The school season has or is about to come to an end depending on where you live! (School is out in New Hampshire.) Being the Mother of a Toddler and Step Mother of a Tween, I did some research into summer activity ideas. I discovered most libraries offer summer reading programs. I think these programs are so important! So I have compiled a list of some great titles to kick off Summer Reading!
Steph’s Cheers and Jeers received samples mentioned in this post in exchange for being featured on our site.
Kids:
Tales from the Fairy Story Tree By Pippa Dee:
Synopsis: A young girl discovers the Fairy Story Tree in a forest which tells her a different story each time she climbs its branches. When she reaches her 11th birthday, the tree disappears. This book is a collection of those gentle short fairy stories, 4 prose stories, 4 rhyming stories, and the others are fun limericks.
One of the first stories is about a forest fairy who loses her hearing and makes friends with fire glow fairies who communicate by signing with their fiery wings.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Pippa Dee resides in London with her husband. Despite losing her hearing in her 20s due to an illness, she has been able to maintain an active lifestyle with the unwavering support of her husband. Unexpectedly, she developed an enthusiastic interest in writing fairy tales.
Price: $4.99 E-book or $9.99 Paperback
Age: 3 Months to 12 Years
Hillary and the Leprechauns By William Dandurand, Elisabeth Revel, and Mary Cohen:
Synopsis: Hillary follows a leprechaun down the hollow of a tree into Leprechaun Land. Tiny Tim catches up with her to find his Uncle Timmy O’Toole, who has a castle there. They think they may not be able to get back home. Come with them on this adventure and see if they ever can go home again.
Price:$0.00 Kindle Unlimited, $18.99 Paperback, or $28.47 Hardcover.
Billy Balloon by
Synopsis: Billy Balloon was born in a little balloon factory on a little hill, with hundreds of his brothers and sisters, and friends. His adventure begins with the start of the Big Balloon Race. The winner of the race is determined by how far each balloon carries its pen pal’s note. Follow along as Billy overcomes challenges and meets new friends!
About The Author: Payton, now a father himself, created Billy Balloon when he was in the fourth grade for a class assignment. “The story stayed with me ever since,” he said. “I’d revisit it and think about publishing it, but it never went very far. During the pandemic, I started to think of Billy again. With the help and support of my family, I was ready to launch this book into the world.”
Price: Kindle $9.99, $14.95 for Paperback or $17.97 for Hardcover
Age:3 to 5
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The Boy and The Bear Take Mars by Katie Pope:
Synopsis: The story follows young Willie, who lives in a world filled with sun, animals, and a spaceship hangar. Willie yearns to explore the galaxy and asks his father if he can accompany him on his trip to Mars. When Willie’s father denies his request, Willie and his furry friend, Oliver, sneak onto the spaceship without him. What follows is an unexpected adventure that will change their world forever.
About The Author: A lawyer by profession, Katie Pope has always had an interest in outer space and aviation. With this book, she aims to fulfill her lifelong dream of publishing a book while igniting the love of the great universe in kids everywhere. Katie also has a great interest in history and science.
Price: $0.00 on Kindle Unlimited, $10.95 paperback, or $29.99 hardcover.
Age: 5 to 9
I Feel the World by Zanni Louise and Nina Gould:
I Feel the World encourages children to explore their feelings with curiosity and acceptance. This book helps to make sense of emotions and open up important conversations with parents, caretakers, and teachers. Children’s author Zanni Louise and clinical psychologist Dr. Ameika Johnson collaborate to create a beautiful resource to help children build resilience and develop healthy relationships with their feelings.
About the Author: Zanni Louise grew up in country NSW, and now lives outside Byron Bay. She’s written over twenty books for kids, including picture books and junior fiction. Zanni is also passionate about teaching kids and adults how to write their stories. Titles include Errol!, Tiggy and the Magic Paintbrush, and her sparkling new fiction series, Stardust School of Dance. Her books are sold internationally and have been long-listed in the CBCA Awards. Zanni tours Australia, visiting schools, festivals, and running workshops for adults. Zanni lives in Northern NSW.
About The Illustrator: Nina Gould is an illustrator from Devon, in the UK. Nia draws inspiration from the natural world and her love of animals. She can often be found in her garden sitting among the plants and trees with her three cats soaking up the sun, her favorite place to feel the world around her.
Price: $14.98 for hardcover
Age: 4 to 9
There’s a Yeti in My Tummy By Meredith Rusu:
Synopsis: Matthew is a young boy with BIG, BIG feelings—so big it sometimes feels like there’s a YETI just bursting to get out! And when Mathew’s yeti comes to play, he’s bound to stay all day. That silly yeti comes out of Matthew’s feet, his nose, his hair, his burp, and even his BUTT!
About the Author: Meredith Rusu is a children’s book author specializing in titles based on television and movies. She has written more than one hundred books from preschool to young adult for brands such as LEGO, Disney/Pixar, Peppa Pig, American Girl, and Star Wars. She is also the author of The DATA Set chapter book series under the pen name Ada Hopper.
Price: $19.99 hardcover
Age: 4 to 6
A Very Dinosaur Birthday by Adam Wallace:
This book follows what would happen if a dinosaur attended a birthday party! They gobble up cake and pizza, jump into the swimming pool and crash into all the presents. This book even includes fun ideas for parents and kids to host their own Very Dinosaur Birthday Party with themed invitations, decorations, snack ideas, and activities.
About The Author: Adam Wallace is a #1 New York Times, Amazon, and USA Today bestselling author who loves writing stories that make children laugh and get excited about reading and drawing, and writing. He also loves taking naps and listening to music. Not at the same time.
About The Illustrator: Christopher Nielsen is an Australian author/illustrator specializing in bringing joy and wonder to children through his art and storytelling. He works with found textures and printing techniques and puts it all together in Photoshop. When he’s not busy working on picture books, he can be found raising his beautiful young family or playing with his rock band. In 2018 his first picture book saw him shortlisted for the Children’s Book Council of Australia’s Crichton Award for Best new illustrator.
Price: $0.00 for Kindle and $11.69 for hardcover.
Age: 4 to 10
Joe the Abandoned Pup:
Synopsis: Follow the adventure of Joe the abandoned pup. A tale of loss, hope, and determination, where digging deep can really pay off. Discover if Joe can overcome his struggles and finally find his happy ever after.
About the Author: Charlotte Robertson lives on the Isle of Man with her husband, son, and two dogs.
Price: Paperback for £7.99 and Kindle format £2.99 or free via Kindle Unlimited
Tween/Young Adult:
Alice the Cat by Tim Cummings:
Trigger Warning: Death of a parent, body talk, mental health issues, death of a pet, and cancer. Suggested for Ages 12+
Synopsis: Tess is on the precipice of her thirteenth birthday, processing the loss of her mother, and attempting to help her father who has become completely detached. Her beloved cat, Alice, has started rushing into the street when cars go by, trying to get run over, pushing Tess to do the only thing she believes may help: run away. This leads her to a local abandoned house where she discovers a ghostly entity that desperately wants a cat to care for in the afterlife, and it has its heart set on Alice. Tess will do whatever it takes to save Alice, help the ghost, and heal her dad, teaming up with unexpected friends, including a boy who has a huge crush on her and a local baseball hero turned pariah. The trio soon realizes that it will take more than magic to survive the summer in one piece.
Caroline Thompson, writer of The Nightmare Before Christmas, and Edward Scissorhands even commented on the book! Caroline said “I could not stop reading. This book is nothing short of bliss. Meow!”
About The Author: Tim Cummings was born and raised in New York and now lives in Los Angeles. He holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Antioch University Los Angeles and a BFA from New York University/Tisch School of the Arts.
Price: $8.49 for Kindle or $14.95 for Paperback.
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