BOOK MARKED
Sunny Reads
13 New Summer-Inspired
Books for Kids
BY WF STAFF
From lemonade stands to underwater adventures and
beachside explorations, these newly-released children’s books
will transport your kids into full-on summertime fun.

“Tropical Terry”
by JARVIS
Terry, a small and ordinary fish, is used to
swimming around with some of the most
beautiful tropical fish in the ocean. Yet, he
longs to be just as dazzling and multicolored
as the others. So, with the help of his friends,
Terry fashions a flashy costume and trans-
forms into “Tropical Terry.” However, Terry
soon learns that being the center of attention
isn’t what he thought it would be. Ages 2-5.

From purple flip-flops and orange sand
shovels to green towels and blue waves,
this vibrant summer read will have readers
eager to spend their summer vacation at the
beach. Ages 2-5.

“Among a Thousand
Fireflies” by Helen Frost
Hoping to find her fellow firefly friend, one
lovely firefly lands on a flower and shines
her light. But then, thousands of lights start
“Froggy’s Lemonade Stand”
to flash all around. How is she supposed to
by Jonathan London
find one firefly among the others? This book
Froggy is so excited to start his own lemon- shares how two fireflies come together and
ade stand! However, he got so thirsty along find each other’s lights. Ages 3-7.

the way that he ended up drinking all of the
lemonade. What is Froggy to do? With the “Mermaid Dreams”
help of us friends, they come up with the by Kate Pugsley
perfection solution, and they have a whole One day, Maya and her parents visit the
lot of fun in the process! Ages 2-5.

beach. While Maya loves being at the beach,
she really wishes she had a friend to share in
“Who’s Hiding at the Beach?”
the adventures! Too shy to say hello to nearby
by Nosy Crow
kids, Maya closes her eyes and is then magi-
There are tons of fascinating creatures at
cally transported into an underwater world
the beach worth discovering. From rocks to
where she turns into a mermaid! She goes on
shells to seaweed, this beautifully designed
a magical adventure meeting fellow sea crea-
book helps little readers explore all kinds of
tures and learns that making friends is easy
seaside wildlife. Ages 2-5.

when you have a good imagination. Ages 3-7.

“Spot Goes to the Beach”
by Eric Hill
Everyone’s favorite puppy is back, and he’s
off on a beach adventure! It’s a sunny day at
the beach, and Spot is ready to have fun and
make new friends. He shares his adventures
with building sandcastles, surfing and much
more beach fun. Ages 2-5.

“Sea Glass Summer”
by Michelle Houts
When a young boy named Thomas visits his
grandmother at her seaside cottage, he uses
his late grandfather’s magnifying glass to
discover some hidden beach treasures. After
finding a piece of sea glass in the sand, he
becomes fascinated with it and dreams of
“The Colors of Summer”
how it got there. For the rest of the sum-
by Danna Smith
mer, he searches for more sea glass in hopes
This book displays all the bright colors of discovering their mysterious origins.

found while spending a day at the beach! Ages: 4-8.

34 WashingtonFAMILY JUNE 2019



BOOK MARKED
Happy Birthday to
Kathryn Lasky!
Each month, we celebrate a
birthday of literary significance.

“To Live on an Island”
by Emma Bland Smith
What’s it like to live on an island? It can
sometimes be hard, sometimes sweet and
sometimes quiet ... it just depends on the
day. In this colorful picture book, experience
what it’s like to be a child growing up on a
Pacific Northwest island. Ages 4-8.

“Seashells: More Than a Home”
by Melissa Stewart
This book is quite a gem for little natural-
ists who love seashells! Discover thirteen
seashells inside, including an introduction
to the most fascinating aspects of each shell.

Watercolor illustrations help bring these
shells to life and make it easy for readers to
feel like they are seeing these shells first-
hand. Ages 4-8.

“Fish Everywhere”
by Britta Teckentrup
This educational book explores the many
aspects of fish. From fresh water fish to
ones that live in the desert, there are fish all
around us. Little readers will learn where
these different types of fish can be found and
what makes each type particularly unique
and special! Ages 6-9.

Kathryn Lasky is a
Newbery Honor-winning
author who embraces
the genre of fantasy, but
also historical fiction.

She has written more
than 100 novels and
picture books for chil-
dren and young adults, including
the “Guardians of Ga’Hoole” fantasy
series and the “Wolves of the Beyond”
series. Some of her most popular titles
include “A Time for Courage,” “The
Night Witches,” “Beyond the Burning
Time” and “True North.”
Her latest series is “Bears of
the Ice,” which centers on polar
bears. Lasky told Scholastic that she
wrote these books to celebrate
their magnificence and because
she worries that one day they will be
extinct. On her website, Lasky describes
her career, calling herself a late
bloomer who really started to shine in
college, where she majored in English.

Her first job was at a fashion maga-
zine and later she became a teacher,
before settling into her true calling of
writing children’s books. ■
“Bummer in the Summer!”
by Dan Gutman
“A Christmas Carol” meets summer in this
fun and humorous children’s story. As A.J
is almost done with school, he dreams one
night about all the fun adventures he’s going
to have over break. But, his dreams suddenly
get interfered by three ghosts who appear in
order to show him summer’s past, present
and future. What will A.J learn? Ages 6-9.

“Stubby the Fearless Squid”
by Barbara Davis-Pyles
Intimidated by his new pen pal, who tells
extraordinary stories, Stubby the squid feels
the need to embellish his own stories to
make himself look more brave and interest-
ing. This, of course, ends up getting him in
trouble and he gets put in a bad situation.

Stubby soon learns the hard way about the
importance of accepting oneself in this fun
and cleverly told story. Ages 6-9. ■
WashingtonFAMILY.com 35