Book Thoughts by Rachelle

I read this middle grade book to my 9 year old son and we enjoyed it. It’s an older book, written in a style that has nearly disappeared from our children’s literature nowadays with more description and narrative.

This book centers around a tomcat named Whittington and his remarkable story and heritage from hundreds of years ago. The cat tells his story in an effort to help two young children who live on the farm. Ben has dyslexia and is struggling in school and his sister Abby is trying to help him. Through the adventures of Whittington the children learn ideas of how to help Ben read, stay determined, courageous, and strong in the face of adversity.

Because I have 2 children with dyslexia I cringed a few times at the situations presented with Ben’s challenges–mostly centered on other children in his class making fun of him if he needed to have specialized help and be pulled from the class. Again, this is an older book so I’ve seen things handled differently in schools currently, thank goodness.

My son and I enjoyed the story, but some parts were difficult as a read-aloud book because of the way words and letters were presented as a visual. Because of my son’s dyslexia, he would only be able to experience this book if I read it to him. Despite those few issues, it was still a good book.

The book is made up of lots of little vignettes that create the story. The main plot is held together by the tomcat telling his story.

Here’s more about the book:

This Newbery-Honor winning tale introduces Whittington, a roughneck Tom who arrives one day at a barn full of rescued animals and asks for a place there. He spins for the animals—as well as for Ben and Abby, the kids whose grandfather does the rescuing—a yarn about his ancestor, the nameless cat who brought Dick Whittington to the heights of wealth and power in 16th-century England. This is an unforgettable tale about the healing, transcendent power of storytelling, and how learning to read saves one little boy.

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Book Thoughts by Rachelle

Powerful story packed into a quick read

I read this book aloud to my kids and they loved it. I loved reading it because it is rare to find an early middle-grade novel written with such excellent description and a moving storyline. The author did a wonderful job of dropping the reader right into the earthquake of 1906. We were riveted and my boys were begging me to read more each night.

It’s a quick read with fascinating facts. The I Survived books are great and my 12 year old son was so impressed that he went hunting on our bookshelf and found another book in this series to read on his own. Now I call that a win!

Here’s more about the book:

The terrifying details of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake jump off the page!

Ten-year-old Leo loves being a newsboy in San Francisco — not only does he get to make some money to help his family, he’s free to explore the amazing, hilly city as it changes and grows with the new century. Horse-drawn carriages share the streets with shiny new automobiles, new businesses and families move in every day from everywhere, and anything seems possible.But early one spring morning, everything changes. Leo’s world is shaken — literally — and he finds himself stranded in the middle of San Francisco as it crumbles and burns to the ground. Does Leo have what it takes to survive this devastating disaster?The I SURVIVED series continues with another thrilling story of a boy caught in one of history’s most terrifying disasters!

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Book Thoughts by Rachelle

Juniper comes off the grid and into your heart

This middle-grade book was incredibly good and so timely for me and my family. You see, Juniper Berry is a girl who has been living off the grid and she loves the adventure with her family in the woods of California. Her parents teach her everything and they homeschool in the woods, but then something happens that forces the family back to society. Juniper has to navigate public school with its challenges at the same time worrying over the challenges in her own family.

I read The Wild Journey of Juniper Berry aloud to two of my boys, age 12 and 8. The 12 year-old was a bit resistant at first, but soon fell in love with the characters. We laughed out loud at Juniper’s antics and the learning curve of figuring out society’s ways vs. the woods.

The reason why this book was so timely is that I am sending my kids back to public school this year after 3+ years of homeschooling. My husband passed away so that changed everything for our family, including the option to homeschool. Juniper Berry’s story showed us all that we can do hard things and we can change and do more hard things.

I’m so grateful for the talent of Chad Morris & Shelly Brown and their ability to weave this tale of total fun and adventure that slipped in some golden nuggets of courage and wisdom that my family desperately needed right now. No matter your situation, I urge you to grab this book and start reading! Juniper has something for you to laugh and learn about as well!

Here’s more about the book:

Juniper Berry knows how to handle bobcats, bears, and mountain lions, but can she survive the toughest predator of all—middle school?

Eleven-year-old Juniper Berry lives with her family deep in the wild woods. Living off the grid is pretty exciting, but her happy life in the wild ends abruptly when her younger brother gets sick, and they move to the city to be closer to the hospital. Juniper and her older sister end up living with cousins they hardly know and attending public school for the first time, which is harder to navigate than the wild woods ever were. Juniper feels like a wolf cub separated from her pack.

As the hospital bills for her brother start piling up, Juniper knows they’ll need to be paid before the family can go back to the woods, so she decides to make enough money to help out. With her cousin Alayna’s support, Juniper starts posting videos filled with her wisdom from the woods, hoping to get a following. But what if it doesn’t work? What if the bills never get paid? Not going home to the wild is Juniper’s worst nightmare. While she’s stuck in the city, she might as well make the most of it, like sticking up for Alayna, who’s being bullied by her supposed friends, for starters.

The Wild Journey of Juniper Berry is a story about perseverance when faced with difficult and unfamiliar challenges, belonging and finding your identity, compassion for others, and learning that our differences can sometimes be our strengths.

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