Summer Reading: For the Kids

In my part of the universe, summer is over, although in your part of the universe, your kids may still be at home, and you might be wearing white until Labor Day.

Of course, you all know that I finished the first draft of The Poison of thy Flesh over the summer, but I did do some reading and I did watch some movies as well. (Smokin' in the Boy's Room Pause) Let me tell you about it!

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The winners this summer are the YA and MG books. I read a couple of series that you might like to take a look at, with or without your kids.

The Gallagher Girls series by Ally Carter. I'll be honest with you. The first one isn't much to scream about, but I had already purchased the second. It's better. Then Carter just takes off on a rapid Concord ride through spy high school, and the books escalate in quality. I would almost say skip the first one. You will need the second one for background, and you won't be able to put the last 4 down. The premise? Girls go to a private school for spies, and do normal teenage things at the same time. It works. The books aren't perfect. I always feel our main villains are muddy and hard to pin down. But the adults and the kid mains interact, do spy well, and are just awesome overall. Six books. Read 'em.

The Enola Holmes series by Nancy Springer. This middle grade series is perfect. The premise? Sherlock and Mycroft Holmes have a younger sister who runs away from them after her mother runs away from her to fight the forces of the misogyny of the Victorian period. Being a Holmes, it doesn't take her long to discover her analytical gifts and tendency toward daring do. The books are kids books, but the dangers in them are real. Springer's Victorian research is flawless. I can't see the seams of her extrapolations. These books deserve their reputation.

Ghoulish Song by Will Alexander. I read Goblin Secrets last summer, and Ghoulish Song is a story that is overlaid over the time frame of Goblin Secrets. Steeped in a careful study of folklore and written from a realistic childhood viewpoint, it's an excellent book that considers belonging, family, and life itself. Read both of these books.

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Now I did read some books for older readers as well, but that's another entry! Tomorrow, perhaps.

Mirrored from Writer Tamago.