Logan and Dad have started reading Flush by Carl Hiaasen. This is a book at a higher reading level than Logan is accustomed to–it is cataloged as a young-adult novel and includes some challenging vocabulary.

But challenges are good for all of us. They develop strength. We build muscles in our arms by challenging them with more weight than they can handle easily. We build reading and thinking muscles by challenging them with higher vocabulary.

This is yet another great justification for reading TOGETHER as a family. Dad helps Logan pronounce the difficult words and defines them in a way he can understand.

Flush is Hiaasen’s follow up to Hoot, and like that story, is about heroic kids working to save their environment.

The book, which handles serious topics with humor and a touch of suspense, opens with Noah paying his father a visit:

The deputy told me to empty my pockets: two quarters, a penny, a stick of bubble gum, and a roll of grip tape for my skateboard. It was pitiful.
” Go on inside. He’s waiting for you,” the deputy said.
“My dad was sitting alone at a bare metal table. He looked pretty good, all things considered. He wasn’t even handcuffed.
“Happy Father’s Day, I said.
He stood up and gave me a hug. “Thanks, Noah,” he said.

Dad is no career criminal, but instead is in the slammer for sinking a casino boat he is certain is flushing its toilets directly into the ocean. Noah and sister Abbie embark on a misson to prove that their dad was right about the toxic dumping and to find a way to protect the local waterways.

So far, Logan and my husband are enjoying this feature from mystery-writer Hiaasen. More to come…