Raising Rufus by David Fulk - OPTIONAL

Fulk, David Raising Rufus, 262 pgs. Delacorte Press, 2015. $16.99.  

Language G; Mature Content G; Violence G.

Martin is eleven years old who doesn’t quite fit in.  His dad used to be a football player in high school and wants him to learn to throw but Martin would rather collect specimens of bugs and rocks to fill up their barn.  His scrawny physique makes him a target of the class bully.  So Martin is excited for 6^th grade to end and summer to begin.  Martin’s summer turns out to be anything but expected when he discovers a dinosaur egg in an abandoned limestone quarry.  When the egg hatches into a baby T Rex, Martin names Rufus, it becomes harder and harder to keep him hidden from his parents and their “no pets” policy.  Martin has to make some difficult decisions about Rufus because hiding a T Rex in a barn can’t last forever.  

This is a clean fun book about the responsibilities of pet ownership and Martin is a likeable character.  That said, the book is pretty predictable and the characters one-dimensional. 

EL - OPTIONAL.  Michelle in the Middle