fiction

Strange rumors about a terrible sea monster are circulating the globe. Professor Arronax and his faithful servant Conseil embark on an adventure they will never forget when they and harpooner Ned Land discover this “monster” to be a futuristic and invincible submarine. The mysterious “Captain Nemo,” a man with a genius mind and a dark past, tells them that he will never allow them to leave the submarine, lest they reveal any secrets. The professor is torn between his desire for freedom, and his desire to learn all the mysteries of the ocean. Which will conquer? Will he and his companions ever return to land? The book is filled with plenty of absolutely fantastic adventures, as well as beautiful and rich descriptions of sea life. It is an unforgettable read. [320 pages]

Animal Heroes, Ernest Thompson Seton

Around the World in Eighty Days, Jules Verne

Passepartout has had an exciting life, but he’s ready to settle down as a gentlemen’s gentleman. Phileas Fogg, with his clockwork precision and predictability, seems just the employer for him. All his quiet plans are upset, though, when a crazy bet sends Phileas Fogg with Passepartout on a desperate race to travel around the globe in only eighty days. In the year 1872 this meant trains, boats, elephants, and prairie schooners. They have many adventures, including the daring rescue of the beautiful Indian princess Aouda. Will they reach London in time, or with the bumbling Inspector Fix ruin everything? [201 p]

The Buffalo Knife, William O. Steele

The Clark and Brown families will be traveling on a flat boat to a new home in French Salt Lick. Andrew Clark is disappointed at first that he will not be accompanying his brother Ralph and Uncle Aswell on the more dangerous land route. He soon finds, however, that the river route has plenty of danger and adventure to keep him busy! Together the families encounter dangerous shoals, rapids, accidents—and hostile Chickamauga Indians! Along the way, Andy learns to appreciate his friend Isaac Brown. At first, he wonders if Isaac is a coward, because Isaac wants to be a merchant instead of a Long Hunter, like Andy’s revered Uncle Az. Eventually, Andy comes to understand that merchants and Long Hunters both need each other. Another underlying theme gives the book its title. Before the trip, Uncle Az gives Andy a real buffalo knife, but Andy loses it before the trip even begins. In every dangerous situation, Andy mourns for his buffalo knife, but he eventually finds that bravery and resourcefulness are the best weapons he has.

Burt Dow, Deep Water Man: A Tale of the Sea in the Classic Tradition, Robert McCloskey

Get ready for a rollicking sea adventure (told in the classic tradition)! Burt Dow, a retired fisherman, and his friend the Giggling Gull go out to fish off the Maine Coast in their leaky, multicolored boat—the Tidley-Idley. When ugly weather threatens disaster, Burt and the Giggling Gull find shelter in the belly of a friendly whale. Once the storm blow over, though, Burt is faced with the problem of extricating himself. Will he get home in time for breakfast? Vivid watercolors and scintillating storytelling keep everyone interested. This was the last book published by America’s favorite author and illustrator. [63 p]

Farming with Father, Rosene L. Burkholder

Join young Henry Cunnigham and his family at Winding Glen Farm. With capturing rhyme and rhythm, Henry tells us about another interesting and full day at the farm—”choring,” reading the Scriptures, calling the veterinarian, picnic-ing, going to town, helping a friend in need, and witnessing the power of prayer. Along the way the Cunningham family learns industry, diligence, contentment, and trust in God. This book reads aloud beautifully, and young boys especially enjoy this glimpse into farm life. Masterfully drawn and engaging pencil illustrations are featured on each page, picturing the Mennonite family in their work and play. (117 pages) A hardback edition is available from Keepers of the Faith.

Every year the Rabun family and other nearby settlers must flee to the fort for protection from Chickamauga raiders. This year is no different—Chickamauga braves shoot flaming arrows from without—but the real trouble comes from within the fort. Among the settlers seeking shelter there are the Logans, whose father “Traitor” Logan is fighting with the Indians and whose oldest son Josiah is about Chad’s age. The settlers are determined to cast them out, but Mr. Logan promises to be responsible for them. Chad can’t understand why his father would want to shelter these traitors, but he soon learns some important truths: Josiah Logan can’t be judged by the bad deeds of his father—nor can Chad be judged by the good deeds of his father. Each must prove himself. Boys and girls alike will enjoy this adventurous, fast-paced story—and hate the cliff-hanging endings to the chapters! (Even I was impatient for our next reading!)

I love to read Howard Pyle aloud! A few pages in and the medieval English is rolling off my tongue. Who wouldn’t relish saying lines like, “I do soothly think that he and Sir James mean to befriend thee and hold thee privily in kind regard,” and “Go ye to Tom Fletcher, and buy of him good yew staves, such as one might break a head withal.” (That last was a favorite because so unexpected!) These chivalric adventures have so much scope for grand emotion, and I had a lot of fun being alternately brave, angry, glum, uncertain, fearful, astonished, romantic, and all else.

Thirteen-year old Myles Falworth is sent by his father—a blind and impoverished lord—to live at a castle and there learn the ways of chivalric knighthood. Only later does he learn the purpose of his careful training—the hope that he would one day challenge the king’s own champion, and restore the name and fortune of the house of Falworth. Myles is a complex character: he is noble and brave, but also stubborn and quick-tempered as a boy. The situation is also complex: his arch enemy is not portrayed as completely evil, but with his own valid purposes (as well as a good measure of unknightliness).

You cannot read Howard Pyle aloud without drawing an audience; I learned that years ago with Otto of the Silver Hand. Third Brother was my original audience this time, but he was soon joined by several brothers eager to know the outcome of Falworth’s boyhood crusade against the tyrannical bachelors. I really was surprised that my distractible eight-year old brother kept asking me to read more chapters. I thought the antiquated dialogue would be too challenging for him, but I stand corrected. This hundred-years old classic remains a favorite today.

At one point, Myles has several secret meetings with the earl’s daughter and ward. He is discovered and rebuked by the earl, and Myles afterwards abides by the earl’s boundaries in regards to the young ladies.

Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel, Virginia Lee Burton

My Side of the Mountain, Jean Craighead George

Sam the Minute Man, Nathaniel Benchley

Where the Red Fern Grows, Wilson Rawls

nonfiction

The American Boy’s Handy Book: What to Do and How to Do It, Daniel Carter Beard

Colonial Craftsmen and the Beginnings of American Industry, Edwin Tunis

Tunis's books are so delightful! The pages are satisfyingly large, inviting a rainy-day sprawl on the living-room floor to examine the detailed pencil drawings and dip in the interesting and informative text. This book provides an examination of the industries of early America, including that of the blacksmith, the cooper, the apothecary, the shipwright, the chandler, and many more. This is not a how-to book, as Tunis explains in the preface, but broad descriptions of the master crafts, accompanied by Tunis's detailed and accurate pencil drawings.

Dune Boy: The Early Years of a Naturalist, Edwin Way Teale

For years the copious writings of this American naturalist have enchanted readers with their beautiful lyricism, attention to detail, and curious facts. Meet Edwin Way Teale while he was yet a young boy in the early 1900’s. He spent the school year in the city shy and bullied, but the summers found him free and busy in the dune country of Indiana at his grandparent’s Lone Oak Farm. Young Edwin helps with the farming, builds his own glider, tries to sell mouse pelts to a fine fur dealer, explores the dune country, and begins a lifetime of loving nature and writing about it. Meet his jocular grandfather, his cultured but sometimes crusty grandmother, and a wide cast of lovable and eccentric locals. It is filled with humorous anecdotes, accounts of local superstitions, and beautiful descriptions of the scenery and its wild inhabitants. An engaging read which is sure to inspire your own young naturalists. [275 p]

Field Trip: Bug-Hunting, Animal Tracking, Bird-Watching, Shore Walking, Jim Arnosky

[94 p and index]

Historical Models of Early America, C. J. Maginley

The Junior Book of Insects, Edwin Way Teale

Occasional references to macro-evolutionary theory.

What boy doesn’t dream about the great voyages of exploration and discovery? Introduce your adventurous young boys to the fascinating world of Ferdinand Magellan and the Age of Discovery. Magellan, whose ill-fated voyage was the first to circumnavigate the globe, was in search of the fabled northwest passage that would take him to the famed Spice Islands. The rich illustrations and engaging text immerse us in the ambitions, adventures, and misfortunes of Magellan and his crew. A fold-out map helps us visualize their position in all points of the journey.

The Matchlock Gun, Walter D. Emonds

When his father is called away to watch for an Indian raid in the north, young Edward is left to protect his mother and sister Trudy. Father has shown Edward how to use the huge matchlock gun that hangs over the fireplace, but when trouble comes, can Edward handle a gun that is twice as long as he is? This classic book that tells a true story is so exciting and well-written. It is a wonderful choice for a first chapter-book. Original illustrations by Paul Lantz are in black and white. The story—which involves shooting at hostile Indians, the mother being almost killed by an tomahawk, and the house burning down—might be too intense for young or sensitive children.

Little Britches: Father and I Were Ranchers, Ralph Moody

This is the beautiful, autobiographical story of a young boy and his father, one of the classics every American family should share together. “Ralph Moody was eight years old in 1906 when his family moved from New Hampshire to a Colorado Ranch. Through his eyes we experience the pleasures and perils of ranching there in the early twentieth century: auctions and roundups, family picnics, irrigation wars, tornados and wind storms.” There are so many interesting things happening, but my favorite parts are the quiet father-son conversations about character. Ralph (called “Little Britches” by his cowboy friends) learns so much about life and character as well as ranching and trick riding. But it will be a tragedy that makes Ralph a man. This is the first in a series of eight books about the adventures of the Moody family.

An Owl in the House: A Naturalist’s Journal, Bernd Heinrich

Ship, David Macaulay

David Macaulay is a gifted author and illustrator whose clear prose and simple diagrams have long fascinated me in The Way Things Work. Ship was one of his earlier books, and his research and skill is very evident here. The Ship of the book is a caravel. Surprisingly little is known about these “space shuttles of the fifteenth century,” the little ships that carried men to the greatest European discoveries of the century. Macaulay tells us two connected stories—of a present-day excavation team in the Bahamas, and of Spanish shipbuilders in the 1400’s. Within the framework of these human stories, we learn many fascinating facts about underwater excavation, historical preservation, and ship-building. These are further illuminated by Macaulay’s wonderful and accurate illustrations in pencil and watercolor. The fictional stories are interesting and very well written, with wonderful vocabulary and sentence structure.

Wildwood Wisdom, Ellsworth Jaeger