Wicked Cool Overlooked Books (III)

As initiated by Colleen Mondor, the first Monday of each month is dedicated to highlighting excellent but overlooked titles. I'm going to use this month's space to point you again to a book that I recently reviewed: Dodsworth in New York, by Tim Egan. Dodsworth in New York doesn't have any reviews yet on Amazon, and I haven't seen any other reviews out and about in the Kidlitosphere (if I missed yours, do let me know). But I think it's a book worth noting because it's particularly hard to write a profound yet entertaining book for very early readers. And Tim Egan does this successfully. As I said in my review:

"Dodsworth in New York is a manual for letting go and enjoying life, as well as a love letter to New York. But more importantly, it's a delightful early reader, sure to please kids and adults. I think that it takes a gifted writer to convert the short sentences and limited vocabulary of an early reader into something with tone and substance. Egan accomplishes this feat admirably. The personalities of Dodsworth and the duck both come through clearly. And the short sentences function as understatement, allowing the reader to fill in details of mood and subtext."

So, if you have a new reader in your house, this is a title worth looking for.

Colleen has posted about another Overlooked Book at Chasing Ray. I'll link to other posts as I come across them.

UPDATED to add:

• Finding Wonderland is in with a post by TadMack about Cynthia Voigt's Jackaroo.
• Becky from Becky's Book Reviews is in with a post about Janet Taylor Lisle's Black Duck.
• Charlotte from Charlotte's Library is in with a post about The House on Mayferry Street, by Eileen Dunlop
• Kelly from Big A little a is in with a post about Nigel Richardson's YA title The Wrong Hands.

Book: Dodsworth in New York
Author: Tim Egan
Pages: 48
Age Range: 5 to 8 (a very early chapter book)
Sequel to: The Pink Refrigerator (a picture book, reviewed here)
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
Publication Date: September 24, 2007
Source of Book: Review copy from the publisher

© 2009 by Jennifer Robinson of Jen Robinson's Book Page. All rights reserved.