By Marci Lutsky
Last week I told you what I recommend you read this summer at the beach (finished Ask Again, Yes and loved it!) so I thought it would be fun this week to talk about great books for kids. My twins are 8 so that’s the level we are at right now. My son and daughter have very different interests in books but I often find them reading each other’s books. If you haven’t been to the library in awhile, dust off the old card and take your kids to fill up a reusable bag with books every couple of weeks this summer.
Last summer my son was all about reading Dog Man and Captain Underpants. While I was grateful that he was reading independently, I was hoping for him to become interested in books with more depth. He read the book House of Robots by James Patterson and Chris Grabenstein for a school book report and it was such a fantastic choice for him. The book touches on a lot of important topics relevant to young readers and kept his interest. He has sailed through the remaining books in the series and has a new favorite author. He has also enjoyed the Roald Dahl books (the box set was an excellent birthday gift he received) and for book series, he loves Lucy & Andy Neaderthal, Bad Guys, My Weird School and I Survived.
My daughter loves to read and can frequently be found with her nose buried in a book. On a whim she picked up Keeper of the Lost Cities by Shannon Messenger and devoured the series. There are seven books in the series with an eighth due out in November. She has talked endlessly about the storyline for the past few months so I am reading the first book now. She has also enjoyed The Tail of Emily Windsnap, another fantasy fiction series. Other series favorites for her have been Dory Fantasmagory, Whatever After, Judy Moody and 13-Story Treehouse. It’s so nice when kids like a book in a series because then they continue on to other books already familiar with the characters.
While you are at the library, make sure to check out what kinds of programs they offer. At the Otto Bruyns Public Library of Northfield, kids can sign up to receive a passport reading log to track their books and win prizes. The Ocean City Free Public Library is one of our favorite libraries and always offers fun (and free) programs for kids. Whether you have a voracious reader or a kid needing a little extra push to pick up a book, make trips to the library part of your regular routine this summer. You will escape the summer heat for an hour or two while discovering new and fun reads for the kids and maybe for you too!
Marci Lutsky is a local mom of eight year-old twins and can be reached at veggingattheshore@gmail.com.
Marci Lutsky is a food blogger at Vegging at the Shore, www.veggingattheshore.com and can be reached at veggingattheshore@gmail.com.
