Pocahontas


Ingri d'Aulaire - 1946
    When the Natives judge the white man's magic as evil, John Smith is condemned to death— - only the intervention of Pocahontas saves his life and a tentative friendship is established between Pocahontas's tribe and the new colonists. The King of England sends a crown, rich robes and a royal bed to honor Powhatan and he is pleased, but the white man's insistence that the Indians give them corn to sustain them through the long winters threatens their tenuous relationship. Pocahontas's ultimate marriage to John Rolfe, the birth of their son, their voyage to England and presentation to the King and Queen is the stuff of fairy tales except that it is one of the great true stories of America's earliest days. 46pg

A Wolf Called Wander


Rosanne Parry - 2019
    Then a rival pack attacks, and Swift and his family scatter.Alone and scared, Swift must flee and find a new home. His journey takes him a remarkable one thousand miles across the Pacific Northwest. The trip is full of peril, and Swift encounters forest fires, hunters, highways, and hunger before he finds his new home.Inspired by the true story of a wolf named OR-7 (or Journey).

My Favorite Pets, by Gus W. for Ms. Smolinski's Class


Jeanne Birdsall - 2016
      Things to know about sheep: Sheep live outside. Sheep have wool. Sheep will not learn to ride a skateboard. Sheep will not climb a tree. Sheep will come into the house...but this will get you into trouble.   Seventeen sheep plus one Gus means that life is never dull on the farm! From National Book Award winning author Jeanne Birdsall and New York Times Bestselling illustrator Harry Bliss comes a hilarious tale about man's other best friend.

Listening for Lions


Gloria Whelan - 2005
    But when influenza strikes down her missionary parents, she is left vulnerable prey to her family's wicked neighbors. Surrounded by greed and lies, Rachel is entangled in a criminal scheme and sent to England, where she is forced into a life of deception. Like the lion, she must be patient and strong, awaiting the moment when she can take control of her own fate—and find her way home again at last.

My Side of the Mountain


Jean Craighead George - 1959
    Young Sam Gribley gets to the end of the block and keeps going--all the way to the Catskill Mountains of upstate New York. There he sets up house in a huge hollowed-out tree, with a falcon and a weasel for companions and his wits as his tool for survival. In a spellbinding, touching, funny account, Sam learns to live off the land, and grows up a little in the process. Blizzards, hunters, loneliness, and fear all battle to drive Sam back to city life. But his desire for freedom, independence, and adventure is stronger. No reader will be immune to the compulsion to go right out and start whittling fishhooks and befriending raccoons. Jean Craighead George, author of more than 80 children's books, including the Newbery Medal-winning Julie of the Wolves, created another prizewinner with My Side of the Mountain--a Newbery Honor Book, an ALA Notable Book, and a Hans Christian Andersen Award Honor Book. Astonishingly, she wrote its sequel, On the Far Side of the Mountain, 30 years later, and a decade after that penned the final book in the trilogy, Frightful's Mountain, told from the falcon's point of view. George has no doubt shaped generations of young readers with her outdoor adventures of the mind and spirit. (Ages 9 to 12) --Emilie Coulter

Yellow Eyes


Rutherford G. Montgomery - 1937
    Beautiful and cruel, like all big cats, Yellow Eyes and his mate, The Golden One, are tawny shadows lurking in the forest. Rutherford Montgomery is known for his honesty in the portrayal of animal life. In his stories animals are animals, not beasts playing the parts of human beings in a false drama of the wilderness.

Saving Winslow


Sharon Creech - 2018
    So when his father brings home a sickly newborn mini donkey, he's determined to save him. He names him Winslow. Taking care of him helps Louie feel closer to his brother, Gus, who is far, far away in the army.Everyone worries that Winslow won't survive, especially Louie’s quirky new friend, Nora, who has experienced loss of her own. But as Louie's bond with Winslow grows, surprising and life-altering events prove that this fragile donkey is stronger than anyone could have imagined.Written in the spirit of Creech favorites Moo and Love That Dog, this standout tale about love and friendship and letting go will tug at the heartstrings.

The Adventures of Geraldine Woolkins


Karin Kaufman - 2015
    More than that, she wants to be brave--a seemingly impossible task in a world where ravens throw black shadows over the earth and wolves prowl barren lands in search of their prey. But Geraldine is a mouse. The weakest of ground things. Why was she, who wants so much to be brave, created by God to be small and quivering?The book’s ten stories follow the Woolkins family--Papa, Mama, Geraldine, and Button--from October to December, as they face their rather human trials and tribulations and Geraldine struggles to understand Very Very Big Hands, the creator of all, including ravens and wolves. Suitable for readers of most ages. Young children will need to coax their parents into reading the book to them, preferably after making them a cup of cocoa.

Little Pilgrim's Progress: From John Bunyan's Classic


Helen L. Taylor - 1947
    Taylor took John Bunyan's Pilgrim'sProgress and simplified the vocabulary and concepts for young readers, whilekeeping the storyline intact. The result was a classic in itself, which has nowsold over 600,000 copies. It's both a simple adventure story and a profound allegoryof the Christian journey through life, a delightful read with a message kids ages6 to 12 can understand and remember. A new look and fresh illustrations for today'schildren enlivens the journey to the Celestial City.

Elvis and the Underdogs


Jenny Lee - 2013
    Born premature, Benji is sickly, accident prone, and at the hospital so often he even has his own punch card. That is, until the day Benji wakes up from a particularly bad spell. Concerned for Benji's health, the doctor offers him two options: wear the world's ugliest padded helmet or get a therapy dog. Benji chooses the dog, of course.But when a massive crate arrives at Benji's house, out walks a two-hundred-pound Newfoundland. And that isn't even the strangest thing about the dog. He announces that his name is Parker Elvis Pembroke IV. That's right, this dog can talk! And boy, is he bossy.Having a bossy dog can come in handy, though. Elvis brings out the dog lover in the most surprising people and shows Benji that making new friends may not be as scary as he once thought.

Eating the Plates: A Pilgrim Book of Food and Manners


Lucille Recht Penner - 1991
    From the hardships of the settlers' first years in the wilderness, to their eventual success in farming and hunting, the reader is immersed in the sights, sounds, and smells of life in Plymouth. Line drawings and photographs.

A Book for Kids


C.J. Dennis - 1921
    You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.

The Lion in the Box


Marguerite de Angeli - 1975
    Retells the events of a special Christmas for a poor family in New York City at the turn of the century.

My Life in Dog Years


Gary Paulsen - 1997
    In each chapter he tells of one special dog, among them Cookie, the sled dog who saved his life; Snowball, the puppy he owned as a boy in the Philippines; Ike, his mysterious hunting companion; Dirk, the grim protector; and his true friend Josh, a brilliant border collie.

A Nest Full of Eggs


Priscilla Belz Jenkins - 1995
    Slowly the bird develops, until one day it cracks through the shell. Safe inside the nest, under the care of its parents, the chick grows stronger. Soon it will learn how to fly and take care of itself. By next spring it will be ready to build its own nest and raise chicks of its own.