Good Summer Reads for Kids

Happy Tuesday!

Here are a few good summer reads according to my Princess. First, a couple of seasonally appropriate choices..

Mermaid Dance

Princess picked out this book at the library, she thought it

would be a good Summer read. The illustrations delighted her.

Have you ever wondered how the Mermaids celebrate the Summer Solstice?

This book tells the tale.Princess enjoyed it, however she was a bit disturbed

that they show the Mermaids preparing fish for their feast.In her mind, they are,

and I quote.."sort of like cousins..I don't think they would eat them."She loved the idea

of all the creatures coming together to celebrate the Solstice however and this was

visually stimulating, so I am sure we will be drawing swirling,twirling Mermaids for weeks.

In honor of Fathers Day we read this truly delightful book..

The BEST Father's Day Present EVER

I have to say, this is going on the list of our must read for the holiday list. I really like the message here. If I had this one in my hands for the start of the book club,it probably would have been the starting book.Langley Snail is trying to decide what to buy his Dad for Father's Day , he never thought the gifts he made his Dad were good enough, (fair warning..he says he felt dumb) now that he is old enough to have an allowance, he has decided to buy his Dad something really special. He heads to the store with all his friends,but being a snail he cannot keep up, and meets each one on the way home with the various contraptions they purchased for their Dads. By the time he gets there, the store is closed. Langley feels upset as he heads home, but comes across a round rock and remembers how his Dad calls them "good luck", then he finds a cupped leaf filled with water that reflects the sky,a nest filled with baby birds, and a wonderful spider web. He suddenly realizes what he'll give his Dad the next day. The note wrapped around the rock reads...

You are invited to a special walk at 1 o'clock today

Langley Snail treasure hunter and finder

PS bring your camera

Naturally, Langley's Dad thinks this is The Best Fathers Day Present Ever.

Now, a little something for all my Thrifty Mom friends out there...

The Pink Refrigerator

Meet Dodsworth. Dodsworth's motto was "Try to do as little as possible". It's not that he does nothing. Early each morning he rides his bike over to the junkyard. He finds things that are still useful, like picture frames and dishes, and he cleans them up for sale in his thrift shop.He never sells a lot, just a little more than enough to get by.The rest of his life passes by in front of the television set, with breaks for small meals. That was his life..until one day at the junkyard, he sees an old rusty pink refrigerator with a note held up by a shiny brass globe magnet that gets his attention. He tries to remove the magnet, but it's stuck. He finally reads the note: MAKE PICTURES Out of curiosity he opens the door, inside is a beautiful assortment of paints and brushes and a little red sketchbook. His thought is "these must be worth something", and he takes them home and puts them in his shop window. To his surprise, he finds he is unwilling to sell them to a customer who asks to buy them.Unable to resist, but he takes the supplies and paints a picture.For the next week, he keeps going back to the refrigerator (it takes a couple of days for him to stop trying to remove the magnet).Each day there is another note...inside there are more "valuable" surprises. After a couple of days, he stops even putting the items in his window for sale. Finally on Friday he wakes up filled with enthusiasm, and rushes over to look for the note.The note says..KEEP EXPLORING. Hmmmm..Dodsworth can't wait to look inside the refrigerator, but inside, there is nothing. He searches the interior, and slams the door so hard in his anger, that the shiny brass magnet falls off. The note flies off on a breeze, and although he chases it, he is unable to catch it.He takes the shiny globe magnet home and ponders the meaning of the last message all night.Now, I am not going to tell you how it all ends, for I believe you should all read this one for yourselves..oh yes..and for the children. ;-)

I do hope you will all come back to see how A Book, A Craft, and a Plate with Kate works out tomorrow. Even if you don't participate in your own way.Now, go read something! ;-)