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Recon's origin story

Recon the Raccoon: Born to Bargain

Before he was our resident bargain hunter, Recon was a very small raccoon in a store's returns bin, wedged between a waffle maker and one left sneaker. This is how he got his name, found the clearance aisle, and learned what the best deal really is.

  • Picture book
  • Ages 4 to 8
  • Great read-aloud
  • Paperback

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As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Full disclosure: the guy who runs ScoreDeals wrote this book. Recon is extremely proud and has read it out loud to everyone, twice.

Recon the raccoon proudly holding his picture book, Recon the Raccoon: Born to Bargain

The story

Nobody knows how a baby raccoon ended up in the returns bin. Leah, the store clerk, finds him there and gives him a name straight off the return form. He grows up out back with his friends Mouse, Frog, and old Badger, until the day he finds a little orange tag with a word on it he can't stop saying: Clearance!

So Recon packs his lime satchel (coupons, price tags, a pencil, a button that might be important, and one emergency snack) and follows a trail of orange tags all the way to the clearance aisle. He scores everything he finds. A hat. An umbrella. A rubber chicken that goes SQUAWK. Then he finds the biggest bargain of his life, and it will not budge.

What happens next is the part that turns a bargain hunter into a gift giver. We won't spoil it. We'll just say the chair was a ten out of ten, and Recon finds something better.

“For the treasure hunters and the people they love.”

The dedication

Look inside

The first few pages (swipe or scroll for more). The rest is between Recon and your bedtime routine.

Book spread: a baby raccoon in the store's returns bin between a waffle maker and one red sneaker. The raccoon had opinions.
Found in the returns bin
Book spread: Leah the clerk reads her return form, Return. Condition, and names the baby raccoon Recon, then wraps him in a towel.
How Recon got his name
Book spread: Recon reaches the clearance aisle, shelves and baskets of bargains, sits down, cries a little, then gets organized.
The clearance aisle

Meet the cast

Recon brought friends. He always does.

Recon

A very small raccoon with very big opinions. Rates everything out of ten. Carries one emergency snack. Usually.

Leah

The store clerk who found him in the returns bin, gave him his name, and wraps a mean gift. Named for the real Leah.

Mouse

Small, sweet, and somehow always has cold ears.

Frog

Lives by the water. Hates getting wet. It's complicated.

Badger

Old, wise, and full of jokes that have never once gotten a laugh.

About the author

Troy Harris has loved a good deal for as long as he can remember. Not just finding them, but passing them along: the friend shopping for a birthday, the neighbor who needs a new grill, the family member who was about to pay full price. Helping someone else score has always been the best part. That idea became ScoreDeals, where Recon has been the mascot from the start, and it is the heart of this book too.

Troy's wife, Leah, helped bring Recon to life. (Yes, the kind store clerk who finds him in the returns bin shares her name.) Together they have three children and a grandchild, and every one of them loves to read. So they set out to make something their own family would enjoy: a story that is funny out loud, a raccoon who rates rubber chickens out of ten, and a reminder that the best things you find are the ones you share with the people you love.

Bring Recon home

Paperback, ages 4 to 8. Want to know Recon better first? Meet him here.

Recon the Raccoon: Born to Bargain, the picture book | ScoreDeals