ABOUT THE SERIES: Build a bridge from the Step into Reading early reader series to the Stepping Stones early chapter book series. With engaging plots and contributions from the best writers in children’s books, Stepping Stones books are the perfect tools for the classroom or reading at home. The newly re-branded books with “buttons” for the seven different genres highlight the innovative genre-study approach, making them perfect for a genre unit in any curriculum. ABOUT THIS BOOK: Balto has a quiet life as a sled dog - until tragedy strikes. Dozens of children in Nome become sick with diphtheria. Without antitoxin serum, they will perish - and the closest supply is 650 miles away! The only way to get the serum to Nome is by sled, but can the dogs deliver it in time? Heading bravely into a brutal blizzard, Balto leads the race for life.