Arnold and Louise series by Erica S. Perl (6-8 years)

Arnold is a large black bear. He's thoughtful and careful.

Louise is a small brown-and-white chipmunk. She's loud and unpredictable.

They have nothing in common.

They are the best of friends.

Arnold and Louise is a series of transitional chapter books that is great for emerging readers (and also terrific for read-alouds).

Book 1: The Great Louweezie

Arnold is a large black bear. His best friend, Louise, is a small chipmunk. But one day, Louise insists she is NOT Louise--she's the Great Louweezie, and she can predict the future! But when the Great Louweezie's demands begin to test Arnold's patience, the game feels much less fun. What will happen if friendship isn't in their future?

Book 2: Lost and Found

When Louise borrows Arnold's newly found treasure, he's sure he'll never see it again. After all, she loses just about everything he lends her. Louise swears she hasn't lost it, but to get it back, she sends Arnold on a treasure hunt of her own--or is it a wild goose chase?

Book 3: Happy Fell

Arnold wants to celebrate the start of the cozy autumn season indoors. Louise does not. How can they celebrate fell if they're not celebrating together?

Book 4: All the Fun Winter Things

Snow has fallen and the pond is frozen, so Arnold knows that--as a bear--it's time to hibernate! But Louise insists that he'll miss all the fun winter things if he does, so she convinces him to try hibernating like a chipmunk instead. They'll sleep for a short time, wake up to go sledding or have a snowball fight, and repeat! The only problem is, Arnold can't seem to  keep his eyes open. What if he can't stay awake for the winter fun?