The youth services librarian from the public library made another classroom visit and brought us a new book titled The Lifters by Dave Eggers. We just finished the novel and the class thoroughly enjoyed the story. In class, whenever I stopped reading the students would ask me to read another chapter.

When Gran and his family move to Carousel, he has no idea that the town is built atop a secret. Little does he suspect, as he walks his sister to school or casually eats a banana, that mysterious forces lurk mere inches beneath his feet, tearing up the earth like mini-hurricanes and causing the town to slowly but surely sink.

When Gran’s friend, the difficult-to-impress Catalina Catalan, presses a silver handle into a hillside and opens a doorway to underground, he knows that she is extraordinary and brave, and that he will have no choice but to follow wherever she leads. With luck on their side, and some discarded hockey sticks for good measure, Gran and Catalina might just find a way to lift their town–and the known world–out of danger.

The students at Glenayre were fortunate to receive a visit from the author Eric Walters. He has written over 100 children’s books and in our class we have been reading his first novel titled Camp X. In the library, he talked to students about the importance of reading and even took time to sign copies of his books.

The author captures the thrill of when pretend feels so real that it becomes real. With a stick in hand, the options are endless—whether it’s conducting an orchestra, painting a masterpiece, or slaying a dragon—give a child a stick and let imagination take over and the magic begin. Griffin shared this book at our school assembly.