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The Firefly Summer
The Penderwicks meets The Vanderbeekers of 141st Street in a story about a young girl who gets to know her mom’s side of the family and hunts for hidden treasure over the course of one chaotic summer.
For as long as Ryanna Stuart can remember, her summers have been spent with her father and his new wife. Just the three of them, structured, planned, and quiet. But this summer is different. This summer, she’s received a letter from her grandparents—grandparents neither she nor her dad have spoken to since her mom’s death—inviting her to stay with them at an old summer camp in the Poconos.
Ryanna accepts. She wants to learn about her mom. She wants to uncover the mystery of why her father hasn’t spoken to her grandparents all these years. She’s even looking forward to a quiet summer by the lake. But what she finds are relatives… so many relatives! Aunts and uncles and cousins upon cousins—a motley, rambunctious crew of kids and eccentric, unconventional adults. People who have memories of her mom from when she was Ryanna’s age, clues to her past like a treasure map. Ryanna even finds an actual, real-life treasure map!
Over the course of one unforgettable summer—filled with s’mores and swimming, adventure and fun, and even a decades-old mystery to solve—Ryanna discovers a whole new side of herself and that, sometimes, the last place you expected to be is the place where you really belong.
For as long as Ryanna Stuart can remember, her summers have been spent with her father and his new wife. Just the three of them, structured, planned, and quiet. But this summer is different. This summer, she’s received a letter from her grandparents—grandparents neither she nor her dad have spoken to since her mom’s death—inviting her to stay with them at an old summer camp in the Poconos.
Ryanna accepts. She wants to learn about her mom. She wants to uncover the mystery of why her father hasn’t spoken to her grandparents all these years. She’s even looking forward to a quiet summer by the lake. But what she finds are relatives… so many relatives! Aunts and uncles and cousins upon cousins—a motley, rambunctious crew of kids and eccentric, unconventional adults. People who have memories of her mom from when she was Ryanna’s age, clues to her past like a treasure map. Ryanna even finds an actual, real-life treasure map!
Over the course of one unforgettable summer—filled with s’mores and swimming, adventure and fun, and even a decades-old mystery to solve—Ryanna discovers a whole new side of herself and that, sometimes, the last place you expected to be is the place where you really belong.
400 pages, Hardcover
First published May 2, 2023
179 people are currently reading
7742 people want to read
About the author
Morgan Matson
17 books13.3k followersMorgan Matson grew up in New York City and Greenwich, Connecticut. She attended Occidental College in Los Angeles but halfway though a theater degree, she started working in the children's department of Vroman's Bookstore and fell in love with YA literature.
Following college graduation (and the proud bearer of an incredibly useful theater/English degree) she moved back East to attend the New School, where she received her M.F.A in Writing for Children.
Amy & Roger's Epic Detour, inspired by Morgan's three cross-country road trips, was published in May 2010. It was named an ALA Top Ten Best Book, a PW "Flying Start" book, and was shortlisted for the Waterstone's Book Prize.
In the meantime, Morgan moved back to California, went back to school again and in 2011 received an M.F.A. in Screenwriting from the University of Southern California.
Her second book, Second Chance Summer, was published in May 2012 and draws largely on her experiences spending summers growing up in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania.
Her third book, Since You've Been Gone, was published in 2014.
Morgan currently lives in Los Angeles, though she loves to travel and does it whenever she can. She is currently writing another book, to be published in 2016.
Following college graduation (and the proud bearer of an incredibly useful theater/English degree) she moved back East to attend the New School, where she received her M.F.A in Writing for Children.
Amy & Roger's Epic Detour, inspired by Morgan's three cross-country road trips, was published in May 2010. It was named an ALA Top Ten Best Book, a PW "Flying Start" book, and was shortlisted for the Waterstone's Book Prize.
In the meantime, Morgan moved back to California, went back to school again and in 2011 received an M.F.A. in Screenwriting from the University of Southern California.
Her second book, Second Chance Summer, was published in May 2012 and draws largely on her experiences spending summers growing up in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania.
Her third book, Since You've Been Gone, was published in 2014.
Morgan currently lives in Los Angeles, though she loves to travel and does it whenever she can. She is currently writing another book, to be published in 2016.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 416 reviews
November 26, 2025
real fans add a book before a cover, synopsis, and release date, and then don't read it for years after it comes out.
https://emmareadstoomuch.substack.com...
this was a very sweet, fluffy middle grade book in which adventures were had and friendships were made and the meaning of family was discovered and years-long painful complicated conflicts were solved with a few pages and a warm hug.
so even the issues i had are adorable.
bottom line: i'll read whatever age range morgan matson writes!
3.5
https://emmareadstoomuch.substack.com...
this was a very sweet, fluffy middle grade book in which adventures were had and friendships were made and the meaning of family was discovered and years-long painful complicated conflicts were solved with a few pages and a warm hug.
so even the issues i had are adorable.
bottom line: i'll read whatever age range morgan matson writes!
3.5
July 15, 2023
The narrator/main character is appealing and likeable and believable.
The dialogue is really good and natural. I appreciate it. I like how it is mentioned that Holden was named for a favorite book character of his father’s but Catcher in the Rye was never specifically mentioned.
I love diversity in contemporary children’s literature and I liked it here but this book seemed to go out of its way to check as many boxes as it could. This is done only when the characters are first introduced. After that I didn’t see anything else about it. I don’t know whether or not I like that but I think that I do.
I always wanted a big family and even though it’s for just the summers this grouping is one I found appealing. Great inter-generational story.
I would have loved this book at ages 9-11. The main character loves mystery books and has a mystery (or a few mysteries) to solve and her trying to get info about the mother who died when she was very young were all my cup of tea and would have also been when I was the target age for this story. The mysteries I could mostly guess from miles away but they were still entertaining. The whole scenario is a bit formulaic I suppose but it worked. I had to suspend disbelief just a bit regarding the main mystery being solved. The situation with Ryanna’s father and grandparents being happily resolved seemed believable because they are all good people.
These kids are 9-13 and I would have known by 9 that their lame email did NOT sound as though it was from an adult. It was a bit annoying that they all thought it would pass muster. It could have been written in a way that was a bit more credible. I found it annoying.
This has a classic book feel to it even though our main character has a smart phone.
All the food made me hungry. (I veganized it in my mind which was slightly hard to do with only one food item. )
I got a kick out of the last short chapter.
I enjoyed the whole reading experience. There is a lot going on in this book but it all seems to work. The characters and their relationships and the settings are all great.
This is a perfect summer book and would make a great family read aloud book.
I don’t usually feel this way about children’s novels but this is one I really wanted to read to/with some children 8-11 or that I wish I had at least read when I was in that age range. Reading this to a child or group of children would have made the book even more fun for me. I still enjoyed it just reading it on my own.
A couple of quotes that I liked:
“She still had two parents, after all – she didn’t know what it meant to have only one, and have everything they left become rare and special and precious.”
“If something stayed unknown, unopened, the possibilities could be endless, and you wouldn’t be disappointed – but it also wasn’t real.”
The dialogue is really good and natural. I appreciate it. I like how it is mentioned that Holden was named for a favorite book character of his father’s but Catcher in the Rye was never specifically mentioned.
I love diversity in contemporary children’s literature and I liked it here but this book seemed to go out of its way to check as many boxes as it could. This is done only when the characters are first introduced. After that I didn’t see anything else about it. I don’t know whether or not I like that but I think that I do.
I always wanted a big family and even though it’s for just the summers this grouping is one I found appealing. Great inter-generational story.
I would have loved this book at ages 9-11. The main character loves mystery books and has a mystery (or a few mysteries) to solve and her trying to get info about the mother who died when she was very young were all my cup of tea and would have also been when I was the target age for this story. The mysteries I could mostly guess from miles away but they were still entertaining. The whole scenario is a bit formulaic I suppose but it worked. I had to suspend disbelief just a bit regarding the main mystery being solved. The situation with Ryanna’s father and grandparents being happily resolved seemed believable because they are all good people.
These kids are 9-13 and I would have known by 9 that their lame email did NOT sound as though it was from an adult. It was a bit annoying that they all thought it would pass muster. It could have been written in a way that was a bit more credible. I found it annoying.
This has a classic book feel to it even though our main character has a smart phone.
All the food made me hungry. (I veganized it in my mind which was slightly hard to do with only one food item. )
I got a kick out of the last short chapter.
I enjoyed the whole reading experience. There is a lot going on in this book but it all seems to work. The characters and their relationships and the settings are all great.
This is a perfect summer book and would make a great family read aloud book.
I don’t usually feel this way about children’s novels but this is one I really wanted to read to/with some children 8-11 or that I wish I had at least read when I was in that age range. Reading this to a child or group of children would have made the book even more fun for me. I still enjoyed it just reading it on my own.
A couple of quotes that I liked:
“She still had two parents, after all – she didn’t know what it meant to have only one, and have everything they left become rare and special and precious.”
“If something stayed unknown, unopened, the possibilities could be endless, and you wouldn’t be disappointed – but it also wasn’t real.”
Want to read
July 1, 2022if anyone was going to get me back into middle grade it was going to be morgan matson
August 26, 2024
*4.75*
I had a realllyyy fun time with this!! Loved the pure childhood summer vibes, the characters and family dynamics, and the beautiful setting of the camp, mountains, & lake 🌲👙🏕✨️🍉🫶🚲📖🍦🍃🦋
the mystery and plot twists were too easy to guess, but their journey and discoveries were fun read about nonetheless.
there were some joking references toward healthier food options, which i found very immature of the author. like its the 21st century girl. eat what you want but no need to make any unnecessary comments.
a perfect relaxing summer read, great writing too! I read one other book by this author, and I feel like she really improved since then :)
I had a realllyyy fun time with this!! Loved the pure childhood summer vibes, the characters and family dynamics, and the beautiful setting of the camp, mountains, & lake 🌲👙🏕✨️🍉🫶🚲📖🍦🍃🦋
the mystery and plot twists were too easy to guess, but their journey and discoveries were fun read about nonetheless.
there were some joking references toward healthier food options, which i found very immature of the author. like its the 21st century girl. eat what you want but no need to make any unnecessary comments.
a perfect relaxing summer read, great writing too! I read one other book by this author, and I feel like she really improved since then :)
March 24, 2023
The Firefly Summer is a summer-infused middle grade book about family, summer camps, and learning more about a deceased parent. Only child Ryanna Stuart is thrown into a chaotic family summer where she has freedom to explore and learn about the mother she lost at age three. While this middle grade book could've been way shorter, it wins by highlighting the value of family (with some sweet family moments) and providing ultimate summer vibes.
Full review: https://readingmiddlegrade.com/the-fi...
Full review: https://readingmiddlegrade.com/the-fi...
November 15, 2024
This book establishes a setting that I dare you not to want to summer at. It throws in a delectable mystery and a chummy cast of characters. I would have been all about this book at the age of eleven, which is apparently my current maturity level.
May 17, 2023
I have read several of Morgan Matson's YA books and they have all been very enjoyable. So when I found that she had a middle grade book coming out I was very excited. This is a very fun summer read that I think readers will enjoy. Ryanna lives in LA with her dad and stepdad. They have the whole summer planned but then Ryanna gets invited to spend time on the East Coast with her maternal grandparents at their lake camp property. Her mother passed away when she was very young and she has memories of that side of the family. She decided to go to learn more about her mother as her father find it to hard to talk about it. Once there it is immediately evident that her idea of how it would be was wrong. Instead what follows is her getting to know her loud and fun extended family and cousins. There are smores, lake time, and treasure hunts. Soon though there is trouble that might cut her summer plans short and the future of the camp is in jeorpardy.
I think that this is the perfect summer read and will make you want to be in the midst of your vacation plans. I definitly recommend this one and think Ms. Mattson did a solid job entering the middle grade book world.
I think that this is the perfect summer read and will make you want to be in the midst of your vacation plans. I definitly recommend this one and think Ms. Mattson did a solid job entering the middle grade book world.
August 8, 2024
4.5 ⭐️
Non avevo dubbi che questo libro mi sarebbe piaciuto, visto che sono una grande fan dell'autrice.
Perfetto per chi ama i misteri e le cacce al tesoro!
Questo è il suo primo libro middle grade e non ha deluso le aspettative.
Ho trovato una bella storia di formazione, di famiglia ritrovata e di un'estate che mi ha ricordato tanto le mie quando avevo la stessa età della protagonista 🥲
Alcune sotto-trame sono state un po' prevedibili, probabilmente per il mio occhio più "adulto", ma non ha guastato in nessun modo l'esperienza di lettura.
Da come si è conclusa la storia, ho la sensazione che potremmo avere altri libri in questa serie, o perlomeno, me lo auguro, perchè ho amato tutti i personaggi e il setting di questo vecchio campeggio estivo.
Molto consigliato! 🥰
Non avevo dubbi che questo libro mi sarebbe piaciuto, visto che sono una grande fan dell'autrice.
Perfetto per chi ama i misteri e le cacce al tesoro!
Questo è il suo primo libro middle grade e non ha deluso le aspettative.
Ho trovato una bella storia di formazione, di famiglia ritrovata e di un'estate che mi ha ricordato tanto le mie quando avevo la stessa età della protagonista 🥲
Alcune sotto-trame sono state un po' prevedibili, probabilmente per il mio occhio più "adulto", ma non ha guastato in nessun modo l'esperienza di lettura.
Da come si è conclusa la storia, ho la sensazione che potremmo avere altri libri in questa serie, o perlomeno, me lo auguro, perchè ho amato tutti i personaggi e il setting di questo vecchio campeggio estivo.
Molto consigliato! 🥰
Read
May 1, 2023This was a really sweet read. Ryanna gets to meet her family and she starts to find out more about her mom who passed away when Ryanna was little. She gets to form bonds with her cousins and go on adventures around the camp.
Overall I loved the characters and the big family atmosphere. Matson creates fun summery books and this one transported me to a summer camp with a wonderful family and some fun adventures.
Thank you Simon and Schuster Canada for the e-ARC.
Overall I loved the characters and the big family atmosphere. Matson creates fun summery books and this one transported me to a summer camp with a wonderful family and some fun adventures.
Thank you Simon and Schuster Canada for the e-ARC.
April 10, 2023
From the author of 6 YA romance novels comes a wonderful middle grade novel full of family rifts and repaired relationships along with a hidden treasure that must be found or literally, life as the Van Camps know it will end. Ryanna is spending the summer at a defunct campground with grandparents that she doesn’t remember ever meeting. When she arrives, however, she discovers cousins, aunts, uncles and a boy from across the lake that will make this a summer to remember. Matson’s main character is a likeable 12 year old who has questions about her mother and the side of her family that she has never known and what better way to really learn about one another than sharing a camp cabin, doing lake activities, and eating s’mores by a campfire for three months. Reading Matson’s book made me miss my summer camp days and wonder the whole time if Ryanna would find her mother’s treasure and manage to save the family’s campground. The Van Camp family is flat out fun—Hattie with her poorly done English accent and desire to become an actress, Grams and her bird-watching, Gramps’ positive attitude and inability to keep up with his belongs, Diya’s crusty exterior that doesn’t completely cover up her generous heart…So many wonderful characters! THE FIREFLY SUMMER will be a hit with 9-12 year olds who love realistic fiction and warm, happy endings. Text is free of violence and sexual content and profanity is limited to one “bloody hell.” The Van Camp family has traditional two parent families, a single aunt, a 2 dad union, and a remarried widower. Most of the characters are Caucasian but one of the cousins is Black, likely adopted by his Caucasian and Black fathers and one is South Asian/Caucasian. However, neither race nor sexual orientation have any bearing on the plot and are likely to missed during recreational reading.
A well-done middle grade debut that should be a “first choice” purchase for school, home and public libraries.
Thanks for the print arc, Morgan Matson.
A well-done middle grade debut that should be a “first choice” purchase for school, home and public libraries.
Thanks for the print arc, Morgan Matson.
December 7, 2022
So excited to get an early copy of this novel and wanted to time-hop back to my youth, it's such a delicious scoop of all the best that a summer can offer. Ryanna is a charming heroine who feels all the right measures of vulnerable and curious, watchful yet delighted. I was cheering her all the way as she connects with her new cousins and navigates the secrets of her family history. I'm a big Morgan Matson fan and I love the energy, humor, wordplay she injects into her YA-- you can always feel her having fun with language, and that's all right here in this middle grade caper that's also an excellent mystery and will surely win her a whole new fandom. This charming treasure of a book is going to all my nieces and nephews.
January 6, 2024
I love all Morgan Matson YA books so I was confident I would like this middle grade book too. And I did! It was so much fun and adventurous. Hattie was my favorite character. She was full of humor and sometimes spoke with a British accent what made it even better. I think this is the perfect book for a movie.
TW: death of parent
TW: death of parent
May 23, 2023
I usually don’t read middle grade & the only reason I did was because it was written by Morgan Matson. Super cute. Finding a family, looking for treasure, & summer “camp”. Actually enjoyed this very much.
September 3, 2022
I read the ARC while staying in a cabin on summer vacation- perfect setting! MM writes another big fun family story but this time for middle grade.
August 25, 2025
One of those books that I wish had come out when my kids were younger because it would have been an amazing read aloud. The setting of this book is a kid’s (and adult’s) dream…a retired summer camp where your whole family spends every summer in the Poconos. There’s a mystery and some real character depth and growth. Loved this one so much. The perfect summer read!
June 28, 2023
Ryanna's mother died when she was just three years old, so the maternal side of her family has always been a mystery as they are estranged. But one day she gets an invitation from her maternal grandparents to come spend the summer at their house in the Poconos. Ryanna agrees as she is curious about her extended family and also she hopes to learn more about her mother. What she thought was going to be a quiet lakeside summer with her grandparents turned out to be so much more. It's not just her grandparents who are there; there are aunts, uncles, and cousins staying at what was once a bustling summer camp that her grandparents operated. Camp Van Camp, an idyllic getaway in the Poconos, is no longer in operation, but is in crisis. Nonetheless, Ryanna's days are filled with all the summer fun you would expect lakeside, hanging out with her cousins, treasure maps, her mom's old books, and more. One old treasure map might hold the key to keeping Camp Van Camp. Morgan Matson's middle-grade debut, The Firefly Summer, is an absolute delight of a summer novel.
Read the rest of my review here:
http://www.confessionsofabookaddict.c...
Read the rest of my review here:
http://www.confessionsofabookaddict.c...
May 28, 2023
A perfect summer book for middle graders! Imagine visiting your grandparents only to find out that they own a former "summer camp" where the entire family visits for summer vacation. I wanted to be a part of the Van Camp family and experience "camp", be a part of the "treasure hunt", and eat a s'more or two! Loved this book and my middle grade book club chose it for their June book!
June 3, 2023
If there’s one thing Morgan Matson excels at, it’s fun family shenanigans — and her middle grade debut doesn’t disappoint.
If you’ve read Matson’s YA novels, you know how she can write great depth of character and outstanding family dynamics. She brought all of that Matson magic and heart into this story. There’s even a treasure hunt!
I enjoyed this a lot and hope she’ll continue writing fun middle grade stories like this.
If you’ve read Matson’s YA novels, you know how she can write great depth of character and outstanding family dynamics. She brought all of that Matson magic and heart into this story. There’s even a treasure hunt!
I enjoyed this a lot and hope she’ll continue writing fun middle grade stories like this.
October 23, 2023
3.5 stars
This is a book that would be super fun to inhabit. A dreamy setting with a little mystery and built in friends that are also family. Having it be compared to Vanderbeekers or Penderwicks oversold it a bit for me but I still enjoyed it.
Content: clean
This is a book that would be super fun to inhabit. A dreamy setting with a little mystery and built in friends that are also family. Having it be compared to Vanderbeekers or Penderwicks oversold it a bit for me but I still enjoyed it.
Content: clean
August 26, 2024
This was honestly the most perfect book for summer. The story was so magical, charming, enchanting, and filled with everything that reminds me of summer. I couldn't help but think of my own personal memories and feel that summer nostalgia (for both childhood summers and summers that I have experienced as an adult).
Yes this is a middle grade/junior fiction novel but like any good story, I think many different ages will love this book. It's a great, well-rounded story.
For kids, I certainly recommend this book. But for adults, I equally recommend this book especially if you want to experience and relive some of that magic from your own childhood summer again.
Yes this is a middle grade/junior fiction novel but like any good story, I think many different ages will love this book. It's a great, well-rounded story.
For kids, I certainly recommend this book. But for adults, I equally recommend this book especially if you want to experience and relive some of that magic from your own childhood summer again.
June 15, 2023
4.5/5
Ryanna Stuart gets an unexpected letter from her grandparent, whom she hasn't spoken to since her mom died, inviting her to spend the summer with them at the old summer camp where they live year round. The temptation to learn more about her mom leads her to an unforgettable summer full of family, outdoor adventures, self discovery, and even a real life treasure map.
This is the perfect summer read!
Ryanna Stuart gets an unexpected letter from her grandparent, whom she hasn't spoken to since her mom died, inviting her to spend the summer with them at the old summer camp where they live year round. The temptation to learn more about her mom leads her to an unforgettable summer full of family, outdoor adventures, self discovery, and even a real life treasure map.
This is the perfect summer read!
March 17, 2025
This was so sweet and so good. Definitely long for a middle grade, but like Morgan I also love a long book. Really heartwarming and funny, I would be totally on board for a series of camp tales as Ryanna grows up. I also adore any even vaguely local books so it was a lot of fun to be set in the Poconos.
July 24, 2023
just a cute, summery middle-grade. love the camp vibes.
July 22, 2025
4.5 Perfect summer vibes, complete with a lake, cousins, camp, and a treasure hunt.
August 13, 2023
4.25 stars. Such a cute story! Ryanna is a great character to follow and the cast if characters made the story a lot of fun. Cant wait to see what Morgan Matson writes next.
June 16, 2023
4 stars. It's not summer without a Morgan Matson book, and people who love her summer YA will equally adore this sweet story about finding family away from home, with summer camp feels, a mystery/treasure hunt, and all the lake swimming and ice cream you can imagine. I adored this cast of characters, from Ryanna, the MC who is a bit lost, but precocious and curious about her mom who passed away, to her sweet and wonderful Grams and Gramps, to Hattie, her theatrical and fantastical cousin. If you liked Matson's Save the Date, this is the book for you. It's full of her signature funnies and antics, but also has all her heart. I love love loved the mystery that served as the thread tying the summer together. Truly, this is the cutest summer middle grade you will ever read.
April 17, 2023
Allllllll of the stars and then some for The Firefly Summer - my favorite middle grade so far this year. 🤩
I LOVED the Van Camp family so much! Their ease with each other and the love and respect they had for one another, built on years of tradition and shared history, was so wholesome and beautiful. I read this after several heavier books and my heart almost instantly felt lighter. I laughed, I cried, and I longed to visit Camp Van Camp myself (if only!).
The Firefly Summer is a fantastic blend of heart and humor, with a touch of mystery driving the plot forward. Read if you long for those “lazy, hazy, crazy” days of summer filled with lake swimming, sandcastle building, bike riding, ice cream and s’mores eating, and adventures with cousins and friends.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️+ and thanks so much to Simon Kids for sharing an ARC with us!
I LOVED the Van Camp family so much! Their ease with each other and the love and respect they had for one another, built on years of tradition and shared history, was so wholesome and beautiful. I read this after several heavier books and my heart almost instantly felt lighter. I laughed, I cried, and I longed to visit Camp Van Camp myself (if only!).
The Firefly Summer is a fantastic blend of heart and humor, with a touch of mystery driving the plot forward. Read if you long for those “lazy, hazy, crazy” days of summer filled with lake swimming, sandcastle building, bike riding, ice cream and s’mores eating, and adventures with cousins and friends.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️+ and thanks so much to Simon Kids for sharing an ARC with us!
July 1, 2023
I adored this book.
It was a super quick read but really packed a punch.
I loved all the characters.
I really felt like ryanna was really relatable
Just wow
It was a super quick read but really packed a punch.
I loved all the characters.
I really felt like ryanna was really relatable
Just wow
August 12, 2023
A fantastic read aloud for the end of our summer. Everyone enjoyed it (13, 11, and 7 year old). Mystery, family, friendship, resilience, loss. It was a very sweet read.
July 14, 2023
well, this was so fun!!
age recommendation: 9+
clean
no major content warnings to note
"It was funny to realize how Camp Van Camp had become my whole world, and how everything else had disappeared. But maybe that was the whole point of actual camp too--that you got to live in the camp bubble and forget about your "real" life back home."
The Firefly Summer is a summery, fun middle grade that follows Ryanna as she is invited to spend the summer at her maternal grandparents' summer camp, Camp Van Camp (what a great name). Ryanna's mom died when she was little, and her dad never talks about that side of the family, so she decides to go to the camp in the hopes of learning more about her mom. When she gets there, she finds a massive family full of aunts, uncles, and cousins waiting for her, as well as a mystery and treasure hunt from her mom to solve.
I know I've mentioned it twice already, but this book was just so much FUN. I haven't read a true middle grade novel in a while, and I forgot how genuinely comforting they feel. This book reminded me of the simple joys of being a kid and the endless possibilities of summer. Even if I wasn't a summer camp kid, I still felt nostalgic for the times my brother, cousin, and I would play together all summer long. The treasure hunt was really clever and I loved Ryanna's determination to see it through even when it was difficult.
Ryanna's family was so sweet. Her cousins Diya, Max, and Hattie had so much personality as did her grandparents. Archie the intern was also a fun character who provided some funny moments.
Truly the best part of the book was the determination and stubbornness of the kids to save the camp from being torn down. I loved how it tied into the treasure hunt as well, and added some stakes to this otherwise fluffy and comforting book.
All in all, this was just such a wonderful book to read this summer, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It's not perfect, but it's fun, so I highly recommend it, especially for younger readers (I know I would've eaten this up if it came out when I was a kid).
age recommendation: 9+
clean
no major content warnings to note
"It was funny to realize how Camp Van Camp had become my whole world, and how everything else had disappeared. But maybe that was the whole point of actual camp too--that you got to live in the camp bubble and forget about your "real" life back home."
The Firefly Summer is a summery, fun middle grade that follows Ryanna as she is invited to spend the summer at her maternal grandparents' summer camp, Camp Van Camp (what a great name). Ryanna's mom died when she was little, and her dad never talks about that side of the family, so she decides to go to the camp in the hopes of learning more about her mom. When she gets there, she finds a massive family full of aunts, uncles, and cousins waiting for her, as well as a mystery and treasure hunt from her mom to solve.
I know I've mentioned it twice already, but this book was just so much FUN. I haven't read a true middle grade novel in a while, and I forgot how genuinely comforting they feel. This book reminded me of the simple joys of being a kid and the endless possibilities of summer. Even if I wasn't a summer camp kid, I still felt nostalgic for the times my brother, cousin, and I would play together all summer long. The treasure hunt was really clever and I loved Ryanna's determination to see it through even when it was difficult.
Ryanna's family was so sweet. Her cousins Diya, Max, and Hattie had so much personality as did her grandparents. Archie the intern was also a fun character who provided some funny moments.
Truly the best part of the book was the determination and stubbornness of the kids to save the camp from being torn down. I loved how it tied into the treasure hunt as well, and added some stakes to this otherwise fluffy and comforting book.
All in all, this was just such a wonderful book to read this summer, and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It's not perfect, but it's fun, so I highly recommend it, especially for younger readers (I know I would've eaten this up if it came out when I was a kid).
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