Mermaid, Sputnik, and Red Fern

FOR YOUNG READERS:

I absolutely love Jan Brett, not only as a story-teller, but an artist.  Her richly colored, detailed illustrations will delight both children and adults.  Most of her stories have Nordic themes, but a few (like her 2004 Armadillo Rodeo) branch out.  Young children will catch on very quickly that this tale mirrors another story they know when the mermaid Kiniro drifts into the empty octopus home and finds one coral chair too bumpy, one too slimy, and one just right. 








FOR MIDDLE READERS:

Sputnik's Guide to Life on Earth is by far the best book I have ever read out loud to kids.  It is fast-paced, heart-warming, and laugh-out-loud funny all the way through.  Sputnik is, well...an alien...in a kilt and goggles, out to investigate whether the planet Earth is worth saving (hence his "guide").  Pres, the main character, is a boy in foster care because his grandpa can no longer take care of him.  Pres is the only person who recognizes Sputnik is an alien; everyone else thinks Sputnik is a dog.  Sputnik has no qualms about getting up to no good and Pres is constantly trying to cover for him, certain the antics will get him kicked out of a very good foster home - which leads to the constant hilarity.



FOR ADVANCED READERS:

This book, by Wilson Rawls, was first published in 1961, has gone through several print additions, and was made into a movie in 1974 and again in 2003.  It is the story of Billy Colman who saves his money to buy two coon hunting dogs.  The money is a fortune for his family, but he gets his dogs and trains them for a coon hunting contest.  The story tells of the love between a boy and his dogs, and the often difficult times families endured in the Ozarks.  It captures the joys and the hardships and has something for everyone.  It is a book I have read over and over and loved it every time.