ROCKET'S 100TH DAY OF SCHOOL

Rocket, the dog of reading fame, spends the first few months of school collecting 100 “special things,” but when the 100th day of school finally arrives, five are missing.

Rocket’s items are varied and reflect his friends, the changing season and his own interests: acorns, the letters of the alphabet, a few of Owl’s feathers, heart-shaped rocks, sticks shaped like numbers, pine cones, pencils, etc. Bella the squirrel kindly allows Rocket to stow all these items in her hole in a tree. But when he comes to collect them again, five things are missing…five acorns. The squirrel tries to avoid questions about the missing acorns. “The what?...Acorns?” In a hysterical double-page spread that beautifully captures the confession of a compulsion, the squirrel, head flung back, paws thrown wide, shouts, “YES! I ATE THEM!...I LOVE ACORNS SO MUCH!” A page turn shows a sad Rocket and a remorseful Bella. But the clever dog is not stymied for long. Luckily, he has four old friends and a new (and forgiven) friend in Bella, making the requisite 100. A large font, short sentences and white background behind large, simple illustrations help readers decode words, just like their favorite reading dog.

Rocket’s fans will enjoy practicing their skills and their own countdowns to (and collections for) Day 100.