Wink, a highly-praised novel for middle-graders, offers a realistic yet engaging look at coping with cancer. Wink by Rob Harrell. Dial, 2020, 314 pages Reading Level: Middle grades, ages 10-12 Recommended for: ages 12-15 Ross Maloy’s summer was going along as usual when he suddenly developed an abnormal swelling above his left eye. Turns out, it’s a tumor. Turns out, it’s malignant. Turns out, Ross has to begin 7th grade with umpteen radiation treatments ahead of him and a host of gross side effects. These include a permanent squint, leaky eye goop, and mandated wide-brimmed hats to protect his ultra-sensitive vision. And oh yes, he might go blind. Or even…

Nature Study … or Creation Appreciation? I’m a nature study junkie. And my kids have been along for the ride since birth. It’s so much a part of our life that we can be very annoying to hike with. Ahem. We need to reclaim “nature study” and call it “Creation Appreciation.” Nature study (or Creation Appreciation) is a delightful opportunity to get to know our Creator better. His Creation is truly magnificent. The order inherent in nature testifies to his design and sovereignty over every detail; google the fibonacci number and flowers, pinecones, or shells, and be amazed. If ever we needed reminders that the Lord is in control over…

A World of Discovery introduces pre-teens to the basics of technology and invention. A World of Discovery by James Brown and Richard Platt. Candlewick Studio, 2019, 63 pages. Reading Level: Middle Grades, ages 8-10 Recommended for: ages 7-12 Every technology we take for granted had to be “discovered”—usually by necessity followed by invention, but not always. The need for wheels seems obvious but the reason some cultures never got around to making them is that they’re very hard to make (ever try drawing a perfectly round circle?). The technology for making the technology had to come first. Penicillin, on the other hand, had been around in the form of bread…

Everybody Counts is more than a counting book: it includes big numbers and big thoughts. Everybody Counts: a Counting Story from 0 to 7.5 Billion by Kristin Roskifte. Magicon Fortag (Wide-Eyed Editions), 2020, 56 pages. (Originally published in Norway, 2018) Reading Level: Picture Book, ages 4-8 Recommended for: all ages We start with “no one.” No people, that is, just a monochrome bucolic landscape. Then, “One person. He is lying in bed counting his heartbeats. He wonders how many people are looking at the same stars right now.” Next page: “Two people in a forest. One of them says something the other will remember for the rest of his life.”…