Fern and Newt and the Lost Loot

Gr 1-3–Fern and her friend Newt are playing pirates when they bury Fern’s sister’s jewelry box as pretend treasure—only for a real storm to wash it away. With her sister due back from camp soon, Fern is desperate to recover the box before Nicole finds out it’s gone. The pair decide to earn money for a metal detector by helping a woman down the street, who offers five cents for each weed they pull or one dollar for every caterpillar egg they find. As they work, Fern and Newt learn about the importance of milkweed and the life cycle of monarch butterflies. The story is straightforward and easy to follow, though it lacks the pace and excitement of other early chapter books. Grayscale illustrations appear throughout, offering helpful visual breaks for emerging readers. While the educational aspects are clear, the butterfly-raising subplot and its delivery can feel a bit forced. Fern is white, and Newt is Black.