It's
Marvelous Middle Grade Monday
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and #IMWAYR day
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January 6, 2026 by Scholastic Press
E ARC Provided by Edelweiss Plus
Twins Ruby and Henry live on a small farm right outside of town. Their mother is a veterinarian, and their father does "something in an office", and the family has a menagerie of three chickens, two goats, a dog, a cat, a pig, and a llama! Their mother has declared that there are to be no more animals, but when a puppy with a severe spinal injury is dropped off at her clinic in the middle of the night, she softens long enough to let the children foster the dog and prepare him for adoption. Ruby, who does the morning chores, would rather skip school and get right to work, but her mother firmly states that school is more important. Henry enjoys school because there are no chores, and he has a lot more friends than Ruby does. Harriet, a neighbor, was a good friend until the girls hit fifth grade, and their interests started to diverge. The puppy, whom they name Arlo, is a sweet guy who manages to drag himself from place to place, since he can't walk. The twins try to help him by putting him in a shirt so the rough ground doesn't hurt his tender stomach, and unearth an old cart in the barn that they try to fit to one of the other pets so that Arlo can be part of the pack. This has limited success, so Ruby (who likes to build things) fashions a cart. She is grouped with Harriet during a school program on planting seeds, and finds out that Harriet's dog, Zippy, has passed away from cancer. Near the end, Zippy had to have both back legs amputated, and used a cart, so Harriet is interested in meeting Arlo. Henry isn't happy that Arlo will find a new home, since most of the animals seem to prefer Ruby, so he tries to remember to do his chores so that perhaps his mother will consider keeping Arlo. This isn't in Arlo's best interest, but luckily Harriet, her younger brother Will, and her mother decide that Arlo would be a good fit in their home. Ruby and Henry's parents agree that because the kids both stepped up to help with Arlo's care and training, they are open to having more rescues in the future.
Strengths: I would have loved this book as a child! Ruby and Henry both have fairly positive attitudes, are willing to work hard, and are given a lot of autonomy (but plenty of supervision when needed) to help Arlo. There's lots of good information about caring for a dog with special needs, but also some good life lessons about getting along with others. These things are so much more interesting than the current trend of having problems and thinking through how to deal with them-- Ruby and Henry DO things. Their farm is an interesting setting, especially with a llama and a pig with a large personality! The friend drama with Harriet is spot on. I would have saved up my 25 cent a week allowance to buy this series, and would definitely buy it for an elementary library. The cover is great, and I wish the artist had been mentioned in the publication data.
Weaknesses: There could have been slightly more description about the barn and surrounding enclosures for animals. While I could see everything clearly in my mind, both of my grandparents all lived on farms when I was young. Most of my students don't have this background knowledge.
What I really think: Mills' The Puppy Place is the series to which this title is compared, but Peters' Jasmine Green Rescues is much more similar. It should be popular with fans of Liu's Near and Deer, or graphic novel series like Fairbairn's PAWS or Epic Reads' Animal Rescue Friends. It's great for readers who need something a little shorter than Cameron's Dogs with Purpose books. If you are having a Scholastic book fair, make sure you request extras of this as well as the sequel, Kitten Delivery.
January 6, 2026 by Scholastic Press
E ARC Provided by Edelweiss Plus
Now that their foster puppy, Arlo, has a good home with their neighbors, Henry isn't as eager to do his after school chores taking care of the animals. When Ruby finds SEVEN kittens near their home in the country, the twins ask their mother if they can try their hand at fostering them. Since the kittens appear to be six weeks old and can't be adopted until they are eight, their veterinarian mother agrees. With the help of neighbors Harriet and Will, the siblings clean up that barn and create a "kitten camp". They name the kittens after the Seven Dwarves, although one particularly pretty kitten is named Snow White. The kittens are a LOT of work. They need baths, feeding, and an environment with things to climb and toys to play with so that they can release their copious kitten energy. Henry is glad when Grumpy, who has some health issues, is willing to take a bottle from him. The family's cat, Smudge, and pig, Big Mill, step up to try to channel the kitten's energy in appropriate ways, and Smudge helps with litter box training. The family plans a "kitten convention" so that the kittens can be matched with suitable adoptive homes, but right before it is to begin, Grumpy goes missing! The event can't be canceled, since the other kittens really need homes. The event is a success, and the twins feel good about all of their hard work. Henry even learns to rethink his approach to "chores", and thinks that he might feel differently if he frames his work as something he does to support the pets that he loves. Grumpy shows up, having been hidden away by Smudge and Big Mill, and the parents allow the twins to keep the cat. Another book seems to be in the works!
Strengths: Kittens are adorable, and the cover (whose artist I could not find) will insure that this book sees steady circulation. I loved that Will and Harriet have worked with Ruby and Henry to clear a path between their houses so that Arlo can visit, and that they all band together to spiff up the barn so that it can be used in the future for fostering other animals. Downing does a great job at realistically portraying learning experiences for both twins; Ruby at first just wants the kittens to be adopted, but realizes that the animals' personalities need to be matched up with those of appropriate adopters to secure a good outcome, and Henry decides that he needs to make lists of jobs that he must do in order to remember them. He's also open to Ruby's reframing of the purpose for doing chores. I'd love to see more of this kind of instructive coping skills incorporated into other middle grade titles, especially in such a natural and engaging way. I'm looking forward to another book in the series.
Weaknesses: Would Smudge and Big Mill really hide Grumpy? While this reinforces my bias that cats are evil, I'm not sure that they would be able to anticipate the adoption and stow their favorite kitten out of view. Still, it makes for a great crisis, and a happy ending, so that is just a quibble.
What I really think: It's harder to find books about cats than it is about dogs, so feline fans will be glad to see that Henry and Ruby have a whole gang of kittens to care for. Mills' The Puppy Place sometimes has cats show up at the rescue, as does Peters' Jasmine Green Rescues, which also has a pig! Scholastic must have a soft spot for cats, since they also published Yamile Saied Méndez' Random Acts of Kittens and Wish Upon a Stray. If you have a lot of Warriors fans and are having a book fair, make sure you request extras of these books as well as the first Just Like Home book, Love Rolls In.
Strengths: Kittens are adorable, and the cover (whose artist I could not find) will insure that this book sees steady circulation. I loved that Will and Harriet have worked with Ruby and Henry to clear a path between their houses so that Arlo can visit, and that they all band together to spiff up the barn so that it can be used in the future for fostering other animals. Downing does a great job at realistically portraying learning experiences for both twins; Ruby at first just wants the kittens to be adopted, but realizes that the animals' personalities need to be matched up with those of appropriate adopters to secure a good outcome, and Henry decides that he needs to make lists of jobs that he must do in order to remember them. He's also open to Ruby's reframing of the purpose for doing chores. I'd love to see more of this kind of instructive coping skills incorporated into other middle grade titles, especially in such a natural and engaging way. I'm looking forward to another book in the series.
Weaknesses: Would Smudge and Big Mill really hide Grumpy? While this reinforces my bias that cats are evil, I'm not sure that they would be able to anticipate the adoption and stow their favorite kitten out of view. Still, it makes for a great crisis, and a happy ending, so that is just a quibble.
What I really think: It's harder to find books about cats than it is about dogs, so feline fans will be glad to see that Henry and Ruby have a whole gang of kittens to care for. Mills' The Puppy Place sometimes has cats show up at the rescue, as does Peters' Jasmine Green Rescues, which also has a pig! Scholastic must have a soft spot for cats, since they also published Yamile Saied Méndez' Random Acts of Kittens and Wish Upon a Stray. If you have a lot of Warriors fans and are having a book fair, make sure you request extras of these books as well as the first Just Like Home book, Love Rolls In.
Copy provided by the publisher
Happy Winnie-the-Pooh Day, which is celebtrated on A.A. Milne's birthday, January 18. Born in 1882, Milne created When We Were Very Young (1924) in which Pooh was a character, and went on to feature this bear of very little brain in a total of four books. Disney started animating these tales in 1961, so Pooh and his friends featured largely in my childhood. My brother had a large stuffed version, complete with red velvet vest, and Pooh would often narrate his stories at bedtime.
This 100th anniversary edition is not only bound in Pooh yellow, but is vaguely fuzzy as well. There was a missed opportunity to have a red slipcover for this, but that is more of a Disney interpolation. For a book that came out so long ago, it holds up surprisingly well. The writing still feels crisp and modern, and Pooh's antics are not treated in an overly moralistic way. The 1920s really are the start of the modern era, when children started to be treated as individuals in their own right who made mistakes but were able to learn from them.
This volume includes several favorites, like the heffalump and woozle tales, as well as stories about Eeyore losting his tale, Pooh getting stuck, and Christopher Robin leads an expedition to the North Pole (which makes sense, since Peary and Amundsen were either in recent memory or currently trying to reach that location). Kanga and Roo come to the forest, and there is a birthday party. These stories are all told with a gentle good humor, and are quick enough that each story can probably be read in one or two sittings, depending on the patience of the people involved.
I'm a big fan of original illustrations, so it was good to see Shepard's original illustrations reproduced. There's something reassuring about the gentle pencil drawings that are comforting. Both timeless and nostalgic, the depictions of the woods, the animals, and Christopher Robin goes perfectly with the text.
I'm not sure how many middle school students will be interested in these tales, but I'm sure my daughter will enjoy this copy to read to my grandson. I recently referenced the fact that the copyright had expired on this book and that it was now in the public domain; this is why there is now a slasher flick entitled Blood and Honey with Pooh as the main character! Pooh has appeared in other works through the years, including Hoff's Tao of Pooh (1982), which I received as a high school graduation gift and Leonards' 1958 Winnine-ille-Pu, the only title in Latin ever to make the New York Times Best Seller list. I may also have owned a copy of that in my previous life as a middle school Latin teacher.
Given the amount of nursery decorations still available in both classic Shepard illustrations as well as the Disney versions, there are still fans out there. If you want to revisit Piglet, Roo, and Eeyore to find out what exciting things are happening, this new edition is a perfect one to pick up to snuggle and read.
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