Nerd Camp by Elissa Brent Weissman
What a fun story!! You're going to love Gabe. He's a very bright kid who is super excited to be going to sleepaway camp - at the Summer Center for Gifted Enrichment. The twist comes when he meets his soon-to-be-step-brother Zack - who is cool - and who doesn't even like to read and thinks nerds are 'weird' ... 'You can't be on a math team and be cool!'
Gabe starts to wonder if he is 'just' a nerd - if that's all he is. He also wants to hide his true self from Zack. The camp is 6 weeks long and Gabe meets some great new friends and has all kinds of fun and adventures. He keeps track of his acitvities in a chart - trying to discover if he is 'a nerd who only has nerdy adventures'. His wry comments and insights will crack you up!
Another thing I really liked with this story was the relationship between the kids and their adults - positive relationships all around. Awesome! :)
You're going to love going on this journey of discovery and fun with Gabe - he's a great kid!
I only did one week of overnight camp - & I hated pretty much every minute. My friend got sick and couldn't go. No fun being the lonely shy kid! How about you? Did you like overnight camps?
46 comments:
I have never been to camping things but if there ever was a Summer Centre for Gifted Enrichment - I'd have gone! LOL!!
Thanks for the intro and review of this book - love how this is Gabe's journey of self discovery! Take care
x
Sounds like a fun book!
I did go to summer camp when I was a kid. I had mixed feelings. But I went with friends, so that part was fun.
I went to one week long overnight camp and had a great time.
This sounds like a fun book. I bet lots of kids could relate to Gabe's experiences.
Sounds like a fun book!
I have to admit that I'm one of those people who loved camp. I went as a camper every year for a week, then worked at summer camp for four years as a teenager. Now my kids have avidly attended for years, and my oldest worked there last summer. I think summer camp is one of those things that you either love or you hate.
I have enough geek in me that I would've hated the camping as well!
Old Kitty - it's such a fun story! Gabe is a great character :)
Elizabeth - I think having friends with you would make a difference!
Natalie - I agree. One of the boys in my class is reading it now and loving it! :)
Beth - it is fun! I agree - my sister loved the camp & couldn't wait to go back. Not me!! :)
Alex - I love sports and swimming and all the rest, but it was a miserable week for me!
Overnight camps used to strike fear into my heart! The first few nights were the worst, and then I got used to it.
Love the title of the book.
I never went to summer camps, so I made sure my kids did. However, they didn't like it much. :) So I let them choose if they wanted to do it again.
I may have the perfect reader for this one - a grandson who loves camping/going to camp but is also a straight A student whose favorite after school activity is a robotic program.
I didn't have the chance to do any as a kid but my own children loved their camps. None of them got homesick, but what a great idea to have a 'nerd' camp.
I did Brownies camp in the cabins of Northern Ontario. The mosquitos were killer! Honestly, it was not my favourite event. I also like to read books when the relationships are good between adults and kids.
Never was a fan of camping trips at any age...I at least require a camper or cabin with a comfortable bed. All the rest of the camping experience is great.
I like this idea of featuring middle grade (and also YA) books. There are so many good ones out there we're not hearing about.
Sounds like a good read. I hated going away from home when I was a kid. I was such a Mummy's girl. And I've never, ever slept in a tent. *shudders*
Never been to a summer camp but this book sounds like fun!
Nutschell
www.thewritingnut.com
Sounds like a cool book. Great cover. Thanks for sharing about it.
I remember doing winter camp when I was in 6th grade. Was gone for 5 days/4 nights. It was fun. Also did winter camp as a counselor my senior year. We got lost on the survival hike!
Sounds adorable! I'm sure I'd identify with the "nerd". ;D
Talli - my parents couldn't have gotten me to go back for anything! :)
Teresa - good plan. My sister went back again, but not me! :)
Linda - sounds like he would LOVE this book. It's such a fun story!
Susan - your kids sound much more outgoing than I ever was - good for them!
Lynn - those mosquitos can be unreal!! It was so nice to read a book with positive relationships between kids/parents!!
Pat - I agree. I love Shannon's idea to spotlight those MG books. I liked camping for a while - but the setup is so crazy I got turned off it. :)
Rosalind - we camped for several years in a tent - it's not as bad as you think, but I'd still rather not do it again!!
Nutschell - it really is a fun read :)
Susanne - that's not so good! Glad you got found again! I've only done winter camp once or twice - it's fun too :)
Lisa - me too! :)
I've heard so much about this one -- I really have to read this!
Andrea - it's such a fun book! :)
This looks a bright and perky book which relates to kid's fears. I think the first overnight camp is dreaded by many a child!
I never went camping. I always wanted to go. I feel like I missed out on something.
This sounds like a great read.
Yeah, I loved overnight camps! I could munch all the candy on the cool without my parents pitching a fit and get away with other things I couldn't at home. lol
Denise - it is! I think any kids reading this will be excited about camp by the end!
Medeia - It appeals to a lot of kids, but I had a lot more fun camping with my family! :)
Jeremy - too funny! I remember camp being super-regulated - every moment accounted for and not much freedom or treats at all. Glad you enjoyed though! :)
I only got to go to sleepover camp for one night as part of a class trip. I think I liked it okay, but my entire class was there so I already knew everybody.
Susan - that doesn't sound too bad. I didn't know a soul and being over the top shy didn't help! :)
I'm a somewhat unsociable homebody, so camps never turn out well for me. At all. In fact, the last camp I went to, I ended up getting sick and having to come home--and I've never been so grateful for feeling awful. It just ended up being one of those weird blessings...
Nerd Camp sounds fun! I think I'd quite like Gabe. And the fact that he charts his activities to check for nerdiness is pure gold. (:
Jenna - I'm a homebody too - definitely part of the sleep away camp issue!!
Gabe is an awesome character - such a sweetie :)
That looks really cute.
I never went away to camp...until High school for band. (plz, no band camp jokes) LOL
I used to love camp! Funny remembering that, because now, my idea of roughing it is the Hilton. But camp was about so much more than camping. It was relationships, and trying new things, evolving. It's such a great MG topic! :)
Always love these posts!
Martina
Sounds really cute.
I did a camp a couple times with my grandparents' church group, but never a summer camp for kids. Thank God!
Wonderful read for the kids.
Overnight camp ? Not really my thing. Though I did go once or twice as a teenager...
Jennifer - teehee! I didn't join the band in high school although I played clarinet in elementary school. Wish I had continued with it!
Martina - thanks! I loved all the sports at camp - just not the whole thing *sigh* Wish I'd been more outgoing!!
Diane - Yup! I think it's either a love it or hate it kind of deal!!
Michelle - it really is! We did camping with our family and that was great & we took our own kids a lot but those week long camps were so not my thing!
Sounds like a lovely book for kids. Thanks for posting about it.
Nas
Nas - you're welcome. It really is a terrific book!
I'll keep my eyes open for Nerd Camp. It sounds like a good book to read/study...
Sharon - it really is! The boy who's reading it in class right now keeps laughing out loud! :)
This sounds like a fun, sweet book kind of story. I'm adding it to my list.
Jack - it really is! I thoroughly enjoyed it :)
I've been to three summer camps as a kid and loved every minute of the. Good luck to Elissa and Nerd Camp.
This reminds me I need to get moving on my children's author series for the holiday season.
Stephen - you must have been a lot more outgoing that I was! :) Sounds like a good series!
Sounds like a really great book for kids. I never did an overnight camp, but I think I may have been a nerd :)
Carol - nothing wrong with that!! As this book is proud to point out :)
Too funny, I tried to convince my daughter to buy this one in the book store the other week. I love the title! I read a few pages too. Looks like something I'd enjoy! (Sadly, not my daughter though.)
Jean - it is a fun one! But kids know what they want!! :)
The kids at our school go on a trip in 6th grade for a week of camping. This sounds like good ramp up material.
Leslie - wow! You have some great teachers who are willing to volunteer that much time! I bet the kids love it!!
Post a Comment