe Readers (1887)
  • Primer (1906)
  • First Reader (1911)
  • Second Reader (1910)
  • Third Reader (1911)
  • Reader for the Fourth Grade (1910)
  • Reader for the Fifth Grade (1911)
  • Reader for the Sixth Grade (1911)
  • Reader for the Seventh Grade (1911)
  • Reader for the Eighth Grade (1912)

  The Child’s World Readers

  

  

  

  

  • The Child’s World Readers Manual
  • Primer (1917)
  • First Reader (1920)
  • Second Reader (1917)
  • Third Reader (1920)
  • Fourth Reader (1917)
  • Fifth Reader (1920)

  Classics for Children

  

  

  • Second Reader (1897)
  • Third Reader (1894)
  • Fairy tales: First series, adapted to children reading the third school reader (1899)
  • Fourth Reader (1896)
  • Fifth Reader (1892)

  The Elson Readers

  

  

  

  

  • Primer : Manual (1921)
  • Primer (1920)
  • Book One (1920)
  • Book Two (1920)
  • Book Three (1913)
  • Book Four (1913)
  • Book Five (1920)
  • Book Six (1920)
  • Book Seven (1921)
  • Book Eight (1921)
  • Grammar School: Book Three (1910)
  • Grammar School: Fourth Reader for 8th grade (1909)
  • Junior High School Literature: Book Two (1920)
  • Good English: Book One (1920)
  • Good English: Book Two (1921)

  The Franklin Readers

  

  

  

  

  • Primer and First Reader (1897)
  • Second Reader (1873)
  • Third Reader (1886)
  • Fourth Reader (1873)
  • Fifth Reader (1884)
  • Sixth Reader (1878)

  The Golden Rule Series

  

  

  

  

  • The Golden Ladder Book (1913)
  • The Golden Path Book (1912)
  • The Golden Door Book (1913)
  • The Golden Key Book (1913)
  • The Golden Word Book (1913)
  • The Golden Deed Book (1913)

  Graded Literature Readers

  

  

  

  

  • First Book (1899)
  • Second Book (1899)
  • Third Book (1900)
  • Fourth Book (1900)
  • Fifth Book (1900)
  • Sixth Book (1901)
  • Seventh Book (1901)
  • Eighth Book (1901)

  Holton-Curry Readers

  

  

  

  

  • The Holton Primer (1901)
  • The First Reader (1914)
  • The Second Reader (1914)
  • The Third Reader (1914)
  • The Fourth Reader (1914)
  • The Fifth Reader (1914)
  • The Sixth Reader (1914)
  • The Seventh Reader (1914)

  Independent Readers

  

  

  

  

  • Primer (1875)
  • First Reader (1886)
  • Second Reader (1873)
  • Fourth Reader (1876)
  • Fifth Reader (1868)
  • Sixth Reader (1877)

  Kendall Series of Readers

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  Kendall Series of Readers-First Reader (pg. 1)" width="395" height="551" />

  Kendall Series of Readers-Second Reader (pg. 1)" width="386" height="554" />

  Kendall Series of Readers-Third Reader (pg. 1)" width="375" height="478" />

  • Primer (1917)
  • First Reader (1917)
  • Second Reader (1917)
  • Third Reader (1918)
  • Fourth Reader (1920)

  McGuffey Readers

  

  

  

  

  • McGuffey’s Eclectic Primer (1909)
  • McGuffey’s First Eclectic Reader: For Little Children (1857)
  • McGuffey’s First Eclectic Reader (1920)
  • McGuffey’s 1st Eclectic Reader: For Young Learners (1885)
  • New Second Reader (1901)
  • The Eclectic Second Reader (1836)
  • McGuffey’s 3rd Eclectic Reader Revised (1879)
  • The New McGuffey 3rd Reader (1901)
  • Familiar animals and their wild kindred-for the third reader grade (1887)
  • McGuffey’s New 4th Eclectic Reader (1857)
  • The New McGuffey 4th Reader (1901)
  • McGuffey’s Newly Revised Eclectic Fourth Reader (~1853)
  • Living creatures of water, land and air: for the fourth reader grade (1888)
  • McGuffey’s New Fifth Eclectic Reader (1866)
  • The New McGuffey Fifth Reader (1901)
  • McGuffey’s 5th Eclectic Reader (1920)
  • McGuffey’s Rhetorical Guide; or Fifth Reader (1853)
  • McGuffey’s Alternate 5th Reader (1888)
  • McGuffey’s 6th Eclectic Reader (1867)
  • McGuffey’s New High School Reader (1889)
  • McGuffey’s Eclectic Speaker (1858)
  • A History of the McGuffey Readers (1910)

  Metcalf-Call Readers

  

  

  

  

  • How to Teach Reading: A Manual for the Use of Teachers. To Accompany Monroe Readers (1887)
  • First Reader
  • Second Reader
  • Third Reader
  • Fourth Reader
  • Fifth Reader

  Monroe’s Readers

  

  

  

  

  • How to Teach Reading: A Manual for the Use of Teachers. To Accompany Monroe Readers (1887)
  • New Primer (1885)
  • New First Reader (1885)
  • Second Reader (1873)
  • New Second Reader (1885)
  • Third Reader (1873)
  • New Third Reader (1885)
  • Fourth Reader (1872)
  • New Fourth Reader (1884)
  • Fifth Reader (1871)
  • New Fifth (1884)
  • Sixth Reader (1872)

  The New Century

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  The New Century-Second Reader (pg. 9)" width="377" height="555" />

  The New Century-Third Reader (pg. 11)" width="371" height="538" />

  The New Century-Fourth Reader (pg. 9)" width="385" height="536" />

  • First Reader (1899)
  • Second Reader (1899)
  • Third Reader (1899)
  • Fourth Reader (1899)
  • Fifth Reader (1899)
  • Sixth Reader (1901)

  Reading with Expression

  

  

  

  

  • Teacher’s Manual (1912)
  • Second Reader (1911)
  • Fourth Reader (1911)
  • Fifth Reader (1911)
  • Sixth Reader (1911)
  • Seventh Reader (1911)
  • Eighth Reader (1911)

  Sanders’ Series

  

  

  

  

  • Pictorial Primer (1858)
  • School Reader: First Book (1865)
  • School Reader: First Book-New Series (1853)
  • School Reader: Second Book (1871)
  • School Reader: Third Book (1848)
  • School Reader: Fourth Book (1842)
  • School Reader: Fourth Book -New Series (1860)
  • School Reader: Fifth Book (1855)
  • School Reader: Fifth Book-New Series (1859)
  • Union Pictorial Primer (1869)
  • Union First Reader (1875)
  • Union Second Reader (1861)
  • Union Third Reader (1862)
  • Union Fourth Reader (1876)
  • Union Fifth Reader (1876)
  • Union Sixth Reader (1862)
  • High School Reader (1856)
  • Young Ladies Reader (1856)

  The Summers Readers

  

  

  

  

  • Manual First Lessons in Reading (1908)
  • Primer (1908)
  • First Reader (1908)
  • Second Reader (1909)
  • Third Reader (1904)

  Treadwell: Reading-Literature Series

  

  

  

  

  • A Manual for Teachers to Accompany the Primer, First and Second Readers of the Reading-Literature Series
  • Primer (1910)
  • First Reader (1911)
  • Second Reader (1912)
  • Third Reader (1912)
  • Fourth Reader (1913)
  • Fifth Reader (1914)
  • Sixth Reader (1915)
  • Seventh Reader (1918)
  • Eighth Reader (1919)

  Wheeler’s Graded Readers

  

  

  

  

  • Primer (1918)
  • First Reader (1901)
  • Second Reader (1903)
  • Third Reader (1904)
  • Fourth Reader (1919)
  • Fifth Reader (1919)
  • Sixth Reader (1919)
  • Seventh Reader (1919)
  • Eighth Reader (1919)

  BONUS

  

  

  

  

  • The Louisa Alcott Reader: A Supplementary Reader for the Fourth Year of School (1911)
  • The Kipling reader for Elementary Grades (1912)
  • The Kipling Reader for Upper Grades (1912)
    
  • Robert Louis Stevenson Reader (1906)

  Whew! I wish I had time to read all of these, but as you know homeschooling calls! Please share the ebooks from this list you like the best-with us all working together we can have an incredible learning journey. Thanks!

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