The Twenty-One Balloons by William Pene De Bios

This is also quite an old book (1947) and a winner of the Newberry Medal and I guess it might be called a classic so it seemed like the right time this summer to read this book. It is slightly quirky and old fashioned but amazingly The Twenty One Balloons is very easy to read and enjoy. I sometimes find older books take too much time with descriptions and don’t arrive at the action quickly enough but The Twenty One Balloons is such a quirky premise that you want to keep reading on and on to find out how Professor William Waterman Sherman ended up in the Atlantic Ocean three weeks after his journey began especially when the Professor intended to stay aloft for at least one whole year.

One reason I especially enjoyed this book is that no part of the plot was predictable. Sherman lands on the island of Krakatoa and finds wealthy, cultured and creative inhabitants. Their ingenious inventions are especially appealing.

The Twenty One Balloons would appeal to Middle and Upper Primary readers who like adventure and science.