Nora's Ark

By Natalie Kinsey-Warnock

Illustrated by Emily Arnold McCully

Most enjoyed by Kindergartners through 3rd graders

Young Wren lives with Grandma and Grandpa on a farm in Vermont. Grandpa is building Grandma a new house high up on a hill but Grandma's not too thrilled. She thinks the house is 'just gravy'. But her mind is changed when rains begin to fall, causing the river by the farm to rise. Grandma and Wren move to the new house and it isn't long before they're joined by some neighbors and their animals, filling the house with chickens, children, and three horses! When Grandpa doesn't return after going out in the storm to help a neighbor, Wren and Grandma make the dangerous journey into the flood waters to try to find him.

Based on the disastrous 1927 flood that caused widespread damage and loss of life in Vermont, this is a warm, reassuring story of how love and friendship win out in tough times. Share this book with your family and talk about how you weather tough times as a family. Isn't it reassuring to know that, like Wren, Grandma, and Grandpa, you'll have each other to fall back on? Another in the 2009 Monarch award titles, this one is a winner.