Posted by Ruth
Categories: Fantasy, Review, Younger Readers
Tags:Animals, Dogs, Dragons, J. R. R. Tolkien
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Our rating: 
Roverandom is a little dog, but one day, after not being polite to a wizard, he is turned into a small toy dog. He has many adventures, including a trip to the moon, where he becomes good friends with the man-in-the-moon, and his dog, Rover, and a visit under the ocean with some mermaids. But all the while, he keeps an eye out for the wizard in the hope that he may get his real doggy life back again.
I only gave this book two stars because parts of the plot seem a little slow, but it’s a very enjoyable book, and I certainly liked reading it. J.R.R. Tolkien wrote this fantasy story for his young son, after losing his toy dog at the beach. They never found the toy again, but the story served as a consolation.
Posted by Becca
Categories: Fiction, Review, Younger Readers
Tags:Animals, Cats, Eleanor Estes, Quick Read
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Miranda is a large cat who lives in Ancient Rome. She lives happily with her owners until Rome is invaded by Barbarians. The family packs up and leaves for a country house, leaving Miranda and her daughter hiding in an urn. In the fire that follows, Miranda sets out to find and rescue all the lost cats in Rome before it’s too late!
I liked this book. Eleanor Estes’ style of writing is wonderful. She wrote in a simple way, making it easy for children to read. Don’t let that discourage you, though. Estes’ books are enjoyable to older readers, too.
Posted by Rebekah
Categories: Adventure, All Ages, Fantasy, Fiction, Review
Tags:Animals, Dragons, J. R. R. Tolkien
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When farmer Giles is fortunate enough to drive a large and somewhat deaf giant away from the village of Ham, he acquires quite a reputation, which he is forced to try to maintain when a large dragon, Chrysophylax the Rich, becomes a threat to the citizens of Ham.
This is a hilarious story with a wonderful way of putting things bluntly. (if you’ve ever read The Reluctant Dragon by Kenneth Grahame, the styles are similar) The farmer does use a bit of language (unfortunately) but the storyline is great. Crysophylax is such a funny dragon! (Although I’m sure he doesn’t think so.) A very enjoyable book. Farmer Giles of Ham is also included in A Tolkien Miscellany
Posted by Rebekah
Categories: All Ages, Fiction, Review
Tags:Animals, Horses, Marguerite Henry, Quick Read
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Since childhood, Sandy Price has dreamed of owning a Chincoteague pony, and now, she is finally able to. Not one, not two, not three, but four ponies for her and her two children. Then one of the ponies, Sunshine, has a colt, who they name Twilight. Twilight seems to be a horse of all trades, as she learns cutting, jumping and finally is taught the art of dressage.
This is a well-written story, with some very interesting parts, but I personally do not rate this book very high on my top ten (of course, my top ten are constantly changing, and it’s very difficult to keep the top ten from becoming the top one-hundred). The auction at Chincoteague is very exciting, and Marguerite Henry’s love of horses shines through the whole book.
Posted by Ruth
Categories: Adventure, Fiction, Older Readers, Review, Science Fiction
Tags:Animals, Jules Verne, Long Read, Seafaring
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When Professor Aronnax is asked his opinion on a number of shipwrecks that have been caused by something a great deal larger than a whale, he comes to the conclusion that the mysterious creature must be a narwhale of gigantic proportions, due to the strangely shaped holes inflicted upon the wrecked vessels. Soon, he is invited aboard the Abraham Lincoln, a frigate preparing to track down and destroy the unknown creature. But, when the ship is struck itself, Professor Aronnax is thrown overboard only to discover a great secret that would change the scientific world forever.
I think I like this book best of all of Jules Verne’s that I have read. He captures the magic of the underwater world with great ease. The only warning I have is that, on occasion, the plot becomes a bit bogged down with a veritable encyclopedia of scientific names, which are usually unpronounceable and rather meaningless unless you have a great knowledge of marine classification. However, the rest of the book is very enjoyable and I recommend it highly.
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