Action & Adventure

Rifleman Dodd, a 1932 historical novel by C.S. Forester, describes the adventures of an English soldier trapped behind enemy lines in 1810 during the Peninsular War, when Britain fights alongside Portugal and Spain against Napoleon’s invading French army. Rifleman Dodd employs guerrilla tactics to harass and kill French troops as he treks across a scorched and starving land to rejoin his regiment. The novel’s descriptions of battle tactics, improvisation under fire, and relentless determination make... Read Rifleman Dodd Summary

Harold Keith published Rifles for Watie in 1957; the book earned a Newbery Medal in 1958. The novel mixes historical fact and fiction, and tells the story of Jefferson Davis Bussey, a 16-year-old Kansas boy who enlists in the Union army in 1861 and serves until the war ends. Jeff begins his service as an infantryman. He falls in love with a Confederate girl and eventually becomes a scout, infiltrating the rebel camp. He joins... Read Rifles for Watie Summary

“Rikki-tikki-tavi” is one of Rudyard Kipling’s most famous short stories and was animated into a children’s film in 1975. This children’s story, originally published in 1894, follows a young mongoose named Rikki-tikki-tavi who protects a British family from the snakes in their garden. It is especially known for its themes of Courage as Action and Family Loyalty and Legacy, as well as for its overarching connections to colonialism; Rudyard Kipling, who lived in British colonial... Read Rikki Tikki Tavi Summary

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Robinson Crusoe is French writer Daniel Defoe’s debut novel, first published in 1719. Structured as a journal, the travelogue chronicles Crusoe’s experiences as a seaman and his twenty-eight years cast away on an uninhabited island near Trinidad, where Caribbean cannibals kill and eat prisoners. The novel takes a plan-spoken, confessional tone. Crusoe’s inner explorations, religious doubt, and yet strong faith in God’s providence, create a character who seems to undergo many changes.Against the wishes, and... Read Robinson Crusoe Summary

Roughing It (1872) is the second major work by American humorist Mark Twain (Samuel Langhorne Clemens). It recounts his experiences during the Nevada silver rush of the 1860s. After his failed attempts to make a fortune as a miner, Twain would later achieve prominence as a lecturer and writer. He initially drew acclaim for his fanciful short story entitled “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County” (1865). His best-known titles include The Innocents Abroad (1869)... Read Roughing It Summary

Ruby Holler (2002) is a middle grade novel by Sharon Creech. It tells the story of twins, a brother and sister, who are orphaned and live at a children’s home. Their lives change unexpectedly when they are given the opportunity to travel with an elderly couple during their summer vacation.The author of 21 books, Creech was awarded the Newbery Medal for Walk Two Moons (1994) and received a Newbery honor for The Wanderer (2000). Ruby... Read Ruby Holler Summary

Ruin and Rising is the third and final book in Leigh Bardugo’s Shadow and Bone trilogy of young adult fantasy adventure/romance novels. Ruin and Rising was originally published in 2014. Bardugo has written 12 novels as of 2021, many of which are set in the “GrishaVerse” world first portrayed in the novel Shadow and Bone. The Shadow and Bone trilogy, combined with Bardugo’s Six of Crows duology, has been adapted as a television miniseries. Before... Read Ruin and Rising Summary

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Running Out of Time is a 1995 young adult suspense novel by American author Margaret Peterson Haddix. It tells the story of Jessie Keyser, a young girl who believes she is living in 1800s Indiana, only to discover that in reality it is 1996. When a diphtheria epidemic strikes her small town of Clifton, she must venture out into the modern world to save her friends. Haddix also authored the critically acclaimed YA thriller series... Read Running Out Of Time Summary

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Salt to the Sea is a historical young adult novel written by Ruta Sepetys and published in 2016. Sepetys is known for similar young adult historical fiction works, such as I Must Betray You (2022) and Between Shades of Gray (2011). Set during World War II, Salt to the Sea is a coming-of-age story that follows four protagonists as they make and resist the journey to adulthood in a world characterized by war and trauma... Read Salt to the Sea Summary

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Savvy, by Ingrid Law, is a fantasy-adventure novel for middle-grade readers about a girl from a psychic family who discovers her mental superpower and tries to master it quickly to use it to save her comatose father. First published in 2008, Savvy was a New York Times bestseller; it won a Newbery Honor and has appeared on more than 30 best book lists. The novel has two sequels, Scumble and Switch. Law’s books have been... Read Savvy Summary

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Carl Hiaasen’s Scat! is a young adult thriller with a comic tone and an environmental message. Nick Waters and his best friend, Marta Gonzalez, are students at the private Truman School in Naples, Florida. When their biology teacher, Mrs. Bunny Starch, disappears, the two students are drawn into a conflict between a ruthless oil company and an informal band of environmentalists bent on protecting the breeding grounds of an endangered Florida panther and her cub. The... Read Scat Summary