Americans before Columbus, by Elizabeth Chesley Baity

I tried.  I tried.  I've had this book for weeks, but every time I pick it up, I can't find the motivation to read it for long.

The book starts with a wide, over-arching summary of the various forms of art and architecture of the native peoples of North, Central, and South America.  Because none of these things are presented in any sort of useful context, only in comparison with each other, this portion of the book is really a mile wide and an inch deep.

Next, the author discusses the migration across the Bering Strait, and then gives several specific people groups a more in-depth treatment, discussing their lifestyles as they were understood at the time.

I don't really think this book would be useful today as a children's reference volume; I would honestly point a child toward something published more recently with more targeted information on a specific topic or people group.

The Defender, by Nicholas Kalashnikoff

This book is the story of Turgen, a man who lived alone high in the hills of Siberia.  He was of a different tribe than his nearest neighbors, who for superstitious reasons believed him to be in league with Satan, and therefore largely avoided him.

One winter, this solitary man noticed that the noble rams in the mountains were suffering from hunger and looking weak and thin.  Turgen decided to carry some hay up the mountain on a sled and leave it for them.  Over time the rams grew to accept his presence (although they did not completely trust him), and Turgen was delighted to see the herd slowly grow healthy and produce strong offspring.

In the wake of Turgen's gifts to the rams, he has a dream in which his deceased wife and son visit him, and lead him into the presence of the Great Spirit.  The Great Spirit tells Turgen that He is pleased with his care of the rams, which gives him confidence and joy in continuing this task.

During these months, Turgen is also slowly building a relationship with Marfa, a poor widow who lives down the hill, and her two children, Timofey and Aksa.  Marfa creates a comforting and cozy place for Turgen to rest and visit, and Turgen enjoys the companionship of the mother and the children alike, and helps provide the family with much-needed food in exchange for milk from their cow.

This is such an easy-to-read, gentle story that I enjoyed quite a bit.  The author was actually exiled to Siberia for several years before emigrating to the United States and becoming a citizen, so he speaks of the people there with kindness and affection.

Minn of the Mississippi, by Holling Clancy Holling

Holling Clancy Holling continues his penchant for natural history epics for children.  In this volume, we learn about the landscape and history of the Mississippi River through the eyes of Minn, a three-legged snapping turtle.

We first observe her as the last hatchling to leave her nest, losing a leg to a stray bullet from a teenage hunter (later fined and relieved of his firearm for making use of it on Federal land).  Over time she not only travels downriver, but encounters other wildlife, hibernates on the river bottom over the winter, matures into a large adult, and lays eggs of her own.

The volume is the size of a large picture book (only thicker).  The story is punctuated by full-page color illustrations of Minn and the landscape, and the margins around the text are full of pencil drawings demonstrating cell growth and comparative biology, maps and diagrams, and specifics of other species and technology encountered in the story.

This book is an amazing work of art and knowledge.  That said, I had trouble summoning the patience to read it in its entirety.  I honestly wasn't that attached to Minn that much (the story is so matter-of-fact that it's difficult to summon up emotions for her experiences), and at 86 pages, the story feels very long.  I would have found it easier to cover the same material as a non-fiction work with more chapters.  I'm sure there are plenty of children who would appreciate this volume; I just wouldn't have been one.

The Light at Tern Rock, by Julia L Sauer

If the author's name looks familiar, it's because we've encountered her before!

This is a very short book, just 63 pages (including chapters and full-page illustrations) so I won't be able to say too much without giving the plot away entirely.

Ronnie lives with his aunt (circumstances undisclosed), who used to be married to a lighthouse keeper and had lived with him at an isolated lighthouse, the titular Tern Rock, for decades.  The current keeper approaches her one day and asks if she would be able to take Robbie and man (woman?) the light for him for two weeks so he can visit family in Nova Scotia in early December.  He insists that he will return to relieve them well in advance of Christmas.  Aunt Martha loved her time at the lighthouse and, with Ronnie's agreement, makes plans to relieve Mr. Flagg.

Ronnie quickly learns the routines of the lighthouse, and finds his days full between caring for it with his aunt, keeping the house tended, and keeping up with his school lessons.  But when December 15th arrives, the promised homecoming date, Mr. Flagg is nowhere to be seen.  Ronnie becomes more and more bitter as he realizes that he may be stuck at the lighthouse for Christmas.  How can he and his aunt possibly celebrate properly so far from home?

This slim, quick read would be great for beginning readers.

The Apple and the Arrow, by Mary and Conrad Buff

I see that this book has been reissued in more of a shorter-height book format and I think that's a good call on the part of the publisher.  This particular edition has the size and shape of a chapter book, with a few full-page color illustrations.  But that leaves entire giant pages with nothing but text on them.  That makes for a rough read!

This book is, obviously, about the legend of William Tell and the beginnings of Switzerland's independence.  What makes it somewhat unique is that it's told from the perspective of William Tell's son, so you learn about the everyday life of the village and what independence (or lack thereof) would mean to a boy in the mountains.

Ginger Pye by Eleanor Estes

This is a story about a sister and brother, Rachel and Jerry Pye, and their dog Ginger. It's almost a mystery story, because partway through the book Ginger is kidnapped (!!), but it is overall a story of a basically happy family and the children's basically happy everyday lives.

Rachel and Jerry have quite an active social life in their neighborhood, so the book's cast of characters is large; however, they remain two-dimensional for the most part, although we do learn a lot of biographical details and personality quirks. The children's parents first met when their father ran up a down escalator and knocked their mother down at the top; they call a neighbor Mrs. You Bet because she ends a lot of her sentences, you guessed it, with "you bet"; they have a neighbor who is known as the "perpendicular swimmer" because he prefers swimming straight up and down to across the top of the water, to name a few examples. Most of these don't come into the plot at all, but I think a lot of them would make an 8- or 9-year-old laugh.

The astute reader can see the theft of Ginger a mile away, since the children are followed by a mysterious stranger in a yellow hat from the day they bring the puppy home. The culprit turns out to be a surprise to Jerry and Rachel, but not to the reader. I will say, though, that the conclusion is handled differently than I expected. Spoiler Alert! It turns out that Jerry's classmate Wally had kidnapped Ginger to be part of a vaudeville act; Jerry and Rachel spot Wally on a train, leaving town to join a circus, and his hat (which they recognize from the mysterious follower) flies off into their hands. While they're busy explaining to the police, assuming that Ginger is on his way to circus life with Wally, their three-year-old uncle (long story...) has found Ginger, who had in fact escaped on his own that morning. Ginger shows signs of having been forced to learn various tricks in the months he was missing, and of having suffered some form of abuse from his kidnapper, but in the end they all live happily ever after.

Jerry's revelations in the last two pages are the book's most insightful paragraphs by far. He remembers wanting to teach Ginger all kinds of tricks, when he first got him, to show the neighbor kids that his dog was the smartest of all. Now that he has Ginger back, he just likes having him back, and is a little sad when he walks on his front feet or turns a somersault - he realizes that Ginger doesn't have to earn his love, and hopes Ginger knows it too. And they all think that Ginger is an even more beautiful dog now that behind the happy exterior, you can see in his eyes that he has known pain and sadness, and is glad to be where he is.

This doesn't make great reading as an adult (I laughed, though, at one chapter describing Ginger's relationship with his reflection - my dog spends a lot of time growling at what we call "mirror dog" too!), but I think it would be an amusing read for a 2nd or 3rd grader, and the end might give them something to think about. Or they might miss the point entirely (I'll admit to being somewhat oblivious to this kind of subtlety at that age). I give it a 4 for an adult, but maybe 7 or 8 for the intended audience.