The Tarantula in My Purse: And 172 Other Wild Pets (Theme 6: Animal Encounters)

I believe I heard about this book on a popular homeschooling podcast. It has turned out to be the highlight of the morning for my 8 and 10 year old sons. While its stories are down-to-reality on the "circle of life" with some heavier moments, the kids have burst out laughing many, many times and we are only about halfway through the book. Highly recommend if you're looking for a very well-rounded and entertaining perspective on living amongst wild animals.

As a mom, I made sure my four kids read this book. The chapters were short. It was interesting and it was written for boys as well as girls. But recently I bought this book for my 88 year old mother. Although she used to be an avid reader, most books are too complex now. There are too many characters, and the story line is usually too complex. But this book really was perfect. George never talks down to the reader, so the stories never seemed childish. Mom not only enjoyed reading, she gained insight on the different animals and wanted to discuss them! This book transcends any gender or age boundaries.

I enjoyed this book because I'm hoping to be a biologist one day, so I like to read on how other people do take care of animals. The only thing I didn't like was that the chapters are minimal so you don't get a lot of information.Jean Craighead, (the author) was an environmentalist. She has written hundreds of books about animals and nature. Everything in this book is entirely real, it has all happened to her and her family.

We love this book and have been rolling in laughter many times. Though we are big city people with seven kids, we love creatures (though probably not as much as the George family) and loved the stories of animals and pets we could never hope to have on our own!

Not exactly what I expected. Would t buy again.

I have it 4 stars instead of 5 because when Amazon sent it to my Kindle, words were strung together and some words were symbols. Pictures were broken up as well so very hard to read.

This Newbery-winner whose recognized books (My Side of the Mountain and Julie of the Wolves) I have read and appreciated greatly, has something very different here. Each chapter is a vignette about one or more of the wild animals that have come into her home for raising. There are some interesting and fascinating goings-on, some animals one wouldn't normally think of as domestic, and lots of good basic scientific information about a number of them. The crows alone are much more dynamic than one would have reason to expect. This is accessible, completely pleasurable for a reader from chapter books on up. For a youngster whose attention span is more suited toward these short stories/chapters, a fun read about animals, family, freedom, wild vs. domestic, and so on. Recommended warmly.

The kids absolutely loved this book! I’ll admit, I enjoyed it too! Great family read aloud and I definitely recommend.