Posted on Aug 6, 2023
Hop in the minivan: 'Summer Is for Cousins' invites you on a family vacation
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https://www.npr.org/2023/08/05/ [login to see] /summer-is-for-cousins-picture-book
For Ravi, summer means beach days, long hikes, paddle boarding and ice cream. It means going to a big house by the water with his mom, dad, two uncles, two aunties, Thatha and Pati, and six cousins.
Ravi loves summer vacation with his family. But this year, he's also a little worried: His older cousin Dhruv is the only other boy. And this year, Dhruv is taller, his voice is deeper, and what if he's forgotten about all the things he and Ravi used to share? Like their favorite flavor of ice cream (banana)?
Rajani LaRocca says Summer Is for Cousins was inspired by vacations with her own 10 cousins in India.
For Ravi, summer means beach days, long hikes, paddle boarding and ice cream. It means going to a big house by the water with his mom, dad, two uncles, two aunties, Thatha and Pati, and six cousins.
Ravi loves summer vacation with his family. But this year, he's also a little worried: His older cousin Dhruv is the only other boy. And this year, Dhruv is taller, his voice is deeper, and what if he's forgotten about all the things he and Ravi used to share? Like their favorite flavor of ice cream (banana)?
Rajani LaRocca says Summer Is for Cousins was inspired by vacations with her own 10 cousins in India.
Hop in the minivan: 'Summer Is for Cousins' invites you on a family vacation
Posted from npr.org
Children
Reading
Family
Tradition
India
Posted 9 mo ago
Responses: 2
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PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."That level of detail, LaRocca says, is what makes readers relate to the story. "The more specific you are, the more that you make people feel like these are real people, the more universal it becomes. Because people say, 'Oh, that's kind of like me!' Or, 'I know somebody like that.' "
One day, the cousins take turns on the rope swing at the lake. Last year, Ravi was too afraid — but this year he gives it a try. And that's when he realizes that he's growing up, too. Just like his big cousin Dhruv. "Dhruv is my big cousin," LaRocca writes. "But now I'm bigger, too." It's bittersweet, in a way.
"Isn't it funny you can be nostalgic as a kid, too," LaRocca says. "That's a special moment in a child's life where they realize that they're also getting bigger and that brings all kinds of emotions with it."
LaRocca says the message she hopes kids take away from this book is that families grow and change, and so does the love they share.
Some things don't have to change, though. In the end, Ravi is happy to learn that banana is still Dhruv's favorite flavor of ice cream, after all."
..."That level of detail, LaRocca says, is what makes readers relate to the story. "The more specific you are, the more that you make people feel like these are real people, the more universal it becomes. Because people say, 'Oh, that's kind of like me!' Or, 'I know somebody like that.' "
One day, the cousins take turns on the rope swing at the lake. Last year, Ravi was too afraid — but this year he gives it a try. And that's when he realizes that he's growing up, too. Just like his big cousin Dhruv. "Dhruv is my big cousin," LaRocca writes. "But now I'm bigger, too." It's bittersweet, in a way.
"Isn't it funny you can be nostalgic as a kid, too," LaRocca says. "That's a special moment in a child's life where they realize that they're also getting bigger and that brings all kinds of emotions with it."
LaRocca says the message she hopes kids take away from this book is that families grow and change, and so does the love they share.
Some things don't have to change, though. In the end, Ravi is happy to learn that banana is still Dhruv's favorite flavor of ice cream, after all."
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