The Castle in the Attic: Solid Children's Literature

I first read The Castle in the Attic by Elizabeth Winthrop to my 5th grade class three years ago, and have read it each year sense. I actually start the year off with this book as a shared read aloud. I have a classroom set of this book, so I read it with students. Alongside the book, we discuss King Arthur, the knights, and the middle ages, more as an informational unit than an all out social studies unit (because 5th grade social studies in New Mexico is United States history).

The Castle in the Attic is a great fantasy story all around, students love the mundane life of the protagonist (a 5th grader) that is disrupted by magic and a fantasy world. I didn't want to get into spoilers here, so I won't, but I do want to recommend this book to 4th or 5th grade teachers, it's a great, easy to read book that doesn't challenge social norms or anything of that sort. Check it out, an adult can read it in probably a few easy hours.