Judy Moody Declares Independence by Megan MacDonald

Irrepressible Judy Moody takes a trip to Boston in this episode of the series. She tours various sites on the Freedom Trail, visits a reproduction of the ship from the Boston Tea Party, and is inspired by the actions of the Founding Fathers. Back home, she yearns for more independence of her own, but her efforts to prove she is responsible backfire until an emergency one day forces her to take action. Fun, silly at times, but thoroughly enjoyable for Judy Moody fans. Judy Moody Declares Independence by Megan MacDonald. Narrated by Kate Forbes. Recorded Books, 2005.

The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall

This was a great book to finish up the summer with. A tale of four sisters who go on vacation to a cottage in the Berkshires. It's not an ordinary summer cottage, though. It is on an estate where a boy lives with his mother. The girls befriend the boy and proceed to get in all sorts of trouble with the mother, who is trying to get her garden ready for a local Garden Club competition. The sisters have fun summer adventures, get into various messes and try to help the boy who doesn't want to go to the military school his mother and fiance want him to. All ends well and the family heads back home. The audiobook version is ably narrated by Susan Denaker. The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy by Jeanne Birdsall. Read by Susan Denaker. Listening Library, Random House, 2005.

Scat by Carl Hiaasen

Nick and Marta are friends who attend a private school in Florida. When a field trip to a local swamp gets cut short because of a fire, their biology teacher disappears. Mysterious sitings of the teacher's blue Prius pique the students interest and they start investigating her what happened. All the while, Nick is worried about his father who is stationed in Iraq with his National Guard unit. As the students' learn more about what happened to their teacher, they get involved with an effort to save an endangered panther cub by reuniting it with its mother. Interesting characters, quirky side plots and a good story all combine to make this a great read. The audiobook version is narrated by Ed Asner, who had fun with the characters. Scat by Carl Hiaasen. Random House/Listening Library 2009.