Another season, another excuse to swap out Olivia’s bookshelves. This time I wanted to include all things summer! For our family summer means traveling, museums, endless bowls of fruit on the patio, ice cream, trips to the Arboretum, the zoo, crazy weather (I see you north Texas), library visits, and bugs. And surprise surprise, we have books on all of those topics!
— from left to right top to bottom —
This is Texas - I stumbled on this book at a local shop in downtown Denton and I was just blown away by the illustrations and fun facts all about Texas. Disclaimer: this book was written in the late 60s so the facts are a little off, but there are footnotes with the updated info! There are tons of other places to choose from too like: Paris, New York, London, Rome, Greece, Ireland, Washington DC, San Francisco, Venice, Israel, Edinburgh, Britain, Munich, Hong Kong, America, Australia, The World, and The Way to the Moon.
Before & After - This was a fun museum gift shop find, that is full of vibrant illustrations showing how many everyday things appear before, during, and after like hair cuts, rollercoaster riders, pasta, chicken vs. the egg haha it’s great!
New York - We have a few of these beginner city books, but Olivia’s Aunt Jessica (who lives in Brooklyn) got her the New York one which is all about the fun colors found in the city.
Why Do We Need Bees? - I’m obsessed with these lift-the-flap non-fiction books, and we have a bunch of them but I picked my favorites for summer! I actually learned quite a bit from this fun and interactive book. Like did you know bees fly in a figure eight to show other bees where the best flowers are? I just thought they were a little erratic. Also, did you know honey is made to feed baby bees?
Dear Zoo - While we haven’t taken Olivia to the Dallas Zoo yet, it’s definitely on our list this summer! I love how simple and timeless (and silly) this book is, and Olivia loves lifting all of the flaps to find the animals.
Pandamonia - This is SUCH a beautiful book with sort of a chicka chicka boom boom rhythmic quality when you read it. It’s all about not waking the panda and what will happen if you do. It’s so great and full of lots of animal names that I hadn’t even heard of!
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom - speaking of the classic, this is just such a fun alphabet book to read. I’m pretty sure we all had this growing up!
I Do it Like This! - This is such a cute book showing the ways animals do the same everyday things we do like sleeping, bathing, eating, dancing, etc.
Olivia and the Fairy Princesses - when I first saw this book I was like ugh princesses. But knowing Olivia (the pig) there had to be a twist. This book is so funny and so anti your typical pink fluffy princess, and I just love the message of being an independent person rather than someone’s princess.
Above and Below - another beautiful book all about the different habitats and the animals that live there. Each page has a split page that reveals even more animals under the water, through the trees, etc. and then gives little facts about each one.
How Do Flowers Grow? - another fun lift-the-flap non-fiction book! This one takes me back to my horticulture lab days in college. With tons of flaps to lift, we love learning all about flowers, seeds, and why they are important.
Pink Lion - this is such a sweet book about a lion who was raised by flamingos, and thinks he’s a flamingo until he meets more lions. A great story of courage and being yourself no matter what!
What Makes it Rain? - this is another great lift-the-flap book all about weather! Living in north Texas we are getting all kinds of weather (in the same day!) so its really fun to teach Olivia all about where rain or thunder or clouds come from.
Bloom - this is the beautiful story of fashion designer Elsa Schiaparelli who didn’t even fit into her own family. She defies society’s narrow view of who she should be and blossoms into the incredible and quirky designer we know today.
My Very First Book of Things To Spot Out and About - this is such a fun and interactive book that I’ve been using to teach Olivia the names of objects. As she get’s older we can follow the prompts on each page, but for now I’m just using it to expand her vocabulary.
The Secret Garden - I love these little BabyLit primers, and this one is all about flowers! Each page names a flower and then gives a line from The Secret Garden.
Find Spot at the Museum - summers are all about museums when you live in Texas and need to escape the heat! We also love spot books (I had so many growing up), so this was a fun museum gift shop find at the Witte Museum. Olivia looooove the flaps!
Kitty Kat Kitty Kat Where Have You Been? Rome! - We’re not going to Rome this summer, but we love to travel and share our favorite cities with Olivia. This is such a fun series (with lots of different cities) that share Kitty Kat’s adventures and all of the fun facts he learns in each city.
Fairy Friends Colors - I just love this whole collection with it’s beautiful pressed flowers. Seriously just get all of them.
Luna Loves Library Day - Libraries are another great way to beat the heat in the summer! This is such a sweet book about Luna and her dad spending quality time at the library and sharing their love of books.
Eating the Alphabet - I grew up eating giant bowls of fruit in the back yard after every meal during the long summer days in Michigan and certain fruits are so nostalgic for me. I love this beautiful watercolor book full of so many fruits and veggies I hadn’t even heard of!
We love spending those long summer days outside, but also reading great books that excite Olivia’s imagination. I think it’s so fun to go to the zoo or to the aquarium and then come home and read books on what we saw that day. I also love supporting our local museums and picking up some great books in the gift shop on our way out. If you’ve missed my other book round ups here they are: