Librarian teacher discusses children's books. Students are encouraged to contribute their own book review or short summary of fiction or nonfiction books. This blog is of interest to 3rd through 6th graders.

Scat

This is Carl Hiaasen's third children's book that is set in Florida; has a four-letter word title and is an environmental adventure mystery. I have read all of these and am almost sure this is one is my favorite. The story revolves around the endangered panther. As with his other books, the antagonists do not respect the environment or the panther. They are out to make money at whatever the cost. Nick and Marta are curious about the disappearance of their teacher and they, along with a few other characters begin to uncover an illegal operation that threatens the life of a panther cub and her mother. These unique characters work together because of their love of nature and concern for an abandoned cub.
About the Florida Panther from the floridapanther.org web site: Historically, this subspecies roamed the entire southeastern United States, including Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, and Louisiana. Currently, the only remaining population is in southwest Florida. Loss of habitat is one of the the main reasons for their decrease in population. About 100 cats remain in the Florida panther population. As recently as the early 1990s, only about 30 Florida panthers existed. Although the population has recovered somewhat, the Florida panther is still critically endangered.

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