I always am a fan of little known historical events being brought to life, and this one does exactly that. Masterfully.

Zada is a camel, the last camel in Texas around 1910. Her herd has long disappeared, and she now hangs around with her 'family' of birds. When they tell her a huge mountain is swallowing everything up, she realizes the danger for what it is—a huge dust storm. During their attempt to flea, the bird mom and dad get swept away by the wind, leaving Zada with their two chicks. She swears she'll protect them and get them to the Mission, where they can find water and shelter. But this might be a bigger adventure than she can handle.

This is such a lovely read. A really enjoy Zada, and the author has done a great job on bringing her across in a way young readers are sure to enjoy. She's wise, and her thoughts and decisions are easy for readers to understand. Her determination to save the baby chicks makes her hard not to root for. And her friends are adorable.

Tension runs high in these pages as Zada faces various dangers and does her best to keep the chicks safe, and all of these are appropriate for the intended age group. But this story isn't ony about determination and fun adventure. There is a lot of history. The author swipes the reader across the world to Zada's birth place and let's the foreign desert unfold as well as the sea journey to reach Texas. And, of course, there's Texan history, too. These moments are brought across in the stories Zada tells the chicks to keep the calm. The author keeps the reader from growing confused not only through the different characters, but each chapter starts with the date. While I'm not always a fan of flashbacks, they flow well and enrich the tale step by step.

The writing fits the age group well, too, and even suits the younger side of the middle grade audience. There are lovely illustrations sprinkled throughout the tale, which are a treat and add a change-up from the text.

This one is definitely worth a read and will delight more than animal fans.

4.5 stars rounded up

This is a story about stories. About the power of stories to save lives and to make life better. It's about a camel named Zada, and her American Kestral friends Perdita and Pard, and their babies Beulah and Wims, aka Auntie Zada's niece and nephew. It's about a major dust storm that separates the parents from Auntie Zada and the babies and her quest to keep them safe and reunite them with their parents. And it's about the history of camels in the United States from just before the Civil War to just after the turn of the century (1910). I loved how Zada used stories to distract the babies as well as to keep them safe and how we learned about her history and how she came to be in the middle of the Texas desert. This was a great way of informing the readers about this history and building up our connection to the main characters (even Pecos de Leon) so that by the end of the book, it would not be unusual to be shedding tears of happiness for the characters. This is a wonderful book that I think would be even better being read out loud, either by parents or teachers or in an audio narration (I will have to look for the audiobook when it is released), because after all, this is a book about stories being able to inform, heal, and change the course of something. This would be a great book for a school or classroom library. I am so glad this book caught my eye.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Once Upon a Camel is a story about stories and the power they have over us. The writing style threw me off a little in this book. It switches very quickly from formal to informal vernacular and that was a little off putting for me but that is a person preference. The story itself was very powerful and a fun quick read. I enjoyed that when we changed locations and time periods it was clearly denoted at the beginning of each chapter and was a perfect way to place us in time and space without having to include it in the story that was being told. Over all I liked this book.

Zada is a keeper! A valuable asset to her owners, she is a racer, a special kind of camel, and with her friends catches the eye of US War Department. When Jefferson Davis helps the US Army come up with a big idea for building a camel population to solve transportation issues in the West, Zada and many other camels are recruited into a whole new life. They travel from Smyrna all the way to Texas, and she has stories to tell about all of it.

Reading this book with my kids reading group was a joy. We learned about haboobs (weather events), camels, kestrels, mountain lions and other animals of the US western desert lands and more about the importing of camels to the US. My Granny mentioned camels had been seen in her home state of Texas, and that her father, a wagon freighter who travelled between West Texas and Fort Tejon, saw them on his travels through the country.

A wide ranging book that successfully tells many tales well. . . .we recommend it!

Thank you to Kathi Appelt, Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing, Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books and NetGalley.
Pub date: 07 Sep 2021

I received an electronic ARC from Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing through NetGalley.
Appelt spins a tender story of a camel and a family of kestrals. Zaya, Pard and Perlita became friends long before the story begins. A sandstorm threatens all of their lives so Zaya takes the two kestral babies on her head to make it to the Mission. As they are all leaving, Pard and Perlita are blown away by the severe winds. Their stories are intertwined with tales Zaya tells about her youth. Each chapter is labeled with the year it takes place. Appelt uses the storytelling to reveal so much of Zaya's life and to calm the babies as they seek shelter and then move forward to get to their meeting point. Beautiful text offers readers a chance to be part of the action and to feel the same emotions as the characters either in memories or current life. The touching ending does bring the story full circle and provide closure for Zaya. Death is handled with sensitivity and hinted at long before actually being revealed. This is one I finished with tears on my face. A tribute to the way the author shared this tale.

Kathi Appelt has been a favorite author of mine for years. I enjoyed this longer story for middle-grade readers. The characters were engaging, funny, and the setting is far different from my midwest point of view. I believe our patrons will love it!

Once Upon a Camel was just the book I needed. I look forward to seeing the print version in September 2021. This story will resonate with any reader who loves an animal story or enjoys reading about the power of friendship The author's endnotes are essential reading. Thank you NetGalley for the eARC.

A mix of historical fiction and middle grade reading. I liked learning about camels in West Texas and how they might have arrived there.

The children’s fiction parts were a bit too long for me as an adult. I don’t have a child available for a book of this length; but wonder if this would hold their attention until the end.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher/Simon and Schuster Children’s Publishing and the author, Kathi Appelt for the opportunity to review Once Upon A Camel in exchange for an honest review. publication date is 07 Sept 2021.

I was excited to get and advanced copy of this book - not only so that I could preview it for my school’s library but also because I am a huge fan of this author! And after finishing this book, I can still say I’m a huge fan of hers! Kathi Appelt weaves a delightful story full of compassion, friendship, perseverance and humor.
This story is actually based on a true event of which I had never heard of. In 1856, the US Army brought a number of camels over from the Middle East. These camels were based in Texas and used to help ferry supplies across the desert. The narrator of this story is one of those camels who was set free to wander the desert after the program disbanded.
The story opens with the occurrence of a huge dust storm. Zada, the camel, searches for shelter for not only herself but for two baby birds that were separated from their parents. As the dust storm rages on, Zada tells the baby birds stories from when she was part of an elite racing team, to her voyage over the sea to America, to her present time in the desert. The author flip flops between the present time with the storm raging on and the subsequent search for the bird parents and Zada’s past. The stories Zada tells are magical and enthralling and the reader begins to understand what a life Zada has led.
This book was an absolute delight! It would be perfect for middle graders and up (adults too!) and would make a wonderful classroom read-aloud! I can’t wait to introduce it to my students this year!
Special thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free electronic ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

When a dust storm blows across Texas, Auntie Zada must transport two baby kestrels to safety. Along the way, she tells them stories of her many adventures To keep them from bickering in Once Upon a Camel. The voice the author gives to all the characters is just amazing. She really brings them to life. When the story started, I wondered how a camel would Possibly be in Texas, and Zara's stories to the chicks help tell the tale based on real history. My only negative was that the story was a bit long winded. It seemed to drag on a bit in the middle, but did finish up strong at the end. Altogether a very fine animal adventure both is Zada's past and the current adventure trying to get to safety and reunite with the chicks' parents.

I was already a huge fan of this author before reading this book. I LOVE this story. I love the way she writes from an animal POV. This was such a sweet, interesting story with just the right amount of humor. I did tear up near the end. I think students will adore this book. I recommend this for fans of Ivan (and who doesn't like Ivan!)

A delightful middle grade novel, told from the perspective of Zada, a camel whose eventful life began in Smyrna, Turkey, in 1850, and who now finds herself in west Texas in 1910, saving two American kestrels too young to fly away from a raging windstorm. Zada recounts the story of her life to calm her young charges, keeping them safe from a mountain lion, finding them water and eventually reuniting them with their parents. Eric Rohmann's illustrations add personality to the story. I loved the Turkish phrases that are effortlessly woven into the text, as well as hints of Ottoman culture. There were a few small details I questioned (temple bells ringing next to the Pasha's palace? That seemed unlikely in a Muslim country, but if anything wasn't completely accurate, it's probably because the narrator is a camel!) This would make a great read aloud for multiple ages. Highly recommended.

I really liked this book. I had previously read about camels being used in Texas, but this book made you personally get to know one. I chose it because of Eric Rohmann's pictures, but I am glad I did. It was a wonderful book to share!

Once Upon a Camel by Kathi Appelt captivates the reader with an adventure through a powerful wind storm. Zada, an old camel, is an unlikely hero to two baby birds as she carries them to safety. She entertains her passengers with tales of her life in Turkey and transport to the United States. Kathi Appelt entertains the reader with creative language, such as "cameluhia" and "OOD: Official Okie Dokie." The character of Zada is both funny and caring. Her dreamtime story is one of a dedicated friendship to another camel. This book will make a wonderful read aloud for a class of third graders. The teacher and students will love Zada, Wims, and Beulah as much as they do Fern, Charlotte, and Wilbur.

A cute middle-grade/childrens chapter book tells the story of a camel who has no other camels around. Its told during a dust storm with stories from the past and what is happening in the present. I think young middle grade students would enjoy this book and it would be a good book to read with a new reader.

Thanks to NetGalley for an e copy of this book for review.

Set in 1910 Texas, a windstorm, called a haboob, blows up and all the animals of the plains know they must get away from the blowing sand. An elderly camel, Zada, who had been brought from Smyrna many years before, now wanders alone, being the survivor of the group she came with. A pair of kestrels with two young chicks too young to fly, call on Zada to help save the kestrel family. They agree to meet at the Mission. The parents are blown away by the winds, so Zada and her passengers set out ahead of the wind, the chicks nestled on Zada's neck. Seeking refuge, they find it in a cave and wait out the storm. Getting restless as children often do, Zada calms them by telling stories of her past. And what a past she had, oh, the stories she can tell.

Zada's stories have themes of friendship and hope, persevering when things get difficult. By sharing her stories with the chicks, she encourages and comforts them. Told in the style of 1001 Nights, tales told by Scheherazade, Zada and the chicks pass the time.

This book would work for upper elementary students, and middle-grade students. What a great read-aloud this would make; it has many themes, friendship, survival, hope, and realizing everyone has a friend.

Sweet story about family, love and loss. Camels taken far from their home and their status, struggle to live in the United States. Then one day their beloved keeper abandons them in the Texas desert.

Zada, the last camel left, wonders the Texas desert. This interesting read is geared toward lower elementary grades.

Zada, a camel, is a storyteller and uses her ability to keep two young birds engaged after a haboob (a violent wind storm, especially in Sudan) separates them from their parents. The foreign words and phrases slowed me down; some are in the glossary at the end of the book, but not all of them. The illustrations are quite nice and add a nice layer to the story. My initial contact with the book was the ad copy that said this was good for fans of The One and Only Ivan. I'm not sure that book is similar enough to this one to make that claim. I'm giving this a 3.5 rounded up to 4.

Didn’t really love this one and wouldn’t read it to my own kids, real animal lovers might like it, but it wasn’t for me. Full review on goodreads.