Customer Reviews

Sand Dollar Summer

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I read this before cataloging it for our young adult collection. What a wonderful book!. It starts smoothly and pulls you in immediately. All of the characters are people you care about and want to have good things happen to. The dialogue is believable and the setting, particularly Fiddle Island is well developed and sure seems like Maine.
There are several minor mysteries; why did Lise and Free's father leave, what happened between Michael and their mother when they were young, what connection does Ben have to Lise and Free? The descriptions and dialogue do a wonderful job of allowing you to look behind the interactions between the characters. One aspect I really liked was Lise's fear of the sea which almost makes the Atlantic Ocean become another character in the book. This is one I will strongly suggest as a great summer read to my young adult library patrons.

I'm 12 years old and I love to read. This book was a great book! I couldn't put it down! I reccomend this book for kids 10 and up. There are some places in the book that would put a child under the age of 10 into confusion. There are a lot of life lessons in this book. But there are also some times where they swear or where something very sad or diffucult to understand will happen. Amazing writing and sentances that will just make you gasp!!! I loved it and i deffiantly reccomend you to read it! Its a real page turner!!

I've read about 40 children's books in the last three months as part of a library-related project. This book stands out as the very best children's book I have read recently and one that I'd highly recommend to all children in grades 5-8. Some of it is predictable, but you won't care since you are enjoying this book so much and you care about the characters. The story is well written and a wonderful debut book for this author. I look forward to reading more of her work.

This is one of those books you'll go "ahhhh" to after setting it down. If you model your thinking as you do a read aloud with your kids, this one would be great. It would also be a great lit circle book. My only warning is that an adult says the "s" word twice....so be prepared to have your kids handle that maturely. Loved it!!!

Wow! I never knew that somebody I know would write a novel for kids that is so good! I am 11, but this story is for everyone. I read this in two hours one afternoon, because I couldn't put it down. Buy this book and you'll see!

Seriously, this author writes better than the majority of popular adult fiction writers I have read lately. This is a real pager turner, very believable characters and engrossing. Can't wait for another from the author!

If you want to be on the edge of your seat then you should read Sand Dollar Summer by Kimberly K. Joens. It's a fun, entertaining, and a adventures book. The main character is Lise. She goes to the beach for the summer and she is terrified of the depths of the ocean. It's a great and stunning book. If you want to read a good book then you should read Sand Dollar Summer.
Twelve year old Lise and her brother Free go to the beach in Spain. They go there because their mom gets into a car wreck. For the whole summer she takes Lise and Free to a house on the beach. Lise is terrified of the depths of the water. Free enjoys the ocean but Lise doesn't. She makes a lot of friends along the way. If you want to find out what happens; then you should read Sand Dollar Summer.
My favorite part of the book is when Lise goes on the boat with her mom, her mom's doctor whose name is Michael and her little brother Free. Her mom and Michael were best friends growing up and they go to an island that they went to all the time when they were younger. They began to tell a story. It was a true story. This is the story. There was a girl that lived on an island. Who lived alone. Lise's mother and Michael used to come and bring her food and they said she would make root beer for them when they came with food. It was fun to find out what happened when Michael and Lise's mom were kids. If you want to find out what happens next then you should read Sand Dollar Summer.
The most important part of the book is t hat Lise helps people out and makes friends learn that you should never break rules. You should also not be scared of the depths of the water because there really isn't anything in the ocean.
Another book by Kimberly K. Joens is the The Genie Scheme. It's rated four and a half stars. Right now on Amazon it's only $4.99 and is worth the money. If you've already read The Genie Scheme and liked it then you should definitely read Sand Dollar Summer.
I would definitely recommend this book for 10 and 11 year olds, but I think any age would enjoy it. It's a fourth grade reading level so it might be easy for some, but hard for others. If you want to read a great book then you should read Sand Dollar Summer.

All of the reviews for this book are spot on. I checked this book out from my library on a whim, and I am certainly glad I did. The characters in the book are believable and you find yourself caring for their well-being throughout the story. There are so many life lessons the main character learned throughout her journey and I appreciate the way the author wrote the lessons in an understandable manner for middle-school readers. I highly recommend giving this book to anyone dealing with a life-altering change or even a death in the family. It brings great perspective and opens a lot of pathways for discussion and potential healing, and it does so in an unassuming and tender manner. This is definitely a book to have on hand and it is an absolute joy to read. I highly recommend this book.

Sand Dollar Summer....just the best book I have ever read! Really!! My mother bought it for me and I really didn't want to read it, but when I started, I just couldn't put it down. I finished it in four nights! The characters were so interesting and really different. My favorite characters Lise and Ben were so real. I felt like I was in the book and these characters were my friends - I learned so much about them and how they beacame friends, overcame their fears, and learned to find the positive in the negative.

This is one of the best tween books I've read recently. I'm glad I didn't read the summary ahead of reading the book, though, as it spoils the story.