Bookmarked: Sari Custer

Chief of science and curiosity at Arizona Science Center

Recommends: “Magic Tree House The Graphic Novel: Dinosaurs Before Dark” by Mary Pope Osborne; adapted by Jenny Laird; illustrated by Kelly and Nichole Matthews

Her Take

“Magic, fun, adventure AND Science? Yes, please! In this story, siblings Jack and Annie find a magic tree house that transports them back to the Cretaceous period. They must figure out how to get home before dark, and before becoming the next dinosaur meal, but they definitely learn some things along the way.

The Magic Treehouse books are classics, and have been newly published as graphic novels. My 8-year-old daughter, Carson, recently discovered them at the library, and absolutely loves them. Carson struggles with reading, so when she knocked out 150+ pages of ‘Dinosaurs Before Dark’ in just a couple of days, I knew this series was special. In this format, there are more images and less text than in the original series, but this helped increase not only her confidence in her ability to read, but also her interest in reading at all.

When I asked her what she liked about ‘Dinosaurs Before Dark,’ her eloquent response was, ‘Who wouldn’t want to travel back in time to see dinosaurs?’ Touché, Carson.

If you have an emerging reader at home or are just looking for a fun, vibrantly illustrated story for your kiddo’s summer reading list, ‘Dinosaurs Before Dark’ is a perfect fit.”