Best Dog Books: ISLAND OF THE BLUE DOLPHINS by scott o’dell

Best Dog Books is a blog that features children’s books with key dog characters. Sometimes an adult dog book sneaks in but for the most part Best Dog Books aims to help kids, their parents, teachers, and librarians find dog books.

From the publisher:

In the Pacific there is an island that looks like a big fish sunning itself in the sea. Around it, blue dolphins swim, otters play, and sea elephants and sea birds abound. once, Indians also lived on the island. And when they left and sailed to the east, one young girl was left behind.

This is the story of Karana, the Indian girl who lived alone for years on the Island of the Blue Dolphins. Year after year, she watched one season pass into another and waited for a ship to take her away. But while she waited, she kept herself alive by building shelter, making weapons, finding food, and fighting her enemies, the wild dogs. It is not only an unusual adventure of survival, but also a tale of natural beauty and personal discovery.

For other great books about dogs, check out 101 Best Dog Books for Kids.

For published authors and unpublished authors, check out our writing contests.

Best Dog Books: LASSIE COME HOME by eric knight

Best Dog Books is a blog that features children’s books with key dog characters. Sometimes an adult dog book sneaks in but for the most part Best Dog Books aims to help kids, their parents, teachers, and librarians find dog books.

From the publisher:

Lassie is Joe’s prize collie and constant companion. But when Joe’s father loses his job, Lassie must be sold. Three times she escapes from her new owner, and three times she returns home to Joe, until finally she is taken to the remotest part of Scotland―too far a journey for any dog to make alone . . . But Lassie is not just any dog.

For other great books about dogs, check out 101 Best Dog Books for Kids.

For published authors and unpublished authors, check out our writing contests.

from the publisher: WORDS IN THE DUST by trent reedy

World Reads is a blog that features children’s books set overseas. Sometimes an adult world book sneaks in but for the most part World Reads aims to help kids, their parents, teachers, and librarians find books set outside of the United States.

From the publisher:

Winner of the Christopher Medal and a “heart-wrenching” Al Roker’s Book Club selection on the Today Show.

Zulaikha hopes. She hopes for peace, now that the Taliban have been driven from Afghanistan; a good relationship with her hard stepmother; and one day even to go to school, or to have her cleft palate fixed. Zulaikha knows all will be provided for her–“Inshallah,” God willing.

Then she meets Meena, who offers to teach her the Afghan poetry she taught her late mother. And the Americans come to her village, promising not just new opportunities and dangers, but surgery to fix her face. These changes could mean a whole new life for Zulaikha–but can she dare to hope they’ll come true?

Best Dog Books: TORNADO by betsy byars

Best Dog Books is a blog that features children’s books with key dog characters. Sometimes an adult dog book sneaks in but for the most part Best Dog Books aims to help kids, their parents, teachers, and librarians find dog books.

From the publisher:

A tornado appears in the distance, and Pete, the farmhand, gathers everyone into the storm cellar. While they wait for the storm to pass,he tells the family about the dog dropped down by a tornado when Pete was a boy. Named Tornado, Pete′s pet was no ordinary dog — he played card tricks, saved a turtle′s life, and had a rivalry with the family cat. By the time Pete tells all of Tornado′s lively stories, the storm has passed, and another family has been entertained by this very special dog.

For other great books about dogs, check out 101 Best Dog Books for Kids.

For published authors and unpublished authors, check out our writing contests.

from the publisher: THE DREAMER by pam munoz

World Reads is a blog that features children’s books set overseas. Sometimes an adult world book sneaks in but for the most part World Reads aims to help kids, their parents, teachers, and librarians find books set outside of the United States.

From the publisher:

From the time he is a young boy, Neftalí hears the call of a mysterious voice. Even when the neighborhood children taunt him, and when his harsh, authoritarian father ridicules him, and when he doubts himself, Neftalí knows he cannot ignore the call. He listens and follows as it leads him under the canopy of the lush rain forest, into the fearsome sea, and through the persistent Chilean rain on an inspiring voyage of self-discovery that will transform his life and, ultimately, the world.

Combining elements of magical realism with biography, poetry, literary fiction, and transporting illustrations, Pam Muñoz Ryan and Peter Sís take readers on a rare journey of the heart and imagination as they explore the inspiring early life of the poet who became Pablo Neruda.