Have you ever wondered why students choose the books that they do? Renaissance Learning explored this question in the fifth-edition What Kids Are Reading report, which lists the top 40 books read by students in grades 1-12 in the 2011-2012 school year. Rankings are based on the Accelerated Reader database, the largest of its kind, which houses reading records for students who read 283 million books.

In this new edition, authors, educators, and kids share their thoughts on what motivates students' book selections, including: Avi, author of Nothing But the Truth; Christy Levings, National Education Association; Doreen Cronin, author of Click Clack Moo: Cows That Type; and Roger Farr, Chancellor's Professor Emeritus of Education, Indiana University.

Note: You need Adobe Reader to view the reports. If you do not have this free software, visit the Adobe site and download it.

If you are a K-12 educator and would like a printed copy, click here.

This year's What Kids Are Reading also includes:

• Required high school reading from 1907 to 2012
• Caldecott and Newbery award winners, 1922 to Present
• A selection of the Common Core State Standard exemplars