{Synopsis} – In this charming illustrated chapter book series by Newbery Honor author Cynthia Lord, the Shelter Pet Squad kids find the perfect homes for animals in need!
Suzannah's always wanted a pet of her own, but she lives in an apartment where there are absolutely no pets allowed. What she CAN do is volunteer at a local pet shelter. There, although she's the youngest, Suzannah quickly finds herself making friends with the kids and bonding with the animals. She makes toys and treats for the animals. She feeds the cats and plays with the puppies!
Then a girl just her age brings a guinea pig named Jelly Bean to the shelter. Suzannah promises that she'll find the little creature the perfect home. But what if no one wants an abandoned guinea pig?
Newbery Honor author Cynthia Lord has created a fun and heartwarming chapter books series.
{My thoughts} – Suzannah is a charming second grader that cannot have a pet of her own because she lives in an apartment. She has tons of stuffed critters that she plays with though. She pretends they do real things and they help her to deal with the not having her own pet. One day her mom mentions that she should join a group of kids doing the Shelter Pet Squad at the local animal shelter.
The purpose of the program is to allow children from second to sixth grade the opportunity to interact with and learn more about the animals at the shelter. They make toys and things for the animals to play with and at the end of the book it has instructions on how to make the things the book had mentioned. They also get to know the animals and help them find homes.
In this particular book the whole squad helps a guinea pig named Jelly Bean find a new home. They type up a letter telling about his good qualities, his cost and other important information. They also add a picture. They then print out copies of the letter and pass them out to all the teachers at each of their schools. This helps to get the word out about him and eventually a teacher does in fact adopt him for her classroom.
This is a wonderful book that can teach children so much. It is a wonderful feeling to be selfless and help animals. There is no I am not doing enough when it comes to animals. The small things matter the most. Even if you just go to the shelter and help walk some of the dogs. It can help to make their day just to be out of their cage for awhile and to play with someone new.
I am an avid volunteer for the local SPCA shelter here. I currently foster some of their dogs. My children are learning so much about animals and what they can do to help them that it’s a wonderful feeling knowing that they know they are making a difference. We have a senior foster named Manny, and three mama dogs that combined have 12 puppies. It was 13 but one puppy had found it’s forever home this past Sunday during a special adoption event the SPCA hosts at the mall on the weekend. I think the best thing you can do is offer to help, make donations or foster. Fostering for an animal can be so rewarding and so worth every second!
I think that this book is wonderfully written. It is accurate on account of how shelters work, it has beautiful illustrations and is very informative. Any child that loves pets will love this book. I only wish that our local shelter had a similar program. I’d sign my three up in a heart beat!
Final Conclusion: 5 Star Rating.
