When I was a child, this would have been sometime between 1990-1995, I borrowed a fiction chapter book twice from my local library that I cannot remember the title of. At the time, the book was old, but I was a kid so it may not have been THAT old. I think it may have been written sometime around the 1950s-70s. It was a story about a boy who takes care of a squirrel. I think that there was a red squirrel on the cover, and the title of the book may have been the name of the squirrel but I’m not certain. I think the book had a bittersweet ending with the squirrel going back to live in the wild. I’ve not been able to find it on a google search so perhaps you can help!
Stump the Bookseller
New format, same book stumper solving.
Was it The Adventures of Chatterer the Red Squirrel by Thornton W. Burgess, 1915? You should be able to read it online. (He wrote a LOT of such chapter books. Many begin with “The Adventures of…,” but there are others. The total is well over 150 books.) See here: http://www.thorntonburgess.org/Books-Written-by-Thornton-W-Burgess
The squirrel in the book I am thinking of was not anthropomorphized. This was either realistic fiction or based on a true story of a child (I think it was a boy somewhere around 12 or so) who cared for a squirrel. It wasn’t geared toward very young children. Thank you for the suggestion though 🙂
If it could be a raccoon rather than a squirrel, it might be Rascal, by Sterling North.
That’s the same book that I thought of. I loved the story of Rascal though it did have a bittersweet ending.
I am commenting in case it gives this thread a bump. Unfortunately I haven’t remembered any additional details but I’m really hopeful that someone can help me find this book title. A hardcover novel that may have been based on true events, about a child who raises a baby squirrel and I believe eventually releases into the wild.
You might try working your way through this list on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/89.Best_Books_About_Animals?page=1
Thanks for the suggestion. I haven’t seen it yet… up to #600
Could it be “Keeping Henry” by Nina Bawden?
Could this be ‘Keeping Henry’ by Nina Bawden?
I believe it is!! Thanks!!!!!