When Zachary Beaver Came to Town

This story is like the quiet indie film you watch after a marathon of Hollywood blockbusters. So refreshing. Back during elementary school was probably the first time I picked up 'When Zachary Beaver Came to Town'. Unfortunately I never finished it because my attention span was that of a peanut. Alth......more

Nothing ever happens in Antler, Texas. Nothing much at all. Until this afternoon, when an old blue Thunderbird pulls a trailer decorated with Christmas lights into the Dairy Maid parking lot. The red words painted on the trailer cause quite a buzz around town, and before an hour is up, half of Antle......more

When Zachary Beaver Came to Town was not my favorite book. It was a summer reading choice, and I had already read the others that seemed interesting. I found the story to be repetitive because the main characters (Toby and Cal) would do the same things every day. As a reader, I feel like I need more......more

Wow! I've had some good luck lately with good books. This one comes highly recommended. The story is interesting and well-written. Centers around a young boy in the early 1970s trying to understand his mother's leaving and the experience of his best friend's older brother in Vietnam. This author rem......more

I taught this novel to a class of high intermediate level ESOL students. The majority of them didn't really enjoy it. We (the ULL IEP) try to choose books for them that have the right combination of appropriate/inoffensive language and thematic content, challenging but reasonable vocabulary, and sub......more