Dear Class 16 parents,

I have volunteered to lead the book club for Mrs. Lewis' class. The following books have been selected for the book club with a discussion to be held at lunch time.  I have included a short synopsis of the books:

Monday, November 16:  My Father's Dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannett

Amazon.com Review
My Father's Dragon--a favorite of young readers since the 1940s and a Newbery honor book--captures the nonsensical logic of childhood in an amusingly deadpan fashion. The story begins when Elmer Elevator (the narrator's father as a boy) runs away with an old alley cat to rescue a flying baby dragon being exploited on a faraway island. With the help of two dozen pink lollipops, rubber bands, chewing gum, and a fine-toothed comb, Elmer disarms the fiercest of beasts on Wild Island. The quirky, comical adventure ends with a heroic denouement: the freeing of the dragon. Abundant black-and-white lithographs by Ruth Chrisman Gannett (the author's stepmother) add an evocative, lighthearted mood to an already enchanting story.


Monday, January 4:  The Voyages of Doctor Dolittle by Hugh Lofting

From the Publisher
Winner of the 1923 Newbery Award, Doctor Dolittle heads for the high seas in perhaps the most amazing adventure ever experienced by man or animal. Told by nine-and-a-half-year-old Tommy Stubbins, crewman and future naturalist, the voyages of Doctor Dolittle and his company lead them to Spidermonkey Island. Along with his faithful friends, Polynesia the parrot and Chee-Chee the monkey, Doctor Dolittle survives a perilous shipwreck and lands on the mysterious floating island. There he meets the wondrous Great Glass Sea Snail who holds the key to the greatest mystery of all.


Monday, March 8:  Finn Family Moomintroll by Tove Jansson

From Publishers Weekly
The initial volume in the Moomintroll series of Finnish fantasy, opens as three of the fabulous folk in the Moomin Valley find the Hobgoblin's top hat. They soon realize that this is no ordinary hat; it can turn anything -- or anyone -- into something else!  This series of delightful stories about life in the Moomin Valley has enchanted audiences around the world for more than forty years.


Monday, May 3:  Lad:  A Dog by Albert Payson Terhune

Amazon.com Review
First published in 1919, Albert Payson Terhune's Lad: A Dog is actually a collection of immensely popular magazine stories. The hero is an extraordinary collie named Lad, "a thoroughbred in spirit as well as in blood." In each tale, Lad exhibits his pure strength of character as he fights off burglars, rescues an invalid child from a poisonous snake, wins ribbons in dog shows, and otherwise leads a dog-hero's life. This is a period piece--a threatened puppy is described, for example, as "a blinking pygmy who gallantly essayed to growl defiance"--and that touch of fustian is all part of Terhune's enduring charm. Because the stories didn't originally appear together, there's considerable repetition: nearly every story with a fight scene has the same authorial mini-lecture on the difference in fighting technique between collies and bulldogs. But Lad is a character who has poked his muzzle into a million hearts, and new generations of dog lovers will also appreciate his loyalty and courage. As Terhune himself wrote, "few... bothered to praise the stories, themselves. But all of them praised Lad, which pleased me far better."


The books should be available at your local bookstore (especially the first two) or online from retailers such as Borders or Amazon.  Participation in the book club is optional.  The books selected are considered classics of children's literature and I hope that you and your child will enjoy reading them!

See you on November 9 and until then,

Happy reading!

Carol Sawchuk