Mostly Monty

A shy boy with asthma starts first grade — and comes into his own — in this appealing story for early chapter book readers.

Six-year-old Monty doesn’t have a brother, a sister, or a pet. What he does have is asthma, which sometimes makes it hard to breathe and often makes him feel like he’d rather be somebody else. And now that he’s starting first grade, he’s very nervous about being with all those kids he won’t know. Luckily, he loves to read — even really hard books — and has a talent for finding things, from a cocooning caterpillar to classmates who want to be in his very own club. With familiar situations and gentle humor, Johanna Hurwitz follows an endearing character as he discovers that being himself can be pretty great after all."This gentle chapter book will appeal particularly to students like Monty, who read some substance in their first-grade reading. . . .Characters and school and neighborhood interactions ring true. The theme of Monty’s growing self-confidence, evident in each episode, is made explicit at the end, appropriate for a very young reader more engaged in the words on a page than their meaning." —Kirkus ReviewsJohanna Hurwitz is the award-winning author of more than sixty books for young readers, including the Riverside Kids series. She lives in Great Neck, New York.

Anik Scannell McGrory has illustrated several books for children. She lives in Tarrytown, New York.