Holes

This month I read Holes by Louis Sachar. It was published in 1998 and won the Newbery Medal in 1999. It’s an amazing book!

Holes is a complicated and fantastic story. Every detail somehow comes full circle, including the main character’s name, Stanley Yelnats. Notice that Yelnats is Stanley backwards!

The story begins over 100 years ago when Stanley’s great-great-grandfather inadvertently brought a curse down on his family. The curse causes bad things to happen to the members of the Yelnats family for generations. Stanley is wrongfully accused of stealing a famous baseball player’s stinky sneakers and is sent to a boys’ detention center, Camp Green Lake. The camp does not have a lake, and it is not green. It is a desert that used to be a lake. The boys at the center are forced to dig holes, but they don’t know why. Stanley grows in character and strength at Camp Green Lake through misery and suffering. In the end, Stanley undoes his family’s curse and makes them rich through a series of fantastic events.

Holes is an awesome story. I recommend this book to 7th graders. The story includes some rough "characters" and a few cuss words that are not appropriate for younger children.

List of Recommended Books by Grade:

2^nd grade –

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl

Miss Holly Is Too Jolly by Dan Gutman

Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan

3^rd grade –

The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman

Among the Hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Among the Impostors by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Mr. Popper's Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater

4^th grade –

Call It Courage by Armstrong Sperry

Louisiana's Song by Kerry Madden

The Maze of Bones by Rick Riordan

The Golly Whopper Games by Jody Feldman

5^th grade –

Dead End in Norvelt by Jack Gantos

Benjamin Pratt & The Keeper of the School by Andrew Clements

Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff

When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead

Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool

A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park

6^th grade –

The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling

The Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman

Dewey, by Vicki Myron with Bret Witter

The Wanderer by Sharon Creech

The View from Saturday by E.L. Konigsburg

The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare

7^th grade and up –

Holes by Louis Sachar

The Summer of the Swans by Betsy Byers

Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi

Pendragon Book One: The Merchant of Death by D.J. MacHale

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

The Seventeen Second Miracle, by Jason F. Wright

Tennyson by Leslie M. M. Blume

I heard about an awesome book called Tennyson by Lesley M. M. Blume, so I read it. I loved it! You should read this book. It is a fantastic piece of literature.

Tennyson is a cross between a fantasy novel and an historical fiction novel. It’s about a girl caught between her present and her family’s past. Tennyson, the main character, and her sister, Hattie, go live with their Aunt Henrietta after their mother leaves them so that their father can search for his missing wife. Aunt Henrietta lives in a crumbling mansion in Louisiana and is desperately trying to restore it to its former glory. She views her nieces as an opportunity to do just that. She uses the girls to attract rich suitors. All the while, Tennyson is trying to lure her mother home with family secrets in order to escape her aunt. In the end, no one gets what they want. However, each person realizes that they need something else entirely.

Ms. Blume does an amazing job weaving the past with the present. I enjoyed this book and recommend this book to 6th graders.

List of Recommended Books by Grade
 

2^nd grade –

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl

Miss Holly Is Too Jolly, by Dan Gutman

Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan

 

3^rd grade –

The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman

Among the Hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Among the Impostors by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Mr. Popper's Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater

 

4^th grade –

Call It Courage by Armstrong Sperry

Louisiana's Song by Kerry Madden

The Maze of Bones by Rick Riordan

The Golly Whopper Games by Jody Feldman

5^th grade –

Dead End in Norvelt by Jack Gantos

Benjamin Pratt & The Keeper of the School by Andrew Clements

Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff

When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead

Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool

A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park

6^th grade –

Tennyson by Lesley M. M. Blume

The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling

The Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman

Dewey, by Vicki Myron with Bret Witter

The Wanderer by Sharon Creech

The View from Saturday by E.L. Konigsburg

The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare.

 

7^th grade and up –

The Summer of the Swans by Betsy Byers

Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi

Pendragon Book One: The Merchant of Death by D.J. MacHale

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

The Seventeen Second Miracle, by Jason F. Wright

The Summer of the Swans

This month I read a classic. The Summer of the Swans by Betsy Byers was published in 1970 and won the Newbery Medal in 1971. I read this book when I was 14 and was moved by it. In fact, I did my first ever oral report on this book and died a pair of my tennis sneakers puce. To find out why, you’ll have to read the book…

Summer of the Swans is a coming of age mid-grade novel. Sara is 14 and feels awkward and unhappy. Her mother is dead, her older sister is better than her in every way, her father is gone, her brother, Charlie, suffered brain damage as a child, and to top it all off, her sneakers are the wrong color! Sara has more to deal with than most 14 year olds and she knows it. She doesn’t appreciate the home her aunt provides, her needy younger brother, or her sneakers. Sara spends a lot of time complaining and feeling sorry for herself, until one day when Charlie gets lost in the woods. Losing Charlie changes everything for Sara. She realizes the importance of family. She learns that she can be wrong about things and that she’s too harsh on people. In a nutshell, Sara goes from an ugly duckling to a swan.

Summer of the Swans is a beautiful story. I recommend this book to 7th graders.

List of Recommended Books by Grade:

2^nd grade –

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl

Miss Holly Is Too Jolly, by Dan Gutman

Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan

3^rd grade –

The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman

Among the Hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Among the Impostors by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Mr. Popper's Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater

 

4^th grade –

Call It Courage by Armstrong Sperry

Louisiana's Song by Kerry Madden

The Maze of Bones by Rick Riordan

The Golly Whopper Games by Jody Feldma

5^th grade –

Dead End in Norvelt by Jack Gantos

Benjamin Pratt & The Keeper of the School by Andrew Clements

Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff

When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead

Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool

A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park

 

6^th grade –

The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling

The Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman

Dewey, by Vicki Myron with Bret Witter

The Wanderer by Sharon Creech

The View from Saturday by E.L. Konigsburg

The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare

 

7^th grade and up –

The Summer of the Swans by Betsy Byers

Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi

Pendragon Book One: The Merchant of Death by D.J. MacHale

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

The Seventeen Second Miracle, by Jason F. Wright

My Interview

Heather Day Gilbert is a fellow author and a delightful lady. She recently interviewed me about my new book. Check out the interview at this link.

http://heatherdaygilbert.blogspot.com/2012/09/guest-interview-with-jennifer-s-burrows.html

My Book: MOST BEAUTIFUL

My mid-grade novel is out today, September 11. See the link below.

http://www.rfwp.com/book/most-beautiful-a-911-novel



It's thrilling to finally have my story in print. But I have to say that it was an honor and a privilege to write about the events that took place on September 11, 2001.

Jennifer Burrows

Dead End in Norvelt Audio Version

Readers, I have a treat for you today. The award-winning book I just highlighted for you, Dead End in Norvelt, is also available as an audio book from Macmillan Audio. A senior publicist sent me a link (below) to an audio clip of the book. The reader in the clip is the author himself, Jack Gantos! Now that's cool. Enjoy!

http://media.us.macmillan.com/video/olmk/macmillanaudio/deadendinnorveltclip.mp3

Dead End in Norvelt by Jack Gantos

This month I decided to read present day award-winning children’s literature. Dead End in Norvelt by Jack Gantos was published in 2011 and won the Newbery Medal in 2012.

Dead End in Norvelt is a unique mid-grade novel. The author, Jack Gantos, is the main character! After being grounded for the entire summer, Jack must help his elderly neighbor write obituaries. This is the closest thing to fun he is allowed to do. Jack doesn’t mind the work and even starts to appreciate the feistiness of his elderly neighbor. When old ladies around Norvelt start dropping dead daily, Jack begins to wonder if the ladies are being murdered. In the end, he finds out that they were being poisoned, but oddly enough, the motive was love. 

Dead End in Norvelt is humorous and entertaining from beginning to end. I recommend this book to 5th graders.

List of Recommended Books by Grade:

2^nd grade –

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl

Miss Holly Is Too Jolly, by Dan Gutman

Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan

3^rd grade –

The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman

Among the Hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Among the Impostors by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Mr. Popper's Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater

4^th grade –

Call It Courage by Armstrong Sperry

Louisiana's Song by Kerry Madden

The Maze of Bones by Rick Riordan

The Golly Whopper Games by Jody Feldman

5^th grade –

Dead End in Norvelt by Jack Gantos

Benjamin Pratt & The Keeper of the School by Andrew Clements

Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff

When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead

Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool

A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park

6^th grade –

The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling

The Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman

Dewey, by Vicki Myron with Bret Witter

The Wanderer by Sharon Creech

The View from Saturday by E.L. Konigsburg

The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare. 

7^th grade and up –

Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi

Pendragon Book One: The Merchant of Death by D.J. MacHale

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

The Seventeen Second Miracle, by Jason F. Wright

The Bronze Bow

Reading can be a looking glass into places we’ve never been and times we’ve never lived. The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare is a perfect example of that. The book was published in 1961 and won the Newbery Medal in 1962.

The Bronze Bow is an historical fiction mid-grade novel. It’s about a troubled Jewish boy named Daniel who lives with his younger sister and grandmother. The story takes place in 1^st century Judea during the time of Jesus. Daniel’s father was killed by the Romans when Daniel was a young child. As a result, he’s angry with the Romans and his sister has gone mad. After Daniel is forced to work for a cruel blacksmith, he runs away into the mountains. There, Daniel is welcomed into a band of rebels led by a man named Rosh. Daniel lives in the mountains with the rebels for a couple years, but after his grandmother dies, he must go back to his village to care for his sister. Daniel takes over Simon the Zealot’s blacksmith shop after Simon leaves to follow Jesus. Daniel forms a band of rebels in the village, but soon discovers that their efforts weaken them, not the Romans. In the end, Jesus heals Daniel’s sister and Daniel gives up his hate of the Romans. 

I highly recommend this book to 6th graders.

List of Recommended Books by Grade:

2^nd grade –

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl

Miss Holly Is Too Jolly, by Dan Gutman

Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan

3^rd grade –

The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman

Among the Hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Among the Impostors by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Mr. Popper's Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater 

4^th grade –

Call It Courage by Armstrong Sperry

Louisiana's Song by Kerry Madden

The Maze of Bones by Rick Riordan

The Golly Whopper Games by Jody Feldman

5^th grade –

Benjamin Pratt & The Keeper of the School by Andrew Clements

Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff

When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead

Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool

A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park

6^th grade –

The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling

The Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman

Dewey, by Vicki Myron with Bret Witter

The Wanderer by Sharon Creech

The View from Saturday by E.L. Konigsburg

The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare

7^th grade and up –

Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi

Pendragon Book One: The Merchant of Death by D.J. MacHale

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

The Seventeen Second Miracle, by Jason F. Wright

A Single Shard

This month I read A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park. The book was published in 2001 and won the Newbery Medal in 2002.

A Single Shard is my all-time-favorite Newbery winning book. I have had the honor of meeting Linda Sue Park and she is as gracious as she is talented. If you read any of the books I recommend – you must read this one.


A Single Shard is an historical fiction mid-grade novel. It’s about an orphaned Korean boy named Tree-ear who lives under a bridge with his care-taker Crane-man, who is disabled. The two are as close as father and son. Crane-man has raised Tree-ear to be a resourceful and honorable young man.

Tree-ear is fascinated by the talents of a local potter named Min. After accidentally breaking some of Min’s pottery pieces, Tree-ear begins working as an assistant to Min in order to pay off the debt. Tree-ear dreams of making a pot himself one day, but is never taught by Min.

After an emissary from the palace visits Tree-ear’s town, Min’s pottery pieces must be transported to a far away city in order for Min to receive a royal commission. Tree-ear volunteers to deliver Min’s pottery to the palace, even though Min has refused to teach Tree-ear how to make pottery.

On the journey to deliver Min’s pottery to the palace, Tree-ear is attacked by robbers and they hurl the pottery over a cliff. Tree-ear is devastated. He feels that he has failed his master. Being the brave and honorable young man that he is, he goes to the bottom of the gorge and finds a single shard of Min’s pottery intact. Tree-ear delivers this one piece to the royal emissary. The piece is such a magnificent work of art that Min gets the royal commission.

This book is incredible. Ms. Park's story will carry you away to live under the bridge with Tree-ear and Crane-man. Her writing style is concise and poetic. You will be hooked on the first page.

I recommend this book to 5th graders and anyone that loves an underdog story.

List of Jennifer's Recommended Books by Grade:

2^nd grade –

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl

Miss Holly Is Too Jolly, by Dan Gutman

Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan

3^rd grade –

The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman

Among the Hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Among the Impostors by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Mr. Popper's Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater

4^th grade –

Call It Courage by Armstrong Sperry

Louisiana's Song by Kerry Madden

The Maze of Bones by Rick Riordan

The Golly Whopper Games by Jody Feldman

5^th grade –

Benjamin Pratt & The Keeper of the School by Andrew Clements

Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff

When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead

Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool

A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park

6^th grade –

The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling

The Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman

Dewey, by Vicki Myron with Bret Witter

The Wanderer by Sharon Creech

The View from Saturday by E.L. Konigsburg

7^th grade and up –

Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi

Pendragon Book One: The Merchant of Death by D.J. MacHale

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

The Seventeen Second Miracle, by Jason F. Wright

Call It Courage

This past month I read Call It Courage by Armstrong Sperry. The book was published in 1940 and won the Newberry Medal in 1941.

Call It Courage is a historical fiction mid-grade novel. It’s about a 10-year-old boy named Mafatu who is the son of the chief in a Polynesian tribe. Mafatu’s name means stout heart, but he is afraid of the sea. Mafatu is an embarrassment to his father and a laughing stock in his village. One day he leaves his village and heads out to sea in a canoe. Mafatu knows he must conquer his fear. After being thrown about in a hurricane, Mafatu lands on an island far from his home. He must fend for himself and build a canoe to return to his island. But first he proves his courage to himself when he kills a wild boar, a hammerhead shark, and an octopus. After narrowly escaping death at the hands of “man-eaters,” Mafatu returns to his village as a young man filled with courage.

I enjoyed this book and I think it could win the Newbery Medal today. I recommend it to 4th and 5th graders.

List of Recommended Books by Grade:

2nd grade –

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl

Miss Holly Is Too Jolly by Dan Gutman

Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan

3rd grade –

The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman

Among the Hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Among the Impostors by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Mr. Popper's Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater

4th grade –

Call It Courage by Armstrong Sperry

Louisiana's Song by Kerry Madden

The Maze of Bones by Rick Riordan

The Golly Whopper Games by Jody Feldman

5th grade –

Benjamin Pratt & The Keeper of the School by Andrew Clements

Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff

When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead

Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool

6th grade –

The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling

The Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman

Dewey by Vicki Myron with Bret Witter

The Wanderer by Sharon Creech

The View from Saturday by E.L. Konigsburg

7th grade and up –

Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi

Pendragon Book One: The Merchant of Death by D.J. MacHale

The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

The Seventeen Second Miracle by Jason F. Wright

Moon Over Manifest

The past few books I've read have been older Newbery Medal winners. I decided to see what a current winner looks like. This month I read Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool. This book was published in 2010 and won the Newbery Medal in 2011.

Moon Over Manifest is a historical fiction mid-grade novel. It’s about a 12-year-old girl named Abileen and her connection to a town called Manifest located in Kansas. The story starts out with her arrival in Manifest. Abileen's father sends her there when he must leave to work on the railroad. All Abileen knows about Manifest is that her father lived there for a while when he was a child. Abileen searches for clues that her father made his mark on the town. She learns a great deal about a troubled boy named Jinx who helped save the town from a greedy coal mine owner in the early 1900s. Abileen discovers that the town went through a lot of pain in World War I and many of its inhabitants never completely healed from that experience. Through Abileen’s efforts to discover her father’s past, the town takes its first step toward healing. In the end, Abileen finds out that Jinx was indeed her father. Abileen and her father are reunited and hope is restored to all.

This story involves many historical time periods and events: the Depression, World War I, Prohibition, railroad construction, orphan trains, immigration, and Spanish influenza. Ms. Vanderpool uses many different literary tools to weave her story. She uses flashbacks, newspaper articles, newspaper ads, essays, poems, and multiple plot lines. The various plot lines appear to run separately until the end when the reader finds out that all of the plots were related all along throughout different decades of time.

I LOVED this book and I recommend it to 5th and 6th graders.

Jennifer S. Burrows' List of Recommended Books by Grade:
2nd grade –
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl
Miss Holly Is Too Jolly by Dan Gutman
Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan

3rd grade –
The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman
Among the Hidden by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Among the Impostors by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Mr. Popper's Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater

4th grade –
Louisiana's Song by Kerry Madden
The Maze of Bones by Rick Riordan
The Golly Whopper Games by Jody Feldman

5th grade –
Benjamin Pratt & The Keeper of the School by Andrew Clements
Pictures of Hollis Woods by Patricia Reilly Giff
When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead
Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool

6th grade –
The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling
The Midwife's Apprentice by Karen Cushman
Dewey by Vicki Myron with Bret Witter
The Wanderer by Sharon Creech
The View from Saturday by E.L. Konigsburg

7th grade and up –
Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi
Pendragon Book One: The Merchant of Death by D.J. MacHale
The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd
The Seventeen Second Miracle by Jason F. Wright

Sarah, Plain and Tall

I found another wonderful Newbery Medal winner from a couple decades ago to feature this month. It’s Sarah, Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan. This book was published in 1985 and won the Newbery Medal in 1986.

The story is about a family living on the prairie in colonial times. The family consists of the father, Jacob, a daughter, Anna, and a son, Caleb. The mother of the family died after giving birth to Caleb several years earlier. The entire family misses the mother and thinks about her often. The father decides to put an ad in the newspaper for a wife. The children are surprised, but thrilled. A woman, named Sarah from Maine, answers the ad and comes to live with the family. The family and Sarah spend a month getting to know each other and the author gives hints of Jacob and Sarah’s blooming love. Sarah teaches the family about the sea and living on the coast and the family teaches Sarah how to ride a horse and drive a wagon. In the end, Jacob and Sarah get married and the family is complete again.

This story is wonderful. It deals delicately with the pain of losing a mother and paints a rich and colorful picture of both the sea and the prairie.

I enjoyed reading this book and I recommend it to 2nd graders.

The View from Saturday

I am still on a Newbery Medal kick. I can't stop reading Newbery Medal books now that I've started. But I'm certainly not wasting my time! These are the books that hook you in the beginning, waltz you through the middle, and inspire you in the end. This month I read The View from Saturday by E.L. Konigsburg. This book was published in 1996 and won the Newbery Medal in 1997.

The story is about four 6th graders and a teacher. The story begins and ends at almost the same moment in time and each character takes a turn telling a part of the story from his/her point of view. The delivery of this story sets it apart from any other book I've read. The story takes its readers into the past for answers and allows them to live in the present at the same time. It's complicated and absolutely wonderful.

First we meet Mrs. Olinski, the teacher. She has chosen four of her 6th grade students to compete in the New York State Academic Bowl. Not only have they beat the 7th and 8th grade teams at their school, they have beat all but one of the 7th and 8th grade teams in the state and now they are facing Maxwell to battle for the state championship.

Next we meet Noah who is too smart for his own good sometimes. We learn about a time when he visited his grandparents and ended up being the best man in a wedding.

Then we meet Nadia who is struggling with her parents' divorce. We learn about when she visited her grandfather and began to accept her new life-style migrating back and forth between her parents.

Next we meet Ethan who lives in the shadow of a talented older brother. We learn about how he found his place in school and the world through friendship.

Finally we meet Julian who recently moved to the US. We learn about his upbringing on a cruise ship.

These four kids make up the team, called The Souls. They are intelligent kids, but Mrs. Olinski knows that they work well as a team for other reasons. They are different races and practice different religions, yet they are tolerant of each other. They are unrelated, yet they have become family. And they are individuals, yet they respect each other as human beings.

I enjoyed reading this book and I recommend it to 6th graders.

Mr. Popper's Penguins

This month I decided to return to reading quality older books. I dug deep and found a winner. Mr. Popper's Penguins by Richard and Florence Atwater was published in 1938! It was nominated for the Newbery Medal in 1939. It did not win the award but remains a Newberry Honor book which is still a prestigious title to hold. Any author will tell you that it truly is an honor just to be nominated for a Newbery Medal.

Mr. Popper's Penguins is cute, light-hearted, and interesting. At the very least, readers of this book will learn about penguin care and believe me, it sounds expensive.

The story is about a man with a great fondness for visiting exotic places. The problem is that he has never left his hometown of Stillwater. He has a wife and two children and works as a house painter. From the sounds of it, he's a talented painter, but he is always dreaming of traveling the world instead.

After writing a letter to one of his favorite explorers in the South Pole, Mr. Popper receives a package in the mail. It's a penguin! Mr. Popper names the penguin Captain Cook. Mr. Popper and his family do their best to accomodate such a complicated pet by making alterations to their refrigerator and by buying plenty of canned shrimp.

The entire Popper family adores Captain Cook, but after a while Captain Cook becomes depressed. In a desperate attempt to help Captain Cook, Mr. Popper writes a letter to a zoo, asking for advice. The zoo, in turn, sends the Poppers a female penguin that also seems depressed. The Poppers name the new penguin Greta. Both penguins soon perk up and have 10 baby penguins. The Poppers must now invest a great deal of money into creating a suitable habitat for 12 penguins in their basement.

As the Popper's begin to go into debt, they decide to turn the interesting habits of the penguins into a show. The Poppers and the penguins travel the country doing their show and earn enough money to be comfortable.

In the end, the penguins relocate to the North Pole and Mr. Popper goes with them, finally living out his dream of visiting exotic places.

I enjoyed reading this book, and I recommend it to 3rd or 4th graders who love animals.