Here are five books where the story takes place on a Northern island. There are no tropical breezes, only cool, blustery Atlantic weather and shorter days. It is time to think about summer reading, and these titles will help to while away quiet afternoons or evenings when the lawns are mowed, dishes are washed, and a book is just the thing. As every good fiction reader knows, characters that land on an island must be about to have an adventure, with or without pirates….

Katie Morag and the Big Boy Cousins by Mairi Hedderick c 1987 Random House Children’s Books : London This edition printed by Red Fox Books in 1999.

Katie Morag’s grandmother, who is known on the Isle of Struay, Scotland as Grannie Island, has invited a batch of Katie’s boy cousins for a visit. The cousins are full of mischievous pranks and out-of-bounds behavior that make the other islanders dread their annual appearance. Katie, however, is looking forward to some fun. How will Grannie Island handle this wild bunch?

Mairi Hedderwick paints the skies, sandy beaches, and small villages of an island in the Inner Hebrides for young readers. The Isle of Struay is based on the actual Isle of Coll. There are more adventures with Katie Morag to be had for readers ages 5-9.

The Pye family, including their famous dog Ginger and smart cat Gracie are headed off to Fire Island for the summer. Father Pye, a renowned ornithologist, has been asked by Washington to investigate the very unusual sighting of a puffin by a reliable bird watcher on Fire Island. The bird watcher agrees to rent a cottage to the Pyes for a reasonable price, so Mr. and Mrs. Pye, Jerry age ten, Rachel age nine, their small Uncle Bennie age three, their pets, and piles of luggage are soon waiting for the ferry that will take them to the island.

Soon after their arrival the Pyes add a kitten named Pinky, for her raspberry pink tongue, to the family. Pinky is the only cat ever known to possess the ability to type. Her messages are some of the best parts of the book.

The authors words: As typed by Pinky… ” The String Bean Game”

• a. This important game HAS to be played with someone.
• b. Go to the icebox , sit in front of it, say “Woe,” and Pye, or whoever you own will come. Pye will understand what you want, for you will have the eager string bean game expression on your face.
• c. Now, crouch and wiggle This means you are ready for the throw.
• d. Now. He throws Bean. Tear after it as though you have been shot out of a cannon. People are always surprised to see how fast you can get going without having to gather speed. Never let speed be ungathered. Race after Bean, bring it back and lay it at Pye’s feet. He throws Bean again. Race after it again. and if it has gone around a corner, knock recklessly into a wall as you make the speedy turn. Pick it up and trot back with it……….”Hurray!” the people will exclaim noisily. “She retrieves like a dog!” What nonsense! Dogs retrieve like dogs—huff, huff, pant. Cats retrieve like cats and bring variety to the game.

There is a mystery to be solved among other island events. Gracie the cat wants very much to gain entrance to the eaves to investigate. Everything that is good in a middle-grade book exists in this summer story. Give it a try.

Seacrow Island by Astrid Lindgren. c1964. This edition published 2016 by Oxford University Press

The author’s words:

“If you go down to the quay in Stockholm on a summer morning and see a little white boat called Seacrow I lying there, that is the right boat to take and all you have to do is to go on board…….She crosses wide expanses of open water and steams through narrow channels, past hundreds of green islands and thousands of grey, bare rocks. She does not go fast and the sun is low when at last she reaches the quay at Seacrow Island. She has no need to go any further, for there is only the open sea beyond with its bare rocks and its islands where nobody lives except eider ducks, gulls and other sea birds.”

The Melkerson family is on their way to summer at a place they have never been before. Melker, the father, has rented a cottage sight unseen because he liked the name Seacrow Island. His family consists of Malin, his nineteen-year-old daughter and three sons, Johan, Niklas, and Pelle. Pelle is the youngest and he is seven. Will the unknown Carpenter’s Cottage turn out to be cozy? What is there to do on such a remote and quiet island? The Melkerson’s adventures are about to begin as they learn about sailing, fishing and the wildlife all around them. Ever since their mother died, the brothers hope that the young men who fall in love with Malin every quarter hour will not marry her and take her away. She is the support and heart of the family. New friends and interesting characters are always to be found in a story by Astrid Lindgren. This book has been a favorite in Sweden for generations of readers.

Pine Island Home by Polly Horvath. c2020 Holiday House

The adults in the lives of the McCready sisters have selfishly and thoughtlessly allowed themselves to be carried off by tsunamis and heart attacks, leaving the girls orphaned and alone. Fiona fourteen, Marlin, twelve, Natasha, ten, and Charlie, eight, have been raised in a missionary family and have learned to adjust to living in all sorts of places, but now they face new challenges at their Aunt Martha’s farm on an island in British Columbia, Canada. Fortunately Aunt Martha left them the farm, money, and a kitchen fully stocked with food, and even enrolled them in the local schools. The sisters are determined to hide the absence of a responsible adult from Social Services because they fear being separated. After all they have been through, that would be unendurable.

The McCready girls are a match for difficulties that would defeat less talented and intelligent children. Fiona makes a deal with cranky neighbor Al Farber to pose as their guardian in exchange for hot homecooked meals prepared by Marlin who is quickly becoming a proficient cook. The story of how the girls learn to cope is the main theme of this story, the island location is secondary. Helpful adults do turn up, and the strong bond between the sisters is reassuring. Tune in to the sequel, “Pine Island Visitors” for more Polly Horvath magic.

The Summer Book by Tove Jansson c1972 This edition published by The New York Review of Books in 2008.

This one is for the grown-ups. The setting is a tiny island in the Gulf of Finland. Six-year old Sophia, her father and grandmother are sharing a small cottage for the summer. There is no plot to follow, just the passage of a season on the island. Each chapter is a slice of life episode with weather, nature, an occasional visitor, and conversations between the child and her grandmother as the main events. Sound too quiet? Here are the authors words about a tremendous storm that broke as the family were fishing away from their own island:

“Papa broke the padlock on the door with a big stone. He did it to save his family. ……………….The walls of the house trembled steadily with the thundering of the sea, and it began to get cold. Spume from the breakers covered the windowpanes and ran over the sill and across the floor. Every now and then Papa would get up and go out to see to the boat.

The seas breaking against the sheer outer side of the island had grown. One after another, the waves rose up in their white immensity to a tremendous height, and foam hissed against the rocks like the blows of a whip. Tall curtains of water flew across the island and sailed on west. The storm was titanic!”

Islanders do not always welcome those who build large new houses that mar the view. Here are the author’s words when Sophia and Grandmother get caught checking out the new neighbor’s island and are invited in:

“Don’t look so cross,” Grandmother whispered. “This is socializing and you have to learn how to do it.” Malander came back with bottles and glasses and put them on the table. “Cognac, he said. “And whiskey. But I’m sure you’d rather have a lemonade. “I’m very fond of cognac,” Grandmother said. “A small glass and no water, thank you. Sophia? What would you like?”

“The other!” Sophia hissed in her ear. “Sophia would prefer a lemonade.” Grandmother said, and thought: We’ve got to teach her some manners. We’ve made a mistake. She has to spend more time with people she doesn’t like, before it’s too late.”

Sophia and her Grandmother talk about life, death, heaven, hell, and what happens when an angleworm gets cut in half. They build a miniature Venice, trade a cat that kills birds for a boring, soft lap cat, and have arguments. You are given the flavors, scenery, and essence of a Northern Island to dwell in and remember after this slim book ends. I recommend a second reading, maybe more.