Author and National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature Kate DiCamillo recommends Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell. “I was introduced to the book in second grade. My teacher, Mrs. Boyette, read it aloud to us. Every day after lunch she read. And every day, I would go to school and think: how am I going to last until after lunch? I was so desperate to hear that book. I read it on my own afterward. I still loved. But there was something about hearing it out loud that made the book even more profound.”
Island of the Blue Dolphins (Houghton Mifflin, 1960) is recommended for ages 7-12.
Be sure to check out DiCamillo’s book Leroy Ninker Saddles Up (Book One in the Tales from Deckawoo Drive series), illustrated by Chris Van Dusen (Candlewick Press, 2014).
Learn more at KateDiCamillo.com.
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