The Twenty-One Balloons

I really enjoyed this whimsical book about a professor who sets out to travel in a balloon for an entire year. I would think the story of a year's long journey in a hot-air balloon would be interesting enough, but this story takes it up several notches. I loved the descriptions (not to mention the technical drawings) of all the professor saw and experienced on his trip.

This won the Newbery Medal in 1947, so while I find the old-fashioned language completely charming, I'm not sure how it would sit with the younger crowd. Recommended for mature fourth or fifth graders or maybe middle schoolers who like other old-fashioned books.