It’s new on the shelf

Books, crisps, juice, sun, sand and the deep blue sea...An ideal combination for a perfect summer.

Contrary to popular belief, reading is good for you. It is exercise for your mind. It introduces you to new ideas and excites you to solve problems. Did you know that reading improves your conversational skills and self discipline? It widens your horizon and increases your knowledge of history and culture. And finally, reading gives reins to your imagination.

To give you impetus to follow up, here are a few books that can help you begin your journey. Let’s start with Genie on a Holiday by Liji Ravindran. Rohan and his pesky brother Kabir are off on a holiday...with their parents, of course. The days drag on by until one day, they come across a washed up cola can. And, before they know it, they are face- to-face with a genie.

Rohan is extremely pleased that he has a wish-granting slave. But, it’s not all hunky dory as he thought it might be. The genie wants something in return. Will Rohan be able to deliver?

Light hearted and fun, it’s a great way to begin your holiday reading.

Manisha Anand brings you The Assassin Nuns and the Pirates of Peppercorn Bay where a bunch of nuns are the unlikely heroes. The nuns specialise in rescuing the people of the small village of Pistachio where they are based. But, now the Reverend Mother thinks the nuns need to have some quiet time to rest and recover. So, off they go to their seaside cottage for their well-deserved holiday, with 12-year-old Ann, their guide.

But, of course, superheroes cannot afford the luxury of a holiday and before they know it, they are pulled into the mystery in Peppercorn Bay. There’s a flying Jolly Roger, two violent deaths and suspicious movements in the bay. Whatever could be happening?

And, of course, don’t forget to say hello to Bonjour.

Just lazing

Summer and mangoes are synonymous, aren’t they? That’s why we introduce you to Under the Mango Tree . The author Tracy Hunter says she spent her summers visiting family in Hawaii. Her uncle had a huge mango tree in his backyard and he would allow her to pick mangoes. She says that simple action and the joy it brought her inspired her to write this book.

The protagonist, Lani travels to Hawaii Islands to visit family and gets embroiled in an island adventure. She discovers a family of bats in the backyard and imagines a conversation they have among themselves, pieces together their personalities and enjoys their antics.

When school winds up for the year, it is time to put your feet up and chill, isn’t it? Well, that’s what A.J. thought too. But then he has this really awful nightmare where he gets to see three familiar spirits who show him his summers past, present and future. What’s the idea, you ask?

It’s the hope that after he sees his summers whizz past him, he will be able to reform his ways. But now, A.J. begins to think his summer is going to be a real bummer. Will it?

You have to read My Weird School Special: Bummer in the Summer! by Dan Gutman to find out. The stories are hilarious and as a bonus you get pages and pages of games, puzzles and more.

And finally to round off the reading list there’s Race to the Bottom of the Sea by Lindsay Eagar. Eleven-year-old Fidelia Quail is racked by grief. Her parents, marine scientists, Dr and Dr Quail, have been killed in an accident and it was in her invention — a submarine —that they died. To add to this, it was she who insisted they stay longer when the raging Undertow was looming.

But, her grief is put on the back burner when she is kidnapped by Merrick the Monstrous, a pirate. He needs her help to retrieve his treasure lost on the ocean floor. It is a close chase, for Fidelia and the pirate are followed by the navy. That’s when Fidelia realises that Merrick has not much longer to live and he will never enjoy his loot. So, what is driving him to get the loot? Can Fidelia help?