Awesome Books That Celebrate Summer Adventures

The Pacific Northwest is all about water. It falls on us all winter, and when the sun finally peeks out from behind the clouds, we seek it out at the beaches, lakes and rivers that are never very far away. You could take the ferry over to Everett’s Jetty Island to get out of the heat, explore the tidepools at Me-Kwa-Mooks Park in West Seattle or relax at one of the area’s other terrific beaches. Refreshed by the cool air over the water, your family might take a more active approach, say, stand-up paddleboarding on Green Lake, kayaking the Sammamish River, canoeing out of the Enatai Beach boathouse or sailing from The Center for Wooden Boats. Whatever your pleasure, we’ve got a book for that.

Picture Books:

Gary Paulsen is better known for middle-grade adventures, but “Canoe Days” is a sweet picture book that illustrates the joys of a day spent on the water. In Tom Booth’s “Day at the Beach,” big brother Gideon learns that building sand castles is more fun with a friend — or even a little sister. Huy Voun Lee’s “At the Beach” is quietly educational, as Xiao Ming’s mother draws in the sand to teach him Chinese characters related to the sights near the sea.

Middle Grade:

Arthur Ransome’s “Swallows and Amazons” series, about a group of children messing about on and near the water in England’s Lake District, is nearly 100 years old, but it evokes the world of childish adventures as effectively as ever. For kids who want their adventures on an epic scale, consider H.M. Bouwman’s “A Crack in the Sea,” the first Raftworld historical fantasy, in which children from different periods in Earth’s history are connected to the events on the high seas of the Second World. Or try Chris Grabenstein’s “The Island of Dr. Libris,” in which books come to life at a lakeside cabin. Looking for something more educational? “Pacific Intertidal Life,” co-authored by Ron Russo and Pam Olhausen, is an illustrated, pocket-size guide to Pacific coast tide pools.

Young Adult:

From Herman Melville’s “Moby Dick” to Ernest Hemingway’s “The Old Man and the Sea,” and more recently, Yann Martel’s “Life of Pi,” there’s something about the ocean that inspires metaphors for life. “Moby Dick” is a doorstop, but the others are great choices for teens, who may feel the power of the metaphor more than they understand it. For something more direct, try the graphic novel “This One Summer,” a coming-of-age story by Mariko Tamaki that is set at a beach house. And if your teen wants to read a real surviving-at-sea tale, give them “Sailing the Dream,” the autobiography of Mike Perham, who turned 17 during his solo sail around the world.