This summer we created a couple of Summer Book Hunts to help keep your family searching for new books while school is out. Today we’re sharing the first batch of books we’ve found for our summer book list!
Books about Summer
A book about the sun
Bloom by Deborah Diesen
Bloom is technically subtitled An Ode to Spring, but it spans the seasons, showing a year in the life of a girl, her mother, and her garden. Lu noticed the sunny yellow hues throughout the book. It takes the sun to make a garden bloom, after all. You can listen to our interview with Deborah on episode 30 of the podcast.
A book about camping
Rhoda’s Rock Hunt by Molly Beth Griffin and illustrated by Jennifer A. Bell
Lu remembered that Rhoda’s Rock Hunt is all about a camping trip to northern Minnesota. There is a lot to see on Rhoda’s family trip to the North Shore, but Rhoda only has one thing on her mind: Rocks. She picks up all the most interesting stones along the way…until she can no longer pick up her hiking pack. But can she part with any of her treasures and make it home?
A book about playing sports
Roller Girl by Victoria Jamieson
We’ve written about our love of Roller Girl before, and Lu noticed that this graphic novel is not only about a sport—it’s about a summer sports camp. Main character Astrid’s life is in flux: she’s about to start middle school, she’s losing her best friend, and she’s lying to her mom about what’s going on. She joins a roller derby camp to prove she’s strong enough to handle it all, and finds that being tough is even harder than it looks.
A book about a road trip
Sisters by Raina Telgemeier
Bean spotted the road trip in Sisters. Like Raina Telgemeier’s other popular graphic novel Smile, Sisters is autobiographical. The book chronicles Rain’s family’s cross-country trip to a family reunion. While they travel, Raina complicated explores her relationship with her sister and realizes that there are other complicated relationships in her family that need sorting out as well.
A book about swimming
Jabari Jumps by Gaia Cornwall
Bean chose Jabari Jumps as her book about swimming. In this new picture book, a little boy faces a common summer fear: his first jump off the high dive. Jabari knows he’s brave enough. His dad knows he’s brave enough. His little sister knows he’s brave enough. It just might take him a few minutes to work his way all the way up there. (I can relate). Stay tuned for our upcoming podcast interview with author/illustrator Gaia Cornwall!
A book about freedom
Blue Sky, White Stars by Sarvinder Naberhaus and Kadir Nelson
Okay, okay, I noticed the freedom reference in Blue Sky, White Stars. I requested for the Fourth of July but we sadly didn’t receive until last week. Sparese text on each spread parallels the majesty of the American flag to the strength and resilience of the American people. Blue Sky, White Stars is for you if you’ve been looking for a book that expresses patriotism and values diversity. (And those illustrations will blow you away.)
Great list! I think I’m going to grab a copy of “sisters” and add it to my book list for the year. Looking forward to joining in on the summer book hunt.
Looks like a great list of books for kids to read over the summer. I’ll definitely pass this on to my friends, who have kids. 🙂 Thanks!
I’m surprised we haven’t already read anything on your list! We go through books pretty fast at my house. It’s always nice to add something new. 🙂
great books! Thank you for sharing 🙂
This is an awesome list, my nephew loves to read books at the end of every day before we put him to bed!! I’m definitely going to check these out!
I will have to get a few of these for my niece they are perfect for her age group, not so much for my one year old. She will love them.
Great list, and I love the book hunt idea! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks! Good to hear from you, Val!