The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp
Written by Kathi Appelt
The scouts in this exciting adventure in the deep, boggy southern swamp happen to be two raccoons but that only adds to the enjoyment in store for fifth grade readers. The readers will understand the pair are on duty inside an abandoned car even though the raccoons have no idea of what a car actually is in the outside world. The idea of it adds humor without end as recurring thunder storms add a bit of zip and lightning to their otherwise cozy outpost.
But back in town, twelve-year old Chap Brayburn is doing everything in his power to help save the swamp. It was always a special place where his grandpa would spend time and then come back and tell endless stories about it. Now there are developers from the far away big city that want to buy the swamp and change it forever. Chap is not about to let that happen and pledges to do whatever he can to save it because he knows that’s what his grandpa would do if he were still alive.
It will take more money than one boy and his Mama can make by cooking and selling sugar pies. But through comprehension of many well placed clues, readers will begin to see parallel plots between the ‘coon brothers and Chap and their hopes will rise for the salvation of the swamp. Many surprises and twists are in store for readers in this excellent new book by award winner Kathi Appelt, who is well known for her books, The Underneath and Keeper. This will make a fantastic read aloud for home or school for grades 4-7 even though it has been assigned a reading level of 5.4 for the average independent fifth grade reader.
Readers will appreciate the short chapters, fast paced action and good hearty belly laughs.
TITLE: The True Blue Scouts of Sugar Man Swamp- AUTHOR: Kathi Appelt
- PUBLISHER: Atheneum Books For Young Readers
- REVIEWER: Elizabeth Swartz
- FORMAT: Hardcover/327 pages
- ISBN: 978-1-4424-2105-9
- GENRE: Fiction: Adventure, Humorous
- LEXILE: 810
- EXTRAS: Meet the Author Video and other extras at KIDS.SimonandSchuster.com
