The Buddy Files: The Case of the Lost Boy (Albert Whitman, 2010) by Dori Hillestad Butler is so much fun! I love the voice of the dog. It's a quick read--perfect for the child just starting to read on his own, but entertaining enough for an adult to read aloud. I must read more in the series. (And buy for middle grandson . . . shh, don't tell him!)

King is at the P-O-U-N-D because his people are missing. He's got to get back to his neighborhood to find them. When King gets adopted by a new family, they rename him Buddy. Then, his new boy, Connor, disappears! King/Buddy must solve the case!

After you are entertained with this story, go to Dori's site to see the dog that owns her! You'll also see what other books this award-winning author has written.

P.S. I've also had the privilege of meeting Dori--besides being a good writer, she's a great person too!

Looking for an easy-to-read-aloud Bible story book? The Read and Share Bible (Tommy Nelson, 2007), stories retold by Gwen Ellis and illustrated by Steve Smallman, is a good book to introduce a little one to over 200 Bible stories.

Starting with Genesis and going through Revelation each story includes a Bible reference. I especially appreciated the commentary at the end of each two page spread--these either had a challenge, i.e. "But can you guess what was missing?," or a statement, "Let's see how Solomon's wisdom helped two women," to lead into the next story. It makes for good page turning. Plus the illustrations are delightful. One of my favorites is of a frog scratching his head over the iron ax that Elisha made float.

Don't be surprised if a child wants to read more than one story at a sitting.

This book is also a helpful overview for anyone wanting a quick read of many well-known and lesser known stories from the Bible.

If you'd like to see excerpts, the publisher has set up a Facebook page with downloadable excerpts that change periodically.

There's also a Spanish version and a DVD version. Volumn 2 of the DVD version comes out next month (Feb. 2011).

Learn more about Gwen Ellis and Steve Smallman by clicking on their names.