Robert C. O'Brien - Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh: Student Packet Grades 7-8

My mom read this story to me at bedtime when I was little. She would read a few chapters every night. I'm sure that my reading and comprehension skills are at the level which they are at because she read to me such brilliant books, and this is one of them. O'Brien gives us a superb, endearing novel about a mother mouse (Mrs. Frisby) who has four small children. She finds herself faced with a serious problem: her family must move out of her home or it will be destroyed by landscapers renovating the farm they live on. Her youngest, named Timothy, is very sick, and cannot be moved easily. She seeks the help of the rats of NIMH, who are highly intelligent and skillful, to move her family to their summer quarters. This novel is a classic which I've always enjoyed for its originality, concept, and heroism. O'Brien gives us another volume to add to the collection of his books: The Silver Crown, Z for Zachariah, and The Secret of NIMH. I recommend this book for anyone (however it may be more suitable for children) who wants to engross themselves in a touching, thought-provoking fantasy.