Puppy Place by Ellen Miles

It is hard to find just the right book for children transitioning from early readers to beginning chapter books. Not only is the text more challenging, but also many times there are fewer pictures than the reader has grown accustomed to. However, the tradeoff is great! Your reader will now enjoy more detailed plots and really get to stretch their imagination. Many transitional chapter books are series and if you can find a series they enjoy, they will have many books to choose from. 

The Puppy Place series by Ellen Miles is a wonderful option for animal lovers, and especially dog lovers. Brother and sister Charles and Lizzie Peterson foster puppies in their home. The plot is similar in each of these realistic fiction books as Charles or Lizzie somehow stumble across a puppy in need of a home. Each book in the series features a different type of dog and has facts about the breed sprinkled into the story while the Petersons try to find a perfectly matched family for each of the pups. Charles and Lizzies’ parents, friends, little brother, Bean, and their own dog Buddy make up this charming cast of characters. 

This is not a series that you must read in order since a new puppy with its original story is introduced in each book. If you find that you enjoy the series, do not worry about saying goodbye to Charles and Lizzie anytime soon. There are currently fifty-eight books in the series, with books fifty-nine, Miki, and sixty, Biggie, being published within the next year! Each of the books is just under 100 pages and suggested for readers 7-10 years old. Books 1-5 are also available through Overdrive: Puppy Place

-Stacy