I know that while the summer heat is beating down on us we might want to hide away in the air conditioning and avoid the heat and sun. However, there are plenty of great things about summer, especially when you are a child. Here are some great picturebooks about summer for young readers to explore on their own, or for you to share with them, that will make you forget about the heat and enjoy the good things about summer together.

The Twelve Days of Summer by Jan Andrews. On each successive day of summer, a youngster finds an increasing number of animals and other natural wonders in the surrounding world and leaves behind a remembrance of the day’s discovery.

Carl’s Summer Vacation by Alexandra Day. Although told to take a nap by her parents, Madeleine and her favorite canine companion, Carl, head out to explore their surroundings and have fun taking a canoe ride on the lake, picnicking under the trees, and eating tasty blackberries straight off the bush.

The  Summer Visitors by Karel Hayes. During the summer a family of bears enjoys the comforts of life at a cottage by a lake, alongside the human visitors.

Now it is Summer by Eileen Spinelli.  A young mouse is encouraged by his mother to enjoy summer while waiting for autumn to come.

Summer: an Alphabet Acrostic by
Steven Schnur. Describes the summer season, with its recreation, heat, insects, and garden vegetables, and when read vertically, the first letters of the lines of text spell related words arranged alphabetically, from “awning” to “zodiac.”

Looking for more? We currently have a  display for summer related books in the children’s room, and I have further suggestions here. Summer is Summer by Phillis and David Gershator, It’s Summer! by Linda Glaser,  A to Z of Summer by Tracy Nelson Maurer, Lionel in the Summer by Stephen Krensky, The Summer Playground by Carl Emerson,  Summer Beat by Betsy Franco, What Happens in Summer? by Sara L. Latta, Come On, Rain by Karen Hesse, and Before the Storm by Jane Yolen.