The Kids' Summer Handbook
Grade 5 Up-Originally published in Canada as The Kids Cottage Book, this compendium of activities offers ideas galore for young vacationers. Six broad sections-Shoreside, Landside, After Dark, Hiking and Camping, Rainy Days, and Cottage Crafts-cover a wide range of nature investigations, water sports, arts and crafts, recipes, and safety information that varies greatly in both difficulty and age appropriateness. From crayfish trap to canoe strokes, raising monarch butterflies to building a tree fort, paper-folding to whittling, there is something for everyone here. The appealing format features lots of pencil illustrations and diagrams. Most topics fill one or two pages, with large green headings and green-tinted boxes containing lists of ingredients, ecology suggestions, or nature facts. The array of crafts, activities, and outdoor skills will make the book a useful tool for camp counselors and scout leaders. Children who delight in quiet activities will find a wealth of them as well. In fact, the book's only flaw is its inconsistency in advising adult help. Many of the materials' lists include "an adult helper," although often the directions fail to mention what kind of supervision is needed and when. A disclaimer on the verso of the title page absolves the author and illustrator from liability for damages resulting from "conducting the activities without proper supervision, or from ignoring the cautions contained in the text." Thus, the age designation.Susan Scheps, Shaker Heights Public Library, OHCopyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.