Panther Glade

by Helen Cavanagh

Book Overview

While spending the summer with his great-aunt Cait, Bill participates in his aunt's archaeological dig and must face the wilderness alone when a storm strands him on a small island. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0671756176
• Release Date: January 1993
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Length: 147 Pages
• Weight: 0.85 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.5" x 0.8" x 6.0"

Customer Reviews

A great introduction!

I am an English teacher here in Southwest Florida. This summer I have been working with a colleague to design an interdisciplinary curriculum on Florida history for our 7th graders. We want to begin the year with the Calusa Indians, and as the English teacher it is my job to find fitting literary selections -- not always an easy sell to the 11-13 year old crowd. Was I excited then to find Panther Glade! The historical content is great: from Billy's experiences with his aunt and at a dig site, the reader learns about the Key-Cat of Marco Island, how the Calusas lived, how they disappeared -- yet all in a very palatable story vs. a dry history text. Even with this historical content, however (a teacher's dream), the novel has some modern themes my students can buy into as well: the protagonist is "dumped" on an aunt he barely knows so his parents can travel for a summer without him; he is excited to learn about the Calusas, but reluctant to show it for fear of looking "nerdy"; and he is a tad scared by being in a strange environment such as the Everglades, but unwilling to let that show, either. I want this for all 50 of my seventh graders, but have not been able to find 50 copies! I am contacting the publisher, Simon & Schuster, and trying to find copyright information in order to gain permission to copy my own volumes if needed -- I want the kids to read this! The reading level is easy and the story "flows" nicely. I will keep this site posted about any publshing developments!

A Teacher's Dream Come True

As a Florida teacher (home school and classroom), I found Panther Glade was a wonderful lead-in to the study of Native Floridians, ancient Florida, and the Everglades and its inhabitants. As a reader, I found the story both informative and compelling. In Panther Glade, young Bill Carven spends the summer in Florida with his Great-aunt, an archaeologist investigating a Calusa burial mound. He quickly gains interest in the Calusa Indians, especially in the legend of Manther, the Cat-god of the Calusa. Bill learns how Calusa boys went alone into the Everglades to search for a vision and find their own spirit guides and protectors. The thought of being alone in the Everglades terrifies Bill, but he confronts his fears and finds the courage to survive when a sudden storm leaves him stranded in the Everglades. This coming-of-age book successfully connects present day readers/students with the past - a teacher's dream come true.

I'm Helen Cavanagh, the author of PANTHER GLADE.

Dear Readers/Buyers, It breaks my heart that PANTHER GLADE has not yetfound a paperback publisher. Schools in Southwest Florida (where the book is set, and where I live now, have used this book for studies about the still mysterious Calusa Indians, andto explain and celebrate the beautiful Everglades and the Ten Thousand Islands,thousands of years ago, and now. PANTHER GLADE is set in the present day, features ongoing archaeology, Native American culture, and the fate of the Florida Panther. Just as important, today, after 9/11, PANTHER GLADE is a story about a boy's desperate but ultimately successful quest for personal courage. A coming-of-age tale,it has more than a hint of the mystical and spirituality. Is there a publisher out there who might want to reprint this 1993 hardcover (Simon & Schuster)still relevant novel? Get in touch. It was nominated for the ALA "Best Book for Reluctant Readers", and the "F.A.M.E. Sunshine Award" and received many good reviews. I've recently secured all rights to PANTHER GLADE. (P.S. Why did I give it 5 stars? Probably because I loved writing it, because it brought me to Marco Island, Florida, a little piece of paradise, for sure.Thanks for "listening". Helen Cavanagh