The Night Before Summer Vacation

by Natasha Wing, Julie Durrell (Illustrator)

SOFT COVER

Genres: Picture Books, Summer, Family, Childrens, Poetry, Fiction, School

29 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2002

About the author

Why am I a writer? When I was a young girl, I wanted to be a teacher. I’d line up my stuffed animals in front of a board and teach them the alphabet and how to count. In high school I wanted to be a tennis player. I was on the tennis team, and played at our neighborhood tennis club. Then in college I thought digging dinosaur bones would be a cool job. It wasn’t until I was working at my own public relations agency that I decided I really wanted to write children’s books. I was so inspired by the magic of reading a book that I wanted to see if my active imagination could create magical moments for kids all over the world. I started to write, then sent my stories to publishers, and sold my first manuscript in 1992. I’ve been writing ever since.

Why I write now.

I love the freedom of being my own boss, of coming up with ideas on my own and writing that first draft to see if my idea has any spark. I’m not so crazy about the revising process although there are thrilling moments when I figure out a better way to say something, or when I nail dialog, or work through a complicated plot line. The most exciting moment is when an editor says they want to publish my manuscript. Then I know all my hard work has paid off, and that soon, children will enter my imaginative world through a book.

Reviews

[Tina]

Since July is a typical time for Summer vacation for many families I decided to read another one from this popular children’s series. The story continues in the rhyming style of the original poem, “The Night Before Christmas.” A family plans and prepares for their journey the night before. The little girl helps and her excitement builds as the family reminisces about vacations past. The pictures are colourful and will add further excitement for young children. The ending is cute. You can’t forget the most important member of the family 🐶😉

Reading this made me a little wistful as I recalled the many summer vacations with my own kids when they were little. My copy was gifted to my son from his nursery school and includes a lovely little note.

[Calista]

Another variation on the Night before Christmas. The family is getting ready for their summer vacation. The art work did it's job. The rhymes are good and memories of going on vacation surface while reading this.

The nephew gave this 3 stars. He thought is was poopy and after asking what he means he said he liked it. (He's in a poopy phase).

[Amber Lewis]

I really enjoyed reading this book. It is about a girl and her family who are getting ready to go on a trip for summer vacation, and all of the crazy problems they run into. The story's detailed illustrations coincide with the text that is on the page. It is written in a rhyming pattern, and I would use this format to discuss the words that rhyme together on each page. I would use this book with first or second graders at the beginning of the school year, and have the student connect with the text. Students could write a story about their summer vacation using a rhyming pattern, then illustrate their story.

[April]

very cute book!

[Andrea]

I've read several of these and it looks as if they'll only ever be 2 stars, just okay and nothing more. The illustrations are okay, simple and sketchy, a simple drawing style that just gets the job done.

It read like one big list, which is accurate because at one point her dad was making a checklist of items to bring. The family gathered backpacks, tents, the makings for s'mores, a canoe, the dog bowls.

I thought it was a really clever use of words to match the original poem but not too closely. She was really creative here and I liked that she didn't just rip off the original words.
"Down from the attic our suitcases came,
Mom whistled and shouted as if reffing a game:
"In bathing suits! In flip-flops! In sunblock and hats!
In flashlight! In lounge chairs! And Wiffle Ball bats!
To the top of the pile! To the top of the heap!
Now pack away! Pack away! Five layers deep!"

Besides the wiffle ball which was really random, this was my favorite rhyming of the whole book and I wish it all had this creative feel. I wish it had been an item we can all relate to, something more appropriate to bring on a trip.

She mentioned that they filled the shell, and showed this big storage compartment on top of the car. I didn't know that's what those things were called. But it's weird it swelled with their stuff because I thought those were hard plastic, not a pliable material that can expand to fit things.

They busted out the scrapbooks with pics of vacations past, and I thought that was a different thing to do, but kind of nice. They went to a museum of toasts, which was totally a bad idea. Imagine how boring that would be! Only so it could rhyme with roller coasters in the next line.

One thing I've noticed about each of her books that I've read and that is a big problem is that at multiple points she blatantly rips off the words of Clement C. Moore and doesn't even try to change the wording when it would be so easy to do so. I find it lazy and taking the easy out and I don't go for people taking another author's words. It's bad enough when the whole book is set to the rhythm and rhymes of someone else's work but it's unacceptable that whole lines and phrasing are taken.
"Visions of marshmallows danced in our heads." Another verb couldn't have been used?

"Then a few moments later there arose such a clatter, we ran to the window to see what was the matter.
When what to our wondering eyes should appear, but Dad, the camper, and a long trail of gear! He chuckled and said, "Let's hit the road before our camper decides to explode!"
There could be so much creativity and then she'd throw it away and seem like not even try. It feels like every book has the line "arose such a clatter" and running to the window, and wondering eyes. It's not okay.

I couldn't believe the family woke up at 3:45 in the morning. What kind of a vacation is that? That's punishment! And the trip was 10 hours long!

Sadly, poor Pete was forgotten in the rush and the girl realized it as they went down the road. Poor dog! How do you forget your dog? They went back and stopped in the road, opened the door and the cute littly doggy jumped inside and all was well again.

The dog looked so cute prancing through the yard carrying his food bowl in his mouth. A picture of them at the beach when it rained the whole week showed the girl grabbing onto a towel that was blowing away, and the little dog caught it with his mouth and that was cute. The family put together a puzzle and the dog sat under the table. He was sleeping on the boy's bed with one paw over his snout. Adorable! He definitely added a cute touch to the pages he was on.

I liked the last lines "I heard Jimmy ask, as we drove out of sight, "Mommy, are we there yet? She said, "With luck, by tonight." "

I applaud the use of original wording and creativity and wish every stanza could be like that. I can't stand when the wording is the exact same as Night Before Christmas. And I know the title is The Night Before Summer Vacation, but it was disappointing that we didn't get an actual vacation and it was all buildup. It seemed like the best part was left out, but then it wouldn't have been the night before the vacation, so it wouldn't have made sense.

[Pam]

Humorous take on vacation preparation. Wing captures the excitement and the potential disasters involved. Brightly colored illustrations support the text and emphasize the points.

[Chelsie]

The genres of this book are realistic fiction, poetry, and picture story book. The books tells an interesting story of a family preparing for a trip to begin the summer vacation. There are different elements of preference in cultural choices and gender decisions of what to carry on the trip. This story also shows a young child as the main character doing real life tasks that can relate to things students do in this part of their development. For instance, they have to search for appropriate clothes and tools needed for their departure. This can relate to a family preparing to leave their homeland to immigrate to a new country. It may seem like a weird comparison, but reading through the different steps that are taken to prepare for a trip, I do believe this is a great fit for my text set about family and immigration. Also, the intended age range is three to eight years, as well as the quality of the story has a great overall message of preparation for a journey.

[Karsyn Konecny]

This book is about a famliy who is getting ready for their summer vacation the night before they leave. It shows them packing and reminising on vacations past. It's a shorter picture book but I liked it because it would be a good brain break book when young children such as kindergarten age need a break. There are several fun activities we could do with the book such as the children thinking about a place that they would like to go on vacation some day or what they would pack for that vacation. Overall I liked the book because it was a fun read and it also shows rhyming in the story as well.

[Sha]

This book really bring a chuckle to me. When growing up my grandparents always took me on vacation every summer. I love the text to self connection I get from this book and I bet many students would get the same. My warning would be that even those that get to go on summer vacation may have a text to self connection, those that do not get to may get their feelings hurt. I would be careful when using in the classroom as to how you use the book.

[Amber]

I would read this story to my class right before summer vacation started. I think one thing that made it just a fun book to read was that it rhymed and flowed together almost like a song, just like twas the night before Christmas. I also liked the funny illustrations in the story because I think it would make it easier for kids to get into the story and possibly remind them of vacations they had taken with their own families.

[Victoria Dimmitt]

This is a quick read about a family getting ready to leave for summer vacation. I think this is something that all kids and adults alike can relate to. The hectic hours before vacation when you trying to everything together and ready to go. This book would be good for younger children around 1st/2nd grade.

[Emily]

Title: The Night Before Summer Vacation
Author/Illustrator: Natasha Wing
Publisher: Grosset and Dunlap
Date: April 29, 2002
Genre: fiction

Definitely something kids can relate to, having a hectic schedule and being rushed. Great for younger elementary. Fun twist on the book "Night Before Christmas."

[Rebecca]

Following the metrical patterns of The Night Before Christmas, the author portrays a family getting ready for summer vacation. The author uses some of the exact wording at times such as "where visions of" and "when what to our wondering eyes should appear." It is an easy one to read aloud to small children.

[Angie]

I bought this fun little story from a school book order. My kids love it and it's a fun twist on the Night Before Christmas. If you're planning a vacation or big camping trip, this would be a fun read with little ones before you go.

[Ealthafer]

This is probably one of my new favorite books I have found to teach craft. This story is a twist on the song "The Night Before Christmas." When the book is read to the tune of the Christmas jingle it is perfect but the book describes a family the night before they leave for vacation.

[Jana]

This is a fun picture book that is a terrific play on The Night Before Christmas. This family of four is packing everything into the car for their summer vacation. Young readers will have a great time finding out if anything gets left behind!

[Sheila]

This is a fun book to read at teh end of the school year!

[Rhonda Frost riley]

Love this series The Night Before books

[Jessica Mccormick]

Definitely reminds me of rushing to get ready for up north every year!

[Katie Carlisle]

The rhyming and colorful, detailed illustrations of this story help bring it to life for young readers.

[Heather Jo]

megan summer reading 2015, megan spring reading 2016, children's book, picture book, series, the night before, summer vacation, prepping, rhyming, prek, kindergarten, first grade

[Annabel Rodriguez]

(by 6yo)

It's about leaving for summer vacation and packing and packing. They almost left their pet dog, Pete!

[Smita]

A summertime take on 'Twas the Night Before Christmas.

[Heather]

I planned this to read the night before the first day of summer. I thought it would be fitting.

It appeared they were going camping, with the tent, bug spray, etc. but then they brought snorkels, bikes, floats, Wiffle Ball bats. Images shows flippers, a guitar. I wondered where exactly they were going.
They said they stuffed the shell, which was on top of the car, and I didn't know what that was.

I thought it was odd they broke out the scrapbooks of vacations past, which were random. There was a Museum of Toasters, and Paul Bunyan, and the world's largest onion.
One vacation it rained the whole week at the beach, then the next it was so cold they had to dress warm and completed a puzzle, and I wondered if that was also at the beach, or somewhere else.

She always does the same lines, and only changes a word or two: ‘At last it was time to climb into our beds, where visions of marshmallows danced in our heads.’

‘Then a few moments later there arose such a clatter, we ran to the window to see what was the matter.’
It's too similar to the original, and I'd like to see more of a difference between them.

I wished their vacation was included, but then I realized this is titled The Night Before Summer Vacation, so it's all about the leading up to it. But I still felt a little gypped.

I think I enjoyed this the least out of Wing's books. I just didn’t enjoy the rhymes, or this particular remake of the story. The rhymes just weren’t as good as others in the series. And I expected this to be really cute.

[寿理 宮本]

I suppose I should've guessed the gimmick from the title. Tempted to dock a star JUST for that* but it's not THAT bad. Certainly it isn't as heavyhanded as Jo MacDonald (and even THAT I concede is appropriate for the target audience), but then The Night Before Christmas isn't HALF as repetitive as Old Macdonald Had a Farm.

The art is nice and fits well with the poem, though I cringe at just how much STUFF they are taking with them. Shouldn't they save room for things they might get? Yeah, they're going camping, but they have to make STOPS (and there are gift shops in a bunch of campgrounds), and also loads of temptation to bring home cool bugs and things... I don't know.

(I also don't know about this TEN-HOUR DRIVE to get to a campsite—where are they, Texas?)

Recommended for campers!

*I reflexively dislike Christmas-themed anything just from the fact that a ONE DAY holiday takes up THREE MONTHS OF THE YEAR

[Gabi]

It's the night before summer vacation and this family of four is getting ready for their trip by making a checklist, packing all of their luggage, and looking at pictures from their past vacation. With their car packed full of things for their vacation, they headed out on the road early in the morning. I personally liked the illustrations in this book more than I did the text. The illustrator, Julie Durrell, used watercolors to create vibrant, colorful, and detailed illustrations throughout the book. However, I did like that the text was rhythmic and poetic. I think this book could be great to use in the classroom for younger students either at the beginning of school or at the end of school. After reading this book, you could have students write about what they did over summer break or what they plan to do, depending on when you read the book. In addition, they can use watercolors to create their own illustration of what they did.

[Arianna]

This book is good for grades k and 1. This book rhymes its way through the story of a family getting ready for summer vactation. The family packs and revisits vacation pictures of places they went to years prior. After a lot of struggle they all eventually make it to the car and leave on time.

This is a cute book to read to children or students in the month of summer. Anyone who has traveled in a car with their family knows the hardships of packing. This family's camper looks as if the house moved inside it which is how my family's car looked when we took long car rides to another state.

One classroom use for this book is to teach/introduce rhyming. On every page the words rhyme even though some of them do not end the same such as hat and cat. This book could also be used to introduce a writing prompt for the students to complete. Students can write/draw a story about somewhere that they visitied whether that be to their friends house or another state.

[McKenna]

Genre: Realistic Fiction
Age: K - 5
Illustrations: I did not love the pictures in this book they were very loud and busy.
Gist: With all the rustle and bustle of summer vacation starting, this family was like every other. They were franticly packing trying to get ready and hit the road for another amazing summer vacation. As the night came to an end, and all their bags were packed, they sat down and ate dinner and remembered all their other vacations in the past. They then went to bed and woke up bright eyed and bushy tailed ready to hit the road. As they started on their journey, they realized they left the dog and turned around. After the dog joined they were off for the adventures and fun that awaited.
Curriculum Connections: You can tie this to list making, and how to make a good list for different things. You can also talk about rhyming there is a lot of rhyming in this book.

[Mother Goose Librarian]

The Night Before Summer Vacation by Natasha Wing and illustrated by Julie Durrell,is a fun retelling of The Night Before Christmas. A family prepares to leave for vacation by packing and getting up early to leave for their long journey. As they leave and are on their way, they discover a problem. Whimsical illustrations pair with poetic text. It’s perfect to read aloud before a vacation or on the last day of school.

[Erica Conde]

Another great Night Before...

As a Preschool teacher, I absolutely love Natasha Wing’s ‘Night Before’ series. She does a wonderful job holding the attention of young listeners with her fun rhymes and adorable illustrations. She also adds some fun facts about holidays and special events that little ones a grown ups can both relate!