Children's Books

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JANUARY 4, 2007

Water Horse by Dick King-Smith

Set in the 1930's, an unusually large mermaid's purse is found along a Scottish shore following a storm by an 8-year old Kirstie. Along with her younger brother Angus, it is carried home and placed in the family bathtub where it hatches the following night. But an unusual creature is born that has the head of a horse, the body of a turtle and the tail of a crocodile. Needing to find a place that would allow the water horse to grow, while still keeping its existence a secret, the children along with their not so grumpy grandfather, Grumble, decide to move it to the family goldfish pond. As it continues to grow, "Crusoe" is coaxed to the loch one winter, "at tortoise speed", by having him crawl somewhat in the manner of a turtle. The only thing that saved this experience from turning into an all day affair was the luck of finding the road covered with ice that the water horse could slide the remainder of the way down. Here Crusoe is taught to come only when his name is called and to remain out of sight all other times. Three years later when the water horse has again outgrown his surroundings the family again coaxes Crusoe out of his loch and is transported, this time by cattle truck. His new home…Loch Ness. This was written by the same author of "Babe: The Gallant Pig". Interesting in that the story is told from the human perspective, as well as through the eyes of the water horse. It is very readable and an enjoyable story about the legend of the Loch Ness monster. The occasional black and white illustrations are just enough to give flavor to the story while still allowing for plenty of imagination. The water horse is shown to be extremely friendly and lovable. This is a heart warming story that just may make you want to travel to Loch Ness to visit Crusoe yourself. This has a fairly high vocabulary, but would be of interest to children in grades 2-5.

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Children's Books

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