Piper Green and the Fairy Tree

Gr 1–3—Seven-year-old Piper Green lives on an island off the coast of Maine and is a delight. Clever and witty, she takes listeners on a jaunty journey through the first few days of second grade. Wearing her older brother's monkey earmuffs (he has gone to high school on the mainland, and she misses him), Piper has a rough start with her new teacher who looks like a princess, but definitely is not. First she assigns seats, and then she tells Piper to remove the earmuffs. Piper does not want to go back; she ditches the lobster-boat "school bus" and hides in a tree. Hidden treasures combine with erstwhile family stories from plucky old Mrs. Pennypocket, and the backyard tree transforms into a fairy tree! Tavia Gilbert's narration is at once delightfully second-grade-squeaky and resolute. The action-driven story moves at a pleasantly brisk pace.