Books like 'Laura's Luck'
Readers who enjoyed Laura's Luck by Marilyn Sachs also liked the following books featuring the same tropes, story themes, relationship dynamics and character types.
historical historical-fiction realistic children friendship season-summer family coming-of-age
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Let the Children March by Monica Clark-Robinson
Rated: 4.57 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsI couldn't play on the same playground as the white kids.I couldn't go to their schools.I couldn't drink from their water fountains.There were so many things I couldn't do. In 1963 Birmingham, Alabama, thousands of African American children volunteered to march for their civil rights after hearing Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. speak...Categorized as:
historical-fiction children family realistic friendship children-books social-commentary historical -
![Red, White, and Whole by Rajani LaRocca]()
Red, White, and Whole by Rajani LaRocca
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsAn #ownvoices novel in verse about an Indian American girl whose life is turned upside down when her mother is diagnosed with leukemia.Reha feels torn between two worlds: school, where she’s the only Indian American student, and home, with her family’s traditions and holidays...Categorized as:
historical-fiction realistic family friendship children coming-of-age middle-grade fiction -
![Looking for Jane by Heather Marshall]()
Looking for Jane by Heather Marshall
Rated: 4.40 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsA debut about three women whose lives are bound together by a long-lost letter, a mother’s love, and a secret network of women fighting for the right to choose—inspired by true stories.2017: When Angela Creighton discovers a mysterious letter containing a life-shattering confession, she is determined to find the intended recipient... -
![Born to Trouble: All she wanted was a better life
by Rita Bradshaw]()
Born to Trouble: All she wanted was a better life by Rita Bradshaw
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA compelling saga guaranteed to tug at the heartstrings.Born into the worst of families in Sunderland's filthy, crime-ridden East End, Pearl Croft's childhood is miserable. Shortly after her violent, drunken father is killed in a fight, Pearl's elder brothers are sent to prison leaving her, still a child herself, to care for her baby brothers... -
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![Farmhouse by Sophie Blackall]()
Farmhouse by Sophie Blackall
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsTwo-time Caldecott Medalist Sophie Blackall invites readers to peek through windows that shine like real glass on this lavish book’s cover, and explore the dollhouse-like world of a beloved farmhouse where twelve children were born and raised.Over a hill, at the end of a road, by a glittering stream that twists and turns stands a farmhouse...Categorized as:
family historical-fiction realistic children children-books fiction historical multigenerational -
![Freedom Summer by Deborah Wiles]()
Freedom Summer by Deborah Wiles
Rated: 4.44 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsTwo boys—one black, one white—are best friends in the segregated 1960s South in this picture book about friends sticking together through thick and thin.John Henry swims better than anyone I know. He crawls like a catfish, blows bubbles like a swamp monster, but he doesn’t swim in the town pool with me. He’s not allowed. Joe and John Henry are a lot alike...Categorized as:
children coming-of-age family friendship historical-fiction realistic season-summer black-mc -
![Rag-and-Bone Christmas: the new heartwarming Christmas historical fiction saga from the No. 1 Sunday Times bestseller by Dilly Court]()
Rag-and-Bone Christmas: the new heartwarming Christmas historical fiction saga from the No. 1 Sunday Times bestseller by Dilly Court
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsDon’t miss the brand-new winter saga from bestselling author Dilly Court... -
![The Lost Letters of Aisling: A Novel by Cynthia Ellingsen]()
The Lost Letters of Aisling: A Novel by Cynthia Ellingsen
Rated: 4.43 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsA woman faces the past she fled in a heart-stirring novel about unforgettable love and indomitable courage by the Amazon Charts bestselling author of The Lighthouse Keeper.Rainey’s grandmother makes a startling Take me home. To Ireland, the country she fled post–World War II. Though they’re inseparably close, Rainey knows few of her grandmother’s secrets...Categorized as:
historical-fiction family coming-of-age friendship fiction historical ww2 20th-century -
![Hello Lighthouse by Sophie Blackall]()
Hello Lighthouse by Sophie Blackall
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsA lavish new picture book from Caldecott-winner Sophie Blackall that will transport readers to the seaside in timeless, nautical splendor!Watch the days and seasons pass as the wind blows, the fog rolls in, and icebergs drift by. Outside, there is water all around...Categorized as:
children family friendship historical-fiction realistic season-summer action-adventure book -
![The Liverpool Matchgirl by Lyn Andrews]()
The Liverpool Matchgirl by Lyn Andrews
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsTHE LIVERPOOL MATCHGIRL is a nostalgic and poignant saga of Liverpool in the years before the First World War from bestselling author Lyn Andrews, not to be missed by readers of Donna Douglas and Dilly Court. Liverpool, 1901. The Tempest family is all but destitute, barely able to put food on the table... -
![New Shoes by Susan Lynn Meyer]()
New Shoes by Susan Lynn Meyer
Rated: 4.42 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsElla Mae is used to wearing her cousin's hand-me-down shoes—but when her latest pair is already too tight, she's thrilled at the chance to get new shoes.But at the shoe store, Ella Mae and her mother have to wait until there are no white customers to serve first...Categorized as:
historical-fiction realistic friendship children family historical children-books fiction -
![A Waltz for Matilda by Jackie French]()
A Waltz for Matilda by Jackie French
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 14 ratings'Once a jolly swagman camped by a Billabong Under the shade of a Coolibah tree And he sang as he watched and waited till his Billy boiled You'll come a‐waltzing Matilda with me...' In 1894, twelve-year-old Matilda flees the city slums to find her unknown father and his farm. But drought grips the land, and the shearers are on strike. Her father has turned swaggie and he's wanted by the troopers...Categorized as:
children coming-of-age friendship historical-fiction action-adventure audiobook book fiction -
![A Daughter’s Return by Josephine Cox]()
A Daughter’s Return by Josephine Cox
Rated: 4.36 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsFlorence Stanville is a woman with a past. When she moves to Guisethorpe on the east coast of England, the townsfolk are intrigued by the glamorous and mysterious stranger. Florence doesn’t care about the gossips – she’s drawn to the peaceful seaside town by the pull of her childhood, when she lived for a brief but happy time with her beloved late mother... -
![Runaway Widow by Dilly Court]()
Runaway Widow by Dilly Court
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsDon’t miss the third book in the heartwarming six-part series from the No.1 Sunday Times bestselling author Dilly Court!When Patricia’s husband dies suddenly, she is left with nothing. At twenty-four she finds herself a penniless widow with nowhere to turn...Categorized as:
family historical-fiction coming-of-age friendship fiction historical holidays industrial-era -
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![Then There Were Five by Elizabeth Enright]()
Then There Were Five by Elizabeth Enright
Rated: 4.26 of 5 stars · 19 ratingsWith Father in Washington and Cuffy, their housekeeper, away visiting a sick cousin, almost anything might happen to the Melendy kids left behind at the Four-Story Mistake. In the Melendy family, adventures are inevitable: Mr...Categorized as:
children family friendship historical-fiction realistic season-summer 20th-century action-adventure -
![Gabrielle by Marie Laberge]()
Gabrielle by Marie Laberge
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsQuébec, 1930. Gabrielle est mariée avec Edward depuis bientôt dix ans. Entre la maison de l’île d’Orléans et celle de la Grande-Allée, elle mène une vie bien remplie, entourée de ses cinq enfants. De toute évidence, il s’agit d’un mariage heureux. Mais cette chose qui devrait être si simple fait pourtant froncer bien des sourcils dans l’entourage de Gabrielle... -
![Swansea Summer by Catrin Collier]()
Swansea Summer by Catrin Collier
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsNewly promoted DI Matt Pryor is disappointed when his first case seems to be a simple death from natural causes - that is, until the post-mortem shows something quite unexpected ... The elderly man who died on a Cardiff train was murdered - poisoned - by one of the other passengers... -
![Little Women by Lucia Monfried, Louisa May Alcott]()
Little Women by Lucia Monfried, Louisa May Alcott
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsReprint. Originally published: New York: Baronet Books, c1989... -
![Orphan Train Girl by Christina Baker Kline]()
Orphan Train Girl by Christina Baker Kline
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThis young readers’ edition of Christina Baker Kline’s #1 New York Times bestselling novel Orphan Train follows a twelve-year-old foster girl who forms an unlikely bond with a ninety-one-year-old woman. Adapted and condensed for a young audience, Orphan Train Girl includes an author’s note and archival photos from the orphan train era... -
![Of Mice and Men by Kevin Hinkle, John Steinbeck]()
Of Mice and Men by Kevin Hinkle, John Steinbeck
Rated: 4.20 of 5 stars · 20 ratings...Categorized as:
coming-of-age historical-fiction realistic book classics fiction historical literary -
![The Bee Tree by Patricia Polacco]()
The Bee Tree by Patricia Polacco
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsWhen Mary Ellen gets bored with her reading, Grandpa knows a hunt for a bee tree is just what she needs. Half the town joins the exciting chase, but it's not until everyone returns home that Mary Ellen makes a discovery of her own: Sometimes, even the sweetest of things must be worked for...Categorized as:
children family friendship historical-fiction realistic season-summer action-adventure animals -
![Blood Sisters by Barbara Keating, Stephanie Keating]()
Blood Sisters by Barbara Keating, Stephanie Keating
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsKenya 1957. During their childhood years in the Kenya Highlands three girls from vastly different backgrounds become blood sisters, promising that nothing will ever destroy the bond between them. But the legacy of the Mau Mau rebellion, and the tensions and upheavals of newly independent Kenya, tear their childhood dreams apart... -
![That Book Woman by Heather Henson]()
That Book Woman by Heather Henson
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsCal is not the readin' type. Living way high up in the Appalachian Mountains, he'd rather help Pap plow or go out after wandering sheep than try some book learning. Nope. Cal does not want to sit stoney-still reading some chicken scratch. But that Book Woman keeps coming just the same. She comes in the rain. She comes in the snow...Categorized as:
children coming-of-age family friendship historical-fiction realistic action-adventure book -
![Sweet Home Alaska by Carole Estby Dagg]()
Sweet Home Alaska by Carole Estby Dagg
Rated: 4.21 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsThis exciting pioneering story, based on actual events, introduces readers to a fascinating chapter in American history, when FDR set up a New Deal colony in Alaska to give loans and land to families struggling during the Great Depression. Terpsichore can’t wait to follow in Laura Ingalls Wilder’s footsteps . . . now she just has to convince her mom...Categorized as:
historical-fiction family children friendship realistic middle-grade fiction children-books -
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![Queenie by Jacqueline Wilson, Finty Williams]()
Queenie by Jacqueline Wilson, Finty Williams
Rated: 4.19 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsIt’s 1953, the year Elizabeth is to be crowned Queen of England. Elsie Kettle can't wait to go to London to see the celebrations on Coronation Day. Elsie lives with her Nan—her mum works as a showgirl, so she's not around very often. Spirited and imaginative, but often lonely, Elsie longs for a best friend... -
![Earl, Honey by D.S. Getson, Denise Getson]()
Earl, Honey by D.S. Getson, Denise Getson
Rated: 4.50 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsEARL HAHN is slow, the last one to catch on to things. Since the day his father hit him in the head with a two-by-four of loblolly pine, he’s struggled with a “thickness in his brain.” It takes him longer to make the connections others arrive at easily. When his father is prosecuted for the crime of incest, it feels like deliverance for Earl, his mother Lizzie Belle and the entire Hahn family... -
![Where the Rivers Merge by Mary Alice Monroe]()
Where the Rivers Merge by Mary Alice Monroe
Rated: 4.38 of 5 stars · 16 ratings"This is book club fiction at its finest!" —Lisa Wingate, #1 New York Times bestselling author From New York Times bestselling author Mary Alice Monroe comes her highly anticipated Where the Rivers Merge, the first of two epic and triumphant novels celebrating one intrepid woman's life across multiple generations in the American South...Categorized as:
historical-fiction coming-of-age family friendship season-summer fiction audiobook historical -
![Outbound Train by Renea Winchester]()
Outbound Train by Renea Winchester
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsIn 1976, memories from a night near the railroad tracks sixteen years earlier haunt Barbara Parker. She wrestles with past demons every night, then wakes to the train’s five-thirty whistle. Exhausted and dreading the day, she keeps her hands busy working in Bryson City’s textile plant, known as the “blue jean plant,” all the while worrying about her teenage daughter, Carole Anne... -
![Born in a Treacherous time by Jacqui Murray]()
Born in a Treacherous time by Jacqui Murray
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsBorn in the harsh world of East Africa 1.8 million years ago, where hunger, death, and predation are a normal part of daily life, Lucy and her band of early humans struggle to survive. It is a time in history when they are relentlessly annihilated by predators, nature, their own people, and the next iteration of man. To make it worse, Lucy’s band hates her... -
![Liverpool Lou by Lyn Andrews]()
Liverpool Lou by Lyn Andrews
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsOne of Lyn Andrews' first eight novels, transferring from the original publisher to Headline; already steady sellers, they will be targeted for a huge increase in sales. Aunt Babsey considered herself a cut above her neighbours on Everton Ridge. For one thing she was 'trade'. She taught her children to be respectable, and she ruled her family with a rod of iron...Categorized as:
coming-of-age family friendship historical-fiction 20th-century adult audiobook book -
![Words Composed of Sea and Sky by Erica George]()
Words Composed of Sea and Sky by Erica George
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsMichaela Dunn dreams of getting into an art school, but when her stepfather refuses to fund a trip there for a poetry workshop, Michaela enters a local contest searching for a poet to write the dedication plaque for a statue honoring Captain Benjamin Churchill, a whaler who died at sea over one hundred years ago...Categorized as:
coming-of-age family historical-fiction realistic season-summer book civil-war fiction -
![Saddle The Wind by Jess Foley]()
Saddle The Wind by Jess Foley
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsLet much loved author Jess Foley sweep you away with this beautifully breathtaking saga of one woman's search for love and fulfilment. Fans of Catherine Cookson, Dilly Court and Katie Flynn will absolutely love this... -
![Cairo Circles by Doma Mahmoud]()
Cairo Circles by Doma Mahmoud
Rated: 4.33 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsWriting instructor at American University in Cairo and NYU MFA graduate Doma Mahmoud's THE DISBELIEVERS, set between Cairo and New York, exploring the stories of three families from different social classes, whose lives are closely intertwined throughout, meditating on the boundaries of free will and questions about class, hedonism, faith, and violence, to Olivia Taylor Smith at Unnamed Press... -
![4 Years Trapped in My Mind Palace by Johan Twiss]()
4 Years Trapped in My Mind Palace by Johan Twiss
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsDiagnosed with a rare form of meningitis, a teenage boy is paralyzed from head to toe--trapped in his own mind. To cope with his imprisonment, he retreats to an imaginary world called his Mind Palace, but the lines between reality and time blur into wild adventures after he gets a new roommate--an old, outspoken, Jewish jazz musician with dementia...Categorized as:
children coming-of-age family friendship historical-fiction 20th-century action-adventure audiobook -
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![The Cheerleader by Ruth Doan MacDougall]()
The Cheerleader by Ruth Doan MacDougall
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsFirst published in 1973 and 1974 by Putnam and Bantam, The Cheerleader was a Book-of-the-Month Club selection, optioned by Twentieth Century-Fox, made into an NBC sitcom pilot, and became a best-seller beloved by generations of readers. p/pThe reprint of this classic coming-of-age novel features a foreword by English professor Ann V...Categorized as:
coming-of-age historical-fiction realistic book children-books fiction historical teens -
![In the Beautiful Country by Jane Kuo]()
In the Beautiful Country by Jane Kuo
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsA novel in verse about a young Taiwanese immigrant to America who is confronted by the stark difference between dreams and reality.Anna can’t wait to move to the beautiful country—the Chinese name for America. Although she’s only ever known life in Taiwan, she can’t help but brag about the move to her family and friends.But the beautiful country isn’t anything like Anna pictured...Categorized as:
historical-fiction realistic coming-of-age children family season-summer middle-grade fiction -
![Light and Air by Mindy Nichols Wendell]()
Light and Air by Mindy Nichols Wendell
Rated: 4.25 of 5 stars · 8 ratingsIt's 1935, and tuberculosis is ravaging the nation. Everyone is afraid of this deadly respiratory illness. But what happens when you actually have it?When Halle and her mother both come down with TB, they are shunned—and then they are sent to the J.N. Adam Tuberculosis far from home, far from family, far from the world...Categorized as:
historical-fiction family friendship coming-of-age children middle-grade fiction children-books -
![Kamala and Maya’s Big Idea by Meena Harris]()
Kamala and Maya’s Big Idea by Meena Harris
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsOne day, Kamala and Maya had an idea. A big idea: they would turn their empty apartment courtyard into a playground!This is the uplifting tale of how the author’s aunt and mother first learned to persevere in the face of disappointment and turned a dream into reality. This is a story of children’s ability to make a difference and of a community coming together to transform their neighborhood... -
![Firehorse by Diane Lee Wilson]()
Firehorse by Diane Lee Wilson
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsWhen fifteen-year-old Rachel is forced to move to Boston in 1872, she is furious. She is also lonely, for her beloved horse, Peaches, has been sold. But Rachel soon finds a horse that needs her, and needs her desperately: The Governor's Girl, a famous firehorse, has been badly burned. Rachel gets permission to care for the Girl in a stable behind her house... -
![Grandfather's Dance by Patricia MacLachlan]()
Grandfather's Dance by Patricia MacLachlan
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 12 ratingsCould anything be more perfect than a prairie wedding? Cassie doesn't think so, for a wedding brings: Two lovebirds together, Aunts from faraway Maine, A long white dress with a wedding veil, Zinnias, Satin ribbons, Dancing under a clear blue sky, And a world that smells of roses...Categorized as:
children coming-of-age family historical-fiction realistic book children-books classics -
![The Wild Girls by Pat Murphy]()
The Wild Girls by Pat Murphy
Rated: 4.14 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsIt is the early 1970s. Twelve-year-old Joan is sure that she is going to be miserable when her family moves from Connecticut to California. Then she meets a most unusual girl. Sarah prefers to be called "Fox" and lives with her author dad in a rundown house in the middle of the woods...Categorized as:
children coming-of-age family friendship historical-fiction realistic season-summer 20th-century -
![I Survived the Eruption of Mount St. Helens, 1980 by Lauren Tarshis, Lauren Tarhis]()
I Survived the Eruption of Mount St. Helens, 1980 by Lauren Tarshis, Lauren Tarhis
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsIt was one the most beautiful mountains in America, Mt. St. Helens, in Washington State. But what many didn't know was that this peaceful mountain had an explosive past. For more than a century, it had been quiet. But below ground, pressure had been building, and soon, "Kaboom!" Mt. St. Helens would erupt with terrifying fury...Categorized as:
children friendship historical-fiction realistic season-summer action-adventure audiobook book -
![The Milly-Molly-Mandy Storybook by Joyce Lankester Brisley]()
The Milly-Molly-Mandy Storybook by Joyce Lankester Brisley
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThe stories of Milly-Molly-Mandy and her family and friends have charmed generations of children since they first appeared in 1925. This collection of twenty-one classic tales about this resourceful and thoughtful little girl reflect with accuracy the dilemmas and challenges of a child's world...Categorized as:
children family friendship historical-fiction realistic 20th-century action-adventure anthologies -
![Emerald Star by Jacqueline Wilson, Nick Sharratt]()
Emerald Star by Jacqueline Wilson, Nick Sharratt
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsA fantastic new adventure for brave, feisty Hetty Feather - one of Jacqueline Wilson's most well-loved characters.Since leaving the Foundling Hospital, Hetty has seen her fair share of drama, excitement, tragedy and loss. After the death of her beloved mama, she sets off to find a real home at last – starting with the search for her father... -
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![Diamond by Jacqueline Wilson, Nick Sharratt]()
Diamond by Jacqueline Wilson, Nick Sharratt
Rated: 4.13 of 5 stars · 16 ratingsThe fantastic new novel from bestselling author Jacqueline Wilson, starring Diamond, the little circus acrobat who first appeared in the hugely popular Hetty Feather books: Hetty Feather, Sapphire Battersea and Emerald Star.Diamond wasn’t always a star. Born to penniless parents who longed for a strong, healthy son, she was a dainty, delicate daughter - and a bitter disappointment...Categorized as:
children family historical-fiction action-adventure book children-books fiction historical -
![Beverly, Right Here by Kate DiCamillo]()
Beverly, Right Here by Kate DiCamillo
Rated: 4.11 of 5 stars · 18 ratingsBeverly put her foot down on the gas. They went faster still.This was what Beverly wanted — what she always wanted. To get away. To get away as fast as she could. To stay away.Beverly Tapinski has run away from home plenty of times, but that was when she was just a kid. By now, she figures, it’s not running away. It’s leaving... -
![Tar Beach by Faith Ringgold]()
Tar Beach by Faith Ringgold
Rated: 4.10 of 5 stars · 20 ratingsRinggold recounts the dream adventure of eight-year-old Cassie Louise Lightfoot, who flies above her apartment-building rooftop, the 'tar beach' of the title, looking down on 1939 Harlem. Part autobiographical, part fictional, this allegorical tale sparkles with symbolic and historical references central to African-American culture. The spectacular artwork resonates with color and texture...Categorized as:
children family friendship historical-fiction realistic season-summer action-adventure black-mc -
![Remember Us by Jacqueline Woodson]()
Remember Us by Jacqueline Woodson
Rated: 4.29 of 5 stars · 14 ratingsNational Book Award winner Jacqueline Woodson brings readers a powerful story that delves deeply into life’s burning questions about time and memory and what we take with us into the future.It seems like Sage’s whole world is on fire the summer before she starts seventh grade. As house after house burns down, her Bushwick neighborhood gets referred to as “The Matchbox” in the local newspaper...Categorized as:
historical-fiction realistic friendship family coming-of-age children season-summer middle-grade -
![The Edge of Nowhere by C.H. Armstrong]()
The Edge of Nowhere by C.H. Armstrong
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsThe year is 1992 and Victoria Hastings Harrison Greene—reviled matriarch of a sprawling family—is dying. After surviving the Oklahoma Dust Bowl and the Great Depression, Victoria refuses to leave this earth before revealing the secrets she’s carried for decades.Once the child of a loving family during peaceful times, a shocking death shattered her life... -
![Betsy's Busy Summer by Carolyn Haywood]()
Betsy's Busy Summer by Carolyn Haywood
Rated: 4.17 of 5 stars · 6 ratingsA long-time favorite series is brought back with the first book of the Betsy Series. Betsy's Busy Summer finds Betsy and her friends in the summerhouse for fun and games all summer long...Categorized as:
children friendship realistic season-summer children-books classics fiction historical
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