Avery and Bett aren’t thrilled to be attending camp with each other but they end up having more fun than they expected and become best friends. In honor of their friendship, I paired up with my real life best friend Hallie @ Book Loaner (the Avery to my Bett) for this blog tour.
ABOUT THE BOOK:
“From two extraordinary authors comes a moving, exuberant, laugh-out-loud novel about friendship and family, told entirely in emails and letters.
Avery Bloom, who’s bookish, intense, and afraid of many things, particularly deep water, lives in New York City. Bett Devlin, who’s fearless, outgoing, and loves all animals as well as the ocean, lives in California. What they have in common is that they are both twelve years old, and are both being raised by single, gay dads.
When their dads fall in love, Bett and Avery are sent, against their will, to the same sleepaway camp. Their dads hope that they will find common ground and become friends–and possibly, one day, even sisters.
But things soon go off the rails for the girls (and for their dads too), and they find themselves on a summer adventure that neither of them could have predicted. Now that they can’t imagine life without each other, will the two girls (who sometimes call themselves Night Owl and Dogfish) figure out a way to be a family?”
Published by Dial Books on February 12, 2019
Bett and Avery do tons of fun activities while they’re at camp and we’re sharing some camp activities inspired by the book. You can do these activities with your class, scout troop, or kids after you read the book! Here’s our ideas:
1. S’more bar: It’s no secret that s’mores are the ultimate camp food, that you can enjoy anywhere. Bett and Avery have totally different tastes, so a s’more bar full of all sorts of toppings is a perfect homage to their unique personalities. You can incorporate all sorts of chocolates, cookies/crackers, spreads (I think Bett would totally be a Nutella fan!), nuts, fruit, and different flavored marshmallows!
2. DIY mood necklaces: The camp that the girls attend is full of crafts & STEM projects, so obviously a sciencey DIY is a must. Avery and Bett often have a hard time reading each other’s moods, and get into a few arguments along the way, so creating mood necklaces would be a perfect activity that also lets you learn about thermodynamics. You can purchase jewelry findings & heat-sensitive liquid crystal sheets online for this project (The Sorry Girls on YouTube have a great tutorial!).
3. Geocaching: Here’s a fun activity that uses technology to help you explore the outdoors solo or as a group! Geocaching is a free app that takes you on a scavenger hunt via coordinates & directions to find real-life “caches” that have been stealthily hidden by other app users. I could totally see Bett using Geocaching to trick Avery into going on a wild adventure!
4. Picture frame yarn-wrapping: Avery and Bett leave camp with lots of special memories, and what better way to celebrate that than with a personalized picture frame? We love the idea of wrapping a frame in colorful yarn, but if you’re not feeling that, you can also decorate it with washi tape, or just about anything else! If you want to personalize it even more, you can cut your own frame out of cardboard in a fun shape.
5. DIY dip-dyed stationery: To Night Owl From Dogfish is told entirely in letters & emails between Bett and Avery (with a few other characters thrown in!), and the book definitely makes you want to send a letter to your BFF. Dip-dyed stationery is an easy DIY that you can do with all different ages, and all you need is paper, fabric dye, water, & a bowl. Poppytalk has an easy tutorial you can use.
I’ll be sending my dip-dyed card to Hallie @ Book Loaner! Check out her blog to see what she’ll be sending me and for even more camp activities inspired by To Night Owl From Dogfish!
Thank you to Dial Books for the free review copy.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS:
Holly Goldberg Sloan was born in Ann Arbor, Michigan and spent her childhood living in Holland; Istanbul, Turkey; Washington, D.C.; Berkeley, California; and Eugene, Oregon. After graduating from Wellesley College and spending some time as an advertising copywriter, she began writing family feature films, including Angels in the Outfield and Made in America. She is the author of the NYT bestsellers Counting by 7s and Short, among others.
Meg Wolitzer was born in Brooklyn, New York, grew up in the town of Syosset, on Long Island, and sold her first novel, Sleepwalking, while a senior in college. She is the New York Times-bestselling author of numerous novels for adults, including The Interestings, The Ten-Year Nap, The Wife, and The Female Persuasion; the young adult novel Belzhar; and the middle-grade novel The Fingertips of Duncan Dorfman.
Books. Libraries. Also, cats. 
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