At 8 years old my favorite book was Harriet the Spy (with The Plant That Ate Dirty Socks running in close second). I read it over and over until the spine was completely creased and pages started falling out. The story is about Harriet, an eleven year old aspiring writer who spies on her neighbors and classmates to sharpen up her observational skills for her writing. She sneaks through her upscale New York district snooping and eavesdropping, then writing her observations in her trusty Spy Journal. In the end Harriet learns a valuable lesson but the fun part of the book was when she was spying on the neighborhood.

If you’re looking for any fun summer reads for kids this one may do the trick.