Shelf Life: Stories by the Book

My fourth grader checked this out of the school library and we are reading it together. The stories are smart and engaging and each one gives us something to think and talk about afterwards. We especially loved "Follow the Water" by Jennifer L. Holm - emotionally complex and heartbreaking, we'll be talking about this one for awhile. Great book, great cause. We're buying our own copy.

A great set of stories by ten well-known juvenile fiction writers including:

In Your Hat by Ellen Conford where a procrastinating joker gets his just desserts

Escape by Margaret Peterson Haddix in which a homeless girl learns even more hard lessons about life

Follow the Water by Jennifer L. Holm, a sci-fi special about a young girl on Mars who misses her grandmother

Testing, Testing, 1...2...3 by A. Lafaye in which a young boy encounters a special kind of learning through magic

Tea Party Ends in Bloody Massacre, Film at 11 by Gregory Maguire, a humorous story of an under-the-table eavesdrop and its unexpected end

What's a Fellow to Do? by Kathleen Karr is a historical and emotional journey of a young pick-pocket and his unusual discovery

Wet Hens by Ellen Wittlinger in which best friends have a falling out

The Good Deed by Marion Dane Bauer that describes the beginning of some very special friendships

Barcarole for Paper and Bones by M.T. Anderson, an esoteric and challenging story involving a mysteriously deserted ship

and

Clean Sweep by Joan Bauer in which a young girl working in the family business helps an elderly client make a reconciliation

All ten wonderful, engaging, important stories for young readers will be welcome by those who are already familiar with these authors but more importantly, Shelf Life is a great introduction for readers who may be more reluctant about getting into an entire novel or just have difficulty reading in general. Plus sales benefit ProLiteracy Worldwide. How can you go wrong with this one?

"Ten original stories to benefit proliteracy worldwide"

The subtitle says most, but not all.

In addition to being a good cause, the stories are all intriguing, some truly excellent! (I particularly liked "Follow the Water," referring to there being none on the colony on Mars, and "In Your Hat," concerning a boy who didn't do his book report--yet.)

Hooray for Paulsen, and ProLiteracy!