Author: Michele Weber Hurwitz
AR Level: 3.5
Lexile Level: 530L
Interest Level: 6th to 8th grade
Awards and Recognition: Sunshine State Young Readers Award nominee 2016-2017
Book Summary: Thirteen year old, Nina, still mourning her beloved grandmother's death, is inspired by her grandmother's "Simple Truths" theory that good things happen when they are supposed to. This, combined with her 8th grade teacher's last words before summer, "It's the ordinary things that go unnoticed that end up making a difference," convinces Nina the time for good things to happen is now. Her goal is to perform 65 good deeds before summer's end without anyone knowing. While Nina is busy fixing everyone else's problems, her problems seem to be piling up. Her parents are never available, her brother is always M.I.A., the neighbors are getting suspicious, and her best friend Jorie only has time for her when the more popular kids aren't around. But worst of all, Jorie has a mission of her own: Score a date with Nina's secret crush, Eli, for homecoming.
Book Review: The Summer I Saved the World in 65 Days has little to object to. It's a story of a good kid doing good things, while managing her own teen relatable problems. The language is clean, the actions of most the kids are reasonable, and the only things parents might be uncomfortable with are two kisses between 13 year olds.
Profanity: None
Potentially Inappropriate Behaviors:
Kissing in the park
Kissing in the street
Teens break into a vacant house to hang out.
Nina lies to her parents.
Potentially Inappropriate References: None
Parental Concern:
1 out of 5
