Skip to main content

Books to Read...When You Want to Go Swimming

By

It may be because we have fish hanging up around the Children's Reference Desk and an ocean-themed I Spy display case, or it may just be the summer heat, but I find myself constantly longing to go swimming lately. Because I can't live my life inside a pool, lake, or ocean (unfortunately!), I guess I'll have to resign myself to spending the day poolside with some of my favorite swimming reads. 

Written by Julie Abery
Illustrated by Chris Sasaki
Kids Can Press, 2021. Informational.

This informational picture book tells the true story of Soichi Sakamoto, a schoolteacher in Hawaii who noticed a group of children who would swim in the irrigation ditches every day to keep cool. When they were caught by security at the sugar cane plantations, Sakamoto volunteered to coach them in swimming if they were allowed to continue. Even though Sakamoto could barely swim himself, he coached his swimmers daily, helping several of them reach the Olympic Games. This short picture book in verse can be enjoyed by both younger and older readers.


Written by Lisl H. Detlefsen
Illustrated by Madeline Valentine
Roaring Book Press, 2019. Picture Book.

This picture book is a great one to share with kids that are just starting to learn how to swim. It can be intimidating to go to your first swimming lesson, and this title makes swimming accessible to even the smallest of children. It explains commonplace swimming items like a swim cap, googles, and flippers while teaching kids safety rules like not running in the pool and staying on the wall when it's not your turn. It's also good for older kids who will laugh at the misconceptions of a first time swimmer about things like "blowing bubbles" and "dolphin kicks".


Sea Sheep
Written by Eric Seltzer
Illustrated by Tom Disbury
Simon Spotlight, 2020. Easy Reader.

You'll want to visit the ocean after watching these sheep explore it! You can have fun identifying the creatures the sheep run into, like narwhals, anglerfish, crabs, and squids. The large font and simple, easy to sound out words make this an ideal choice for those just learning how to read.


Let's Go Swimming!
By Norm Feuti
Acorn (Scholastic Inc.), 2021. Easy Reader.

It's a very hot day, so Hedgehog decides to invite his friend Harry to go swim in the pond. Harry is excited to play until Hedgehog decides to play a game where they have to stick their heads underwater. Harry doesn't like putting his head in! Kids who read this title may relate to the struggle of being scared to swim and this is a great title for learning the basics of how graphic novels are laid out and how to read from speech bubbles.


By Johnnie Christmas
Harper Alley, 2022. Comic.

In this graphic novel for middle grade readers, Bree moves from Brooklyn to Florida and starts a new school year in a new state. Unfortunately, all of the elective classes are full and she is forced to join Swim 101, which is a problem because Bree doesn't know how to swim. Luckily for her, her neighbor Etta is willing to teach her. This graphic novel touches on the barriers that Black people have faced with regards to swimming and readers will cheer Bree and her team on as they compete.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Painting for Peace in Ferguson

By
Painting for Peace in Ferguson By Carol Swartout Klein Treehouse Publishing Group, 2015. Nonfiction. When the city of Ferguson was overrun with so much hate and despair that homes and businesses had to be boarded up to protect property, citizens of the community decided to bring a message of hope by painting the boarded windows. Klein’s rhyming text supports the photographs of the hundreds of artists and volunteers and their artwork as they bring the messages of peace, hope, love, and that by being united they can make a difference. A great book to show children how a community rallied to make a positive change and that even a small gesture can make a huge difference. A great discussion opener on how we should treat each other.
Post a Comment
Read more

Review: The Bletchley Riddle

By
  The Bletchley Riddle By Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin New York: Viking, an imprint of Penguin Random House LLC, 2024. Fiction. 392 pages. It's spring of 1940, Hitler has swept through most of Europe, and people believe England will be next. Half Polish-Jewish, half American Jakob has been recruited from Cambridge to Bletchley Park where they are working on deciphering the enigma machine. Jakob's sister Lizzie, meanwhile, is being forced to move from London to Cleveland to live with her grandmother after her mother disappeared in a 1939 attack in Poland. Lizzie manages to escape the keeper her grandmother sent for her to bring her to America and makes her way to Bletchley, where she's eventually given the task of delivering messages between departments. When secret messages begin appearing with Lizzie's belongings, she must decipher them to find the truth about her mother's past and location, while keeping the secrets away from the MI5 agent that seems a little t...
Post a Comment
Read more

Dragon Run

By
Dragon Run by Patrick Matthews Scholastic, 2013.  336 pgs.  Fantasy      Al Pilgrommor is excited for Testing Day, when he will receive his rank, a tattooed number on the back of his neck, and a path forward to his future occupation and life.  He feels confident because his parents were fours on a scale of seven, but he is worried for his friend Wisp who doesn't have much of a chance of scoring above a two at best. But when Al is scored a zero, he not only has no prospects, he may lose his life as the dreaded Cullers are unleashed to kill him and his family to purify the land's bloodlines.  Al's world is ruled by dragons--the lords and supposed creators of humankind--so he thinks that even if he survives, he will have to make his living as a beggar or thief. But when Al sticks up for his Earther friend in front of Magister Ludi, he is drawn into the struggle of a secret organization hoping to destroy the Cullers, and perhaps the dragons them...
1 comment
Read more