Summer Reading Book Packs Available

Like so many others, I've been cleaning the house during our self-imposed quarantine. It's allowing me time to reorganize and purge in preparation for the next school year.

And while I was cleaning the bookshelves next to my desk, I realized that I have accrued a LOT of books to review for MommyMaestra or other sites over the years. Most of them are like new. And I did buy specific titles to sell in my online shop simply because I enjoy them and think they're great for kids.

So instead of hauling them off to my local used bookstore or selling them on Amazon, I thought that I would give MommyMaestra readers first pick. I have clumped them into packs. I will not sell individual books. I honestly don't have time to make a million trips to the post office to mail them. So I have put some of the ones from my shelves into summer reading packs that are grouped by reading age.

If you are interested, click on the link for each pack.

Enjoy the summer reading! (Or use them next school year?)

Summer Reading Pack #1

For preschool & early elementary

Includes the following books:

1. The Tale of Rabbit and Coyote by Tony Johnston, illust. by Tomie dePaola
2. The Storyteller’s Candle/La velita de los cuentos by Lucía González, illust. by Lulu Delacre
3. Celia Cruz, Queen of Salsa by Veronica Chambers, illust by Julie Maren
4. The Park Our Town Built / El parque que nuestro pueblo construyó by Diane Gonzalez Bertrand
5. Oh No, Gotta Go! by Susan Middleton Elya, illust. by G. Brian Karas (not shown)

Summer Reading Pack #2

For kids ages 8 - 12

Includes the following books:

1. From Farmworker to Astronaut/De campesino a astronauta by José M. Hernández (Bilingual)
2. The Shameless Shenanigans of Mister Malo/Las terríbles travesuras de Mister Malo by Alidis Vicente (Bilingual)
3. The Taco Magician and Other Poems for Kids/El mago de los tacos y otros poemas para niños by Diane Gonzalez Bertrand (Bilingual)
4. Vincent Ventura and the Mystery of the Witch Owl/Vincent Ventura y el misterio de la bruja lechuza by Xavier Garza (Bilingual)
5. Ghost Fever/Mal de fantasma by Joe Hayes (Bilingual)
6. Hammer of Witches by Shana Mlawski (English only)

Summer Reading Pack #3

For TEENS or YOUNG ADULTS (or ADULTS!) only. These two books are in SPANISH ONLY. They're hardbacks that are harder to find in bookstores.

This pack features two Spanish titles by the wonderful Isabel Allende:

1. El bosque de los pigmeos
2. El reino del dragón de oro

Summer Reading Pack #4

For teens and young adults.

Includes the following books:

1. Drawn to You by Janel Rodriguez Ferrer
2. Summer of the Mariposas by Guadalupe Garcia McCall
3. All the Stars Denied by Guadalupe Garcia McCall
4. Shame the Stars by Guadalupe Garcia McCall

Summer Reading Pack #5

For teens and young adults.

These contain adult themes, so keep that in mind. Includes the following books:

1. On the Other Side by Ray Villareal
2. Barely Missing Everything by Matt Mendez
3. Dealing in Dreams by Lilliam Rivera

Summer Reads: Explorer Academy

I finally have time to share another title in my Summer Reads list for 2019. (Psst! If you want to see the entire list, check out my Idea List on Amazon. aff link)

This post contains affiliate links. See my sidebar for further explanation. 

This was actually first on my list for this summer because my 13 yo son had read the first book last fall and was totally sold. I picked up the second book at Barnes and Noble not long ago and he was so excited to get the second book that he devoured it in two days. He said it was even better than the first. And he's anxiously awaiting the release of the third book in September. (Seriously, as I sit here typing, my son is going on nonstop telling me everything about the series.)

Explorer Academy is a new series by National Geographic Kids. My kid says it's like National Treasure meets A Series of Unfortunate Events (the one on Netflix). It's full of intrigue, adventure, genius children, and modern technology.

Cruz Coronado is the main character (I love that he's Hispanic!) who applies to an exclusive school that trains adventurous and gifted students to become professional explorers. His mother was a scientist who worked there developing a secret formula for cell regeneration, but she died under suspicious circumstances in a lab explosion. Now, in addition to his studies, Cruz is on a hunt for her secret formula.

There are cool gadgets and cryptic puzzles scattered throughout the book. My son loves that the series is full of adventure but is reality based. He says it has awesome gadgets inspired by real tech devices. And the adventure doesn't have that feeling of fantasy, which he enjoys, but knows it could never happen. With Explorer Academy, the adventure seems almost attainable. "It could happen," he exclaims.

Here's what I like about it: I LOVE the diversity of the characters! They represent so many different cultures and as a reader, you learn about them and their backgrounds. And most of these multicultural characters are talented, skilled students.

Also, National Geographic has created an entire support site for the series. Their website introduces you to the stories and the characters, but it also allows for extended learning with educational games, articles about the real technology that inspired the gadgets in the book, and even interviews with real scientists doing amazing things around the world.

I also like that although the book is written for older children, it still contains some illustrations. They're much more grown up, of course, including photographs, maps, and information based images. Oh, and some are cleverly fused images of photographs with the illustrated character embedded. But our kids are such visual learners and the illustrations serve to complement the storyline and motivate the reader to continue on.

Really, this series stays true to the spirit of National Geographic, encouraging the reader to explore, appreciate, and protect the world around us. So it's at the top end of my Summer Reads list for 2019.

You can find the book series here on Amazon, and visit their website to see the games and explore all the materials they've shared.

Read Around the World: Kutu, The Tiny Inca Princess

Every year, I'm so happy to participate in the Multicultural Kid Blogs' Read Around the World Summer Series. I love learning about new children's books that bring the world to a child's hands. They're a valuable resource when you are raising global citizens who can successfully relate and communicate with anyone.

My selection this year is KUTU: The Tiny Inca Princess - La Ñusta Diminuta by the talented Mariana Llanos.

There are so many things about this book to love. It is such a good story about a tiny princess who sets out to save her town by bringing water to it after a long drought. Even though no one thinks that she can help the town because of her small size, she sets out on her own to find help.

Kutu is a fictional character. And the story is original; it is not the retelling of an Inca legend. But the story represents Inca culture and many of the characters in the story are the gods that may be found in Quechua legend. I love that the author has worked to stay true to this ancient culture.

In addition, this book is not just bilingual with full text in both English and Spanish, but it also has Quechua words and phrases sprinkled throughout the story. 

And the illustrations are so adorable!! They are childlike and colorful with an attention to little details that truly represent the culture. My own toddler, who is still too young to understand the storyline, was captivated by them. 

This is just one of the wonderful titles you can find in my 2019 Summer Reads. To see the complete list, click here.

And if you would like to follow along MKB's Read Around the World Summer Series, click here. Because there are some seriously incredible books being shared.


Happy reading, Amigos!

Summer Reads & Giveaway: Carmen Sandiego

Last week, I shared on the MommyMaestra Facebook page that I had actually won a giveaway for a change. Usually, I am the one giving stuff away. And the reason I won is that I was sharing the giveaway because I knew how much you all would love it.

So, I was thrilled but surprised to get the news I had won! My oldest kids who grew up watching the Carmen Sandiego series with Rita Moreno and who have already watched the new series on Netflix were crazy happy about the books. And here's why...

My older son is a graphic novel lover. I usually don't buy him that many because I want him reading books with more text and less distraction. But every now and then we get a few just as a treat and to reward his reading. So the first book that we received is Carmen Sandiego: The Sticky Rice Caper. And, yes, it's a graphic novel. In this book, Carmen is headed to Indonesia to stop VILE in the capital city of Jakarta. It's pretty action-packed. So, naturally, my son is all over it.

The second book, Who in the World is Carmen Sandiego?, is what really piqued my girl's curiosity (and intrigued me, too, I'll admit) because in it Carmen shares her own backstory for the first time. I also loved that Gina Rodriguez wrote the foreword. Neither one of us has read it yet, but it's on my girl's list for the summer.

Several of you asked me on the Facebook post about where to get the books. I looked it up and found them both on Amazon here and here, as well as at Target. You can even order them online from Target and have them shipped for free to your nearby store.

Oh! And, yes, I found a Spanish edition on Amazon.

THE GIVEAWAY

As you can see from the top picture, I received several copies of Who in the World is Carmen Sandiego? So you know I want to share them with you. If you have a Carmen lover in your house, this would be a fun read for summer!

I'm giving away a copy of Who in the World is Carmen Sandiego? to two (2) lucky MommyMaestra readers. NOTE: These copies are in ENGLISH ONLY.

To enter to win your copy, just use the Rafflecopter below.

¡Buena suerte!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Summer Reads: Luca's Bridge, El puente de Luca

Today, I'm kicking off my Summer Reads series, which features awesome new titles for your kids to read over the summer.

The first title is a new book by Mariana Llanos titled Luca's Bridge/El puente de Luca. (aff)

It is the story of Luca, a young boy forced to leave his native country - the United States, where he was born - because his parents are undocumented immigrants and have been told to voluntarily deport themselves. Luca struggles with the change because he has to leave his friends behind - his school behind - and travel to Mexico when he doesn't even speak Spanish.

But Luca finds solace in his trumpet. And finds a way to transport himself back using his musical talent.

In our current political climate, stories like this one are SO IMPORTANT. It is a story that needs to be written, read, and shared. So many children are often separated from their parents when the latter are deported from the U.S. Some, like Luca's family, choose to stay together even though it means uprooting their children from the only life they've ever known. And these books shine a spotlight on the desperate need for better immigration laws in our country.

Mariana is such a talented writer. (Several of her books have been featured here on MommyMaestra already, and she's even contributed a fantastic tutorial on how to create your own Peruvian retablo!) What I love about this book is that it comes with complete text in both English and Spanish, making it accessible to bilingual families and classrooms alike.



And oh the illustrations! Anna López Real is the artist and she does such a remarkable job. I love how she uses color sparingly to make the illustrations pop and to express the emotion of the storyline.

Best suited for children ages 4 to 9 years old.

Teachers, this is a wonderful book for summer camps, assigned for summer reading, or to be used next school year. It works well for studying and discussing themes of immigration, deportation, family separation, music, bridges (metaphorical), childhood, and more.

You can purchase your copy here on Amazon.

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