Billy is spending the summer with his mom at a lakeside cabin. The cabin belongs to Dr. Libris, a professor who works at the same university as Billy's mother.
Billy is not thrilled about the lack of electronics at the cabin but soon discovers shelves of books. As he reads, something strange happens . . . on the island in the middle of the lake the characters are coming alive!
As Billy befriends a neighbor, contends with another obnoxious neighbor and worries about his parents' marriage, he discovers a gift-the gift of imagination.
At the back of the book, Mr. Grabenstein includes a list of all the books he mentions throughout the story. This book may be one that compels a reader to read some of the classics.
*Highly recommend.
Points to discuss: Billy's parents are having martial problems. His dad comes to the cabin to announce they are divorcing. Characters from various classic stories are incorporated throughout the story. If the reader is unfamiliar with the full length story, they might not fully appreciate this sampling of the characters and the plot references. Also, Mr. Grabenstein does a superb job of utilizing the character's authentic dialect and speech so that too may be challenging for some readers (Tom Sawyer, 3 Musketeers etc.)
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