BW SUMMER LITERACY 2022 - YOUR SUMMER READING LIST

BY CYNTHIA TURNQUEST-JONES

Summer reading is also amazing because you can read at the beach, the pool, while flying to a summer destination and create summer reading camps with family members plus school friends. Your Young Reader should read at least nine books during the summer months. Parents and guardians should also be a buddy reader. Try buying two of the same books and intentionally create book conversations.Talk about the setting and share your favorite characters with one another. Discuss the problem and solution. Research the author and illustrator. Write them a litter. Draw a picture. I think it would be cool if you extend the invitation to other family members and friends. Let them know what books you are reading. Create a meet and greet. Have dinner and tell everyone to bring their book(s). End the summer with a celebration. Brag about the reading culture your family created during the Summer of 2022. Remember that summer reading provides benefits that will enhance past the Summer months. Enjoy the list!

Birth to Pre-School

100 Animals by Steve Jenkins. An early word book that explores animals from across the world, shown through cut-paper illustrations and flaps to lift on each page.

As Babies Dream by Leslea Newman In this soothing bedtime story, the sun sets and reveals a starry night over animal and human families. Best Day Ever! by Marylin Singer. This rhyming story features a boy and his dog as their day goes from best to worst and back to best.

CHAIWALA! by Priti Birla Maheshwari. When the train makes a brief stop, a mother and young child watch and experience the sounds, sights, and delicious smells of a hot cup of chai being made.

Circle Under Berry by Carter Higgins. This unusual concept book works as an observation game, a tongue twister, and a primer on spatial awareness. Read it fast or slow; it’s oodles of fun.

Don’t Hug Doug by Carrie Finison. Doug does not like hugs in this picture book about personal boundaries and consent. He does like high fives though.

Fluffy McWiskers: Cuteness Explosion by Stephen W. Martin

Enjoy the deadpan humor of a story about a cat so adorable that anyone who sees her explodes.

A Home Under the Stars by Andy Chou Musser In the city, Toby feels lost and angry without the stars at night. When a lion appears in search of the North Star, they journey together through the city to find it.

A House by Kevin Henkes. This book poses a series of simple questions about a house for readers to answer and consider what makes a house a home.

Inside Cat by Brendan Wenzel. Inside Cat only sees the world through windows until one day its perspective changes with the opening of a door.

Kindergarten to 2nd Grade

13 Ways To Eat A Fly by Sue Heavenrich. Count down from 13 to 1 as flies are zapped, wrapped, poked, soaked, and even baked in a cake in this hilariously informative book. Nutrition facts included.

Bear Builds A House by Maxwell Eaton II. Cartoon illustrations depict all the steps Bear and his friends complete while building a functional house in the wilderness.

Boardwalk Babies by Marissa Moss. Step right up and learn about the amazing Dr. Couney and his very small patients in this picturebook biography that explains how incubators for premature babies went from sideshow to medical practice.

Camila The Record-Breaking Star by Alicia Salazar. In this early chapter book series starter, Camila wants to become a star by breaking a world record. However, it turns out to be harder than it looks.

Dad Bakes by Katie Yamasaki. Early in the morning, Dad goes to work at the bakery, and then he comes home to his daughter to play, read, and bake together.

Dancing With Daddy by Anitra Rowe Schulte. A nonverbal young girl in a wheelchair anticipates an upcoming father-daughter dance, supported by her attentive and loving family.

Dear Treefrog by Joyce Sidman. A young girl moves to a new neighborhood and settles into her surroundings by observing a tiny treefrog. Short poems are interspersed with facts about frog life cycles. Dream Street by Tricia Elam Walker. All the neighbors on Dream Street have something that makes them special, whether it’s how they dress, what they say, or their passions in life. Evocative portraits, in both words and collage, make this an inspiring read-aloud for all ages.

Everyday, Chemistry by Julia Sooy. A day in the life of a young girl shows us that chemistry is all around us, from a toasting piece of bread for breakfast to the battery-powered flashlight used to read a bedtime story. Every Little Kindness by Marta Bartolj. This wordless picture book with muted colors explores all the ways that kindness is cyclical. Kindness begins when a woman loses her dog but helps another find food.

3rd Grade to 5th Grade

Crossing The Stream by Elizabeth-Irene Baitie. It’s been a long time since Ato has seen his grandmother, but in trying to solve a mystery at school, he begins to rebuild those broken family bonds.

Egg Marks the Spot by Amy Timberlake. Roommates Skunk and Badger set off for a weekend of camping and rock finding.

Unfortunately, Badger’s cousin shows up with his rat accomplices to steal the amber-encased egg they’ve found hidden in a cave.

Escape At 10,000 Feet: D.B. Cooper and the Missing Money by Tom Sullivan. The mystery of D. B. Cooper and the missing $200,000 is expertly unraveled in this true crime series starter heavily illustrated with unsolved case files.

Everything Awesome About Space and Other Galactic Facts! By Mike Lowery. Playful illustrations and an amazing amount of information come together to give a fun and interesting view of our universe and our exploration of it.

Stuntboy, in the Meantime by Jason Reynolds. Portico Reeves, aka Stuntboy, lives in a huge apartment building that he considers his castle. With the help of his friendly neighbors, Stuntboy faces enemies, anxiety, and bickering parents in a series of illustrated episodes.

Those Kids From Fawn Creek by Erin Entrada Kelly. Mysterious Orchid Mason arrives in small- town Louisiana and shakes up the cliques and alliances at Fawn Creek K–12. Her new classmates find themselves thinking about who they are and the choices they make in ways they’ve never before considered.

Treaty Words: For As Long As The Rivers Flow by Aimee Craft. Mishomis explains the true nature of treaties, a bond meant to encourage working together, to his granddaughter.

Yummy: A History of Desserts by Victoria Grace Elliott. Follow a trio of enthusiastic sprites as they share the history and science of desserts, including ice cream, cake, and cookies, in this graphic novel duology starter. The Beatryce Prophecy by Kate DiCamillo. A young girl appears at Brother Edik’s monastery, somehow befriends their most ornery goat, and changes not only the lives of the brothers at the Order of the Chronicles of Sorrowing but many others’ as well.

Ben Yokoyama and the Cookie of Perfection by Matthew Swanson. A fortune cookie that says “practice makes perfect” leads Ben to try to make his life, and everyone’s around him, perfect. Third book in a series.

6th Grade to 8th Grade

Ain’t Burned All The Bright by Jason Reynolds. Over three “breaths,” a boy reflects on current social events from within his home, where his father isolates, sick, in a spare and powerfully illustrated blend of mixedmedia collage and poetry.

Art of Protest: Creating, Discovering, and Activating Art for Your Revolution by DeNichols. Explore the art of the past to inform the revolutionary work of now! In addition to highlighting familiar works, this title also features pieces by young activist artists.

Aviva VS. The Dybbuk by Mari Lowe. An isolated tween, haunted by a dybbuk (a restless ghost), navigates continued struggles at home and at school following her father’s murder, a hate crime, years before.

Bounce Back by Misako Rocks! Lilico moves from Japan to the U.S. and, despite a bully, manages to make friends, play basketball, and get a magical talking cat in this light and easy read for fans of graphic novels and manga.

Boy, Everywhere by A.M. Dassu. When the Syrian civil war hits too close to home, 13-year-old Sami must flee his idyllic life in Damascus, after which he endures a harrowing journey to England, the guilt of putting his family’s lives in danger, and questions about his identity as a refugee.

City of Thieves (Battle Dragons #1) by Alex London. In a world where domesticated dragons are used for everything from transportation to sanitation, feuding bands of thieves engage in dangerous dragon battles over the city, and young Abel must protect his friends and family.

The Curse of the Mummy by Candace Fleming. Thieves, archaeologists, and rich, snobbish (and racist) Europeans play parts in this captivating book that combines history about Egyptian tombs with the tales of those who disturbed the ancient dead and were believed to be cursed.

The Deadliest Disease Then and Now by Deborah Hopkins. From the Middle Ages to today, a fascinating look at plagues and pandemics, how each began, and how they impacted the world.

The Dire Days of Willowweep Manor by Shannon K. Garrity. A fan of gothic romance novels finds herself in one, but there’s something a bit odd about the three handsome brothers, their manor, and its surroundings. A graphic novel with a humorous mix of romance and sci-fi.

Dream, Annie, Dream by Waka T. Brown. Daughter of immigrants, Annie Inoue has big dreams to be a star. When she gets a lead role in The King and I, her classmates suggest she only got the part because of her race.

Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and The Ultimate Cold War Showdown by Steve Sheinkin. This narrative nonfiction, mixed with recollections and factual information, will take readers back to post–World War II when the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics were in conflict with each other.

Founder Cynthia Turnquest-Jones