4 Great Summer Reads for the Whole Family

4 Great Summer Reads for the Whole Family

It's the  middle of summer and it is time to talk about some of the great books out there to enjoy during summer.  To me, a summer read is a book you read during the summer, not something necessarily light and fluffy. I like to read a variety of books and none of the books featured here are of the light and fluffy variety.

So here are 4 books I've read recently to spice up your summer days.  Each book will appeal to a different age group in your family.

Await Your Reply by Dan Chaon
BookADay:  Day 17, Book #14

Await Your Reply was chosen as a book for my book club.  I have never read anything by Dan Chaon and was not sure what to expect but this book blew me away.  Await Your Reply is a page turner and opens with a young man getting his hand cut off.  There are three different story lines that interconnect.  Each story line is compelling with interesting characters and it is fun to try and figure out how they are all related.  So good.


A Wreath for Emmitt Till by Marilyn Nelson
BookADay:  Day 14, Book #13

This little book packs a powerful punch of poetry on the death and legacy of Emmett Till. It is a told in a series of fifteen interlocking sonnets. The artwork combined with the beautiful poems about the painful subject of lynching is something to behold. This is a Printz honor book and a Coretta Scott King honor book.

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness and Siobhan Dowd
BookADay:  Day 19, Book #15

I love Patrick Ness.  All of his books are so creative.  A Monster Calls is a story Ness adapted from a story idea that author, Siobhan Dowd had before she died.  It won so many awards, I can't even count how many.  It is beautiful story about a boy and his nightmare that has come to life in the form of a Yew tree outside his window. The illustrations are stunning.  A Monster Calls made me cry and touched my heart. So poignant.  I loved it.

Diego Rivera: An Artist for the People by Susan Goldman Rubin
BookADay:  Day 20, Book #16

Diego Rivera is an artist for the people. He created art on murals for the working class and for people who were illiterate. He wanted to teach the world the history of Mexico. This is a short but detailed biography of Diego Rivera and how he became a admired artist. This is a good introductory book for kids and adults who want a quick history of who Diego Rivera is and why his artwork is important.  Some of his artwork is included in the book.

How do you define summer reading?

March by John Lewis

March.  Book One by John Lewis and Andrew Aydin.  Art by Nate Powell

March is a powerful graphic novel on the early life of Civil and Human Rights Activist and current Georgian congressman, John Lewis. This memoir begins with John's childhood growing up on a farm in rural, Alabama.  His job was to tend to the chickens.  He wanted to be a preacher and the chickens were his first congregation.  Right away he started to protest the treatment of his chickens and as they became food for dinner, he refused to eat.

John Lewis grew up to be very influential in the Civil Rights Movement.  He meets Martin Luther King Jr. and that experience changes his life.  He joins and participates in non-violent protest and social action in Nashville, Tennessee.  Like many activists of this time, John Lewis gets arrested but change happens and he is a big part of it.

The artwork in this book is amazing.  I've included one of my favorite drawings from the book in this post but there are many beautiful, gut-wrenching drawings of the Civil Rights Movement.  The art is done in stark black and white and it is moving.  I felt transported to another place in time and was enveloped in the story because of the beauty and expression contained in the graphic artwork.

Looking forward to the next volume.  Hope I don't have to wait to long.

Steve Jobs: Genius by Design by Jason Quinn

Steve Jobs: Genius by Design by Jason Quinn and illustrated by Amit Tayal

Steve Jobs was adopted in 1955 by Paul and Clara Jobs.  He grew up in California an inquisitive child, full of energy and willfulness.  He was stubborn and knew what he wanted out of life and let no one stop him.  Steve had a lot of creative energy and friends and family who believed in his ideas.  He could have taken many wrongs turns and ended up a penniless hippie, but his strong will to persevere won out.

Steve's friend, Woz, created the first personal computer and Steve was the brains behind the business.  They ended up starting the Apple company together in Steve's parent's garage.  Steve always demanded perfection and he was a bit hot headed.  As Apple grew some people refused to work with him.  He was technically fired from the company he created.  So he decided he would create another company called NEXT and he would compete with Apple. NEXT and Apple became huge rivals.  Steve's NEXT company owned Pixar and created the first computer animated move called TOY STORY.

Steve knew he was going to change the world and so he did.  He didn't do it alone, he had help along the way and he knew how to lean on his friends for support.  This graphic novel biography of Steve Jobs was very informative and interesting.  I learned a lot about the type of man Steve was and the creative genius he brought to his projects.  When I started reading this book I had no idea who Steve was or what he accomplished besides the basics of being an Apple CEO.

The Artwork is very well-done.  The size of the book is equal to the size of an Ipad and it even looks like an Ipad.  Inside the artwork is done simply with black and soft colors.  Each panel is surrounded in black.  Steve is captured perfectly in every decade of his life.

Steve Jobs is not presented as the god of technology, he is presented as human in the book.  This biography details each decade of Steve's life including the high and low points of his life, including some of the mistakes he made, presented in the book.

You know it is really interesting to learn about a product or a companies history when you are a person who has used this type of product for awhile.  As a owner of an Ipod, an Ipad, an Iphone and a Mac computer, this was really cool for me to read about.  We are definitely a Apple product using family and knowing the history behind this company is valuable to me.  I never thought I would read a book about Steve Jobs and like it but that is what happened.  Now I am passing the book onto my son and then my daughter because I know they will like it to.

Steve Jobs thought differently and I wanted to include his words in this post.  He created the Think Differently campaign for Apple in the 1990's so below you can hear Steve narrate a commercial in the campaign.  It is very moving and makes me want to get out there and let my creativity flow.

Steve Jobs thank you for your creations.  You have made the world a better place.

"Here's to the crazy ones.
The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers.
The round pegs in the square holes.
The ones who see things differently.
They're not fond of rules.
And they have no respect for the status quo.
You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them.
About the only thing you can't do is ignore them.
Because they change things.
They push the human race forward.
And while some may see them as the crazy ones,
we see genius.
Because the people who are crazy enough
to think they can change the world...
are the ones who do."

The Dressmaker of Khair Khana by Gayle Tzemach Lemmon

The Dressmaker of Khair Khana.  Five Sisters, One Remarkable Family, and the Woman Who Risked Everything to Keep Them Safe by Gayle Tzemach Lemmon

The Dressmaker of Khair Khana starts with a dedication "To ALL THOSE WOMEN whose stories will never be told" and ends with the story of one woman who defied the odds and started a business during wartime.   During the occupation of the Taliban in Afghanistan and their fight for control of the country, all the rights of women were banned.  It was against the law for women to laugh, wear nail polish, go to school or to be seen outside of the home unless accompanied by a male relative.  Women were forbidden to talk to men unless they were relatives and daily life became very difficult because women were not allowed to work outside of the home.

Kamila knew she had to do something or her large family would starve.  Her father and brother had fled to Iran and left only one 13 year old brother to run errands and be the "Male relative" for Kamila and her 5 sisters still at home.  So Kamila asks her older sister Malika to teach her to sew and Kamila in turn teaches her sisters to sew and they sell their designs at the market.  As Kamila's business takes off she is able to hire other women in the neighborhood and then create even more business opportunities and so on.

The Dressmaker of Khair Khana proves that women are amazing, powerful, and resilient human beings that have the will to survive, take care of their families and prosper, against all odds.  This book makes me want to stand up and applaud the amazing women of Afghanistan for their strength and will.  Kamila's story is very inspiring and gives me the impression that women everywhere can perpetuate change in the world if given the chance.  The Dressmaker of Khair Khana celebrates the modern working woman.

"Money is power for women," Kamila said.  "If women have their own income to bring to the family, they can contribute and make decisions."  (Pg 235)  Money changes lives, help families and opens doors to opportunities.  It is so important to educate women.  We are lucky as American women to have a free education and the freedom to choose a career and more.

Lemmon wrote The Dressmaker of Khair Khana as part of her MBA degree for Harvard.  She wanted to find successful women business owners in wartime countries.  We always hear about the great deeds of men during wartime but rarely do we hear a positive story surrounding women during a war.  This is a positive story about women who made a difference in their small community near Kabul, Afghanistan and taught others how to help themselves. 

My Flag Grew Stars by Kitty Gogins

My Flag Grew Stars.  World War II Refugees' Journey to America by Kitty Gogins

Tibor and Olga are Hungarian citizens during World War II.  Tibor is conscripted into the German army as his family is fleeing the Russians.  Tibor's story of survival is amazing.  Olga is leaving Hungry with her family as well and emigrates to Austria.  Their paths cross after the war, where they meet and fall in love.  

This is a unique story of how Tibor and Olga met and emigrated to the United States after World War II.  Most stories that take place during World War II stop when the war ends.  This book, I found to unique because it really started at the final few months of the war and detailed the time spent in refugee camps as well as their indentured servitude.

Tibor and Olga are the author's parents and Kitty has taken their miraculous true story and turned it into a book and a legacy for everyone to enjoy.  This book is full of Hungarian culture and how this family is able to hold onto their traditions in the many countries that they live in.  This is one families story and it makes me think of all the amazing stories out there that have never been told or written down.  Thank you Kitty for writing this story down for all to enjoy and embrace.  I have learned so much.

If you were forced to leave your country and could only take one possession besides clothing, what would you take?

Have you ever thought of writing down your family's story?

Enter to win a copy of My Flag Grew Stars.  The contest ends June 30th at midnight.