Summer is a great time to read

There are so many activities going on this summer, reading could be pushed aside. My suggestion is to connect books as part of the activity. Here are some suggestions:

Stargazers will enjoy "They Dance in the Sky: Native American Star Myths," a collection by Jean Monroe and Ray Williamson (Houghton).

Horseback riders can find connections with classics like Walter Farley's "Black Stallion" or "King of the Wind" by Marguerite Henry. Readers can find various versions about Seabiscuit.

When someone is training a new dog, try "Dog Poems" by Dave Crawley (Boyd's Mills), a humorous collection for all kinds of animals from Great Dane to tiny pugs. The youngest reader will like "How To Be a Good Dog" by Gail Page (Bloomsbury).

As you travel along the highway, follow the poems in "Got Geography!" a collection by Lee Bennett Hopkins (Greenwillow); watch for tall buildings while reading "Skyscraper" by Lynn Curlee (Atheneum); or enjoy the open plains while reading "The American West: An Illustrated History" by Liz Sonneborn (Scholastic). If you plan on an archaeological dig or a museum visit, "Dinosaurs: 12 New Dinosaur Discoveries" by Dougal Dixon (Boyd's Mills) is a must.

Don't forget to pick up an armload of audio tapes and cassettes from the library when taking a long drive. There are great new selections of the very latest novels for all ages.

My pick for summer reading is by the popular Daniel Pinkwater, whose fan clubs literally reach around the world. "The Neddiad" (Houghton) with a subtitle "How Neddie Took the Train, Went to Hollywood and Saved Civilization" is stuffed with humor and adventure. Where else would a man jump out of a plane with a parachute over the Grand Canyon? Where else would you find a phantom bellboy traveling towards Hollywood to eat at the Brown Derby? Where else could a father become a rich, influential man from selling shoelaces?

With puns such as a swashbuckler movie star named Aaron Finn (reminiscent of Errol Flynn), and guys named Sholmos Bunyip and Sandor Eucalyptus, you know this is going to be a strange and funny read, all signature Pinkwater. "The Neddiad" is for grades four and up, but it's an excellent book to read aloud for family fun.

Older readers might like a jaunt to Jane Austen-like England with "Austenland" by Shannon Hale (Bloomsbury) or Iva Ibbotson's "A Song for Summer" (Penguin), portraying suffragette mothers amid prewar rumors.

Of course, July is the celebration of the latest and last in the Harry Potter series. We all need to gear up for that!

Don't forget to send me titles of your favorites.

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E-mail: marilou.sorensen@att.net