RED FOX ROAD by Frances Greenslade – An exciting survival story

I'm jumping back in to Marvelous Middle Grade Monday with exactly the kind of book I love to read--an exciting adventure! 

Why you want to read this book…

If you’re a fan of survival stories like I am, you’ll enjoy reading this book. I couldn’t put it down! In this one, the main character’s parents are along for the ride, but Francie ends up on her own. She has to use her own knowledge and smarts to figure out how to get through some scary moments. I really liked her resourcefulness. This story was different than other survival stories I’ve read because Francie had to worry about her mom’s mental health as well as how to stay alive. A great read!

Here’s the summary from the publisher:

A thirteen-year-old girl on a family vacation becomes stranded alone in the wilderness when the family's GPS leads them astray. A compelling survival story for ages 10 to 14, for fans of Hatchet and The Skeleton Tree.

Francie and her parents are on a spring road trip: driving from British Columbia, Canada, to hike in the Grand Canyon. When a shortcut leads them down an old logging road, disaster strikes. Their truck hits a rock and wipes out the oil pan. They are stuck in the middle of nowhere. Francie can't help feeling a little excited -- she'd often imagined how she'd survive if she got stranded in the bush, and now here they are. But will her survival skills -- building fires, gathering dandelion leaves and fir needles for tea -- be enough when hours stretch into days?

Red Fox Road by Frances Greenslade, was published by Penguin Random House Canada and debuts on September 15, 2020. I read an electronic version via NetGalley, provided by the publisher.

Make Mask-Wearing Easier for Young Children

I recently came across this clear and straightforward book about mask-wearing. This independently-published book is a useful resource for opening up discussions about why we need to wear masks. 

As a teacher, I love how it connects masks for playing with the mask that keeps others safe, helping kids with the emotional aspect of mask wearing. It was nice to see that “a portion of proceeds from sales of Lucy’s Mask will be donated to frontline workers and first responders.”

Here's the summary from Amazon:

Suddenly, masks are everywhere. Are your kids confused and anxious about wearing a mask? Lucy’s world turned upside down. She’s bored. She can’t be together with her friends. But when she finds out her mom is making her a new mask her boredom turns into excitement. Lucy loves masks! She dives into her toy box full of costumes and opens a world of imagination and make-believe adventure, far beyond the walls of her room. Of course, she doesn’t realize that the mask her mom is making is not a costume at all but one that will keep her safe and make her a real-life superhero.

I’d pair Lucy's Mask with this classic...