Make a Splash: Read!
Books for Older Readers: Grades 4-6

Arnosky, Jim. Hook, Line, & Seeker: A Beginner’s Guide to Fishing, Boating and Watching Water Wildlife.
A handbook to fishing, boating, and water wildlife with drawings and photographs. J 799.1 ARN

Arnosky, Jim. The Pirates of Crocodile Swamp.
Kidnapped by their father, two boys escape into the mangrove swamps of Key Largo, Florida, where they learn to live on their own in the wild. J-ADV ARN

Cole, Brock. The Goats.
Stripped and marooned on a small island by their fellow campers, a boy and a girl form an uneasy bond that grows into a deep friendship when they decide to run away and disappear without a trace. J-ADV COL

Cuffe-Perez, Mary. Skylar.
Skylar, who claims he was once wild, leads four pond geese in their first attempt at migration when an injured heron asks their help in reaching Lost Pond, where the annual Before the Migration Convention is about to be held. J CUF

DeFelice, Cynthia. The Missing Manatee.
While coping with his parents’ separation, 11-year-old Skeet spends most of Spring Break in his skiff on a Florida river, where he finds a manatee shot to death and begins looking for the killer. J-M DEF

Defoe, Daniel. Robinson Crusoe.
As the sole survivor of a shipwreck, an Englishman lives for nearly thirty years on a deserted island. J-HF DEF

Duey, Kathleen. Flood, Mississippi, 1927.
When the raging Mississippi threatens their secret cache of hard-earned nickels and pennies, Molly and her white friend Garrett risk their lives to retrieve the money. J-PBK DUE

Farley, Walter. Black Stallion.
Young Alec Ramsay is shipwrecked on a desert island with a horse destined to play an important part in his life. J FAR

Fleischman, Sid. Disappearing Act.
After their archaeologist mother fails to return from Mexico and they discover that someone is stalking their Albuquerque house, twelve-year-old Kevin and his opera-singing older sister flee to Venice, California, where they hope that new identities will keep them safe. J FLE

George, Jean Craighead. Tree Castle Island.
After building his own canoe, fourteen-year-old Jack Hawkins goes to try it out in his beloved Okefenokee Swamp, where an accident tests his survival skills and leads him to a shocking discovery. J-ADV GEO

Giff, Patricia Reilly. Lily’s Crossing.
During a summer spent at Rockaway Beach in 1944, Lily’s friendship with a young Hungarian refugee causes her to see the war and her own world differently. Newbery Honor book. J-HF GIF

Hoffman, Alice. Aquamarine.
A lovestruck mermaid named Aquamarine supplies adventure and insights to two 12-year-old girls; lifelong friends who are spending their last summer together before one of them moves away. J-FAN HOF

Horvath, Polly. My One Hundred Adventures.
Twelve-year-old Jane, who lives at the beach in a run-down old house with her mother, two brothers, and sister, has an eventful summer accompanying her pastor on Bible deliveries, meeting her mother's former boyfriends, and being coerced into babysitting for a family of ill-mannered children. J HOR

King-Smith, Dick. The Water Horse.
In 1930, on the coast of Scotland, eight-year-old Kirstie finds a large egg that hatches into an unusual sea creature, and, as he grows, her family must decide what to do with him. J-FAN KIN

Korman, Gordon. Shipwreck (Island, Book 1).
Six teens on a boat in the Pacific Ocean are shipwrecked and must learn how to survive. J-PBK KOR

Koss, Amy Goldman. Kailey.
Ten-year-old Kailey launches an art protest to keep a developer from spoiling the cove and its tide pools that are special to her and her family and friends. J-PBK KOS

McMillan, Bruce. A Beach for the Birds.
Discusses the physical characteristics and habits of the endangered least terns and describes the Maine beach where they spend the summer and raise their young alongside their human neighbors. J 598.338 MCM

O’Dell, Scott. Island of the Blue Dolphins.
Left alone on a beautiful but isolated island off the coast of California, a young Indian girl spends 18 years, not only merely surviving through her enormous courage and self-reliance, but also finding a measure of happiness in her solitary life. Newbery Medal winner. J-HF ODE, J-PBK ODE

Riordan, Rick. The Lightning Thief.
About to be kicked out of boarding school once again, Percy is sent to Camp Half-Blood, a summer camp for demigods, where he learns that his father is Poseidon, God of the Sea, and where he embarks upon a quest to reach the gates of the Underworld and prevent a catastrophic war between the gods. First in a series. J-FAN RIO

Shahan, Shery. Frozen Stiff.
Cousins Cody and Derek take a kayak trip in Alaska and find themselves battling the raw elements of an untamed wilderness. J-ADV SHA

Skurzynski, Gloria, and Alene Fergusen. Deadly Waters: A Mystery in Everglades National Park.
While visiting Everglades National Park with their parents, the Landon children uncover the mystery of dying manatees and learn important lessons about the natural environment. J-M SKU

Steig, William. Abel’s Island.
Accustomed to a life of leisure, gentlemanly Abel must be resourceful to survive after he finds himself stranded on a remote island. Newbery Honor Book. J STE

Stetson, Emily. 40 Knots to Know: Hitches, Loops, Bends & Bindings.
Provides step-by-step instructions for tying five basic knots plus a variety of more complex ones, including joining knots, bindings, coils, hitches, lashings, and more. J 623.88 STE

Stevenson, Robert Louis. Treasure Island.
While going through the possessions of a deceased guest who owed them money, the mistress of the inn and her son find a treasure map that leads them to a pirate’s fortune. J-ADV STE

Strauss, Rochelle. One Well: The Story of Water on Earth.
In picture book format, Strauss presents a beautiful and effective overview of the importance and uses of water, how water systems operate, and how we can conserve and protect them. J 553.7 STR

Taylor, Theodore. The Cay.
When the freighter on which they are traveling is torpedoed by a German submarine during World War II, a white boy, blinded by a blow on the head, and an old black man are stranded on a tiny Caribbean island where the boy acquires a new kind of vision, courage, and love from his old companion. J-PBK TAY

Torrey, Michele. Voyage of Ice.
In 1849, fifteen-year-old Nick and his older brother, longing to be whalers, sign on as hands on the whaling ship Sea Hawk, and find that the journey is full of hardship and unexpected dangers. J-ADV TOR

Wyss, Johann D. Swiss Family Robinson.
Relates the fortunes of a shipwrecked family as they imaginatively adapt to life on an island with abundant animal and plant life. J-ADV WYS