Summer Reading Picks, Not Just for Kids

You don't have to be a kid to be a summer reader. Quince Orchard Library Manager Ann Stillman gave Patch her own personal summer reading list for both kids and adults.  

Area students are encouraged to register for Montgomery County Public Library's Summer Reading Program, which runs from June 18 to August 13. Students may register and log the books they read online using a computer or mobile device.

This year's summer reading has three levels: Babies and Books (birth through pre-K), One World, Many Stories (K through 6th), and You are Here (middle and high school).

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Ms. Stillman's recommendations for readers of all ages (below) provide a great cross-section of topics and all titles are owned and available to borrow from Montgomery County Public Libraries.   

The joy of reading is not reserved for young people alone. So parents, set a good example. You can enjoy your summer, too, but by all means, pick up a book.

Picture books

"Sail Away" by Donald Crews (A family takes an enjoyable trip in their sailboat and watches the weather change throughout the day.)

"Click, Clack, Splish, Splash" by Doreen Cronin (Animals go on a fishing expedition.)

"Baby Duck and the Cozy Blanket" by Amy Hest (Baby Duck needs a bath and so does her cozy blanket.)

"You Read to Me, I’ll Read to You: Very Short Mother Goose Tales to Read Together" by Mary Ann Hoberman (Encourage your child by reading together.)

"My Little Car/Mi Carrito" by Gary Soto (Teresa’s new car leads to trouble.)

Juvenile Fiction

"Tornado" by Betsy Byars (As they wait out a tornado in their storm cellar, a family listens to their farmhand tell stories about the dog that was blown into his life by another tornado when he was a boy.)

Any of the Ramona Quimby stories by Beverly Cleary

"The Year of the Dog" by Grace Lin (Will Grace really have good luck this year?)

"A Long Way From Chicago" by Richard Peck (A boy recounts his annual summer trips to rural Illinois with his sister during the Great Depression to visit their larger-than-life grandmother.)

Recommended Adult Books

"Walking Across Egypt" by Clyde Edgerton (Fiction)

Into North Carolina resident’s Mattie Rigsbee’s (age 78) quiet life comes Wesley, a wayward teen and orphan. Despite her family’s concerns, Mattie takes Wesley in and along with many hilarious incidents is a story of a friendship and caring.

"Mrs. Lincoln and Mrs. Keckly: The Remarkable Story of the Friendship Between a First Lady and a Former Slave" by Jennifer Fleischner (Non-fiction)

This the story of the friendship of Mary Todd Lincoln, widow of a president, and Elizabeth Keckly, a former slave and Mrs. Lincoln’s dressmaker. “This book gives an in-depth look at a time, a friendship, and two very different women.” (from Library Journal)

"Plainsong" by Kent Haruf (Fiction)

This story of several families in Colorado and two shy farming brothers who take in a pregnant teen is well-written and a wonderful read.

"The History of Love" by Nicole Krauss (Fiction)

This story spans of period of over 60 years from Nazi-occupied Eastern Europe to present day Brighton Beach. The characters are beautifully developed and the story takes the reader into their lives lovingly and hauntingly.

"Songs Without Words" by Ann Packer (Fiction)

Liz and Sarabeth, brought close as sisters by the suicide of Sarabeth's mother when the girls were just sixteen. In the decades that followed their relationship remained a source of continuity and strength. But when Liz's adolescent daughter enters dangerous waters that threaten to engulf the family, the fault lines in the women's friendship are revealed, and both Liz and Sarabeth are forced to re-examine their most deeply held beliefs about their connection.

Recommended Adult Books on CD (also good books to read)

"The Lace Reader" by Brunonia Barry (Book on CD-Fiction)

A young woman descended from a long line of mind readers and fortune tellers has returned to her hometown of Salem, Massachusetts, for rest and relaxation. When her aunt drowns under mysterious circumstances, memories from childhood will come back to change her life forever.

"To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee. (Book on CD-Fiction)

Sissy Spacek does an outstanding job reading this classic of family life and bigotry in a Southern town.  

"Born Standing Up: A Comic’s Life" by Steve Martin. (Book on CD-Biography)

This memoir read by the author is sometimes funny and often poignant. He describes his family life and his career.