This great story, Edward the Emu by Sheena Knowles, is a lively tale about an emu named Edward. Edward lives in a zoo and overhears many spectators say that the seals, lions, and the snakes are the best, most loved, animals in the zoo. Edward becomes heart broken and travels to each of these cages in hope to become the most appreciated and loved animal. While in the snakes cage, he hears that the emu is the best of all and decides to return to his pin. Upon arriving back, something startles him but to find out you'll have to read the rest! Edward is a great character and portrays the "grass is greener on the other side" idea very well. This entire story is rhyming and has a great natural rhythm while reading. I could see myself using this text to compare and contrast different animals using a vinn diagram. Students could compare and contrast Edward and one of their favorite animals at the zoo or even an animal in the text. This story has an AR level of 3.6.
1
