The Seven Wonders of Sassafras Springs
After learning about the seven wonders of the ancient world, country boy Eben McAllister is convinced nothing in his town of Sassafras Springs will ever compare with the likes of The Great Pyramid at Giza, or the Lighthouse of Alexandria; he dreams of traveling around the world on a tramp steamer to see the wonders with his own eyes. Not as impressed as he, Eben’s Pa challenges Eben to find such wonders in his own “backyard”. If Eben can find seven wonders in seven days, he’ll earn himself a trip to see his relatives in Colorado. Doubtful he’ll find anything to marvel over in Sassafras Springs, Eben is willing to take the gamble for a chance to go to Colorado. And to his pleasant surprise, he finds wonders all right, and in the most unlikely places.
This book is a winner. Its style is light and airy, just like a ride down a country road on a Sunday afternoon. Each wonder Eben finds comes with its own unique tale cleverly told by neighboring town-folk - characters that are just as eccentric as one might expect from a story set in a “blink and you’ll miss it” kind of town. The author describes it way better than me:
Red Hawk, Coy, and Iron Valley all had dots on the map, but not Sassafras Springs Missouri. We might as well have been invsible, yet there I was, sitting on the front porch with Pa and Aunt Pretty. The chores were done, our bellies were full, and the mosquitoes hadn’t worked up much of an appetite yet.
Gather your younglings ‘round, kick off your shoes, rub a little dirt on your feet, grab some ice-cold lemonade, a big slice of homemade peach pie, and sit back on your porch and read-a-loud the Seven wonders of Sassafras Springs – it’s the perfect summertime read. And when you’re done, put out the challenge to your kids to find their own seven wonders. Be sure to let us know what you find!
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