Intermediate (ages 9-14)

Material appropriate for intermediate age groups

An Elephant in the Garden

Lizzie and Karl’s mother is a zoo keeper; the family has become attached to an orphaned elephant named Marlene, who will be destroyed as a precautionary measure so she and the other animals don’t run wild should the zoo be hit by bombs. The family persuades the zoo director to let Marlene stay in their garden instead. When the city is bombed, the family flees with thousands of others, but how can they walk the same route when they have an elephant in tow, and keep themselves safe? Along the way, they meet Peter, a Canadian navigator who risks his own capture to save the family. As Michael Morpurgo writes in an author’s note, An Elephant in the Garden is inspired by historical truths, and by his admiration for elephants, “the noblest and wisest and most sensitive of all creatures.” Here is a story that brings together an unlikely group of survivors whose faith in kindness and love proves the best weapon of all.

Technology of the Ancients: The Romans

This book provides readers with an up-close look at the ingenuity of forward-thinking inventors and engineers from the early civilizatrions

Magic Wool

Activities with unspun sheep’s wool, also known as magic wool, offer a wide range of creative possibilities for both children and adults. In this book Dagmar Schmidt and Freya Jaffke combine their talents and experience, and show how to create beautiful pictures, as well as table-top scenes featuring figures and animals. They explain the process of carding and dyeing unspun wool to make ‘magic wool’. They focus on making pictures with wool, including scenes from several well-known fairy tales and festivals, before showing how to make simple dolls and animals, building up to an entire nativity scene. Detailed instructions, diagrams and colour photographs are provided throughout.

Treasured Classics

Acclaimed illustrator Michael Hague brings his hallmark artistry to 15 classic stories that have delighted children for generations. From Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty to The Gingerbread Man and The Three Billy Goats Gruff, each story is lush with detail and loaded with magic. A wealth of fable and fantasy, truly to be treasured.

Winter in Wartime

Near the end of World War II, 14-year-old Michiel becomes involved with the Resistance after coming to the aid of a wounded British soldier. With the conflict coming to an end, Michiel comes of age and learns the start difference between adventure fantasy and the ugly realities of war.

Half Spoon Of Rice

Nine-year-old Nat and his family are forced from their home on April 17, 1975, marched for many days, separated from each other, and forced to work in the rice fields, where Nat concentrates on survival. Includes historical notes and photographs.

See the review at WOW Review, Volume 4, Issue 2

A Stranger at Home

The powerful memoir of an Inuvialuit girl searching for her true self when she returns from residential school. Traveling to be reunited with her family in the Arctic, 10-year-old Margaret Pokiak can hardly contain her excitement. It’s been two years since her parents delivered her to the school run by the dark-cloakednuns and brothers. Coming ashore, Margaret spots her family, but her mother barely recognizes her, screaming, “Not my girl.” Margaret realizes she is now marked as an outsider. And Margaret is an outsider: she has forgotten the language and stories of her people, and she can’t even stomach the food her mother prepares. However, Margaret gradually relearns her language and her family’s way of living. Along the way, she discovers how important it is to remain true to the ways of her people — and to herself. Highlighted by archival photos and striking artwork, this first-person account of a young girl’s struggle to find her place will inspire young readers to ask what it means to belong.

See the review at WOW Review, Volume 4, Issue 2

This book has been included in WOW’s Language and Learning: Children’s and Young Adult Fiction Booklist. For our current list, visit our Booklist page under Resources in the green navigation bar.

Dan Eldon: Safari as a Way of Life

Photojournalist Dan Eldon left behind much more than the astonishing illustrated journals that would form The Journey is the Destination when he lost his life at age twenty-two while on assignment in Somalia. He also bequeathed a life story that has inspired students, teachers, artists, and creative activists—as well as a forthcoming film, an apparel line, and the Spring 2011 collection from Tom’s Shoes. Raised in Kenya, Dan grew up with a unique outlook on life. Through adventurous safaris and benevolent crusades around the world, he crafted a philosophy of curiosity, creativity, and charity. This unique visual biography showcases previously unpublished artwork from Dan’s acclaimed journals, letters, and snapshots that takes readers on a journey through Dan’s life and beyond, exploring the impact made by this remarkable artist on everyone who has encountered his story.