Tag archives for Summer
Posted by Meet the mascots of the London 2012 Olympic Games! Wenlock and Mandeville are made of steel, and are said to be made from the last girder of the Olympic stadium! Wenlock is the mascot of the Olympic Games, and Mandeville is the mascot of the Paralympics. The mascots are both customizable. You can create your own Wenlock or Mandeville on their official website.
This summer’s Olympic games begin on July 27. The Paralympics begin on August 29. What events are you most excited to watch?
Learn more about the London 2012 Olympics.
Get the facts on the United Kingdom on National Geographic Kids.
Photograph by Johnny Green, AP
Posted by BOOK NAME: The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy
AUTHOR: Jeanne Birdsall
While reading The Penderwicks, I was wishing I could be as lucky as these girls in the book. Four sisters get to spend their summer vacation at a new rental cottage that turns out to be a large estate called Arundel. It is home to many amazing and strange finds. While living there, they meet a boy named Jeffery Tifton who is the son of the owners. He becomes their friend and guide. They also have a cook who makes the best gingerbread in the state of Massachusetts and a house with an attic full of treasures. Finding these treasures provides endless entertainment and fights any days of boredom for the Penderwicks and their new friend.
But all is not rosy at Arundel. Mrs Tifton has a keen sense of knowing when trouble is going on and she thinks that all children should be in military school ASAP. She is not a lady to mess with! When the girls find out about Jeffery’s miserable military school future, they are determined to make this the best summer ever because it may be his last. Where the Penderwick sisters will get themselves they don’t know, but you can be sure they bring trouble with them.
This is a very carefree book that captures the simple things in life that give us many fond memories. My favorite character was the youngest daughter, Batty, who wears fake butterfly wings almost all the time. When I read this book I especially loved the special bond between the sisters despite all their differences. I can’t wait to read their next adventure!
BOOK NAME: Penny From Heaven
AUTHOR: Jennifer L. Holm
Twelve year old Penny Falucci doesn’t have a father, but she doesn’t mind because she has more than enough of the rest of her crazy, wacky family to fill her time. In fact, sometimes she feels like she has too much love to know what to do with it all. Penny is sick of her mom being overprotective, so to pass the time she usually gets into trouble with her cousin, Frankie. And when Penny has a question, she just goes to her Uncle Dominic who lives in a car and is full of strange wisdom. But living in the 1950s is no easy task when Penny’s mother won’t let her go to the movies or the pool because of the polio scare. Penny feels like she has a lot of responsibilities, especially when her dog, Scarlett O’Hara, thinks the world is her bathroom.
The summer is passing by at a leisurely pace when a tragic event occurs; her mom is dating again! But not just with anyone, she is dating the milkman! How embarrassing is that? This book is one filled with wonderful wackiness, with Penny just riding through her very different life. I loved this book because it was a very light, comforting read all about family and how Penny fits in. I love all the quirky characters that make up Penny’s colorful family with their individual traits. Look for it next time you go to the bookstore or library.
BOOK NAME: All the Lovely Bad Ones
AUTHOR: Mary Downing Hahn
Have you ever taken a trip and stayed at a place that was kind of creepy? Well guess what, the Fox Hill Inn is that kind of place! You know the type of place I’m talking about; the one with a run down look, creaky doors, windows that can’t open, big chandeliers, and strange noises. Nothing says “welcome home” like a mysterious figure in the courtyard!
The welcoming group is actually a team of paranormal investigators trying to find the source of all this strangeness. I guess it’s just dumb luck that Corey and Travis get to join them by spending their summer at this inn run by their grandma. They are there because their parents are gone for the summer. Corey and Travis started the summer at camp, but got kicked out for playing hooky and starting food fights. They weren’t that close with their grandma and she didn’t seem like your typical cookie-baking type. She was friendly enough though, and allowed them to explore the inn.
The brother and sister are pranksters and like to scare the guests by doing things such as banging on windows and doors. But things get really interesting when suddenly it’s not them making the strange noises. Apparently they’ve managed to arouse some unwanted guests, the resident ghosts! As you can imagine, their summer vacation goes down hill from there. I don’t want to give away the ending, but it turns out that Corey and Travis are pretty good at solving mysteries. So give it a read–if you dare!
Posted by BOOK NAME: The Summer I Turned Pretty
AUTHOR: Jenny Han
Every year since Belly could remember she has always gone down to Cousins Beach each summer with her mother, her brother, her mother’s best friend and her two sons, Conrad and Jeremiah. Belly has always had a crush on Conrad, the older of the two brothers, but this summer is having second thoughts on Jeremiah. Unlike the rest of the summers this summer is different, everyone’s older and has changed. Belly got rid of her glasses and has matured a great amount since the last visit. Conrad, on the other hand, has made some mistakes that may cost him a lot. Jeremiah is still the same fun self he always was but acts different when he is around Belly. Belly has no clue what the end of this summer may bring but in the end it’s a summer she will never forget.
I LOVED THIS BOOK!!!! I am in to chick flicks and chick lit lately and this one is at the top of my list! It is very girly and every time I read it, it reminds me of summer and I love that feeling. In about every other chapter there is a flashback to summers before that and it shows the whole story. Every time I opened it I could never put it down! I hope you get a chance to read this book because you will enjoy it very much. This series is going to become a trilogy.
Posted by BOOK NAME: Sports Camp
AUTHOR:
Rich Wallace
How was your summer? I know mine was great…especially with all of my books. This book is a great to read during the summer, especially if you’re at camp, because it’s about a summer camp.
If you like sports, then this is the perfect book for you. The kids Camp Olympia split into six cabins and those are the teams for the tournaments during the camp. The main events are Basketball, Softball and Water Polo. Riley’s an underdog and definitely not a star. But in one of the sports he comes up big.
The swimming and water polo events take place at Lake Surprise. It’s called Lake Surprise because Big Joe the snapping turtle lives there. There are rumors that Big Joe, has attacked and even killed people at the lake.
At the end of every chapter there’s a bulletin page for the camp, which is the daily news for the camp. It shows the results for the sports and the scores and a list of upcoming events and sometimes new rules.
I really hope you get this book and enjoy it. It took me less than two days to read, so it’s a good book if you’re looking for a quick read.
Posted by BOOK NAME: Nature Girl
AUTHOR: Jane Kelley
Being stuck in Vermont with no internet, cell phones, best friends, or TV was NOT on Megan’s summer to-do list, but it was on her parents’. Megan leaves home with her family to go to Vermont, only to find that her days will revolve around hiking, watching her sister and her boyfriend flirt, and drawing for hours upon end.
Megan isn’t so sure she will survive this vacation, especially when she gets lost on the Appalachian Trail. Once lost, she has a choice; she can wait for help or hike the whole trail to prove to everyone she can survive.
I think the author created a typical family in this book and the characters were so predictable. Although I did like the book, it wasn’t good enough to read again. In the book, Jane Kelley kind of re-created and modernized My Side of the Mountain, using a girl instead of a young boy.
In this book, Megan learned a lesson about not giving up and being brave. When she got lost in the woods, I thought that maybe she’d come to love nature and the woods. It seems like Megan just learned her lesson and the Appalachian Trail was used to make her lesson more interesting. Megan DID learn and understand her wrong doings in the end, but it was rough getting there.
This book is recommended for girls ages 9 to 12. It didn’t have any crude language or anything frightening in it. Nature Girl is a calm, humorous book with a few illustrations drawn by the character, Megan, on her journey through the Appalachian Trail.
Yesterday was the summer solstice, which means that summer has officially started! The summer solstice marks the point where there is the most daylight in a 24-hour period in the northern hemisphere (above the Equator). The winter solstice, which will fall on December 21, marks the day when there is the least daylight. In the southern hemisphere, it’s switched–the summer solstice is the shortest day of the year, and the winter solstice is the longest.
The first day of summer may get more daylight than any other day of the year, but that doesn’t mean it is the hottest. Astronomer Robert Howell from the Universtiy of Wyoming compares the solstice to turning on an oven. “If you think about turning up an oven–it takes it a long time to heat up, and after you turn it off, it takes a while for it to cool down. It’s the same with the Earth.”
Learn more about the summer solstice on National Geographic News.
Looking for ways to have fun this summer? Try our Boredom Busters!
