By Elana K. Arnold
A first novel where loving an animal means doing the hard, right thing for it.
Bat's veterinarian mother brings home an orphaned baby skunk that needs a month of care before a wild-animal shelter can take him. Bat has one month to prove the kit should stay forever.
The chapters are really short, and the whole book turns on one question a child feels right away: can Bat keep the skunk? That's it. For an animal-obsessed reader who's ready to try an actual novel, I can't think of a gentler place to start them.