Middle Grade Books About Jewish Summer Camp
We’re so excited to offer The Sun Will Come Out by beloved PJ Our Way author Joanne Levy just as many readers are getting ready to spend the summer at overnight camp. Since the first Jewish camp opened in the United States in 1893, sleepaway camp has been an important part of the American Jewish experience. According to the Museum of Jewish Heritage, the first “Jewish overnight camps fostered community, allowed freedom to openly observe Jewish customs and religious rites, and acted as a counter to the pressures of assimilation faced by many American Jews at the time.”
Here at the Harold Grinspoon Foundation, we love camp! Our JCamp 180 program provides grants, consulting, training and resources to over 140 camps across the country. In addition, PJ Our Way has five fantastic books about the adventure and excitement of summer camp.
Noah Green Saves the World
by Laura Toffler-Corrie
Ages 10+
Noah’s summer is turning into the wildest ever! Instead of film camp, his parents are sending him to … Camp Challah?! Plus, his wacky grandfather keeps sending him messages by carrier pigeon, and now the Rottweilers are after him! How will he ever finish making his movie?
OyMG
by Amy Fellner Dominy
Ages 11+
There is nothing Ellie Taylor loves more than a good argument! But is the Christian Society Speech and Performing Arts Camp the best place for a Jewish girl to speak her mind?
The Path of Names
by Ari Goelman
Ages 10+
Dahlia's bunkmates at summer camp think she's super strange. She sees ghosts walk through walls and she's beginning to think she's possessed! If only Dahlia could have gone to math camp…
Shabbat Sabotage
by Emma Carlson Berne
Ages 9+
It's Maya's first time at summer camp and she's got a secret she'd rather her bunkmates didn't find out about. But she's not the only one hiding something…
The Sun Will Come Out
by Joanne Levy
Ages 10+
11-year-olds Bea and Frankie have been planning their first summer at Camp Shalom forever. But then Frankie gets into horse camp! How will Bea replace her best friend for a whole summer?