Penny & Rio: The Mysterious Backyard Meeting by Jennifer Swanson
January 24, 2010 by Adrian
Filed under Book Reviews
Reviewed by Kristi Bernard for The National Writing for Children Center
Title: Penny & Rio: The Mysterious Backyard Meeting
Written by: Jennifer Swanson
Illustrated by: Rosita Schandy & Neal Wooten
Ages: 6-12
Publisher: Mirror Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-9822560-1-5
If your children love pets then they will love Penny & Rio. These two dogs are very funny. This story gives kids a pets point of view as to what makes them bark and take a lot of naps.
This 5 chapter book is an enjoyable quick read. Penny is a very active dog. She likes to dig and play in the back yard. She often finds herself locked in the garage when she barks so much her owner wakes up. Rio, on the other hand is a nap taker. She would prefer to lounge around and have Penny keep her abreast on the yard activities.
The mysterious backyard meeting begins when Penny over hears a squirrel, owl and cat discussing a break in to the neighbors house. Penny is compelled to stop them but needs help from Rio. But that takes some convincing. They dig up the yard under a piece of broken fence to get to the neighbors house. Once inside Penny discovers that the cat has a baby brother that needs rescuing. Penny helps save the day. Mystery solved.
Author Jennifer Swanson was awarded the Childrens Choice award in 2008 and also the Royal Palm Literary Award. To learn more, visit www.cbcbooks.org. You can also visit Jennifer Swanson’s site at www.pennyandrio.com.
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Learn more about Kristi Bernard at Get Kids to Read.
